Hoppa (London Buses)

Hoppa was a brand of London Buses routes operated by minibuses. Hoppa services were used as a low cost replacement for lower frequency routes previously operated by conventional buses. The smaller vehicles could also access residential streets that were previously unserved by buses.

History
The use of minibuses for urban bus routes was a consequence of the Transport Act 1985. The legislation introduced competitive tendering of bus routes in London and minibuses on low patronage routes were a low cost alternative to conventional buses.

The brand was introduced by London Regional Transport (LRT). The routes used single door minibuses or midibuses. The smaller vehicles could serve residential streets which full sized buses could not reach. This could bring more Londoners within 400 metres of a bus service. Hail and ride sections were employed on residential streets, avoiding the need to install new bus stops. Routes were sponsored by local councils with funding provided to get services started. The H24 and H25 routes were funded by Hounslow Council and opened by John Prescott, Shadow Secretary of State for Transport, in January 1991.

The use of minibuses was phased out following the Disability Discrimination Act 1995, which required all single floor buses to be accessible by 1 January 2016. London Regional Transport was replaced by Transport for London in 2000.

List of Hoppa routes
The Hoppa routes were introduced as follows: