Quarter One Snippets
Stories, pictures and opinions from the first three months of 2025 that wouldn't merit a full article of their own...
30 March 2025
ABOVE: One of the latest bus designs to hit the streets of Britain is the BYD BD11. Go-Ahead London EBD 36 (LF74 TUA, centre) departs Beckton Bus Station on Transport for London route 101 to Wanstead on Sunday 2 February. A fellow electric vehicle, Stagecoach London 84116 (LF70 YUN, left), a BYD D8UR-DD ADL Enviro400EV, looks on.
Further back than we've ever been before...
As noted above, one of the latest of a plethora of new bus models to hit the streets is the BYD BD11. Dual-door examples have reached East and South East London at least.
ABOVE: Go-Ahead London EBD 32 (LF74 UAK), a BYD BD11, passes through Bromley Town Centre on Sunday 2 February, working Transport for London route 320 (Catford Bridge to Biggin Hill Valley)
The most striking thing for me regarding these new vehicles is the position of the rear door (on Transport for London - TfL - vehicles at least).
The first generation of driver-only double-deckers usually had the rear doors separated from the front doors by one bay. More recent low-floor types have pushed that to two bays, but the BYD BD11 pushes us back by a full three bays.
ABOVE: Go-Ahead London EBD 36 again, showing off the position of the rear-door to good effect, in the morning sunshine of Sunday 2 February. It is working Transport for London route 101 (Wanstead to Beckton), and is seen on Woolwich Manor Way, having just pulled out of Beckton Bus Station.
There's nowhere left to go now - unless we put the doors behind the rear wheels, which I suspect isn't practical!
Curiously, single-decker buses have always had the rear doors further back, from the days of Merlins and Leyland Nationals. I suspect having the door further back helps the flow, as people know they are going to have to move down the bus eventually.
Incidentally, a friend of mine sent me a photograph of a whole batch of these buses parked up at Westbourne Park Garage, near Paddington in West London. The buses are being built much faster than the infrastructure to power them can be fitted into depots, so the buses are having to be stored until the depots are ready for them. I'd like to get my own picture of these stored buses, when I have a chance to nip over to Westbourne Park. I have the feeling that there's no rush...
A Tough Manoeuvre
I boarded an X3 service (Addenbrooke's Hospital to Huntingdon), operated by Whippet, at the Cambridge Drummer Street Bus Station. This was a full-length Volvo B8RLE Wright Eclipse 3 and was in Bay 3, at the end furthest from the exit. The space there is so tight that the normal reversing manoeuvre became a triple reversing manoeuvre before the driver had enough clearance to pull forward and get out.
You can probably tell from the picture below how tight the manoeuvre was - especially with Bay 4 occupied!
You can probably tell from the picture below how tight the manoeuvre was - especially with Bay 4 occupied!
ABOVE: Whippet WG 105 (BT66 MVE), a Volvo B8RLE Wright Eclipse 3, arrives at Cambridge's Drummer Street Bus Station, prior to picking up a service to Huntingdon, on Monday 20 January.
The bus had audio announcements and next stop displays. The former, though, couldn't cope with the stop at De La Warr Way in Cambourne, and read each letter out in turn, presenting it as "D. E. L. A. Warr. Way".
A Lengthy Vehicle...
Whilst in Cambridge, I also found one of Stagecoach East's six-wheel Volvo B8L ADL Enviro400XLBs nicely posed for a picture... These 98-seaters are the buses used on the Cambridge Busway, and are 44-feet (13.4 metres) long.
I wonder if it was able to reverse out easily?
I wonder if it was able to reverse out easily?
ABOVE: Stagecoach East 13911 (BU69 XYM), a Volvo B8L ADL Enviro400XLB, stands at Drummer Street Bus Station in Cambridge, on Monday 20 January.
When Space is not at a Premium...
I spotted this Bus Stop flag at the stop outside Homebase in Duston, near Northampton, and found myself wondering why, with slots for 12 numbers, the six routes stopping there were all squashed into three slots.
A Diverting Lack of Attention to Detail
There are long-term diversions in Central London for most of 2025, due to the southbound closure of Lambeth Bridge. This bus stop flag in Marsham Street, Westminster, has been updated to reflect that route 3 (Victoria to Crystal Palace) is temporarily serving this stop on diversion.
Such a shame that the flag does not include route C10 (Victoria to Canada Water), which is also being diverted this way, for exactly the same reason. Still, at least there's a timetable in the stop for the C10; a privilege not even accorded to the 88 (Clapham Common to Parliament Hill Fields), which always stops here!
