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old routemasters

latest on this saturday's (30 march) event at Barking - marking 80 years since the first 'RT type' bus (the generation before the Routemaster) was built, and 40 years since they last ran in regular London service (which was on route 62 at Barking)

280px-And_where%27s_the_driver.jpg
(this sort of thing - as ever bear in mind they are not low floor!)

suggestion is that there will be 30 or so in service - probably the largest number together since about 1978.
 
update on tomorrow (sat 30 march) event at Barking -

to the best of the information i've seen (and i'm not involved with the event) plan is

approx 10 to 11 am, line up of RT buses at Barking (Stagecoach) bus garage (Longbridge Road / South park Drive junction) - broadly a photo opportunity on the basis it will probably be the biggest collection of RT buses on (former) London Transport premises since the 1970s

11 am to 3 pm - buses every few minutes between Barking (Stagecoach) bus garage and Barking, River Road (Go Ahead London) bus garage on River Road, with most buses continuing beyond one or the other garage to re-create a number of bus routes. (this bit will broadly follow TFL bus route EL3 via Barking Town Centre, so calling at stops outside / opposite Barking railway station.)

Some form of 'open day' event at both garages.

about 3 pm - re-creation of hand-over of 'last' RT on route 62 to a Routemaster at Barking Garage (in 1979, the early shifts had RT type buses, and when the late shifts took over they took a Routemaster - all concerned had decided they didn't want the final run in some time after midnight on a Saturday night)

after 3 pm - procession of RT buses over route 62 (again, repeating events of 1979)

one or two buses staying out after that.

All is on 'free but please buy a programme to cover costs' basis.
 
some photos from the April event at Barking here - buses every 5 minutes or more frequent through Barking town centre...

quite a few events on over the easter weekend, although not much in the London area

19-20 Apr: London Transport Museum, Depot Discovery Tours at Acton Depot.
20 Apr: Maidstone Vintage Toy Fair, Lockmeadow Market Hall, Hart Street, Maidstone, Kent.
20-21 Apr: Easter Family Treasure Trail, East Anglia Transport Museum, near Lowestoft, Suffolk.
20-21 Apr: Cumbria Easter Rally in Kirkby Stephen & Brough. Stalls and displays in Kirkby Stephen Town Centre, East Station yard and Brough, Cumbria.
20-22 Apr: Easter Weekend Trolleydays, The Trolleybus Museum at Sandtoft, near Doncaster. Lincolnshire.
20-22 Apr: Blackpool Heritage Trams Seasonal Tours "Easter Gold" Operating Weekend.
21 Apr: Easter Egg Hunt, North West Museum of Road Transport, Hall St, St.Helens, Merseyside.
21 Apr: "Transport Festival", Lincolnshire Road Transport Museum, Lincoln.
21 Apr: Penzance Vintage Bus Running Day. Free vintage bus services in West Cornwall.
21 Apr: Easter TransportFest Show, Museum of Power, Maldon, Essex,
21 Apr: Oxford Bus Museum, Easter Chick Hunt with free rides. Oxford.
21-22 Apr: Weston Park Easter Motor Show, near Telford, Shropshire.
21-22 Apr: Medway Festival of Steam & Transport, Chatham Historic Dockyard, Kent.
21-22 Apr: World War II - Home Front, Crich Tramway Village, Derbyshire.
21-22 Apr: Easter Weekend and Bristol Buses Spring Gathering, The Transport Museum, Wythall, W.Midlands.
22 Apr: Bank Holiday Easter Egg Trail, Ipswich Transport Museum, Suffolk.
22 Apr: Oxford Bus Museum Bank Holiday Running Day. Oxford.

Kirkby Stephen, Lincoln, Penzance and Oxford involve buses on the road, the things at Blackpool / Crich / East Anglia / Sandtoft will involve trams and / or trolleybuses as appropriate - not 100% sure about the others. events diary here has links

nearer London, Sunday 28 April has a 'country bus' running day at East Grinstead - farcebook page here

and spring 'bus event' at Amberley Museum, Sussex
 
HELP, please. Sunday is the annual HCVS London to Brighton run. I remember in the past tracking down busses or coaches that took fee paying passengers on the run. I am struggling to find them again. Can anyone point me in the right direction? Puddy_Tat ?
 
hash tag said:
HELP, please. Sunday is the annual HCVS London to Brighton run. I remember in the past tracking down busses or coaches that took fee paying passengers on the run. I am struggling to find them again. Can anyone point me in the right direction? Puddy_Tat ?
Click to expand...

the event usually clashes with (or is the weekend before) something else i do (I'm heading south west for the weekend...) so not been on it for a long time.

not sure what you're asking is much of a thing, mostly it's vehicle owners and friends / guests. you might find someone at the start who will let you travel with them, but not sure it's done formally.

broadly speaking, if you are going to do anything that's "hire and reward" you need to have the vehicle licensed to public service vehicle standards - and be licensed as a PSV operator, and that's generally not worth it. which is why most of the running days out there are on the basis of free travel on the buses and encouragement but not compulsion to buy a programme to cover costs.
 
