Picture Gallery:
Sunday Service in London
7 May 2023
ABOVE: Edgware is a great place to see buses, and all routes call into the bus station, whether terminating or not. Here, Metroline Travel VWH 2213 (LK16 HZE), is a Volvo B5LH Wright Eclipse Gemini 3 on route 186 (Brent Cross to Northwick Park Hospital, a route which I have written about in a previous article). Behind it is New Routemaster LT 805 (LTZ 1805), working Metroline Travel route 32 (Edgware to Kilburn Park).
On Sunday 30th April 2023, I took a trip out on the Transport for London (TfL) bus network - completely unplanned, just moving from one bus to the next one...
Here's a selection of my pictures of buses at work providing a typical Sunday Service in London. My final itinerary is at the end of the article.
Here's a selection of my pictures of buses at work providing a typical Sunday Service in London. My final itinerary is at the end of the article.
First trip of the day is the 607 Express (Uxbridge to White City), from Southall to Ealing Broadway. Even at 0920 on a Sunday morning - on the first 607 of the day - an inside seat is out of the question, and, by the time the bus reaches West Ealing, a seat of any kind is almost out of the question for new joiners.
The 607 does not serve Haven Green in Ealing Broadway, and never has. Look closely, though, and you will see a 607 tile amongst the services advertised for this stop - another of the many signs of the severe deterioration in the quality of TfL publicity.
The 607 does not serve Haven Green in Ealing Broadway, and never has. Look closely, though, and you will see a 607 tile amongst the services advertised for this stop - another of the many signs of the severe deterioration in the quality of TfL publicity.
Alperton Sainsbury's on Glacier Way (just out of sight to the left of this photo) is a turning point for various routes, including the 79 to Edgware and the 245 to Golders Green.
RATP London United VH 45302 (LF18 AYE) on route 79 is a Volvo B5LH Wright Eclipse Gemini 3, as is Metroline Travel VWH 2290 (LK17 CYV), behind it, on route 245.
RATP London United VH 45302 (LF18 AYE) on route 79 is a Volvo B5LH Wright Eclipse Gemini 3, as is Metroline Travel VWH 2290 (LK17 CYV), behind it, on route 245.
At Arriva London's Wood Green bus garage is Arriva London SW 7 (LK16 BXJ), a Wright Streetdeck, on route 329 (Turnpike Lane to Enfield). In front of me is an ADL Enviro200 MMC of 8.9m-length - a very short model for Arriva London route W4 (Oakthorpe Park to Tottenham Hale), which I need to try one day.
Somewhere around here, but separate from the Arriva (former London Transport) garage, was an Eastern National depot, from where the long 251 service to Southend was based. The Eastern National depot was used for some exterior scenes for the 1960s / 1970s London Weekend sitcom On The Buses.
Somewhere around here, but separate from the Arriva (former London Transport) garage, was an Eastern National depot, from where the long 251 service to Southend was based. The Eastern National depot was used for some exterior scenes for the 1960s / 1970s London Weekend sitcom On The Buses.
A little further down from the bus garage is the busy Wood Green High Road, taken from the top of a bus passing Wood Green underground station. Arriva London has also bought Volvo B5LH Wright Eclipse Gemini 3s, including HV 212 (LK66 HCY), seen heading back to Edgware on route 221 (Turnpike Lane to Edgware). Opposite is an older Wright Gemini 2 on the very long and very busy route 123 (Wood Green to Ilford), also operated by Arriva London.
Route 41 (Tottenham Hale to Archway) passes Turnpike Lane, and this blurred picture of Arriva London HV 375 (LF67 EVM), yet another Wright Eclipse, is taken as it passes through Tottenham Lane, Hornsey, on its way to Tottenham Hale.
In Tottenham Lane, Crouch End, I snap EHV 1 (BK15 AZR), a Volvo B5LH ADL Enviro400H MMC from Go-Ahead London, operating route 91 (Trafalgar Square to Crouch End). This route was operated with New Routemasters for a while, but they were eventually deemed to be too long (at 11.3 metres) for the tight U-turn that the 91 makes around the roundabout at Crouch End.
The one shorter-than-standard New Routemaster in the fleet of 1000, ST 812 (10.2 metres long), was trialled on this route to see whether it would make a difference, but no orders for the shorter version followed and the New Routemasters were redeployed elsewhere.
The one shorter-than-standard New Routemaster in the fleet of 1000, ST 812 (10.2 metres long), was trialled on this route to see whether it would make a difference, but no orders for the shorter version followed and the New Routemasters were redeployed elsewhere.
