Day182 This time the reverse of last from almost the southernmost point of the GLA to just before the Northwestern boundary the Nos 281 and 282.

 The No 281 required me to reach Tolworth and therefore I walked to Wandle Park and caught a tram to Wimbledon at 1035. I arrived just in time to miss the 1103 to Tolworth so rather than wait for the 1133 I boarded the New Line to Guildford service first stop Surbiton at 1119. I left the train at 1125 at Surbiton and walked up the hill to the main road and caught a No 418 to Tolworth arriving at 1138. 

Bus Stop E

Timetable suggests 71 minute
journey

The No 281 starts from bus stop E which is the other side of the Tolworth tower in Ewell Road where I had earlier disembarked from the No 265. 

The bus should take 71 minutes to get to Hounslow bus station according to the timetable and at 1152 I was aboard RATP London united 47057 heading for Hounslow.

My mount arriving. I was expecting the driver
 to have a break but he took off straight away

The bus retraces the steps I had taken on the No 418 and then continues across the tracks east of Surbiton Station. Here there was an announcement made on the bus that the bus was on diversion. At the bottom of Surbiton Hill rather than turn right we went straight over and immediately ran into some roadworks at Surbiton Park Terrace. 

Crossing the railway tracks at Surbiton

The bus then ran into Kingston where we passed Surrey County Hall now closed and apparently sold. It was here I presented to the winter maintenance engineers my investigation into the thermal behaviour of pavements at three sites across Surrey in about 2003. 

A Wendy's in Kingston High Street

We travelled through the town centre and after Wood Street crossed the bridge over the river Thames and then went right at the roundabout so as to pass through Hampton Wick. 

The wide road north from Hackney Wick

This meant the next place we came to was Teddington and at 1230, 38 minutes after departure we stopped in Broad Street. From here we took the right turn to Fulwell and then after the garage another right turn so as to reach Twickenham.

Entering Twickenham

 It was only after Twickenham station where the bus turned left that it became the only bus on a particular road and this didn't last long as just before the rugby stadium we were joined by the No 481 and No 110 as we crossed the A316.

Twickenham stadium

Bearing left at the stadium we were soon heading into Whitton. Once the bus had turned right at the Admiral Nelson public house we were in Hounslow Road and once again the bus was on its own as it went over the humpback bridge at Hounslow station. We ran into the stop just before Hounslow bus station at 1308, so about 5 minutes late if the 71 minutes is to be relied upon.. 

Sweet little church at Whitton

Rare to see propeller driven
aircraft now heading into Heathrow

Disembarkation

Final stop at Hounslow

From Hounslow I needed to get to Ealing Hospital for the next bus and had arranged I would meet Charmaine to do the bus and visit a cemetery in Pinner. This required me to catch the Piccadilly line two stops from Hounslow east to Boston Manor and then I caught the E8 to Ealing Broadway so as to meet the wife. This we did after a little toing and froing and caught a No 607 along the Uxbridge Road to the hospital.

A forty minute journey is foretold

Metroline's TEH 1464 approaching

Charmaine boarding the bus.

The No 282 service we took was provided by Metroline's TEH1464 which departed at 1426 on what was supposed to be a forty minute journey. Heading West at first we went under the Great Western railway bridge and then did a 180 degree turn so as to be able to head north to Greenford. This took us past the West Middlesex Golf Club and the aptly named estate on the opposite side of the road.

Appropriate name of Golf Links Estate

Statue shows how interlinked we all are

We passed what looked like a large football beside Cardinal Wiseman school and then went left up Greenford Broadway which is the Ruislip Road and once across the Grand Union Canal we were in Northolt. At the roundabout on the A312 the bus went right down Church Road to the Target roundabout over the A40.

Crossing the Grand Union

Star Wars shop near Target Roundabout

This meant we were travelling in a northeasterly direction as we passed Northolt station and Northolt library. Just beyond the station the bus turned left and was finally the only bus on the road which was Eastcote Lane North. At the roundabout we joined Field End Road and this took us all the way to Eastcote station. However, we were catching up with the buses in front so were held three times, for example at the Whitby Road stop, just after crossing the Yeading Brook we were held from 1512 until 1514. We remained on Field End Road after the station as the bus wriggled this way and that until we reached a roundabout at Eastcote House. Here the bus briefly went right but then left on to Joel Street so as to reach Northwood Hills Underground station. Once left at the roundabout we made our way to Northwood station but there were massive hold ups trying to get past St Helen's school.

Horrendous snarl up at St Helen's school

Northwood Underground station

Finally arrived arrived at Mount Vernon hospital

Once past this hold up we reached Northwood station and then went on to turn right at Rickmansworth Road to climb the hill to terminate at Mount Vernon Hospital at 1544. The journey had thus taken 78 minutes. We had hoped to utilise the cafe but it was closed as was all the hospital friend's shops at 3 pm. So we caught the same No 282 back to Northwood and got a drink and a sandwich in local shops before taking train to Pinner and visiting the floating sarcophagus in the churchyard. Returning to Pinner station we caught a train to Farringdon and then a Thameslink Brighton bound train home.

. 

Day 181 a trip to the extreme North and extreme South of London the Nos 279 and 280.

The journey required me to use an Underground station I don't think I have ever used before-Manor House on the Piccadilly line. So I boarded the 1100 to Victoria and changed there onto the Victoria line as far as Finsbury Park where I was able to just cross to the Piccadilly line for the one stop to Manor House. I arrived at 1201 where an Arriva No 279 was just arriving at the bus stop, but left before I could get there it had left.

Two No 279 one leaving and the one I would catch 
in layover

Arriva's T251 waiting to pull across the road to pick me up

I had used this road a number of times recently, the Nos 253 and 254 pass this way and the No 259 accompanies the No 279 all the way down Seven Sisters Road. Arriva's T251 departed at 1212 heading NE to Seven Sisters and to the A10. 

