London Country Bus Services
| Company type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Public transportation (bus services) |
| Predecessor | London Transport Board (Country Area buses and Green Line coaches) |
| Founded | October 9, 1968 |
| Founder | National Bus Company |
| Defunct | August 8, 1997 |
| Fate | Divided and sold following UK bus deregulation; entered voluntary liquidation in 1990 |
| Successor | London Country North East, London Country North West, London Country South East, London Country South West, Gatwick Engineering Ltd., Green Line Travel Ltd. |
| Headquarters | United Kingdom |
Area served | South East England (Bedfordshire, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Kent, Surrey, Sussex) |
| Products | Bus and coach services |
| Owner | National Bus Company |
| Parent | National Bus Company |
London Country Bus Services operated throughout South East England from 1970 until its division and sale in 1986 as part of the UK bus deregulation initiative.
History
Beginning in 1933, the London Passenger Transport Board oversaw public transportation within an approximate 30-mile radius of Charing Cross, covering areas later designated as Greater London and beyond.
Formation
During the late 1960s, the scope of the London Transport Board was narrowed to the region governed by the Greater London Council (GLC). Consequently, London Transport's green Country Area buses and Green Line express coaches were transferred to the National Bus Company (NBC), whereas red Central Area buses came under a newly established GLC-managed London Transport Executive.
London Country Bus Services Ltd was established on 9 October 1968 as a subsidiary of NBC in preparation for the Transport (London) Act 1969, which took effect on 1 January 1970. The company had a nominal share capital of £100 with £2 paid up, remaining fully owned by NBC throughout its operational period.
Serving counties such as Bedfordshire, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Kent, Surrey, and Sussex, London Country created a peripheral network around London without operating services within central London. It was NBC's largest subsidiary at inception, managing a fleet of 1,267 buses and coaches—predominantly older vehicles including 484 AEC Regent III RT double-deckers and 413 AEC Regal IV RF single-deckers, supplemented by various other models like Daimler Fleetlines and AEC Routemasters.
Employees hired before 1970 retained privileges for free travel across the original London Transport network, a benefit that was preserved after deregulation with revised pass conditions.
New vehicles
To update its fleet, NBC quickly placed an order for 90 Leyland Atlanteans with Park Royal bodies. During 1970/71, the last Country order from London Transport consisting of 138 AEC Swifts was delivered. The Atlantean became the preferred double-deck vehicle for London Country, with a total of 291 in operation by 1981. Most were fitted with Park Royal bodies; some were built by Roe to identical specifications, while 30 Metro Cammell Weymann-bodied Atlanteans originally intended for Midland Red were redirected here. Additionally, eleven Leyland-engined Daimler Fleetlines acquired from Western Welsh marked the first NBC-ordered buses added to the fleet. Apart from these, only fifteen Bristol VRT double-deckers with rare Eastern Coach Works bodies appeared during the 1970s; these were temporarily assigned to Grays garage in 1977 before being moved elsewhere.
Within the single-decker segment, several AEC Regal IV RFs underwent refurbishment featuring twin headlights and upgraded interiors, primarily for use on Green Line routes. Fourteen Willowbrook-bodied AEC Reliances based at Hertford garage—acquired in 1965—were transitioned to standard bus duties by 1975 despite older vehicles continuing to serve Green Line routes.
Green Line services mainly utilized AEC Routemaster coaches along with Regal IV RFs. NBC procured 90 AEC Reliances with Park Royal bodies seating 45 passengers; these initially wore Green Line livery but were soon repainted into NBC’s local coach color schemes. For the orbital route 725 running between Windsor and Gravesend, fifteen Alexander W-bodied AEC Swifts were purchased but were shortly reassigned to local services around Gravesend.
Standard fleets
The Leyland National, a collaborative development between NBC and British Leyland, was introduced in 1972 as the primary bus model across most NBC fleets. London Country became the largest operator globally, acquiring over 500 of these vehicles, primarily to replace older models such as RFs, RTs, and Routemasters. A number of RF buses continued in use where smaller capacity was required until NBC supplemented its fleet with the more compact Bristol LH as a secondary standard vehicle. London Country commenced purchases of Bristol LH buses in 1973 and maintained acquisitions through to 1977.
Throughout the 1980s, NBC received substantial shipments of double-deck Leyland Olympians. From 1982 to 1984, these buses were fitted with Roe bodies; from 1985 onward, Eastern Coach Works produced bodies with an identical design. London Country operated a total of 75 Olympians within its fleet.
The end
Following the Transport Act 1985, which deregulated bus services, London Country was divided into smaller entities and subsequently sold.
On 7 September 1986, London Country was segmented into four bus operating companies along with two additional entities:
- London Country North East
- London Country North West
- London Country South East
- London Country South West
- Gatwick Engineering Ltd.
- Green Line Travel Ltd.
These businesses were privatised in 1988, marking some of the final bus company privatisations under NBC. The last subsidiary to be sold was London Country Bus (North East) Ltd. The purchasers included:
- London Country North East: Acquired by the AJS Group on 22 April 1988, which subsequently divided it into County Bus & Coach and Sovereign Bus & Coach in 1989. County became management-owned in 1990 and evolved into Arriva East Herts & Essex (within Arriva Shires & Essex). The Grays garage was transferred to Arriva Southern Counties in 2002. Sovereign was sold to the Blazefield Group in 1991 and today is largely part of Arriva Shires & Essex, except for the St Albans depot that passed to Centrebus and later Uno.
- London Country North West: Sold through a management buyout on 5 January 1988; later purchased by Luton & District Transport in 1990 and now integrated into Arriva Shires & Essex.
- London Country South East: Rebranded as Kentish Bus in April 1987; sold on 15 March 1988 to Northumbria Motor Services (Proudmutual Limited). It was acquired by British Bus in 1994 and subsequently by Cowie Group (Arriva) in 1996; currently part of Arriva Southern Counties. Bus Service 401 joined the London Transport network in 1988.
- London Country South West: Purchased on 19 February 1988 by Drawlane Limited, which later became British Bus and was then acquired by Cowie Group (Arriva) in 1996. It was rebranded as Arriva serving Surrey & West Sussex in 1997 and fully merged into Arriva Southern Counties by 2000. Operations ended in December 2021 with Stagecoach assuming many routes. Several services were incorporated into the London Transport network between 1986 and 2002.
London Country Bus Services Ltd entered voluntary liquidation in June 1990 and was officially dissolved on 8 August 1997.