Victoria coach hub to stay
London’s major coach hub will continue to be located at its historic home in Victoria, TfL has confirmed. TfL plans to work with coach operators to improve customer facilities at the 87-year-old Grade-II listed station as small sections of the Victoria Coach Station lease expire in the early 2020s. This could include changes to the layout of the station to make the customer experience easier, as well as renovated facilities.
Retaining a coach station in Victoria ensures that services remain well-connected to London’s public transport network, and keeps large coaches in a safe site that separates drop-off and pick-up from people walking and cycling around central London. It also enables people to reach the centre of London without using a private car.
TfL is prioritising sustainable operations that reduce harmful vehicle emissions, and from next year, every coach that serves Victoria Coach Station will be required to have some of the cleanest engines available.
Helen Lee, Head of Coach Operations at TfL, said: “Coaches play a critical role driving the economy of the capital and beyond, boosting tourism to London and providing affordable travel options with cities across the UK.
“Without Victoria Coach Station, coaches would still travel to the centre of the city but drop off and pick up on-street. This would increase noise, congestion and pollution for people living, working and visiting central London. It would also deprive the 14 million passengers who use this affordable long-distance travel every year of vital welfare facilities and ease of access to onward connections.”
TfL is identifying sites for enhanced coach facilities across the capital to complement the facilities at Victoria Coach Station. TfL aims to work with industry, transport operators, London’s boroughs and passenger groups to identify appropriate locations for the supporting sites over the coming months. This would help to ensure that the city continues to be adequately and safely served by coaches, providing alternative options to passengers and reducing coach movements in central London.
Keith McNally, Operations Director at CPT, said: “This is great news for coach operators, who provide affordable connectivity across the UK and Europe. As well as playing a vital role in cutting congestion and improving air quality, the station acts as a working hub for operators and as a focal point for travellers, with many using it to interchange to onward destinations.
“Coach operators can now make their business and investments plans with the welcome knowledge that the station will remain operational. We looking forward to working with TfL to deliver real improvements for operators and passengers at the site, so that the coach network across the UK can be developed further.”
What about all the vacant land around Stratford, alongside the station would make an ideal modern coach park with train links into central London then this would cut congestion drastically around this area because let’s face it access to Victoria isnt exactly the best with narrow treest and coaches getting bigger and the illegal parking etc around this area.
The problem with Stratford is that it is a poor transfer point for onward travel, a poor destination point for routes from the west and south, and poorly situated for central-bound passengers with luggage.