Back in June we reported that a London Service Permit (LSP) had been submitted by White Bus to extend the route 446 weekday Woking to Chertsey ‘shorts’ over the full length of the route to Staines, then on to Hatton Cross via Ashford Hospital and Heathrow Terminal 4. This would result in Woking to Staines being half-hourly weekdays and remain hourly weekends, with weekdays seeing a roughly hourly service onwards to the hospital and airport. Every day of the week would also have seen additional new weekday/weekend 0256/0258, 0358/0400 and 0500/0502 Chertsey to Hatton Cross early morning journeys, and 2115, 2215 and 2315 Hatton Cross to Chertsey late evening journeys (2100 to Woking on weekdays). This would have given Woking a direct link to Terminal 4, with the RA2 Railair coach service already providing a link to Terminals 2, 3 and 5. The timetable was to commence from Tuesday 29th August, with a vehicle specification of 10.8m and an increase from three to five vehicles required to operate the new timetable.
A month later saw a public meeting in Woking held by the North West Surrey Bus Users Group (NWSBUG), at which a representative from Rowgate Group announced that the early morning/late evening journeys would not now be going ahead, but the weekday Heathrow service was still planned to. In the end these plans never materialised, perhaps in part due to staffing issues being experienced by operators nationwide combined with White Bus taking on the Staines – Walton – Esher – Kingston route 458 won at tendering from Diamond South East around the same time. Chertsey was instead linked to Ashford Hospital and Heathrow Terminal 4 following the launch of new route 556 on Saturday 26th August and operated by Diamond South East, running via Shepperton and Sunbury Cross broadly – but not exactly – following the 557 which they’d just lost to Falcon Buses at retendering from the following week.
On Tuesday 17th October, we posted on our Facebook page that a new variation to White Bus’ route 446 registration had been submitted, with information seeming to imply that the extension might now be on the cards again, effective Monday 4th December.
Dated Sunday 5th November, the White Bus website received a news entry reading:- “We will be introducing an improved route and timetable on service 446 from Monday 4 December 2023. From this date our 446 will run every 30 minutes during the day, Mondays to Fridays, between Woking and Staines. Certain journeys will also run beyond Staines to Ashford Hospital, Heathrow Terminal 4 and Hatton Cross. On Saturdays we will run an hourly timetable between Woking and Staines with certain journeys continuing to Ashford Hospital. We will be adding the new timetable and farechart here shortly”.
Timetable now released
Surrey County Council (SCC) have now published on their website a timetable for the revised route, commencing Monday 4th December, with White Bus as yet not having done the same. Based on what SCC have published though, the coverage period over each day of the week will remain broadly similar to today, with timing changes Monday to Saturday but the Sunday timetable unchanged.
On weekdays, every other journey (typically the current Woking to Chertsey ‘shorts’) will extend to Hatton Cross bus station via Staines, Ashford Hospital and Heathrow Terminal 4. This will see the current route become half-hourly Woking to Staines. Of the journeys that would terminate at Staines each hour, two morning and all journeys after 1500 from Woking (after 1600 returning back from the northern end) will continue to/from Ashford Hospital. An 0830 Ashford Hospital to Woking journey will run direct between Ashford and St Peters hospitals, avoiding Staines and Chertsey, operating 10 minutes in front of a journey from Heathrow but the more direct route closing the otherwise hour gap between journeys into Woking. On paper, the weekday peak vehicle requirement (PVR) would appear to increase from three to five vehicles.
On Saturdays, the frequency will remain hourly, with an earlier start from Woking (0600/0715/0805/0930 compared to current 0640/0740/0830/0930). The first three and last four journeys from Woking, and first two and last three journeys from Staines, will all continue to/start from Ashford Hospital, presumably to cater for staff shift changeovers. Heathrow Terminal 4 and Hatton Cross are not served on Saturdays.
On Sundays, as mentioned above, there are no changes to the current Surrey County Council tendered hourly Woking to Staines service.
The previously proposed daily early morning/late evening Chertsey – Staines – Heathrow Terminal 4 – Hatton Cross journeys do not feature on the new timetable.
Typical off-peak journey times from Woking are Ottershaw (10 mins), St Peters Hospital (17 mins), Chertsey (25 mins), Penton Park (31 mins), Staines (39 mins), Ashford Hospital (49 mins), Heathrow T4 (59 mins), and Hatton Cross (1hr 4mins).
At Staines bus station, buses towards Ashford Hospital, Heathrow T4 and Hatton Cross will depart from Stand 6, and buses towards Woking will remain using Stand 9. Buses in both directions will serve Stand 10 at Heathrow Terminal 4, and departures from Hatton Cross bus station will use Stop A. The route of buses over the extension is Staines Bus Station > South Street > London Road > (Ashford Hospital) > London Road > Staines Road > Great South West Road > Stanwell Road > Beacon Road > Southern Perimeter Road > (Terminal 4) > Southern Perimeter Road > Hatton Cross Station.
You can view the new 446 timetable, effective Monday 4th December, by clicking here
On the topic of White Bus, with MCV eVoRa-bodied Volvo B8RLE LF23 DVW (fleet number 71) having arrived around the same time as several loan vehicles for the 458’s commencement (Enviro 200s 67-YX17 NTN, 50-YX68 UNY and 66-YX21 RVK), the further eight MCVs have now joined it and entered service. These carry fleet numbers 78-85 and are registered BV73 MKF/G/J/K/L/M/N/O respectively. It has been mentioned on social media that further new vehicles are expected, reportedly ADL Enviro 200s, with ‘classic’ Enviro 200s 56/69 (SN16 OSW/X) “earmarked for withdrawal” (however I would stress this isn’t quoted from an official source). Short wheelbase YX68 ULV (fleet number 59) has also had its fleet livery removed, now operating in all-over white.
UPDATE 17/11/2023:- White Bus have now uploaded a copy of the new route 446 timetable leaflet to their website, which appears to also feature a newly designed logo.
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