Cheers Puddy. x. I am certain there is and I am not sure how I found the operators before, I think it was in the back of programmes, which of course I no longer have.
Some will do a straight run and some do a stop or two, but which ones? :facepalm:
 
For some of their big events, The Ffestiniog / WHR / WHHR use a couple of AEC Routemasters (and sometimes other vehicles) to run a connecting / circular route around Porthmadog and Minffordd. This works as a park n ride as well, the local football team let their car park be used for the purpose.
No fares are charged, but gala tickets are usually looked at and donations are welcome.

this was taken a couple of years ago ...

TiG - routemaster in Wales par StoneRoad2013, on ipernity
 
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StoneRoad said:
For some of their big events, The Ffestiniog / WHR / WHHR use a couple of AEC Routemasters (and sometimes other vehicles) to run a connecting / circular route around Porthmadog and Minffordd. This works as a park n ride as well, then local football team let their car park be used for the purpose.
No fares are charged, but gala tickets are usually looked at and donations are welcome.

this was taken a couple of years ago ...

TiG - routemaster in Wales par StoneRoad2013, on ipernity
Click to expand...
The blind is slightly inaccurate :)
 
Bugger, Imber is one I ave been trying to get to for years; I wont make this one, I have to work :(
It's also the Biddenden tractorfest weekend
 
event at the Epping Ongar Railway this Sunday (8 September) featuring 1940s / 50s london buses (the generation before routemasters)

includes links to / from Loughton, Shenfield, Chingford, Harlow and Epping rail / underground stations

note that these are paid for rather than free bus services and as ever the usual warnings apply about the buses not being easy access for people with disabilities (especially the RF single deckers which have fairly steep steps at the front entrance)
 
couple of things coming up -

Saturday 23 November - Heritage bus operation on part of London Buses route 140 (Harrow - Hayes and Harlington) with RT and Routemaster family buses. Info sketchy at this stage.

Saturday 7 December - Ensign Bus heritage running day - based on Lakeside (Thurrock) shopping centre - routes usually include Brentwood / Upminster / Gravesend via Dartford crossing (note - this one uses fully licensed buses / operator so you do have to pay to travel rather than free service / please buy a programme) - again full timetables not yet out.

Will try and post updates when available.
 
Puddy_Tat said:
Suggestion that a number of london bus routes will have a Routemaster running as an extra on Friday 8 November, with donations towards the poppy appeal being invited.

More info when I have it.
Click to expand...

More info now available -

Routemasters (one 'RTW' - from the late 40's / early 50s generation of buses) will run on routes 2, 9, 13, 14, 15, 23 (and positioning journey on 452), 24, 25 and 159 - generally one bus on each route working from about 0800 / 0900 to 1700-ish with a break for the crew at some point.

timetables (opens as pdf) here
 
hash tag said:
That must be quite some effort to get all those buses out on those routes :thumbs:
Click to expand...

yes and no - most of the london bus companies have one or two 'pet' routemasters still, and a few office / supervisory / semi retired staff who will be willing to go out and have a play

more things coming up -

Monday 11 November, a single Routemaster will operate a journey on route 8 - leave Bow Church for Tottenham Court Road at 0919, returning from Tottenham Court Road at 1040 (it's 60 years since Bow garage started operating route 8) - donations for Macmillan being sought

Saturday 23 November - more info now available here about the special operation on route 140 (Harrow - Hayes - Heathrow) - broadly every 20 minutes or better from about 1030 - 1730, will include 1940s/50s RT and 1950s/60s Routemaster buses - may include a couple of 1980s Metrobus as well, but this yet to be confirmed.

Detail on Ensignbus thing on Saturday 7 December still awaited

Also two events happening on Sunday 8 December - smallish scale thing based on Bromley (usually mainly 1950s single deck buses on route 227 and odd buses on a few other routes) and also something in Reading (no detail at all yet) to mark the centenary of Reading Corporation adding motor buses to their tramway operation.
 
update on (this Saturday) 23 November on route 140 (Harrow Weald - Heathrow Airport)

Latest is 15 buses so far scheduled - 8 1940s / 50s RT class, 6 1950s / 60s Routemasters, 2 1980s Metrobuses.

Every 10 / 20 minutes, from about 1030 to last departures from each end about 1630, with some odd journeys extended to Mill Hill.

There is a road closure in Hayes town centre, so the timetable might get buggered up and some buses might get 'turned short' so the service at each end might be a bit patchy (although buses and crews are scheduled to take breaks at Metroline's bus garage at Harrow Weald)

Harrow Weald garage is not open to the public.

I seem to have acquired a conductor duty for the day - will make a change only to have one bus to think about...
 
Edited - (on second thoughts, picture moved to ugly mug thread which is in community)

was in conductor mode on saturday on route 140 thing.

had one one of the fairly small batch of Routemasters built for the limited stop 'green line' routes, so has doors at the back. and while the theory is the driver opens them, the door buttons in the cab weren't working, which made the whole thing a bit like hard work with serving all stops and getting a lot of shortish distance passengers (had up to 130 passengers each way, and that's without the bus ever being full)

i prefer doing events that are general public not just enthusiasts though - 'proper buses' left the outer western suburbs in the mid 80s so it was definitely noticed by the locals - had some of the passengers who remembered buses like that (and in some cases worked on them) when they first came to england in the 60s / 70s

more pictures from the day here
 
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