 AnAlexander Dennis Enviro400 operating route 700, which runs betweenChatham Waterfront bus station andBluewater Shopping Centre | |
| Formerly | Invictaway |
|---|---|
| Parent | Arriva UK Bus |
| Founded | November 1986 (1986-11) |
| Commenced operation | April 1998 |
| Headquarters | Maidstone |
| Service area | Essex Harlow Hemel Hempstead Kent Watford Ware |
| Service type | Bus services |
| Hubs | Chatham, Maidstone, Tunbridge Wells |
| Depots | 11 |
| Operator | Arriva Colchester Arriva Kent & Sussex Arriva Kent Thameside Arriva Medway Towns Arriva Southend |
| Website | www.arrivabus.co.uk |
Arriva Southern Counties Limited,[1] trading asArriva Southern Counties,[2] is a bus operator inKent,[3]Essex,Hertfordshire, andSurrey inEngland. It is a subsidiary ofArriva UK Bus, which is part of theArriva group. The company operates local[4] and interurban bus services[5][6] across its divisions,[7] includingArriva Kent Thameside, which serves north-west Kent.
Arriva Southern Counties traces its origins to the privatization of theNational Bus Company in the 1980s. In November1986, Maidstone & District was sold in amanagement buyout[8] to a newly formed company, Einkorn Limited.[9][10]
Einkorn expanded its operations through several key acquisitions:
In 1990,British Bus acquired the Alder Valley operations inCranleigh,Guildford, andWoking. This was followed by the acquisitions of Colchester Borough Transport and Southend Transport in 1993.[16]
In April 1995, British Bus acquired Einkorn Limited,[17] which had become a significant regional operator. British Bus already ownedKentish Bus (acquired in 1994) and Londonlinks (acquired in 1988). Following the acquisition, Einkorn was renamedInvictaway in August 1995,[18][19] reviving a brand name previously used byMaidstone & District forLondon commuter services.
%2c_M%2526D_100_(1).jpg)
In July to August 1996, the Cowie Group plc acquired British Bus,[20][21][22][23] which owned several bus companies in southern England, including Kentish Bus,[24] London & Country, and Maidstone & District,[25] all of which had previously been subsidiaries of British Bus.
In October 1997, Cowie Group announced it would change its name to Arriva plc,[26][27][28] as part of a strategic rebranding to unify its various transport businesses under a single identity.[29] The rebrand was approved by shareholders in 6 November 1997,[30] and the new name reflected the company’s European ambitions and focus on integrated transport services.
As part of the subsequent rollout of the new branding, Invictaway, the legal name for the operations that included Maidstone & District and other southern subsidiaries[citation needed], was renamed Arriva Southern Counties in April 1998.[31] Around the same time, the operations of London & Country were also transferred into Arriva Southern Counties, under Arriva Guildford & West Surrey.[32]
The restructuring of former British Bus subsidiaries was carried out as follows:
Later restructuring saw Arriva Southern Counties take responsibility for:
Meanwhile, most of Arriva Croydon & North Surrey was transferred to Arriva London, the group's dedicated London bus division.
Arriva Southern Counties operates a mix of local, interurban, and contracted bus services across Kent, Essex, and parts of Hertfordshire. Its divisions include:
TheArriva Kent Thameside division, based at Northfleet depot, operates the following bus services as of May 2025:
| Route | Start | End |
|---|---|---|
| 190 | Gravesend | Chatham |
| 414 | Dartford | Horton Kirby |
| 480 | Temple Hill | Gravesend |
| 481 | Gravesend | Riverview Park |
| 482 | Gravesend | Kings Farm |
| 483 | Bluewater | Gravesend |
| 490 | Gravesend | Valley Drive |
| 491 | Gravesend | Riverview Park |
Until 31 December 2024, Arriva Kent Thameside operatedArrivaClick,[41] a demand-responsive service coveringDarent Valley Hospital,Bluewater,Greenhithe,Swanscombe, andEbbsfleet Valley usingMercedes-Benz Sprinter vehicles.[42]
Medway Towns run many services, served by Gillingham depot.
| Route | Start | End | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chatham | Gillingham, The Strand | N/A |
| 2 | Chatham, Dockside Shopping Centre | ||
| 100 | Chatham | St Mary's Island | Saturday services operated by Nu-Venture as extension of 151 service. |
| 101 | Gillingham | Maidstone | N/A |
| 116 | Chatham | Hempstead Valley | |
| 132 | Similar toASD Coach's 783 service. | ||
| 133 | Cliffe | One weekday afternoon service operated byASD Coaches. | |
| 140 | Earl Estate | Chatham | ASD Coaches operates early morning services. |
| 141 | |||
| 145/146 | Chatham | Warren Wood | Operated by Arriva during daytime and on Sundays: operated byNu-Venture evening (as the 135). |
| 155 | Borstal | N/A | |
| 164 | White Road Estate | ||
| 166 | Gleaming Wood Drive | ||
| 175 | Gillingham | Chatham | |
| 176 | Walderslade | ||
| 177 | Gillingham | ||
| 182 | Chatham | Twydall | |
| 191 | Isle of Grain | Operated byASD Coaches for afternoon journeys. | |
| 700 | Bluewater Shopping Centre | N/A | |
| 701 | Maidstone | Only runs during holidays (ex. Summer or Christmas) |
Until November 2024, Arriva Southern Counties, primarily through its Kent Thameside division, operated the Fastrack busway in Kent’s Thames Gateway for Kent County Council, Prologis, and Amazon. Services included:
Fastrack buses used a purple livery with a blue shimmer effect and Fastrack branding. Route B connected with Eurostar at Ebbsfleet International, offering free travel to Eurostar passengers. In 2008, Arriva trialed its "m-ticket" system on Fastrack. The network transferred to Go-Ahead London in November 2024, with electric buses introduced by April 2025. Fastrack replaced the Bluewater-liveried route 100 in March 2006, which featured an all-blue livery with a water shimmer effect.
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Media related toArriva Southern Counties at Wikimedia Commons
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