Ride free on old buses in service on London bus route 54 (Elmers End Green and Blackheath)!
As part of London Bus Museum's programme to bring the Museum and its buses to the streets of London, on Saturday 13th September 2025, between 10am and 5pm we are running heritage buses dating from the 1950s to 1980s alongside the normal daily service on route 54, between Elmers End Green and Blackheath Royal Standard. This is with the kind agreement of Transport for London.
Please note we are running heritage buses only to/from Elmers End Green (and NOT the few extra stops to Elmers End Station as per TfL route 54).
On the same day, our friends at Stagecoach London are celebrating 111 years of Catford Garage by holding an Open Day (small entry charge in aid of charity). Come and see behind the scenes at one of London's oldest bus garages! Route 54 stops nearby.
No need to book, just put your hand out at any route 54 bus stop and a heritage bus will stop to pick you up! Hold very tight please!
Travel is free although you may get an old-type ticket issued by the conductor! ... Remember conductors? ... Remember tickets?
Buses used will be mostly the iconic RT-type, which in the 1950s formed the largest standardised bus fleet in the world, plus their successor the famous Routemaster. There will also be a selection of more modern buses of types used on route 54 over the years.
Please note that all these buses pre-date the low-floor, easy access buses that we take for granted today and there are steps at the entrance and inside.
Most modern buggies cannot be carried as they are too large to fit under the stairs; nor can wheelchairs be accommodated. However our crews will make every effort to help the less able and those with small children enjoy a ride back in time.
Well-behaved dogs are welcome but are carried at the conductor's discretion, and must be on a lead and not occupy seats.
- 4 September ~ timetables v4 and bus list v5 added
- 27th August ~ timetables v3 and bus list v4 added
- 19th August ~ timetables and bus list added
- 16th August ~ revised maps added
- 27th July ~ maps and flyer added
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Our next events ...
- TransportFest 2025 ~ 19th October at London Bus Museum, Brooklands
- Spring Gathering 2026 ~ 19th April 2026 at London Bus Museum, Brooklands
RT4771 at Blackheath © David Bowker
RM1920, Blackheath © Mike Harris
Red Rovers welcome on this service
A History of London Bus Route 54
London bus route 54 has run between Woolwich and Elmers End for over 100 years, having been a longer route up to the year 2000.
The route has its origins in new routes 54 and 54A in January 1922, which ran from central London via Lewisham and Catford to Bromley (54) or Forest Hill (54A). In October 1922, the 54A was withdrawn from Forest Hill and rerouted to run via Beckenham and Elmers End to South Croydon, establishing the southern part of today’s 54. At the same time, the route was transferred from the London General Omnibus Co to be operated by Thomas Tilling from their garages at Catford (TL) and Croydon (TC).
In February 1924, the 54 to Bromley was withdrawn (covered by the 47 south of Lewisham) and the 54A to South Croydon renumbered 54. Then in June 1924, the 54 was withdrawn between central London and Lewisham to run from Plumstead Common and Woolwich via Blackheath, establishing the northern part of today’s route. At the same time, the Southern Railway restricted access over their bridge on Addiscombe Road to B and K types, requiring the withdrawal of Tilling buses and the transfer of operation to the LGOC’s Old Kent Road (P) and Plumstead (AM) garages, using K types.
The summer Sunday southward extension of the route to Whyteleafe which operated in 1924 was not repeated in 1925. However, in April 1927, the route was extended daily from South Croydon to Selsdon. The Old Kent Road allocation moved to the new Elmers End (ED) garage when it opened in March 1929, still operated by K types, with the Plumstead allocation moving in over the following 12 months.
Elmers End then remained in sole charge, providing 23 buses, until joined by Catford in April 1936. The type operated changed in quick succession, to S types by May 1931, then by covered top NS by August 1931, at which point the bridge in Croham Road was considered too low and the route was revised to follow the convoluted route via Sussex Road still used today by the 403 to avoid the low rail bridges in the area. The NSs were in turn replaced as ED received more nearly-new STs over the winter of 1931/2. LTs and then STLs made an appearance on Sundays in 1933, then STLs took over all week in March 1936, before the Monday to Saturday operation was moved to Catford the following month, also with STLs. Elmers End’s Sunday operation converted progressively to LT during 1936, the route’s busiest day of the week, with both garages operating on that day from October 1936.
Since 1923, route 289 had operated parallel to the 54 from Plumstead Common all the way to Southend Pond (just south of Catford garage), then on to Bromley; the route was renumbered 89 in October 1934 and a revised routing introduced between Charlton and Blackheath Village via Marlborough Lane in September 1936. In October 1936, the 89 was replaced by the Monday to Saturday 154 and diverted at Southend Pond to run to Elmers End, thus (apart from Charlton) paralleling the 54 along its entire route; it was operated by Catford using STLs. Between the two routes, 35 buses were needed. In 1937 and 1938, a summer Sunday service was introduced on the 154 between Lewisham and Selsdon, again paralleling the 54, but with LTs from Elmers End. October 1939 saw the last operation of the 154.
