298: Arnos Grove - Potters Bar

*UPDATED 21st May 2022*

The 298 connects Hertfordshire to North London and even though it leaves Greater London, TfL's tariff applies throughout. It runs every 20 minutes Mon-Sat daytimes and half-hourly evenings and Sundays. It is part of Transport for London's London Bus Network. Click here to discover other bus routes across Greater London and the East

Arnos Grove

The 298 starts right outside Arnos Grove tube station (TfL Zone 4) and calls at stops B, C, D and F. This is an extract from the local TfL map:

New Southgate railway station, also in Zone 4, is also nearby.


Southgate

Southgate tube station is the last in Zone 4 on the Piccadilly Line heading north away from Central London. The 298 serves the bus stops circled in blue on this TfL map extract:

Towards Potters Bar: V, A, G, M, N. Towards Arnos Grove: K, L, C, S.

Asda Hypermarket Southgate Circus, use stops K and N.

Cockfosters

Cockfosters is the last station on the Piccadilly Line, but is in Zone 5, so you'll probably be able to save a bit of money by connecting between Tube and bus at Southgate.

Towards Potters Bar: K, C, A. Towards Arnos Grove: B, D, J.

Just outside Cockfosters is Trent Park, perfect for a walk and a picnic.

Chickenshed Theatre, use stops J and K

Potters Bar

Just over the M25, the 298 terminates in Potters Bar at the railway station, bus stop C: 

Tesco Supermarket Potters Bar, use the Tesco stops

Sainsbury's supermarket Potters Bar, use the railway station stop.

Times

See a full timetable for the 298 on these sites:

• Intalink
• Bus Times
• Traveline

Here are your links for live bus times towards Potters Bar from:
Arnos Grove, stop B
Southgate, stop G
Cockfosters, stop A

...and back towards Arnos Grove:
Potters Bar Station, stop C
Cockfosters, stop B
Southgate, stop C


Connections

Diagram of the 298 and major connecting routes. Not to scale and hugely simplified. Red routes are on the London Bus Network and accept Oyster. Green routes are not part of TfL and do not accept Oyster.

From Arnos Grove, you can use the Piccadilly Line or any of the bus routes on this map to connect with the 298.

New Southgate railway station: Click for departure list, live departure boards, TfL fares and fares to outside Greater London.

Southgate is also on the Piccadilly Line. Here is the bus connections map.

Cockfosters, at the end of the Piccadilly Line has these bus connections.

From Potters Bar, you can use the following buses to connect with the 298:

• TfL 313 to Enfield and Chingford
• Sullivans 84 to St Albans
• Uno 610 to Hatfield and Luton

See a map of all buses in Potters Bar and Hertfordshire here.

Potters Bar rail station: Click for departure list, live departure boards and fares.

Click here for the full tube & rail map. Here's an extract with the 298's route marked:

Fares

Fares are set by Transport for London. On Oyster and contactless it's a flat fare of £1.65 with a bus/tram daily price cap of £4.95. It's also included in all TfL Travelcards and Oyster daily price caps regardless of for which zones they are valid, meaning you can use London's buses to travel to all zones while only paying for those in which you choose to travel by rail.

Although part of the 298 route is in Hertfordshire, the Intalink Explorer multi-operator ticket is not valid on this route.

Alternatives

Between Arnos Grove and Cockfosters, you can also use the Underground's Piccadilly Line. A single journey between the two by tube costs £1.70 off-peak or £2.00 peak on Oyster/contactless or £6.30 cash.

Between Potters Bar and New Southgate, you can use the train. See links above for the departure times. Single fares range from £2.90 to £5.10 and return fares from £3.50 to £5.90 depending on when you travel and how you pay.


Long Distance Footpaths

• Pymmes Brook Trail passes nearby Arnos Grove
• London Loop passes through Cockfosters
• Hertfordshire Way passes nearby Potters Bar

Click here for more great bus routes across Greater London and the East

All of the information in this post is correct at the time of writing, but please check the relevant links before travelling.