Day 143 a short trip in SE London the No 225

 I expected this to be quite a short couple of hours 'work' as I only had to get to Hither Green, take the bus to Canada Water and then back on the London Overground to Croydon. However, to get to Hither Green I thought I'd get the tram to Elmers End, then a train to Lewisham and then back one stop to Hither Green. On arrival at Wandle Park at 1120 the indicator said a Beckenham Junction tram would arrive in 4 minutes and then following that the Elmers End one. At 1135 a lady on the platform who had rung up control told us the Beckenham tram was being repaired at Therapia Lane, the indicator still stating 4 minutes until arrival at this time. It finally arrived at 1142 with the Elmers End tram right behind it. The disruption had of course messed up the sequence of trams crossing the single line flyover between Wandle Park and Reeves Corner so it was 1147, almost half an hour after my arrival, that we were under way. At Elmers End we arrived just a  minute before the 1209 to London Bridge came in from Hayes. I realised my plan to change trains at Lewisham was thwarted though, as this train takes the main line at Parks Bridge junction thereby going straight from Ladywell to St John's thus missing out Lewisham. So Plan B was initiated, I got out at Catford Bridge at 1220 and boarded a No 202 to Hither Green at 1229. This bus doesn't pass the railway station though, it goes under the line where the depot, mainline and marshalling yard lines meet. It was a walk down Hither Green Lane and then Springbank Road to reach the starting point for the No 225.

Walking down Springbank Road with bus in distance

I arrived at 1245 and there was already a bus waiting, No 743 an AD Enviro 200 which was Metrobus originally but is now a Go Ahead vehicle based at Morden Wharf Greenwich (MG).

Go Ahead 743 awaiting departure

The bus shelter was set well back from the road amidst a very prolific garden display

 I had arrived half way through the driver's break as it is a twenty minute frequency service and it was duly 1255 that I was allowed to board and headed south for Canada Water which is almost due north of where the bus began its journey! It soon turned to the right into Torridon Road and then right again into Hither Green Lane which meant we were heading in the general direction of north. As soon as we turned into Hither Green Lane the bus is following the same route as the No 181 and this persists as we run down to the A21 just to the south of Lewisham High Street. So after fifteen minutes at 1310 we were at the Lewisham Clock Tower. The bus from here ran into Lewisham bus station but as there were no customers we didn't stop and turned right under the railway and later right into Jerrard Street. This follows the route of the No 47 which took us to Deptford. We passed a park on the right with an arch saying Ravensbourne Park 1953 but with Brookmill Park signs underneath this. It appears from Wikipaedia the park was originally named Brookmill Park, was renamed Ravensbourne Park after the war when it was enlarged with bomb damaged housing but reverted to its previous name when the Borough of Lewisham was created in 1965.

Broadway fields with DLR train descending from Deptford bridge to Elverson Road

Interesting detail as we approached Deptford Broadway

The bus turned left into Deptford Broadway and although the next stop was announced as New Cross station the bus went over the station bridge and then around the one way system before stopping at the station stop as if heading back eastwards to Deptford. Once it took off again, before the station was reached the bus turned left down Pagnell Street, an area I remember as a kid being rows of dilapidated Victorian housing. There was now a park here, Fordham Park, and a school with increasingly large amounts of modern housing or blocks of flats as we move onwards to Surrey Canal Road. All this part of the route was unique to the No 225 but as we reach Surrey Quays station other bus routes join us and approaching Canada Water I was actually on the same road as bus route No 1. Arrival at Canada Water bus station was at 1339, 44 minutes from departure. The initial bus stop suggested 46 minutes so a good run to time had been effected.

Arrival at Canada Water

To return home I caught the next London Overground South which was going to Crystal Palace at 1347, so alighted at Sydenham and caught the 1411 to West Croydon. This meant I got home at 10 minutes to three, so almost four hours after leaving home.