Tuesday 26th August 2025
Go-bus held an open day and bus rally on Saturday to mark the 100th anniversary of the former London Transport Country bus garage it now occupies in the town.
And yes, that is a new name for what was previously known as Go-Coach Hire with ‘go bus’ better reflecting what the company actually does – operate buses in the borderlands between Greater London and Kent including Sevenoaks, where the company was previously based.
Readers may recall I included a short feature about the impressive refurbishment of the garage back in August 2023 after company founder and Engineering Director, Austin Blackburn, kindly showed me around. It was fantastic to see the restoration of the art-deco office block as well as the significant work that had gone into making the garage fit for operations again, including the reinstatement of a modern pit facility, after being closed for some time.
As well as the photographs above from the London Transport Museum’s collection, the Souvenir Programme for the day on Saturday included more wonderful images from that collection…
…including one from soon after it all started back in 1925 when two bus routes operated by East Surrey Traction Co Ltd (401 and 407) moved into the new premises from the previous location in the town – an outstation of Dunton Green at Lullington Castle Hotel. There’s no trace of that heritage left today.
The premises passed to London Transport ownership on its formation in 1933…
… and subsequently to London Country Bus Services on its formation in 1970 as a subsidiary of the National Bus Company.
Sadly London Country closed the garage in January 1986 although it won a reprieve that August when route 51 operated from there as an outstation of Dartford, on behalf of London Regional Transport. Then in September London Country was split into four companies ready for privatisation with Swanley coming under the auspices of the South East company which was renamed Kentish Bus.
To mark this era, go-bus has repainted one of its Enviro400 buses into the Kentish Bus livery of the time, replacing the London Country green it previously wore representing the 1970s.
Sadly the garage became victim of a further closure in 1989 when Kentish Bus reorganised its overheads but in 1995 another short reprieve saw CentreWest move its successfully won contract for the Orpington Buses network into the garage on a temporary basis until the following year when a permanent base in St Mary Cray opened. After that, fast forward to 2005 when Southlands Travel moved into the garage … until 2007 when it moved out. The site was used for the storage of cars for the next few years with Go-Coach Hire using part of the site from 2015 to outstation some of its operation from the main Sevenoaks base.
When the lessor using the site for car storage vacated the building in early 2022, Austin Blackburn saw his chance and took on a lease for the whole site moving the entire operation from Sevenoaks into the premises later that year.
He’s done a fantastic job renovating the site – the offices look amazing and the garage is a practical area with a pit and hoists with parking out the back for buses.
As you can see the pit was open to the public for people to take a look at the underside of a bus which was proving to be a popular attraction.
And it doesn’t end there. Arrangements are in hand to install electric charge points for new battery buses with the company currently having two Mellor Sigma 7s on loan which will be joined by three Righttech RB6s making five vehicles for the four PVR GC1 bus/DRT route.
Kent County Council has come up with this rather in-your-face livery and a CrossBus brand name to indicate to passengers the route is a cross between a standard timetable at certain times and a DRT operation at others. (No comment.)
Elsewhere there were rides through the bus wash…
… and the offices were open for inspection…
… including a rather impressive centenary cake depicting the signature architecture.
As I reported before, there’s an excellent timeline about the garage history on the wall of the reception area which was attracting a lot of interest on Saturday.
Back in the garage pride of display place went to two special visitors. A K-type as used by East Surrey on local routes S1 and S7 (forerunners of the 401 and 407) from Swanley in the 1920s. This bus, K502, was allocated to East Ham and Old Kent Road garages of the London General Omnibus Company (LGOC) and is owned by B Weatherhead who restored it after it had been used as a hen house on an egg farm. Next to that was a T-type used by the LGOC on the first Green Line routes in the 1930s. It’s now owned by the London Transport Museum.
Completing the line up was a Leyland fire engine known as “Borough of Dartford” and is now owned by Dartford Borough Council having been fully restored in 1971 having been withdrawn from service as recently as 1955.
