Welcome to route 704

Tuesday 3rd June 2025

Eyebrows were raised in April 2023 when First Bus made changes to its network of bus routes in Slough and Maidenhead cutting the direct link from Heathrow Airport and Langley to Maidenhead. Route 4 was changed to terminate in Cippenham instead (shown in orange on the network map below) and is now numbered A4.

Maidenhead and Taplow further west along the A4 were instead served by route 6 which terminated at Wexham Court (marked in yellow).

It turned out these changes were at the behest of Heathrow Airport where managers pointed out more of its staff lived in, and commuted to and from Cippenham, than Maidenhead so for them the change made sense.

But it left Maidenhead not only cut off from its nearest large neighbour to its west, Reading, but also severed from Heathrow Airport as a key destination to the east.

As previously reported Carousel has recently reintroduced a direct link to Reading (new route 127 began in March) and now two years on, Reading Buses owned Thames Valley has restored Maidenhead’s direct link along the A4 to Heathrow Airport with the introduction of new commercially operated route 704.

The new route launched yesterday so I went along to see its potential.

It’s a two bus Mondays to Saturdays hourly frequency from 05:34 to 19:40 with no Sunday service showing all the hallmarks of a cautious ‘test the market/toe-in-the-water’ operation.

The route terminates at Heathrow Airport Terminal 5 whereas First’s route 4/A4 has always served the Central Bus Station for Terminals 2 and 3 although free interchange is available on other buses and trains between terminals but that does involve a time penalty.

Off-peak journey time between Maidenhead and Terminal 5 is 56 minutes eastbound and 54 minutes westbound so there’s not a lot of slack for the two buses at each end although the timetable does include a five minute pause in Slough in both directions.

Thames Valley is awaiting delivery of buses intended for the route and in the meantime are using E200s including one in plain white livery which I understand was used recently on Park and Ride duties.

As you’d expect from Thames Valley there’s an attractive colourful leaflet, thanks to Best Impressions, giving details of the timetable, the route, bus stops and the £3 fare.

And as you’d also expect a supply was available on board the bus I travelled on …

…and welcomed by passengers (online only obsessives please note).

Furthermore it was good to see departures had been updated at the terminal point in Frascati Way, Maidenhead.

I caught the 11:09 departure from Maidenhead through to Heathrow Airport which carried 11 passengers in total; not bad for a first morning.

Buses leave Maidenhead from the main bus stop on the east side of Frascati Way then circuit the town centre with handy pick ups at bus stops at Broadway, Market Street and Library whereas First’s route 6 leaves from outside the railway station and heads directly along the A4, avoiding those town centre pick ups.

Two passengers travelled to Taplow, who could have caught First’s route 6, as could three travelling from various stops in Taplow to Slough. Four travelled from various stops in Slough and Langley to Heathrow. The latter were all employees going to work and the former were shoppers/leisure travellers.

The other two passengers were Lewis from Carousel who joined us for a short ride in Maidenhead (nice to see you, Lewis) and blog reader Bob who lives locally and sampled the ride as far as Slough (nice to see you again too, Bob).

Once we were in the Slough area a similarly timed bus on First’s half hourly route A4 appeared behind us and played cat and mouse all the way through to Colnbrook where we parted company…

…with that route as already mentioned serving Central Bus Station while we headed off to Terminal 5 taking advantage of the bus only access roads.

Between Slough and Terminal 5 the 704 runs parallel with the half hourly Flightline branded 703 also operated by Reading Buses/Thames Valley but that goes via Colnbrook Village whereas the 704 uses the by-pass, saving seven minutes, which seems a lot but the eastern end of the route seemed a bit tightly timed as we arrived into Terminal 5 at 12:08 (due 12:05) with the return journey to Maidenhead due to leave at 12:10.

It’s a bold move by Reading Buses/Thames Valley to restore this direct connection especially as the Airport has previously demonstrated it doesn’t see it as a strategic link (cf diverting route 4/A4), but there again if other surrounding towns such as Basingstoke, Camberley, High Wycombe and Watford can all have financially supported bus links then why not Maidenhead?

Because financial support is what’s going to be needed to sustain the frequency and a round the clock operation Airports need for their passengers and staff.

Good luck to the 704 and nice to see yet another new commercially operated bus route being tried out (see recent blogs about the X1, (MK) Loop, X1, 127, 2).

Roger French

Blogging timetable: 06:00 TThS and Summer Su extras.