London Photo Gallery - Bakerloop BL1 Bus Route

Extending the Bakerloo Line deep into southeast London has been brought up over the years, with the public first consulted on the scheme in 2014.

Estimated to cost from 5.2 to 8.7 billion pounds at 2021 prices, the project is expected to support over 53,000 new homes along the route, although government funding has yet to materialize.

Instead, a new Bakerloop bus line BL1 launched on Sep 27, 2025 hoping to shorten travel times and give a taste of what the Tube extension could be like.

The express bus route runs between Waterloo Station and Lewisham with only a few stops along the way through Old Kent Road, where there are several residential regeneration projects under construction.

Transport for London has contracted the bus route to Go-Ahead. The electric buses wear a distinct brown livery, after the Bakerloo Line.

To celebrate the new route, rides are free for the first week of operations.