Route 210 (Finsbury Park to Brent Cross) is a very long-established route. It ran with single-deckers for very many years (74 years), but was finally promoted to double-deck in 2008.
Metroline Travel VW 1286 (LK12 AOT) is seen in Crouch End.
Metroline Travel VW 1286 (LK12 AOT) is seen in Crouch End.
Metroline Travel BDE 2626 (LJ19 CUY) is an ADL Enviro400 City EV with a BYD electric underframe, seen here outside HMP Pentonville on the Caledonian Road, working route 17 (London Bridge to Archway). The iBus (talking bus) equipment still refers to this stop as "Her Majesty's Prison".
Route 259 (Edmonton Green to King's Cross) is now furnished by New Routemasters. This is LT 575 (LTZ 1575), operated by Arriva London, on the Caledonian Road at Killick Street, north of King's Cross.
For the uninitiated, the New Routemaster fleet is numbered in one sequence from LT 1 to LT 1000 (barring the short ST 812, mentioned earlier). All 1000 are owned by TfL, and are leased out to the appropriate operators to run the contracted services.
For the uninitiated, the New Routemaster fleet is numbered in one sequence from LT 1 to LT 1000 (barring the short ST 812, mentioned earlier). All 1000 are owned by TfL, and are leased out to the appropriate operators to run the contracted services.
King's Cross station, opened by the Great Northern Railway in 1852, and looking, in my opinion, as good as new after 171 years!
Approaching Russell Square, we find a pair of New Routemasters. Abellio LT 773 (LTZ 1773) is at work on the long route 68 (West Norwood to Euston), followed by an unidentified LT on route 168 (Old Kent Road, Tesco to Hampstead Heath), operated by Metroline Travel.
Route 168 has been around since 1986, when it replaced part of route 68 when the latter was reduced in length (initially on Mondays to Saturdays only). The 168 may not be around for much longer - a proposal to merge it into route 1 was consulted on in 2021 and is expected to be implemented in September 2023.
Route 168 has been around since 1986, when it replaced part of route 68 when the latter was reduced in length (initially on Mondays to Saturdays only). The 168 may not be around for much longer - a proposal to merge it into route 1 was consulted on in 2021 and is expected to be implemented in September 2023.
Aldwych was reconstructed into a two-way street back in 2021, but this was my first visit to the area since the change.
Here we see an Abellio BYD ADL Enviro400EV on route 68 (route 63, King's Cross to Honor Oak being its official haunt). Behind is yet another Gemini 3 (never knew there were so many in London); this time on route 341 (Waterloo to Northumberland Park). This carries the very complex destination of "Northumberland Park, ANGEL ROAD SUPERSTORES" - one of the longest destination displays to be seen on a modern London bus, where things are generally presented as simply as possible.
Here we see an Abellio BYD ADL Enviro400EV on route 68 (route 63, King's Cross to Honor Oak being its official haunt). Behind is yet another Gemini 3 (never knew there were so many in London); this time on route 341 (Waterloo to Northumberland Park). This carries the very complex destination of "Northumberland Park, ANGEL ROAD SUPERSTORES" - one of the longest destination displays to be seen on a modern London bus, where things are generally presented as simply as possible.
This is Strand, and I'm looking down through the pedestrianised section to the stunning St Mary Le Strand church.
On the extreme left is Stagecoach London 12510 (SN16 OHZ), an ADL Enviro400H City, on route 26 to Hackney Wick. This route used to run across Waterloo Bridge (to the right past the distinctive brick building), until a series of changes from 29th April saw it diverted to Victoria, via Strand, Whitehall and Victoria Street, in part-replacement for route 11, which was diverted to Waterloo via Westminster Bridge and no longer serves this area.
On the extreme left is Stagecoach London 12510 (SN16 OHZ), an ADL Enviro400H City, on route 26 to Hackney Wick. This route used to run across Waterloo Bridge (to the right past the distinctive brick building), until a series of changes from 29th April saw it diverted to Victoria, via Strand, Whitehall and Victoria Street, in part-replacement for route 11, which was diverted to Waterloo via Westminster Bridge and no longer serves this area.
Another route that changed on 29th April was the 23 from Westbourne Park, which was restored to Aldwych (albeit by a slightly different route to before), after a few years of serving Hammersmith.
The new arrangements do not seem to have been reflected on the blinds yet, as RATP London United OME 46031 (YJ21 EXO), an Optare Metrodecker EV, demonstrates. The biggest issue I have with the "Route 23 to Aldwych" card is that this bus is not going to Aldwych - it has just left there!
