TOP 15 London Bus Changes - TRANSPORT NEWS: October 2026 Special

October 2026 was a big month for London buses, with major announcements about route changes and new operators, new electrics and a surprise return of older buses on one lucky route. Routes featured: 90, 106, D6, 333, 415, 74, 430, C3, 135, 277, D7, R11, Superloop SL7, Superloop SL1, 16, 353, 359, 624, 625, 658, 319, 94, 98, 139, 390, 79, 220, Other routes will be featured in future Transport News/route focused videos 0:00 Introduction 0:05 Overview 0:15 Route 90 0:35 Routes 106 and D6 0:50 Three routes withdrawn 0:55 Routes 333 and 415 1:20 Routes 74, 430 and C3 1:50 Routes 135, 277, D6 and D7 2:15 Route R11 2:35 Route SL7 3:25 Route SL1 4:15 Route 16 4:50 Route 353 5:05 Route 359 5:45 Go Bus 6:15 Route 319 6:45 Oxford Street 7:35 Buses for London Three Routes Withdrawn 5th October 2026 On the 4th of October, TfL released plans to withdraw three London bus routes. These are the 415, C3 and D7, which may stop running in 2027, if plans go ahead. Route 415 The 415 runs between Old Kent Road, Tesco and Tulse Hill. The route is planned to be withdrawn and replaced by the 333. The 333 currently runs from Elephant & Castle to Tooting Broadway. It is proposed to be extended to Old Kent Road, with no other changes. This change is planned due to low usage on the 415. Route C3 The C3 runs between Earl's Court Tesco and Clapham Junction. The route is planned to be withdrawn and replaced by route 74. The 74 would be rerouted, no longer terminating at Putney High Street. It would stop serving Putney Bridge, Fulham Palace Road and Lillie Road. The 74 will instead run to Clapham Junction, serving most stops on the C3. The 430 will have a minor frequency increase to compensate for the loss of the 74. Route D7 Route D7 runs between Mile End and Isle of Dogs Asda. The route is planned to be withdrawn and replaced by the 135, 277 and D6. The 277 and D6 would be changed to serve Cubitt Town and Island Gardens. Route 135 would no longer serve Island Gardens or Cubitt Town. These changes are planned due to low bus usage in the area. Route SL7 Electrification 8th October 2026 Around the 8th of October, the Superloop SL7 fully converted to electrics. This express route formerly used diesel Wright Eclipse Gemini 2s. Some Gemini 2s used on the SL7 were the oldest buses in London. For more details on these diesels, watch my dedicated SL7 video. The SL7 runs express from Heathrow Airport Central to West Croydon. It serves Heathrow, Kingston, Sutton and Croydon. Route 16 16th October 2026 The first new BYD BD11s entered service on route 16 in mid-October. These are Metroline's second/third new 2nd generation BD11s. New and existing BD11s along with StreetDeck Electroliners are now used. Second generation BD11s will soon fully replace New Routemasters on the 16. This will cause the withdrawal of LT8-10 and 12-18. Go Bus Announcement 20th October 2026 On the 20th of October, it was announced that Go Bus would start running London buses. This operator currently runs services around Kent. Go Bus has formerly run strike extras on TfL route 133. In January 2027, Go Bus will begin running school routes 624, 625 and 658. Route 359 October 17th 2026 The 359 is now operated by Transport UK London Bus. This route was formerly run by Go-Ahead London, Metrobus. New GB Kites are used instead of ADL BYD Enviro200EVs. The 359 now runs every hour instead of every 45 minutes. The route runs between Purley and New Addington. Route 90 October 2nd 2026 New BYD BD11s have entered service on route 90. These new electrics are replacing Wright Eclipse Gemini 3 and MCV EvoSeti Hybrids. Currently, around 7 BD11s are in use, with hybrids outnumbering electrics. The 90 runs between Northolt Station and Feltham, Leisure West. Oxford Street October 25th 2026 On October 25th, the last buses ran down Oxford Street. This marked the end of an era, with part of Oxford Street now closed to vehicles. Almost a kilometre of Oxford Street is now traffic-free, with no buses or taxis allowed. Routes 7, 94, 98, 139, 390 and night routes have been changed. The 7, 94 and some night routes were cut to Marble Arch on the 24th. The 98, 139 and 390 have been rerouted via Wigmore Street and Henrietta Place. To find out what the last bus on Oxford Street was, watch my dedicated video. Route 319 October 24th 2026 Route 319 has started using diesel buses for the first time since 2017. Wright Gemini 2s from 2010 and 2013 have entered service. These have temporarily replaced most of the 319's allocated electrics. Enviro400 City EVs are unable to be charged due to roadworks in Streatham. The 319 now uses London's oldest buses, and will revert to electrics next month. Buses for London News In October, three routes were announced to be passing to BfL. BfL (Buses for London) are a new operator, owned by Transport for London. BfL will begin running route 6 in December 2027. Routes 79, 220 and 460 will be operated by BfL from 2028. One more route is yet to be announced.