Fastrack (bus)

This article is about the bus rapid transit scheme in Kent. For the electronic toll-collection system in California, see FasTrak. For the light rail and commuter rail project in Denver, Colorado, see FasTracks. For other uses, see Fast Track (disambiguation).

Fastrack is the name given to two bus rapid transit schemes in Kent. The original network began on 26 March 2006 in Dartford and Gravesend, part of the Thames Gateway regeneration area, and on 17 November 2024 a separate network was launched in Dover.

Fastrack
Go-Ahead London Fastrack Irizar ie Tram bus
Overview
Locale	Kent Thameside Dover
Transit type	Bus rapid transit
Website	www.kent-fastrack.co.uk
Operation
Began operation	26 March 2006; 19 years ago (2006-03-26)
Operator(s)	Go-Ahead London Stagecoach South East
Number of vehicles	28 Irizar ie Trams (Thameside) 15 Alexander Dennis Enviro200s (Thameside) 12 Mercedes-Benz Citaro O530 (Thameside) 6 Alexander Dennis Enviro200 MMCs (Thameside) 5 Alexander Dennis Enviro200 MMCs (Dover)

History

Fastrack Stop in Dartford

Kent Thameside

Construction work on the Fastrack network in Kent Thameside began on 23 September 2004.^[1] The network commenced operations on 26 March 2006 with the introduction of Fastrack B between Temple Hill and Gravesend.^[2][3]

On 3 June 2007, Fastrack A commenced operations in order to serve the new development at The Bridge in Dartford.^[4] The route is part-funded by Prologis, the developers of The Bridge.

From 19 November 2007 following the opening of Ebbsfleet International railway station, Fastrack B was diverted to serve the station in order to connect with Eurostar and Southeastern High Speed services.^[5]

Following the completion of the Everards Link Phase 2 on 10 December 2012, Fastrack B was rerouted via a new section of busway linking Ingress Park with Greenhithe railway station.^[6] Fastrack B began serving the whole of the Ingress Park development from 2 September 2018.^[7]

From 2 August 2020 following the opening of the Springhead Bridge, Fastrack B was rerouted between Ebbsfleet International railway station and Gravesend to serve the new Springhead Park development.^[8][9]

On 23 August 2021, Fastrack AZ commenced operations in order to serve the Amazon LCY3 distribution centre in Dartford.^[10] The route was initially operated by Go-Coach but transferred to Arriva Southern Counties on 3 April 2022 with Fastrack A being modified to serve the LCY3 distribution centre at the same time.^[11]

Dover

Construction work on the Fastrack system in Dover began in February 2023 and infrastructure works were completed in Summer 2024.^[12]

The system was launched on 17 November 2024. Route D runs between Dover and Whitfield and is now operated by Stagecoach South East.^[13]

Current routes

Vector map of the current Kent Thameside Fastrack network showing all stops served

The current Fastrack network is formed of six routes, five operated by Go-Ahead London, and one operated by Stagecoach South East.^[14][15]

Route	Region	Start	End	Operator	Frequency
A[16]	Kent Thameside	Dartford	Bluewater	Go-Ahead London	Every 15 minutes daily and every 30 minutes overnight
AZ[17]	Kent Thameside	Dartford or Gravesend	Amazon LCY3	Go-Ahead London	Shift changeover times at the LCY3 centre only
B[18]	Kent Thameside	Temple Hill	Gravesend	Go-Ahead London	Every 12 minutes daily
D	Dover	Dover	Whitfield	Stagecoach South East	Every 20 minutes on weekdays and Saturdays, hourly on Sundays
E[19]	Kent Thameside	Ebbsfleet Valley	Gravesend	Go-Ahead London	Every 30 minutes on weekdays and Saturdays, hourly on Sundays
F[20]	Kent Thameside	Bluewater	Greenhithe for Ingress Park	Go-Ahead London	Every 12 minutes daily

Route C,^[21] was a shuttle between Temple Hill and Dartford, linked with B, but it was removed and merged with B, it was merged to "...deliver faster journeys on Fastrack to Temple Hill and [to] improve journey times between Temple Hill and Princes Road [Darent Valley Hospital] by reducing the time services wait at Home Gardens"^[22]

Vehicles

The Interior of a Fastrack ie Tram

Fastrack Enviro 200 at Gravesend bus station

From 21 March to 9 May 2018, Fastrack took part in a trial scheme which saw an additional hourly journey made by an electric Volvo 7900e, with a main charging point installed in the form of a generator at the front of Greenhithe station allowing the bus to fully charge inside six minutes.^[23]

On 4 August 2019, Arriva Kent Thameside retained the contract to operate the Fastrack B service. As part of this, the 14 Wright StreetLites on the route were replaced with newer Alexander Dennis Enviro200 MMC vehicles transferred from the Medway area which were refurbished to Fastrack specification. 7 of the Wright StreetLites continued to operate on Fastrack A.^[24]

Between 23 August 2021 and 3 April 2022, whilst the Fastrack AZ service was operated by Go-Coach, eight Alexander Dennis Enviro400 vehicles worked on the service.^[10] When this route was transferred to Arriva Kent Thameside, the Alexander Dennis Enviro400 vehicles were withdrawn and three additional Alexander Dennis Enviro200 MMC worked on the AZ service.

On 10 November 2024, Go-Ahead London took over the Fastrack network in Kent Thameside, which uses diesel and electric buses, specifically Alexander Dennis Enviro200, Alexander Dennis Enviro200 MMC, Mercedes-Benz Citaro, and Irizar ie tram vehicles (since 30 April 2025).

See also

• List of guided busways and BRT systems in the United Kingdom
• Crawley Fastway, a similar-sized guided system