The weights an measures building in Seven Sisters Road

The bus then took this road north as far as Bruce Grove, but here the A10 heads off to the NW and this bus takes the A1010 which meant we passed the Tottenham Hotspur football stadium at 1232. 

Lovely shop name in Tottenham

Typical toilet facilities near White Hart lane

Passing the Tottenham stadium

Carrying on north we reached Edmonton Green after passing into the London Borough of Enfield at 1247. 

Trafalgar Place Edmonton only 50 yards long

From here the bus route was always accompanied by at least one other bus route. Up to Ponders End this was the No 349. Once the bus arrived at Ponders End at 1302 we were advised that the driver would be changed, and after crossing Soulbury Road I could see this was a very convenient stop for so doing as Enfield bus station was just around the corner. 

Ponders End

Two bus routes accompanied the No 279 for quite a while still along the A1010, but after Ordnance Road it was only the No 327 and that was only on the northbound side of the road. I found out later this bus is an hourly one way circular bus operated by Sullivan Buses. We passed out of the Greater London area into the Broxbourne area of Hertfordshire at 1322 and entered Waltham Cross bus station at 1324, 72 minutes after departure whereas it said on the bus stop the journey would be 74 minutes. 

The act of crossing the M25 puts us into Hertfordshire

T251 at Waltham Cross bus station

Waltham Cross at 1324

The next bus starts from St George's Hospital in Tooting so it would take quite a while to get there. I caught the 1358 No 317 to Enfield then walked up to Enfield Chase to find I had missed the half hourly service to Moorgate by one minute. Thus I was boarding the Class 717 at 1502 and alighted at 1522 at Finsbury Park where there was a Brighton bound Thameslink waiting to depart on platform 1. I then changed to the Northern line at London Bridge and this took me to Tooting Broadway where I arrived at 1615.

Not shown my bus was in 4 minutes

London General WHV81 arriving

I walked to St George's Hospital and arrived with four minutes to wait for a No 280 which was operated by London General WHV81. The bus left at 1629 and returned me straight to Tooting Broadway station where it turned right for Amen Corner and Mitcham, much as I had recently done on the Nos 264 and 270.  

Approaching Tooting railway station with a
 No 270 leading us

However, whereas those buses turned left in Mitcham this bus goes straight on heading for Mitcham tramstop and then Rose Hill. Climbing up to Rose Hill the No 118 bus turned off right into Wandle Road and only the No 280 then continues until we reached the London Borough of Sutton at 1657.

The No 280 is the only bus serving
the stop climbing to Rose
Hill

Now running into Sutton with plethora of services

 

At Middleton Road the driver was exchanged betwixt 1700 and 1702 and after this the bus crossed  the Rose Hill roundabout and on into Sutton. We continued to climb after passing Sutton station to reach Belmont at 1723. Just beyond where the bus terminated was the edge of the Greater London area, so I had gone from just over the northern boundary of London to just inside the southern boundary in a little under three and a half hours.

All other routes split from the No 280 at Sutton Hospital

Final arrival at Belmont

Belmont station originally called California
until post kept being waylaid!!

I caught the next No 280 back to Sutton as it would have been an 18 minute wait for a train from Belmont station. However, when I got onto Sutton station the next train home was that train so it was at 1800 that I emerged from the station and walked home.

Day 180 A trip to the far Northwest of London to return to my place of work afore retirement. The No 278 from Ruislip station.

 The journey required me to travel to London Bridge to get the Jubilee line to Finchley Road and then the Metropolitan line to Ruislip. Leaving on the 1105 train I arrived at 1218 which was a good rate of travel. On arrival the next No 278 was in four minutes' time. However, when it arrived it just swept past without stopping. The next one was in fifteen minutes, so when Abellio 2015 arrived I asked the driver if Ruislip station was indeed the first stop and he agreed it was and apologised for the previous bus not stopping.

The first No 278 heading down to
 the roundabout to turn round

Expecting Abellio 9525 to stop as
 it appears to be pulling in

Abellio 2015 arriving

This time the bus pulls in to a stop

I was underway at 1240 and turning left out of the station yard we quickly headed right up Ruislip High Street to take the left turn of Ickenham Road to West Ruislip station. Here we passed the extensive HS2 works before taking Long Lane when we arrived at Ickenham. Some of the bus stops in this road suggested the No U2 would stop too, but others didn't, so perhaps the bus wound back and forth through the adjacent estates. This road took us to Hillingdon station where we drove into the station entrance area at 1253 and then returned to continue south until we intercepted the Uxbridge Road. 

HS2 works at West Ruislip

Turning in to Hillingdon station with a No 278 
going the other way already present

One of many banners in Hillingdon: this one extolling the creation of habitats.

Here the bus turned left and drove down Hillingdon Parade passing Hillingdon Police station at 1307 and after continuing for a while the bus turned right into Church Road as did the No 195 and No H98. This road took us to Hayes where we ran along the High Street and then went up over the GWR and the M4 motorway. Later heading south past Sipson Road we reached West End Lane where I had my leaving party in 2017 at The Pheasant at Harlington. Beyond this we reached

Harlington Corner with a No 90 heading for Northolt

Harlington Corner, turning right onto the A4 and then after three bus stops we went down into the tunnel to Heathrow's central area arriving at 1344.

Arrival at Heathrow with blind already
changed for the return

The bus moving away with an X26 to Croydon behind.

I returned using the No 285 to Hatton Cross, which I will obviously return to later this Summer and then took the Piccadilly line to Earl's Court, District line to West Brompton and then London Overground to Clapham Junction before finally a Southern train home from  Platform 15 arriving at 1715.