The new arrangements do not seem to have been reflected on the blinds yet, as RATP London United OME 46031 (YJ21 EXO), an Optare Metrodecker EV, demonstrates. The biggest issue I have with the "Route 23 to Aldwych" card is that this bus is not going to Aldwych - it has just left there!
A busy Sunday afternoon scene at Trafalgar Square. On the left is Arriva London HV 211 (LK66 HCX - guess what type this is!) on route 29 (Wood Green to Trafalgar Square), whilst another Optare Metrodecker EV from RATP London United has to make do with a card in the windscreen to show that it's working route 23. (I saw a 23 a few days later labelled "Trafalgar Square", but had no way of knowing whether it was genuinely turning there or just showing the nearest it could to Aldwych.)
There's a genuine Routemaster in the background (right) on the Londoner tourist route A (Waterloo to Piccadilly Circus), which used to run every 15-20 minutes, but is now an hourly (with lunch break) one-bus operation.
There's a genuine Routemaster in the background (right) on the Londoner tourist route A (Waterloo to Piccadilly Circus), which used to run every 15-20 minutes, but is now an hourly (with lunch break) one-bus operation.
To Vauxhall bus station now, just across the river, where Arriva London HV 396 (LC67 AKG) is working route 2 (Marylebone to West Norwood). Opposite is an Abellio ADL Enviro400 awaiting departure time on route 156 to Wimbledon.
A plan to demolish this bus station, even though it was only built in 2005, was approved in 2020, but things have gone quiet since. Hopefully they have forgotten...?
A plan to demolish this bus station, even though it was only built in 2005, was approved in 2020, but things have gone quiet since. Hopefully they have forgotten...?
Routes 77 & 87 are historically-interlinked so I think it appropriate to present them together. The current route of the 77, from Waterloo to Tooting, is recognisable from the 1934 route from Kings Cross to Wallington, via Vauxhall and Tooting. The 87 number only arrived in 2006; prior to that, it was the 77A, the last route on the TfL network to carry a suffix. The 77A once ran from King's Cross as well, but deviated from the 77 in running to Wandsworth and Raynes Park instead of Tooting. The modern 87 runs from Aldwych to Wandsworth.
LEFT: Go-Ahead London EH 285 (YX18 KWW), on route 77, is an ADL Enviro400H MMC, on the Wandsworth Road east of Clapham Junction.
RIGHT: New Routemaster LT 483 (LTZ 1483), also with Go-Ahead London, is just a little further east on the same road, at the junction with Newby Street.
LEFT: Go-Ahead London EH 285 (YX18 KWW), on route 77, is an ADL Enviro400H MMC, on the Wandsworth Road east of Clapham Junction.
RIGHT: New Routemaster LT 483 (LTZ 1483), also with Go-Ahead London, is just a little further east on the same road, at the junction with Newby Street.
A pair of Abellio ADL Enviro 400Hs now. 2460 (SL14 DDY) is working route 156 from Wimbledon, whilst 2449 (SK14 SYY) on route 345 (South Kensington to Peckham). We're only a short distance from Clapham Junction, on Lavender Hill - the same Lavender Hill as in that wonderful Ealing Comedy, The Lavender Hill Mob, rated 17 in the British Film Institute's Top 100 British Films (there's a play of the film doing the rounds - worth a look if it comes near you).
Another pair now; in this case, two of Go-Ahead London's ADL Enviro400H MMCs on St John's Hill at Clapham Junction: EH 72 (YX66 WHP) is close to the end of a journey on route 37 from Peckham to Putney Heath, whilst EH 53 (YX16 OCJ) is working route 35 to Shoreditch.
Route 37 had the distinction of being one of a very small number of routes to be cut not into two, but into three separate routes, back in 1991, in order to ensure a reliable service could be offered. It used to run all the way to Hounslow, but routes 337 (Clapham Junction to Richmond) and H37 (Richmond to Hounslow) stepped in.
Route 37 had the distinction of being one of a very small number of routes to be cut not into two, but into three separate routes, back in 1991, in order to ensure a reliable service could be offered. It used to run all the way to Hounslow, but routes 337 (Clapham Junction to Richmond) and H37 (Richmond to Hounslow) stepped in.
Another route to spring out of the split of a long route into two shorter ones was the 430 (Roehampton to South Kensington), which arrived in 2002 after the 74 was cut back from Roehampton to Putney. Go-Ahead London EH 104 (YY66 OZK), another ADL Enviro400H MMC, calls at the Gipsy Lane stop in Barnes.
