Riding the Routes: Day 251 A more local bus than recently but still in far NE London, the No 375.

I caught the 1105 to London Bridge and then the 1131 Thameslink train to Farringdon. The Elizabeth line here left at 1144 to take me to Romford where I arrived at 1218. I then made my way to the stop outside the station where the bus begins its journey to Passingford Bridge. There was no sign on the display of a No 375 coming in the next twenty minutes and there was no timetable for the bus as the side of the bus totem where it would have been was shorn of any details at all.

Bus stop with Romford station in background

A dirty ENL11 of Arriva heading to lay over

1255 and the bus arrives

I thus resorted to modern means and looked on my phone. The bus runs every one and a half hours and luckily I only had thirty minutes to wait. Indeed, quite shortly after this I saw Arriva's ENL111 arriving at the stop opposite and it turned right and then went into the bus lay over area.

As the appointed time approached (1255) it did not appear on the countdown display system and I was beginning to worry that perhaps the bus had gone 'tech'. However, at exactly 1255 it came out of the side road and me and one other gentleman up.

The bus was very dirty owing to a succession of cold nights recently having necessitated gritting operations so it was nigh on impossible to take any photographs once on board. There were numerous reflections and it was only once we were out in country areas and the bus was heading due north that any reasonable pictures were possible. We headed the usual way to Romford market pocking up other passengers to make a total of 8 as we took North Street towards the Stagecoach Romford garage and on over the A12. Crossing the A12 we entered Havering Road but as with all the other routes that go this way we soon moved away to the left of that road and picked up a few more passengers as we carried on towards Collier Row. At the Collier Road roundabout we took the third exit, Chase Cross Road, with only the No 175 now for company. A few more passengers joined but most the others left so we never had more than 9 at any stage. We passed the No 175 termination spot at 1311 and turned left up Havering Road which we had previously moved away from to get to Collier Row. We were soon it an area with houses to left but open fields to the right and by the Orange Tree PH it was countryside both sides.

View to East near Havering-Atte-Bower

More countryside but speed was evident

By 1313 we were at the green in Havering-Atte-Bower and once we had left this village there was only one other person on the bus. Where North road became Oak Hill Road we left the Greater London are and entered the Epping Forest juristiction of Essex. As we approached Stapleford Abbotts the last passenger left and we then descended towards the River Roding past The Rabbits PH to terminate just before the roundabout with Ongar and London Roads. This was reached at 1322 so just under a half an hour journey.

The bus terminal

Where the bus restarts from

Through the trees one could see the M25

The bus reposing in the sunshine

Weir on the River Roding

From here I walked along Ongar Road to Stapleford airfield to visit the cafe for lunch. After an hour and ten minutes or so I walked on along Ongar Road towards Abridge. This took 40 minutes so was probably around two miles on a main road without pavements. I thus had to frequently jump into the bushes to avoid being 'squished'! At Abridge I found a No 18 bus operated by Vectare driving past me but luckily the driver saw me and someone else running for the bus and so at 1537 I was able to board the bus to Loughton Underground station. (it is only a two hourly service, phew!) I then took the Central line at 1604 to Stratford, the Elizabeth line to Farringdon and then the 1634 Thameslink train to East Croydon, finally arriving home at 1740 by bus from there.