Riding the Routes: Day 161 A fairly short trip on a nearby bus, the No 246 from Bromley to Westerham.

The first trip in 2023 had to wait until after the week of public transport strikes 3-7th January, so on the 9th of January as my wife had an appointment with the optician at Bromley it seemed the ideal opportunity to take the next bus on the list. I arrived at Bromley North station at 1220 and the bus according to the timetable was supposed to arrive at 1225. However, the next twenty minutes of buses due shown on the display system didn't include a No 246.

The fifth bus I have used which alights or starts from this stop at Bromley North Station

Rather blurry because it caught me unprepared and note the make shift route number because bus has recently been moved to Bromley garage from West Ham

It was therefore a bit of a surprise when Stagecoach 36347 arrived bang on 25 minutes past and I therefore enquired of the driver what was going on. He said there have been problems with the Ibus system for a while not displaying all the buses. As with the other buses I have caught from here the bus heads down Kentish Way to the Civic Centre ex Stockwell college and then works past the Glades to go down the un-pedestrianised part of Bromley High Street to Bromley South station.

The stop opposite Hayes Station where it is the third bus route I have utilised

After turning into Westmoreland Road and then Hayes Lane the bus separates from the routes I had covered before going this way : Nos 119, 138 and 146 and takes a right turn into Cameron Road. The bus rejoins the routes of the aforementioned 119 and 138 at Hayes High Street having worked its way through to Mead Way and then left down Pickhurst Lane. Hayes was reached at 1242. From here we followed those routes as far as the roundabout at the bottom of Glebe Way and then after turning left the route is quickly on its own as it climbs to Hayes Common. The bus doesn't take the first turning right but the second, West Common Road to get to the Keston Fox.

Inside the single decker at the Keston Fox

Beyond the pub after passing the single storey building which used to be the Post Office we reached the A233 where we briefly rejoined with the route No 146. From here the bus went to Leaves Green and past Biggin Hill Airfield.

Passing the Hurricane and Spitfire gate guards of St Georges Chapel Biggin Hill

There were some roadworks which briefly held us up at Main Road Biggin Hill but were soon on our way through Biggin Hill with by this time only 3 passengers, 2 having alighted at Waitrose. An unusual stop name was passed without stopping called Tatsfield Path, most similar stops would be road or lane but not this one. On arrival at the Aperfield Inn only two people remain aboard. This location had been the terminus for a while of routes from London for day trippers. Much as the George in Farnborough was for those using the No 47 from Shoreditch.

The Aperfield Inn

By now the bus is the only route on the road. I days past there used to be the No 410 to Reigate from Bromley, the 705 to Sevenoaks from Windsor when I was a kid, and later even the 746 which has somewhat morphed into the 246 as this route is extended on summer Sundays to Chartwell.

Descending the hill at speed with the Pilgrims Way from Winchester to Canterbuiry where the hedge line is located

We crossed into Kent just before the summit of Westerham Hill which at 824ft is the highest point in the county before descending the hill and passing Pilgrims Way at quite a lick. Before reaching Westerham we crossed the M25 where at the next stop a few much less frequent buses were indicated. The No 401 runs only on Sundays, the No 594 every 50 minutes which is a very strange time interval, indeed, whilst the 695 is a school bus running just once a day. In addition the No 1 links Westerham to Sevenoaks 4 times a day.

Station House, the original Westerham station closed in 1961

The bus terminated at Westerham Green at 1308. The bus then continues empty beyond Quebec House to layover in the car park before returning on the opposite side of the road.

Stagecoach 36347 leaving to layover before conveying me back to Biggin Hill

After a few photos of the green I crossed the road to find that there was no timetable for the No 246 back-just a piece of paper saying that the service is curtailed at Lebanon Gardens Biggin Hill owing to roadworks on Westerham Hill. I knew this didn't apply having just descended Westerham Hill at a rate of knots so decided to walk to the next stop towards Bromley so I could have a good look at the old railway station which closed in 1961.

Churchill reclining on the Green

General Wolfe exhorting his troops into battle

When the next bus arrived I enquired about the note and the driver said it was ages ago and should have been removed! I stayed on the bus to Biggin Hill airfield and then dropped into the café for lunch.