As there’s limited space to display heritage vehicles at the bus garage arrangements were made to have a ‘Vintage & Classic Bus & Car Show’ six miles down the A20 at Gamecock Meadow in West Kingsdown…
… with a shuttle bus running regularly between the two sites with some of the display vehicles to ferry visitors up and down.
It proved to be quite a challenge to keep the buses running to schedule as emergency gas works right outside the garage…
… saw three way temporary traffic lights causing long tail backs either side of the garage.
But down at West Kingsdown it was worth the visit as there was an interesting display of familiar red and green liveried buses…
… as well as others from neighbouring fleets as the following selection of photographs demonstrates.
There was also a good selection of sales stands with transport memorabilia and for those into classic cars many of those on display too…
.. with their owners coming well equipped to enjoy the lovely weather for the event.
Austin tells me the attendance on Saturday beat all expectations with about 1,600 people visiting. I’m not surprised as there’s great affection for go-coach/go-bus/go from not only those interested in the industry but, and it was obvious from seeing those attending, from local people and the community too.
It’s a great example of a locally based company engaging with and supporting the local community it serves who respond in kind at events like this including the Mayor of Swanley Town Council, Councillor Keith Mitchell attending the event and seen here alongside Austin arriving at West Kingsdown.
Go-bus is an impressive set up in what are challenging times. I had a nice chat with recently appointed managing director Alastair Willis on Saturday and he is very much up for the challenge and making sure go-bus thrives in whatever the next few years brings, not least with the change in political control at Kent County Council (KCC) in May.
The company is about to start its version of long standing route 477 between Dartford and Swanley with a half hour frequency (from 1st September). I even saw a poster and timetable for it on display in the staff toilets in the offices at Swanley which I thought was a nice touch.
I understand Arriva has deregistered its hourly 477 between Dartford, Swanley and Orpington from the end of October in response, so it will be interesting to see if KCC’s supports a replacement for the section south of Swanley.
Well done to everyone involved in the 100th Anniversary event on Saturday. It was a pleasure to attend.
Roger French
Summer blogging timetable: 06:00 TThSSu
BusAndTrainUser 
Go Coach and Austin have contributed enormously to ensuring bus services in West Kent are still provided.
LikeLike
not enough programmes produced as a avid programme collector when I arrived they had none left ;
this happens at a lot of similar events now unless your at the event when it first opens
LikeLike
You’re welcome to have mine if you email me your postal address to: busandtrainuser@gmail.com
LikeLike
Hi Roger, many thanks for this, such a full and cheerful post. Sorry I missed this one. Best wishes, Peter
LikeLike
I am beginning to think that Swanley Garage deserves a book all of it’s own, surely beating all records for it’s phoenix-like existence, rising from the ashes as a bus garage more times than anywhere else I can think of.
It was always the “poor relation” in London Transport days, unusually never even having it’s own staff canteen. Bus crews always taking their breaks in Dartford and visiting Green Line crews from “the other end” having their breaks two miles up the road in Sidcup (Central area) garage.
All credit to Go-Bus for trying, but the now very large territory they work and the resultant sparse level of services provided, does not bode too well for the future. Perhaps the only long-term hope is Arriva pulling out entirely from the area ….a not unknown occurrence.
Terence Uden
LikeLike
The former Camberwell tram depot has undergone several revivals, although not quite enough to rival Swanley.
Upon withdrawal of its trams, the depot became a bus garage, named Walworth as there was already a Camberwell bus garage across the road. Walworth garage closed in 1985, but was later reopened as a temporary base for the Red Arrow fleet. The Red Arrows then moved to their permanent base at Waterloo, and Walworth was closed again. During the 1990s, Walworth garage was used by London & Country/Londonlinks for tendered services in south London, closing again in 1997. It reopened in 2004 as a base for Travel London (now Transport UK).
I think that’s it, unless I have forgotten another period of Walworth being used for something…
Malc M
LikeLike
Ash Grove is another one, apologies for any errors here:
Opened in 1981 for London Buses.
Closed in 1991 when London Forest was wound-up.
Re-opened in 1994 by Kentish Bus.
Kentish Bus had to leave the garage in February 1998 following tender losses, leading to its closure again.
