Lewisham is all set to join the Superloop network after Transport for London launched a consultation into a fast bus to follow the route of the planned Bakerloo Line extension.

The BL1 “Bakerloop” bus would run between Waterloo and Lewisham via the Old Kent Road. On the way, it would stop at the Elephant & Castle, Burgess Park, Ilderton Road and New Cross Gate, roughly following where the planned Tube route would stop. It would serve the same stops as route 21 in Lewisham town centre.

Sir Sadiq Khan pledged to introduce the route when he was campaigning for re-election as mayor last year. The bus would serve as a stop-gap until the Bakerloo extension – which needs government money to go ahead – is finished.

It would run every 12 minutes on Monday to Saturday daytimes and every 15 minutes on Sundays.

The consultation also confirms plans for North Greenwich to join the Superloop network, with a route to Thamesmead via Woolwich and Abbey Wood. It would be numbered SL11, and a separate consultation is planned later this year.

Superloop route diagram
A diagram also appears to confirm a North Greenwich to Thamesmead route is coming. Image: Transport for London

A similar route appeared in Khan’s election campaign, while in 2023 the Conservative government allocated £23 million for a bus transit network in Thamesmead.

The consultation on the BL1 Bakerloop bus will run until March 14 at haveyoursay.tfl.gov.uk/bl1-superloop.

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