Commuters are celebrating after a bus route which 'disappeared' before Christmas has been restored.

Transport for London (TfL) has brought back the 170 route, which serves Battersea, after a vociferous campaign.

The transport authority apologised following the lack of notice it gave to commuters when the service was diverted from Lombard Road, Battersea Church Road, and Vicarage Crescent.

The decision was made because new models operating on the route could not fit under the railway bridge in Lombard Road due to its 10 ft height restrictions.

More than 800 people signed a petition urging for TfL to reinstate the 170 bus on its original route within a few days, before Wandsworth councillors met with transport chiefs to discuss possible solutions.

Councillor Jonathan Cook, the council’s transport spokesman, said: “This was a completely farcical situation that was entirely of TfL’s own making.

“It seems they went ahead and ordered new buses for this route without checking if they could actually fit under the railway bridge.

“This was then compounded by their reluctance to come clean and admit they’d made a mistake.

“I am very pleased that a combination of town hall pressure combined with people power in Battersea has seen this ludicrous situation brought to an end and buses back on the route.

“We will of course continue to offer our support to TfL to find an engineering solution so that the modern buses that should be on this route can be introduced as quickly as possible."

The transport authority announced the 170 route was due to return on Monday (January 15).

It said it used bus stop signs, electronic countdown boards across its bus network and the Journey Planner to communicate the temporary changes, however it was argued not enough was done to warn people.

Claire Mann, TfL’s director of bus operations, said: “I’m sorry for the disruption caused by the temporary diversion on route 170 and for the lack of notice given.

“This is due to a height restriction at the low bridge on Lombard Road, and we are working with Wandsworth Council to enable us to operate a new, greener bus along this route.

“In the meantime, we are working with Go Ahead, who operate the route, to resume buses serving Lombard Road from Monday, January 15.

“We will be using buses that are compliant with the bridge height restriction and which meet the highest emission standards while we fully resolve this matter.”

It said it used bus stop signs, electronic countdown boards across its bus network and the Journey Planner to communicate the temporary changes.