Re-opened again in 2000 for use by East Thames Buses, taking over the failed Harris Bus operation.
October 2005, East Thames Buses moved out and after a short break CT Plus moved in.
November 2005, Arriva London started using Ash Grove as a home base for its NBfL on the 38 after they wouldn’t fit in to Clapton.
April 2022, Stagecoach takeover from CT Buses.
February 2024, Arriva London move out.
LikeLike
Worrying that Arriva are still in the “roll over and withdraw service” reaction to a competitor starting up on their patch, it’s hard to keep up here in Beds and Bucks with the constant Arriva meddling and changing services, next week’s will be the second in less than two months – how are you meant to plan your life around this sort of stuff, I booked a flight and now Arriva have withdrawn the bus I was going to use to get to the airport 🤣
LikeLike
To me that’s the best argument for buses to be publicly owned, changes are far too often and very often not changes that make buses easier to use and more convenient. Network coverage is certainly not guaranteed. Arriva seem particularly flaky these days. Thing is politicians want people to use public transport, so surely public ownership is the only way to ensure places remain well served.
Bit like the changes to the 477, it may be more frequent on the bulk of the route but just like that, another cross-boundary route is potentially gone! Not like Go-Coach are unfamiliar with Orpington either. They run a small number of journeys from there to Sevenoaks on route 3. In London by comparison, some of the bus numbers and routes haven’t changed in 80 to even 100+ years! A route number around for so long it became associated with an area just like the local postcode!
Aaron
LikeLike
A good operation, but not good news to see the Orpington to Swanley via Crockenhill section uncovered.
LikeLike
There were still programme booklets available when I turned up late, however the front garage desk was just packing up some time before the advertised closing time – the exhibits and bus wash were still around but it did feel a bit like buses doing early running.
Good that the London Transport 233 (TfL) bus still runs past the garage and beyond to terminate but I didnt fancy getting left in West Kingsdown so didnt visit so thanks for the photos – I would like more information on Maidstone and District’s Express routes to London as that is something I know nothing about.
The bus timetable panel and cover at Swanley Station where the “town service” was dropping off passengers needs a clean and had the new route time – marked correctly with Effective From on it, along with the arriva one but that was difficult to read.
Also difficult to read was the TfL ?maintained? stop by Station Road – three panels again rather dirty and one had to stand in shrubbery to read one panel – the one that appeared to show Go-Coach services and really it was not readable – certainly in hours of darkness.
Travelling on the 233 there were comments from local families about the buses and cars on the road – they had not realised the open day as such was on , but all ages expressed appreciation at seeing them. The gas works were delaying the route and I was probably on it too long in the queue to get past the out of use bus stop for a short walk back
There were somewhat fewer of the younger hordes that sometimes turn up at London events and as such the numbers traveling on the two bus routes- enhanced beyond the minimum service advertised – appeared manageable and thus more in keeping with the size of the garage, along with internal photography not too bad to take with folk around. I think some people might have liked a more visible line up of the fleet but the rear of the garage yard isnt really big enough to do that.
For anyone still missing not being able to buy the transport model they needed at the West Kingsdown location The Association of Bexley Charities present their annual Falconwood (The Green) toy collectors fair on Thursday 28th August from 4pm to 730pm (buns and coffees on sale too) for a selection of new and old railway ,bus, books , model cars etc.
LikeLike
I assume you’re referring to M&D’s historic services past the garage.
In July 1980 M&D took over Green Line 729, which was the last remains of the London to Wrotham service, although by this time it was running as far as the M&D garage at Borough Green. They renumbered it 929 and initially kept the MF two return trips frequency.
At some point they also introduced the E1/E2/E3 (1965 is the earliest timetable I can find but I’m guessing it pre-dates that) which ran between Tenderden, Maidstone, Swanley and London. There was also an E4/E10 which ran to Hastings, Bexhill and Rye, and there may also have been E5-E9 routes but I’ve not found any details of them.
