Leyland Titan (B15) - The Titan in London

The Titan in London

The orders from London Transport were as follows:

• 1979: 100 (T1–100)
• 1980: 150 (T101–250) — reduced from 250 due to industrial relations difficulties at Park Royal.
• 1981: 150 (T251–400)
• 1982: 275 (T401–675)
• 1983: 210 (T676–885)
• 1984: 240 (T886–1125)

The first production Titans were delivered in August 1978 and entered service at Hornchurch in December 1978 on routes 165, 246 and 252. The Titan's London Transport service career saw it working in the eastern and south eastern half of the capital, though a surplus of the type following tendering reverses in the later 1980s saw Titans spread to some north London garages. Withdrawals began in December 1992, with large numbers passing to other operators, including Merseybus, Oxford Bus Company and Kinchbus. Further buses remained on London work under the ownership of independent contractors such as London Suburban Buses, London & Country, BTS and London Coaches (later Atlas Bus).

Upon the privatisation of the London Buses Limited subsidiaries, the remaining Titans were distributed between London Central, Stagecoach East London and Stagecoach Selkent. The latter pair began cascading their Titans away almost immediately, spreading them throughout the country. Stagecoach East London last operated Titans in September 2001 and Selkent's were withdrawn in November 2001, leaving London Central with a small number of spare buses which were eventually whittled down. Amid a small ceremony, the last one, T1018 was retired from route 40 on 19 June 2003.