Back at the 54 itself, Elmers End’s Sunday contribution ceased just after the outbreak of war, replaced by Croydon (TC), reappearing briefly over winter 1940/41. Otherwise Croydon and Catford shared the operation until 1947, with Croydon reverting from STLs to STs from 1944. The route continued unchanged from Plumstead Common via Woolwich, Lewisham, Catford and Croydon to Selsdon.
RM141 at Blackheath Station © Mike Harris
RT1540 at the Fairfield Halls, Croydon © Mike Harris
The Monday to Friday requirement peaked at 35 buses in February 1950 (38 on Saturday, 28 on Sunday), just before RTs replaced the STLs from Catford that spring. Elmers End was also now operating RTs and provided a minority share of the allocation from November 1951 until May 1961.
The shortening of the route commenced after the major bus strike in 1958 which affected bus usage and led to reductions in service. The section between Woolwich and Plumstead Common was withdrawn, first on Sundays from October 1959 and entirely from May 1963. Catford still provided 24 RTs Monday to Friday, but the weekend service reduced.
In June 1965, a peak hour service was added at Woolwich to serve Woolwich Industrial Estate. This operated until November 1973 when replaced by new route 198. Also in June 1965, two school journeys morning and afternoon we extended from Selsdon to Riddlesdown, Mitchley Hill. The Sunday service between Croydon and Selsdon was withdrawn in July 1969, with the route terminating at West Croydon on that day; the route was withdrawn entirely south of Croydon in January 1973. Rather that West Croydon, on Monday to Friday, the route terminated at the Fairfield Halls.
From January 1972, Elmers End again contributed buses for the route, initially RTs but providing the first Routemasters for the route on Sundays from March 1973, then on Saturdays from December that year, when Sundays were converted to one person operation using DMSs. Catford provided RMs on Saturdays from March 1975, but Monday to Friday remained RT-operated until the whole route was converted to one-person DMS operation in April 1978. Operation was now from Catford Monday to Saturday and Elmers End on Sunday. Over six months from July 1983, Catford’s DMSs were replaced by Ts.
The route’s requirement reduced progressively to 15 buses Monday to Friday, 14 on Saturday and 5 on Sunday, until in April 1985 Catford took back Sunday operation and Elmers End retired for the last time, closing in October 1986. From November 1988, the new Plumstead garage (PD) operated the Sunday service, initially on its own, then from January 1991 jointly with Catford, at which point both garages provided midi-buses for the Sunday service. After a brief weekday allocation from Plumstead in 1991, Catford withdrew from the route in July 1993, leaving Plumstead to operate with a mix of Ts and Ls on Monday to Saturday and MAs and MRLs on Sunday. Double-deckers returned informally on Sundays from summer 1996 and officially from September that year.
In 1989, London Buses had been divisionalised, with Plumstead and Catford being part of Selkent division. In September 1994, Selkent was acquired by Stagecoach. The first tender for the route was issued in summer 1996, with the contract being won by Stagecoach Selkent with commencement from April 1997, with the new VN Olympians for the contract arriving in November.
The final major route change occurred in June 2000, when the route was shortened to run between Woolwich and Elmers End, following the opening of Croydon Tramlink between Elmers End and Croydon at the end of May.
In March 2001, operation again was shared by Plumstead and Catford, both running VNs. After Stagecoach won the second five year contract, these were replaced by TAS short Tridents, and in February 2003, operation was concentrated at Catford. The next contract, from May 2009, was won by Metrobus, part of Go Ahead, using Scania double-deckers from Orpington (MB), moving to Croydon (C) in May 2012.
In February 2011, the Elmers End terminus was moved from Tesco to Elmers End Station, where the new Interchange with tram and National Rail opened.
From the May 2014 contract renewal, operation returned to Stagecoach from Catford, using Enviro400 hybrid double-deckers and featuring an improved daytime frequency of 10 minutes. Stagecoach retained the contract in May 2019; the next tender is due to commence in May 2026.
111 years of Catford Garage [TL]
Originally opened in 1914 by the London General Omnibus Co., Catford Garage was requisitioned by the army in the First World War and reopened in 1920 under the control of Thomas Tilling Ltd., whose Lewisham operation moved there, hence the garage code TL [Tilling - Lewisham].
The garage was doubled in size in 1923 and had the roof raised in 1930 and 1948 to accommodate double-deck buses of increasing size. The garage was modernised further in 1970.
Thomas Tilling's Catford Garage in 1926 ~ Underground Group Photo Dept. [London Transport Museum]
Catford bus garage; 2014 by David Kemp
Today, Stagecoach London run the following routes from Catford Garage :
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- 47 (Shoreditch - Bellingham)
- 54 (Elmers End - Woolwich)
- 75 (Croydon - Lewisham Station)
- 124 (Eltham - Catford)
- 136 (Grove Park - Elephant & Castle)
- 160 (Sidcup Station - Catford Bridge)
- 199 (Bellingham - Canada Water)
- 273 (Petts Wood - Lewisham)
- 621 (Lewisham - Crown Woods School)
- 660 (Bellingham - Crown Woods School)
- 661 (Petts Wood Station - Chislehurst)
- N199 (St Mary Cray - Trafalgar Square)
To celebrate 111 years of Catford Garage, an Open Day is being held on 13th September - come and see behind the scenes! Route 54 stops nearby.
Photo Gallery
Click on photo for gallery. Hover on photo for caption
