812 | |
---|---|
Overview | |
Operator | HCT Group |
Garage | Ash Grove |
Vehicle | Optare Solo |
Peak vehicle requirement | 3 |
Status | Defunct |
Began service | 2007 |
Ended service | 26 August 2022 |
Route | |
Start | Hoxton |
Via | Islington Clerkenwell Finsbury Old Street |
End | Hoxton |
Length | 4 miles (6km) |
Service | |
Level | Monday to Friday |
Frequency | Every 30 minutes |
Journey time | 27-28 minutes |
Operates | 09:30 until 16:55 |
Plus Bus route 812 was a circuit bus route in Greater London, serving Finsbury and Islington. Unusually for a bus route entirely in London, it was tendered and subsidised by Islington London Borough Council rather than Transport for London, and operated under a London Service permit. For this reason, buses used on this route were in a yellow livery, rather than the usual red, and it did not charge standard London fares. Oyster Cards were not accepted anywhere on the route, but Freedom Passes and walk up cash fares where accepted. It was operated by HCT Group.
Despite the name, the route was not part of the Plusbus scheme.
Route 812 was introduced by CT Plus in 2007. Together with similar route 816, it replaced a group of routes which previously ran under the Plus Bus name. [1] Funding for the route was withdrawn at the end of 2007, leading to fears of cancellation, but local councillors stepped in to fund the route. In 2010, the route carried 27,000 passengers per year. [2]
The route was increased in frequency from two buses per hour to three in 2009. New 12-seat Volkswagen Transporter minibuses with Bluebird Tucana bodies were introduced to the route in 2010. [3]
The route was faced with withdrawal in 2011 due to Islington London Borough Council budget cuts. [4] To support the route, Transport for London provided additional funding. [5]
In March 2020, HCT Group temporarily withdrew the route as a result of low usage amid the COVID-19 national lockdown. [6]
On 26 August 2022, HCT Group ceased operating the route citing financial difficulties. [7] [8] [9]
Route 812 operated via these primary locations: [10]
The London Borough of Islington is a London borough which forms part of Inner London. Islington has an estimated population of 215,667. It was formed in 1965 under the London Government Act 1963, which simultaneously abolished the metropolitan boroughs of Islington and Finsbury.
Clerkenwell is an area of central London, England.
Dalston is an area of East London, in the London Borough of Hackney. It is four miles northeast of Charing Cross. Dalston began as a hamlet on either side of Dalston Lane, and as the area urbanised the term also came to apply to surrounding areas including Kingsland and Shacklewell, all three of which being part of the Ancient Parish of Hackney.
Finsbury is a district of Central London, forming the south-eastern part of the London Borough of Islington. It borders the City of London.
Finsbury Park is a public park in the London neighbourhood of Harringay. It is in the area formerly covered by the historic parish of Hornsey, succeeded by the Municipal Borough of Hornsey. It was one of the first of the great London parks laid out in the Victorian era. The park borders the neighbourhoods of Harringay, Finsbury Park, Stroud Green, and Manor House.
Old Street is a National Rail and London Underground station at the junction of Old Street and City Road in central London, England. The station is on the Bank branch of the Northern line between Angel and Moorgate stations and on the Northern City Line between Moorgate and Essex Road stations. The station is in the London Borough of Islington. It is in Travelcard Zone 1.
The Metropolitan Borough of Finsbury was a Metropolitan borough within the County of London from 1900 to 1965, when it was amalgamated with the Metropolitan Borough of Islington to form the London Borough of Islington.
Islington was a civil parish and metropolitan borough in London, England. It was an ancient parish within the county of Middlesex, and formed part of The Metropolis from 1855. The parish was transferred to the County of London in 1889 and became a metropolitan borough in 1900. It was amalgamated with the Metropolitan Borough of Finsbury to form the London Borough of Islington in Greater London in 1965.
Islington South and Finsbury is a constituency created in 1974 and represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2005 by Emily Thornberry of the Labour Party. Thornberry served as Shadow Foreign Secretary from 2016 until 2020 and is currently Shadow Attorney General for England and Wales.
Exmouth Market is a semi-pedestrianised street in Clerkenwell in the London Borough of Islington, and the location of an outdoor street market of 32 stalls.
London Buses route 26 is a Transport for London contracted bus route in London, England. Running between Hackney Wick and Victoria station, it is operated by Stagecoach London.
London Buses route 271 was a Transport for London contracted bus route in London, England. It ran between Highgate Village and Finsbury Square, and was operated by Metroline.
Spa Fields is a park and its surrounding area in the London Borough of Islington, bordering Finsbury and Clerkenwell. Historically it is known for the Spa Fields riots of 1816 and an Owenite community which existed there between 1821 and 1824. The park, or open common, was once of 14 hectares but was mostly built over in the 19th century, beginning in the 1830s, and is now a small park, popular with office workers at lunchtime, and as a children's playground.
The London Night Bus network is a series of night bus routes that serve Greater London. Services broadly operate between the hours of 23:00 and 06:00.
HCT Group was a social enterprise providing transport services and community services in several areas of the United Kingdom. It was founded in 1982 as Hackney Community Transport in the London Borough of Hackney, to provide transport services for local voluntary organisations, charities, and community groups. HCT Group was registered as a company limited by guarantee. The company was also a registered charity.
London Buses route 394 is a Transport for London contracted bus route in London, England. Running between Homerton University Hospital and Islington, it is operated by Stagecoach London.
Angel is an area on the northern fringes of Central London within the London Borough of Islington. It is 2 miles (3.2 km) north-northeast of Charing Cross on the Inner Ring Road at a busy transport intersection. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in London. It is a significant commercial and retail centre, and a business improvement district. Angel straddles the ancient boundary of the parishes of Clerkenwell and Islington that later became the metropolitan boroughs of Finsbury and Islington. It is named from the former Angel Inn which stood on the corner of Islington High Street and Pentonville Road. Since 1965 the whole area has formed part of the London Borough of Islington in Greater London.
Islington Museum is a public museum dedicated to the history of the London Borough of Islington. It opened in 2008 and covers various themes on local and social history.
Islington Local History Centre is a local studies centre and archive which holds material documenting the history of the London Borough of Islington.
London Buses route 153 is a Transport for London contracted bus route in London, England. Running between Finsbury Park and Liverpool Street station, it is operated by London General.
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: CS1 maint: url-status (link)Media related to Plus Bus route 812 at Wikimedia Commons