Such a shame that the flag does not include route C10 (Victoria to Canada Water), which is also being diverted this way, for exactly the same reason. Still, at least there's a timetable in the stop for the C10; a privilege not even accorded to the 88 (Clapham Common to Parliament Hill Fields), which always stops here!
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Left High and Dry
The normal 16 buses per hour between Hayes By-Pass and Ealing Hospital were reduced by TfL to just six per hour for five days recently, when route 207 (10 buses per hour) was curtailed short of Southall, due to roadworks on a completely different part of the route.
The normal process when journey times are expected to be extended is to widen service frequencies across the whole route. I accept that these were emergency works, but chopping a whole section of route still left me high and dry, on a corridor that, until a couple of years ago, had 24 buses per hour on it and struggles with 16 at peak times.
When is that happening again?
The Bee Network looks impressive and seems to be going down well with the locals (I'm planning another visit soon so I'll see what I think then). But the display screens on several buses are showing out-of-date adverts which really should be removed. I found these two adverts whilst riding a route 17 bus from Manchester to Rochdale on Saturday 25 January:
Three Lovely Photographs - Just for the Sake of it!
One
I think the view from this Bus Stop at Abbey Wood station in South East London is stunning! We're elevated anyway (there are roads directly beneath), and we have what I presume to be Lesnes Abbey Woods in the background behind the houses.
I think the view from this Bus Stop at Abbey Wood station in South East London is stunning! We're elevated anyway (there are roads directly beneath), and we have what I presume to be Lesnes Abbey Woods in the background behind the houses.
Taken on Sunday 2 February
Two
The only connection to buses in the picture below is that it was taken from a bus. This is the view from TfL route 474 (Manor Park to Canning Town), as it crosses the Connaught Bridge near London City Airport. This is part of the Royal Docks that leads off the River Thames, rather than part of the Thames itself. The building on the right is ExCeL London, a major events venue, whilst the distant skyline of Canary Wharf dominates.
Taken on Sunday 2 February
Three
I love church buildings; they often have centuries of history and many of them are architectural masterpieces. And, of course, you never know when you're going to stumble across one.
The Parish Church of St Mary in Langley, near Maidstone, Kent, is a Grade-II* listed building, dating from the 1850s. It can be viewed from Arriva Kent & Surrey route 12 (Tenterden to Maidstone). And here it is:
Taken on Saturday 8 March
Innovation at its best
I was awaiting the departure of a Transdev Rosso service 483 from Bury to Burnley when it became apparent that all was not well with the vehicle. A panel above the driver's head had become loose and needed to be secured. The only tool available to the driver was the sticky part of a Weekly ticket wallet (when you buy a weekly ticket it is put into a special wallet to keep it clean and presentable for the required duration).
All drivers carry a few on routes where weekly tickets are sold, and this driver needed to use every single one at their disposal to secure the panel. I reckon they used up 30 or more.
Great improvisation. Probably just as well that it was a Sunday evening, when few would have wanted to buy weekly tickets. I hope the stock was replenished before the Monday morning rush... I also hope that the panel was fixed, and that the driver didn't get into trouble for 'wasting' all of those wallets.
All drivers carry a few on routes where weekly tickets are sold, and this driver needed to use every single one at their disposal to secure the panel. I reckon they used up 30 or more.
Great improvisation. Probably just as well that it was a Sunday evening, when few would have wanted to buy weekly tickets. I hope the stock was replenished before the Monday morning rush... I also hope that the panel was fixed, and that the driver didn't get into trouble for 'wasting' all of those wallets.
Farewell to Hulley's of Baslow
I was very sad to see the demise of the operator Hulley's of Baslow, after 104 years. In 2021, it launched its X57 service across the Peak District's Snake Pass (the A57, presumably the reason for the choice of route number). A shame the route didn't catch on as it was a stunning ride.
I wrote last year about a charming Hulley's woman driver with whom I travelled on two separate occasions. She was a great ambassador for the company and I hope another operator snaps her up!
I wrote last year about a charming Hulley's woman driver with whom I travelled on two separate occasions. She was a great ambassador for the company and I hope another operator snaps her up!
ABOVE: In happier times, Hulley's of Baslow SW64 XAP, a Wright Streetlite DF, stands in Bakewell on Tuesday 28 September 2021.
Hold Tight - and Cover Your Ears!