I can remember seeing AEC Routemasters (RMs) on route 33 next to the longer RML variant on route 37 at Hounslow Bus Station when I was young. All long gone now, and route 33 (Fulwell to Castlenau) is operated by single-deckers, including ADL Enviro200s like RATP London United's DLE 30015 (SN60 EBV), seen here at the Queen's Ride stop on Upper Richmond Road in Barnes. Electric single-deckers are starting to appear on the route now.
Castlenau is immediately south of the infamous Hammersmith Bridge, and has been the terminus of the 33 since the bridge closed to buses in 2019. The bridge itself was the reason for the restriction of this busy route to single-decker buses, for weight-restriction reasons; in the four years since it closed there have been no moves to restore double-deckers to the route.
Castlenau is immediately south of the infamous Hammersmith Bridge, and has been the terminus of the 33 since the bridge closed to buses in 2019. The bridge itself was the reason for the restriction of this busy route to single-decker buses, for weight-restriction reasons; in the four years since it closed there have been no moves to restore double-deckers to the route.
Go-Ahead London ADL Enviro400 E161 (SN11 BUV) works the aforementioned 337 (Richmond to Clapham Junction). It is passing Temple Sheen Road in Sheen, east of Richmond.
There are very few Mercedes-Benz Citaros operated by TfL contractors. RATP London United has most of them, including 12-metre long versions for route 203 (Hounslow to Staines), and shorter 10.5-metre vehicles for route 117 (Isleworth to Staines). On route 203 we find MCL 30304 (BD11 LWR) at Hatton Cross bus station. The 203 is another extremely busy route that could use double-decker buses; this Sunday afternoon 1636 departure is clearly very busy.
Next to the 203 is another Go-Ahead London ADL Enviro400H MMC, EH 213 (YY67 UTN) on Express route X26 (Heathrow to West Croydon - read my experiences of London's express bus routes here). These dual-door buses are not the official allocation for the route - single-door Volvo B9TL Wright Eclipse Gemini 2s, with extra luggage racks, are normally used. As this bus pulled out I was able to observe a huge number of suitcases filling the wheelchair space and spilling out into the main body of the bus.
Next to the 203 is another Go-Ahead London ADL Enviro400H MMC, EH 213 (YY67 UTN) on Express route X26 (Heathrow to West Croydon - read my experiences of London's express bus routes here). These dual-door buses are not the official allocation for the route - single-door Volvo B9TL Wright Eclipse Gemini 2s, with extra luggage racks, are normally used. As this bus pulled out I was able to observe a huge number of suitcases filling the wheelchair space and spilling out into the main body of the bus.
And finally, a bus on diversion. Route 195 (Brentford to Charville Lane Estate, North Hayes) is yet another route that could use double-deckers, but is always the bridesmaid. Abellio London 8888 (SN17 MPY) is an ADL Enviro200 MMC and is crossing the Wolf Bridge in Norwood Green, near Southall, some way from its normal route. The diversion is due to the closure of Western Road, Southall, following a gas explosion at a shop earlier in the afternoon.
To access its normal route in Hayes, near the Western International Market, it will traverse down Thorncliffe Road, which last had a regular bus scheduled to run down it in 1974, when the original 232 route (Northolt to Hounslow via Norwood Green) was withdrawn. On this day, Thorncliffe Road has no fewer than four routes running down it, including mine, which shouldn't have been there either! Norwood Green, which usually has just the 120 (Northolt to Hounslow) is blessed with five routes!
To access its normal route in Hayes, near the Western International Market, it will traverse down Thorncliffe Road, which last had a regular bus scheduled to run down it in 1974, when the original 232 route (Northolt to Hounslow via Norwood Green) was withdrawn. On this day, Thorncliffe Road has no fewer than four routes running down it, including mine, which shouldn't have been there either! Norwood Green, which usually has just the 120 (Northolt to Hounslow) is blessed with five routes!
And so, after eight hours, I have completed my trip. The full circuit has involved 10 buses, nine of which were double-deckers (double-deckers are always better). For those who want the exact details, here we go:
- 607 Southall to Ealing Broadway
- 297 to Wembley
- 79 to Edgware
- 221 to Turnpike Lane
- 41 to Hornsey Rise
- 91 to Strand
- 87 to Wandsworth
- 337 to Richmond
- 490 to Hatton Cross (single-decker)
- 482 to Southall