Criss-crossing between London and Hertfordshire

Thursday 21st August 2025

The end of this month sees changes to two bus routes that cross London’s border with Hertfordshire so a small group of bus industry veterans recently joined me for an enjoyable wander cross-crossing the border four times to sample routes 84B and 610 for one last time.

We began our travels on uno’s hourly route 610 which at one time went all the way from Enfield (in peak hours), Cockfosters and Potters Bar to Hatfield and Luton.

The Enfield section was ditched some time ago and now the route is being cut back to only run north of the University of Hertfordshire’s campuses in Hatfield to Luton via Wheathamstead and Harpenden. South of Hatfield the route through Welham Green and Brookmans Park as far as Potters Bar will be covered by two newly extended other routes (more of which later) and south of Potters Bar to Cockfosters passengers continue to have the 20-minute frequency TfL route 298, also now operated by uno. But the through route from Cockfosters to Hatfield and Luton will be no more.

Route 601 winds back the years to when London Transport Country Buses used New Barnet as a terminal point with buses heading north to far away places beyond Potters Bar such as Hitchin and Bishops Stortford.

We caught the 11:40 from Cockfosters as far as the University’s extensive set up at The Forum where there’s a busy bus station particularly in term time but even in holiday time earlier this month it was noticeable there were quite a few passengers around. Passengers boarded throughout the route even from Cockfosters to travel to Potters Bar despite it being a non TfL route so Oyster, 60+ Freedom Passes and the £1.75 flat fare are not applicable.

Cockfosters station holds wonderful memories of childhood travels but sadly is now past its prime. Charles Holden and Frank Pick would not be happy if they could see how run down it looks compared to its heyday.

From Potters Bar to Hatfield the 610 serves Brookmans Park and Welham Green, once the preserve of London Transport Country Bus route 303/A on its way twice an hour from New Barnet to Hitchin.

It was interesting to see a reasonable number of passengers joining us but I’m not sure there’s scope to double their number to match the doubling of frequency from 31st August. However, as already mentioned, we were obviously travelling during the university vacation so student numbers were obviously very much reduced.

However, our next bus back south to cross the border again, on route 614 to Barnet, Edgware and Queensbury, despite it being holiday time, had a good dozen or more students on board and I understand during term time gets very well used to the extent buses become full.

The connection between the 610 and 614 was rather tight so we took an hour’s break in the cafe at the Forum and met up with uno’s Commercial Director, Simon Newport and a colleague for a catch up and discussion about the upcoming developments at uno including taking over another TfL route – the 292 between Colindale, Edgware and Borehamwood.

It was also an opportunity to pass on praise for the brilliant explanatory leaflet it’s currently distributing on buses…

… about the upcoming changes.

This sets out the changes very clearly service by service, including those that aren’t changing and a helpful map.

More leaflets and an updated timetable book are in hand for issuing closer to the change date. That’s the way to do it.

Back on the 614, we enjoyed a fast journey down the A1(M) to South Mimms from where the route retraces the former London Transport route 84 to Barnet (and beyond to Arnos Grove) on what is now the A1081 and along which there’s not a lot until reaching Barnet where the bus takes the back road via The Spires to Wood Street (towards Elstree) and where we noticed that busy road had been closed for emergency roadworks, thankfully just east of where we joined.

We alighted at the bus stop for Barnet Hospital and walked round to the small ‘bus station’ and waited for the 84B to take us back north again across the border to Potters Bar.

The road closure was having an impact with the bus getting seriously delayed on the diversion via Manor Road and Mays Lane – used by TfL route 184 but badly clogged up with diverted traffic as no attempt had been made to restrict parking.

We eventually left Barnet Hospital 17 minutes late with the driver having to negotiate the diversion again to reach the northbound High Street stop which we reached 22 minutes late picking up two passengers who’d been patiently waiting.

There were only three or four passengers through to Potters Bar but the route now has a more certain future. As part of the changes on 31st August it will become an established feature of the County’s bus network with uno taking the service over from Central Connect, renumbering it 243 and extending it through to Hatfield every hour in place of the 610. This will be complimented by an extension to route 242 (Waltham Cross to Potters Bar) which uno took over in January and will also now operate as far as Hatfield. This provides welcome new connections between Hatfield and Barnet (just like those old LT Country Bus days) as well as from Waltham Cross, Cuffley and Northaw. As mentioned it will be back to two buses an hour again.

Back in Potters Bat we took one more journey south to cross the border into Greater London on the long established route 313 now operated incongruously by TfL’s anomalous LT class buses. This route takes The Ridgeway to Enfield before continuing to Chingford. Arriva provide a 20 minute frequency but despite a missing departure and a bus arriving at the terminus outside the station seven minutes after that elusive departure, the driver sat in the cab for the next 13 minutes while frustrated passengers were left waiting outside, including ourselves.

It must be the only bus route to be operated by three door, two staircase buses which serves farms.

We ended our cross boundary expedition at Enfield Chase station and headed home. Here’s a map showing the four cross boundary journeys as well as two more journeys I made last week….

… as I wanted to take one last ride on uno route 601 (‘The AlbanWay’) which is also disappearing at the end of the month.

It runs hourly between Welwyn Garden City, Hatfield, St Albans and Radlett to Borehamwood so doesn’t actually cross the border with Greater London which skirts round the southern edge of the town. Passengers won’t lose out by its withdrawal as changes to other routes will more than compensate.

Uno’s route 602 (which duplicates the 601 between Hatfield and St Albans) is having a frequency increase to every 15 minutes and between St Albans and Borehamwood a new hourly route 362 operated by Red Eagle will provide direct replacement on the route taken by the 601 and will be coordinated with the existing 361 between the two towns via a slightly different route to provide a half hourly frequency.

I took a ride in the section of route from St Albans south to Borehamwood and we carried 17 passengers. It more or less follows the old London Transport route 355 south of St Albans (as shown on the earlier vintage map).

From Borehamwood I returned north to South Mimms and Potters Bar on Sullivan’s route 398…

… which uses the A1…

… passes through the South Mimms Service Area on the M25…

… calls by the once erstwhile northern terminus of route 29 at Claire Hall Hospital in South Mimms…

… before terminating at Potters Bar station. Only two passengers travelled from Borehamwood to Potters Bar but another eight joined between South Mimms and Potters Bar (including two in the Service Area).

And yes, that is a nasty crack on the front upper deck windscreen.

Interestingly in London Transport days the section of route between Borehamwood and South Mimms on the A1 was served by just one peak hour journey on the 29 (northbound morning and southbound evening) which went as far south as Turnpike Lane. Victoria would have been a bit of a stretch even in those pre 1968 long LT route days.

And that completed my cross border trips and farewell to uno in Cockfosters and Central Connect in Barnet and Potters Bar.

Roger French

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