An article in Buses magazine suggests that TfL is looking at adding another safety feature to its buses - a simulation of the traditional "two bells" start-up signal. The idea is to reduce the number of accidents caused by buses starting up suddenly. This follows the failed and ridiculed announcements that were installed a few years ago warning people to "hold tight - the bus is about to move" (ridiculed because they were usually heard long after the bus was under way).
I'm not sure that the "two bells" idea would make a difference. There's already a cacophony of noise on any busy bus - door closing bleeps, destination announcements, people ringing the bells early for the next stop (often "two bells" nowadays), talking, arguing (!), etc. Add some schoolchildren at home time or a late night stag or hen party and there's very little chance of a two bells signal being heard above all the other din, in my view. No doubt we will see, or rather hear, whether this works in due course.
I'm not sure that the "two bells" idea would make a difference. There's already a cacophony of noise on any busy bus - door closing bleeps, destination announcements, people ringing the bells early for the next stop (often "two bells" nowadays), talking, arguing (!), etc. Add some schoolchildren at home time or a late night stag or hen party and there's very little chance of a two bells signal being heard above all the other din, in my view. No doubt we will see, or rather hear, whether this works in due course.
Making the Link...
I recently took a ride on Stagecoach South route 32 from Basingstoke to Newbury. I know the route used to go around with a title, rather than a number, but I couldn't remeber what the title was. Until I saw the display on the bus which still showed the old name - "The Link". Time for a software update, Stagecoach?
Taken on Saturday 15 February
Does this bus go to Worthing Hospital?
I recently caught up with this Stagecoach bus outside an Urgent Treatment Centre. The bus advertises "Buses to the Hospital", so that sounds OK, doesn't it?
Well not quite, as the bus, advertising "The Pulse ... direct to the heart of Worthing", and with branding showing that the route serves Worthing, Worthing Hospital and Lancing (inset below), is actually calling at North Hampshire Hospital, near Basingstoke.
BusTimes.org suggests that 27678 (GX60 PDV), an ADL/TransBus Enviro300, moved from Worthing to Basingstoke in October 2024, so maybe, by Saturday 15 February 2025, it should have had the Worthing branding removed?
BusTimes.org suggests that 27678 (GX60 PDV), an ADL/TransBus Enviro300, moved from Worthing to Basingstoke in October 2024, so maybe, by Saturday 15 February 2025, it should have had the Worthing branding removed?
An Uxexpectedly Rural Ride
The 480, from Bury to Bolton in Greater Manchester, surprised me with its extremely countrified sections through places such as Affetside, which sits in the West Pennine Moors. I know Greater Manchester isn't all built up; I just wasn't expecting quite such stunning scenery when I boarded that bus. I want to do the 480 again next time I'm in that area!
ABOVE: This is somewhere around Affetside / Side of the Moor, near Tottington in Greater Manchester, on Sunday 26 January.
Running Day Season is Here...
ABOVE: How many generations of bus design separate the vehicles seen here? Preserved London Transport RT 3933 (LLU 732. left) is about to embark on a run on route 144 to Edmonton. It is seen pulling out of the bus stand at Muswell Hill during the Wood Green Running day of Sunday 23 March. Arriva London DW485 (LJ61 CAA, centre), a VDL DB300 Wright Gemini 2, will consequently have fewer customers than usual on this run to Edmonton Green, On the right, representing the new generation, Metroline Travel WDE 2864 (LV23 ZBF, right), a Wright StreetDeck Electroliner, is about to start another journey on route W7 to Finsbury Park.
Incidentally, this video by John G. Lidstone ably showcases another RT making the climb up the very steep Muswell Hill during the same event. These old buses aren't as powerful as modern ones, but they can still achieve climbs like that one with an expert driver in the cab.
Incidentally, this video by John G. Lidstone ably showcases another RT making the climb up the very steep Muswell Hill during the same event. These old buses aren't as powerful as modern ones, but they can still achieve climbs like that one with an expert driver in the cab.
ABOVE: What better sight for a London bus running day than three RT-family buses, on the same route, arriving together at the terminus of route 19, on the south side of Battersea Bridge? This was the occasion of the Route 19 Running Day, on Saturday 29 March. Organised by the London Bus Museum, more than 30 buses attended, and the sunny weather brought enthusiasts and casual punters out in huge numbers. I caught up with a good friend afterwards, and, as she remarked, the event was busier than Imber!
And Finally...
Not a bus, admittedly, but this line diagram on a Central Line Underground train in central London, at the very end of 2024, needs a bit of updating. The Elizabeth Line station at Bond Street opened in October 2022.