By the 1980s the E1/E2/E3 had become the 929 and was running Green Line style with fares paid on the coach. Later there were also 978 and 979 variants covering slightly different routes to or from London. Despite the numerous route numbers and variations, I don’t think the services were never especially successful and the frequency in the deregulation era never got past half a dozen or so return trips a day.
Much more successful were the “fast” services to Maidstone numbered in the 980-984 sequence. These ran non-stop between Sidcup and Wrotham and were very similar the Green Line services of the same era, with a large number of peak journeys picking up around different estates, a less frequent off-peak service on the core route and even a theatreland special back in the late evening.
LikeLike
M&D express services past Swanley garage were operating from the late 1920s…presumably getting route numbers E1/2/3 when coaches services were regulated in 1930. They were perfectly successful until the early 1970s until the Great British public regarded a car as “a must have”. There were restrictions and I believe the first setting down point from London was Farningham, with London Transport farescales having to adopt to M&D South of that point.
Only going by memory so stand to be corrected on that one. The E4/10 travelled out via Bromley, so didn’t serve Swanley.
Terence Uden
LikeLike
There’s actually an E1/2/3 timetable booklet from 1965 for sale on eBay. As you say it was a quite decent frequency at that point, it only declined later and in the deregulation era the growth was all in the 980-984 group not the traditional services. In 1965 at least you still needed to book in advance, I don’t know at what point it changed to pay on the coach.
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/334333569503
LikeLike
An interesting story. The person taking a photo of the Mellor Sigma is me!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Well done to Austin and his team for an enjoyable day. Well-organised and just the right number of visiting vehicles etc.
LikeLike
Interesting to note that the date coincided with the first day of electric buses (SEO class) on the passing route 233.
LikeLike
Just a very minor typo: the K-type bus shown in your picture above is K502.
PS
LikeLike
Many thanks – I spotted that but forgot to correct it! Now corrected.
LikeLike
indeed it was a good event and the garage is a great improvement on its time with Southlands Travel and car storage. I decided to find out more about Go Bus routes and explored their website only to be told to prove that I was a human which was extremely childish and unprofessional. I don’t run a car so frequently use local authority and transport operator websites and have never been asked this before. Hopefully Go Bus MD will read this and instruct his IT manager to grow up and be more proactive in promoting his employer’s business.
John
LikeLike
The requirement to “prove you are human” is an unfortunate consequence of the increasing number of damaging attacks on websites which aim to steal data or make the website unusable. It is also in some respects a protection for the legitimate users and visitors to the site. In many cases, the visitor to a site only has to click on a box on the first page to gain access to the site.
It certainly isn’t childish or unprofessional, and is used by many website owners (although I did not see it when I went to the Go Coach site a few minutes ago). However, many other websites do use the system.
A minor irritant, perhaps, but unfortunately a necessary precaution for website owners.
RC169
LikeLike
I fully agree that protection is needed where sensitive or confidential information such as staff/customer personal and financial information is held on a website then protection should be mandatory as M&S, Co-op and the NHS have discovered. A bus timetable can hardly be considered sensitive information so my comments stand. I also noted that, while timetables could be printed, I only found two which could be downloaded.
LikeLike
The comments on Arriva’s “giving up in the face of competition” can’t be dismissed. I’ve seen it happen in the 3 counties Beds,Bucks and Herts.in the last ten years or so giving in to the smaller operators like Red Eagl/Red Rose ,(Hertfordshire),Centrebus ( South Beds)and Carousel (High Wycombe).Locally, ARRIVA Hemel Hempstead is just about ticking over, with 3 town services 2,3,4, ,and 4 distance routes;20 (to Watford Hospital)300/2( St Albans/Welwyn Garden City)322 (to Rickmansworth).
Robert James
LikeLike
To clarify on the Green Line/M&D thing.
The E-numbered routes of M&D that survived passed to National Express, adopting the national numbering system in 1972/73. There was no direct linkage from these to the post-1980 Invictaway services.
Green Line 719 ceased to serve Wrotham from July 1978, when it was diverted to East Grinstead. The replacement Maidstone & District 919 service combined off peak workings from the 719 with workings from National Express 009 (Tenterden-Maidstone-London). A residual peak service continued to be run by London Country from Swanley garage as 729, but by 1980, this too had passed to M&D as 929.
