Draft:London Bus Route 20

London Buses route 20 is a contracted bus route in London, England, operated by Transport for London. The route runs between Walthamstow Central and Debden and is managed by Stagecoach London and Transport UK.

History
Route 20 commenced operations on 7 September 1968, connecting Walthamstow Central Station with Loughton Station via Leyton, Whipps Cross, Woodford, and Woodford Wells. This route was introduced as a replacement for route 38A between Loughton and Leyton and was initially operated by London Transport from the Loughton (L) garage, using AEC Regent III RT vehicles.

On 14 June 1969, the route was converted to one-person operation using AEC Merlins, extending from Loughton to Epping via the former route 20B.

On 24 April 1976, the route reverted to double-decker operation utilizing Daimler Fleetlines.

On 9 October 1976, the route was rerouted at Loughton via Chester Road to Debden Broadway.

On 28 January 1982, Daimler Fleetlines were replaced by Leyland Titans.

On 4 September 1982, the route transitioned to single-deck operation with Leyland Nationals.

On 24 May 1986, the route was transferred to Eastern National, operating from the Walthamstow (EN) garage with Leyland Nationals and Bristol VRs. The loop service between Golding's Hill and Debden Station was discontinued simultaneously.

On 7 March 1992, the route was handed over to Grey-Green, operating from the Barking (DX) garage, employing East Lancashire-bodied Volvo B10Ms.

In 1997, the route transitioned to low-floor operation using Alexander ALX200-bodied Dennis Dart SLFs.

On 1 June 1998, school journeys operated by Capital Citybus from the Northumberland Park (NP) and Hackney (H) garages were introduced.

On 23 April 2001, the Hackney (H) allocation was withdrawn.

On 9 March 2002, the school journeys were transferred to Arriva London, operating from the Barking (DX) garage.

On 26 April 2003, the route reverted to double-deck operation with Wright Eclipse Gemini-bodied Volvo B7TLs.

On 29 January 2007, the terminal at Debden changed from Burton Road to Vere Road.

On 24 March 2007, the route was retained by Arriva London, with the allocation transferred to Edmonton (EC) garage. Simultaneously, the Wright Eclipse Gemini-bodied Volvo B7TLs were replaced by Alexander ALX400-bodied DAF DB250LFs.

On 24 March 2012, the route was transferred to Blue Triangle, operating from the Rainham (BE) garage, introducing new Wright Eclipse Gemini 2-bodied Volvo B9TLs.

On 22 June 2013, operation was transferred to London General, operating from the Northumberland Park (NP) garage.

In January 2019, the Wright Eclipse Gemini 2-bodied Volvo B9TLs were replaced by existing Alexander Dennis Enviro400s.

On 23 March 2019, the route passed to CT Plus, operating from the Walthamstow Avenue (AW) garage, using brand-new Enviro400H City-bodied Alexander Dennis E40Hs and existing Alexander Dennis Enviro400s (on loan from Stagecoach London).

On 15 June 2019, the route transitioned to full Enviro400H City-bodied Alexander Dennis E40H operation.

From 24 June 2020 until 8 July 2020, an existing Enviro400 EV City-bodied BYD DD demonstrator was trialed on the route.

On 27 August 2022, the route was included in the sale of the HCT Group to Stagecoach London.

On 15 October 2022, the vehicles were renumbered to the Stagecoach London fleet numbers.

On 5 February 2024, a new variant named 20U was temporarily introduced due to a shortage of trains on the Central Line. This variant operates as a weekday peak-hours service between Walthamstow Central and Debden, curtailing to various points along the route. It was initially operated by Arriva London from the Palmers Green (AD) garage using existing Wright StreetDecks.

On 12 February 2024, the 20U variant was transferred to Abellio London, operating from the Battersea (QB) garage with brand-new and existing Wright GB Kite Electroliner EVs.

On 2 March 2024, Abellio London rebranded to Transport UK London Bus.

On 11 March 2024, existing Enviro 200 MMC-bodied Alexander Dennis E20Ds were introduced alongside the Wright GB Kite Electroliner EVs.

On 23 March 2024, route 20 was retained by Stagecoach London, using existing Enviro 400H City-bodied Alexander Dennis E40Hs.

The 20U service is scheduled for withdrawal at a to-be-confirmed date.

Current Route
Route 20 operates via these primary locations:
 * Walthamstow Central Bus Station
 * Leyton
 * Whipps Cross
 * Woodford Green
 * Loughton Station
 * Burton Road for Debden Station

Previous Route 20s in London
The route number 20 has been used in various capacities prior to its current usage:
 * From 1908 - 1914 for a Hammersmith (later Turnham Green) - West Norwood route.
 * In 1919 for a Ladbroke Grove-Pimlico/Ebury Bridge route.
 * From 1921 - 1922 for a Camden Town - Moorgate route.
 * From 1922 - by 1924 for a Moorgate (later Liverpool Street) - Elephant and Castle route.
 * From 1 December 1924 - 3 October 1934 for a Wood Green (later Turnpike Lane) - Shooters Hill (later Welling) route.
 * From 3 October 1934 - 3 December 1939 for a Kingston - Guildford route.
 * From 30 June 1948 - 31 December 1966 for a Leytonstone - Epping route.