Karmactive Staff
A new express bus service will hit London streets this autumn, giving southeast London residents a faster way to travel. The ‘Bakerloop’ bus, officially called BL1, will run between Waterloo and Lewisham town centre through Elephant & Castle, Burgess Park, Old Kent Road, and New Cross Gate.
This new route copies the path of the long-wanted Bakerloo Line underground extension. The bus aims to fix the transport gap in southeast London while building support for the full tube extension that many locals still prefer.
Buses will run every 12 minutes during weekdays and Saturdays, and every 15 minutes during evenings, early mornings, and Sundays. The service will operate from 5am to 12:30am daily, using double-decker buses to fit more passengers.
Public feedback shows strong support for the Bakerloop. About 82% of people who responded to TfL’s survey said it would be more convenient, and 79% expected faster journey times. When asked how often they would use it, 37% said a few times each month, while 23% planned to use it daily.
The Bakerloop joins TfL’s successful Superloop network, which has seen an 11% increase in passengers since its first route launched in June 2023. This is 9% higher than growth across the rest of London’s bus network.
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Southwark Council will help pay for the service using money from local development projects. The exact launch date will be announced closer to autumn, with Go-Ahead London Central set to operate the route starting September 27, 2025.
TfL hopes to use electric buses for this route, supporting London’s push for cleaner transport. However, they admit this might not be possible right away and plan to add electric buses as soon as they can.
Some worry that heavy traffic on Old Kent Road might slow down these “express” buses. To address this, TfL will monitor all bus services in the area and make changes if needed. They’re also reducing service on route 453, which follows part of the same path as the new Bakerloop.
The Bakerloop represents a practical step toward better transport in southeast London. While it can’t match the speed and capacity of an underground line, it offers a useful improvement while the case for the full Bakerloo Line extension continues to build.