The 1978 timetable for the 919 includes restrictive conditions west of Swanley i.e. no pick up towards London, no set down towards Tenterden.
All this was pre-coach deregulation of course, so it was perfectly open for British Rail to oppose the licence application in the traffic courts. No idea whether they did so in this instance.
KCC
LikeLike
Thanks to all on the M and D services. I was not sure if they appeared on Country Area maps of London Transport. The transfer to Nat Ex numbers is also interesting. I doubt BR particulary would have objected to the service level as timewise it didnt really compete with the faster rail service point to point.
I didnt have a problem with the Go-Coach website, indeed the request for weekend rail replacement drivers at £18 an hr looked tempting considering Rochdale drivers are on strike for having less than £15 an hr stage carriage ( but can you afford a house in Swanley on the £18 rate ? )
Arriva we have discussed recently on the blog interview with the new main director. Go-coach are losing a couple of Kent contracts end of August so it is not all growth all round, one chooses were the costs can be covered I guess.
Perhaps we review the service patterns this time next year
JBC Prestatyn
LikeLike
I wouldn’t hold out too much hope of KCC riding to the rescue in support the Orpington section of the 477. They are currently consulting on reductions to the services they provide right across the range. I’m not sure that bus.services in general, and this in particular, will gain a great deal of support unless a leading councillor lives somewhere along the route.
Jeff
LikeLike
There are structural issues in the funding of general local government expenditure (as opposed to bids for specific pots or allocated pots for local transport or the like) With Reform now being put to the test in areas it has control of or a workable majority we can see how those availible funds are managed and what , if any, priorities for public transport – via infrastructure or subsidy – actually come to pass for the remaining 2025 / 2026 year and the 2026 / 2027 year or five year plans – are Local Transport Plans still a required thing by the DfT ?
JBC Prestatyn
LikeLike
next for Roger to look at
Andover – Newbury 7 /7a being withdrawn
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cy40krpr7jgo
DRT area will expand to provide replacement service if needed
JBC Prestatyn
LikeLike
I am sceptical as to Green Line crews from say Garston Garage having their break and meal at Sidcup Garage. In 1969 Route 719 would have worked in three sections for each journey. A Garston “Tango” crew working the coaches between Hemel Hempstead & Garston and a Swanley “Tango” crew working the coaches between Swanley & Wrotham; Garston coaches being worked by Garston crews on the trunk section with Swanley coaches being worked by Swanley crews over the trunk section too. I cannot imagine the changeover point being at Sidcup as this would entail the Swanley “Tango” crews needing to travel to and from Sidcup from their home garage. Does anyone know where the Amersham Garage crews had their break and meal when it was Route 703 which went between Amersham and Wrotham?
LikeLike
I can confirm that GR crews DID have their relief breaks at Sidcup Garage, right up until Route 719 was withdrawn . . . and I see no reason to assume that MA crews on Route 703 were any different.
A GR driver would (usually) work beyond Sidcup to Wrotham, and return to SP for relief, taking the next coach over to return north. The SJ driver (it is assumed) would board the coach at SJ and travel to SP, then taking the coach over. At the north end of the route, a SJ driver would (usually) work through to Hemel Hempstead and then return to GR for relief, taking over the next southbound coach.
Why that way? If a coach was running late, then the stand time at the outer terminal could be used to mitigate some of the late running, resulting in less overtime payments!! Clever, huh?
It wasn’t always that simple . . . with the schedule effectively having an “end” to cover at both ends of the route, and a maximum Time on Duty being set at 8:00 on Mondays-Fridays but 7:38 at weekends, the duty schedule could be “challenging” at times . . . the Sunday schedule especially so.
Look up a 719 timetable from (say) 1973 and have a go . . . remembering that the maximum spell was 5:00, except on Saturdays when it was 4:30 . . . that’s why schedule compiling is sometimes referred to as a “black art”!! Oh, and BTW . . . there is never a “correct” answer . . .only a “best available” answer.
LikeLike