Day 168 Back to Hornchurch for the No 256 and then on the way back we stopped at Stratford for the No 257.

 I left on the No 410 bus so as to reach West Croydon in time for the 1131 to Canada Water. The 1130 to Victoria from Waddon would have just missed it. However, whilst aboard this train it was announced it was cancelled owing to a fault.

The 1131 still in platform, but 1146 indicated as next train

 I had to therefore disembark and catch the next London Bridge train at 1145 to intercept with the Jubilee line at 1204 where I travelled east to West Ham. At West Ham I had arranged to meet Tim and we met up eventually at 1230 where I had planned to meet at 1215. From here it took 28 minutes to reach Hornchurch and from the station we walked down the road to the start point of the No 257 having dropped into a shop on the way for a tuna and sweetcorn baguette.

Current state of Officers' Mess RAF Hornchurch

Plan for the building when rebuilt

RAF Hornchurch Heritage Centre

The TFL website said the bus started at Miramar Way but it was actually further South opposite the RAF Hornchurch Heritage Centre. The bus was laying over in a lay-by just beyond the heritage centre.

Stagecoach 19793 emerging from lay-by

Bus approaching first stop of the route

The Stagecoach bus serving the route was No 19793 from Rainham garage and this arrived at 1319. The bus headed north back past the tube station to the centre of Hornchurch at 1327. The bus continued due north past the library and the Queen Theatre to Emerson Park railway station. Beyond here the bus turned right along Ardleigh Green Road and became the only service through this built up area which I had heard the previous day was causing substantial hold ups on the A127 Southend Arterial Road, owing to the roadworks along it. Just before the road was crossed the bus route joined the No 294.

Bus stop in Gubbins Lane

None of the No 256s we saw had Miramar Way
as destination they either said St George's Park
or St George's Hospital 

Beyond this major road the bus turned left up Gubbins Lane and this took us to Harold Wood station. After this the A12 was crossed and the bus headed left towards Romford along Hilden Avenue. At the end of this the bus swung right up Straight Road. The bus is at this point doing a strange circular trajectory up Noak Hill Road before going right  and then left swapping and re-swapping roads with the routes covering by No 499 or No 294. Finally we came to a halt at 1354 on Whitchurch Road. The bus was booked to take 32 minutes but actually took three minutes more. There were a number of deer by a stream on the left side of this road. However we immediately boarded a No 294 and this did a circuit to pass the bottom of Whitchurch Road and just beyond that there were 15 Fallow Deer at the road side.

Arrival at Noak Hill with a No 294 in front of it

We disembarked at Harold Hill station and caught an Elizabeth line train to Stratford arriving at 1445. 

Great Eastern train passing through Harold Wood station

There was a No 257 resting in the distance but this was not the bus that came to convey us to Walthamstow. At 1450 we were aboard Stagecoach No 12430 of Leyton depot on a journey that is booked to take 44 minutes. 

Tim indicating bus frequency

A No 257 resting in distance but not our bus

Our actual mount to Walthamstow

On way to Maryland there is mural which depicts a No 257 in Stratford bus station

The route took us back to Maryland station  and then up the Leytonstone High Road to reach the Green Man roundabout at 1515.

Here the bus turns left along the Whipps Cross Road which takes us through semi rural conditions with Waltham Forest and then at the end of this road we headed left towards the Bakers Arms along Lea Bridge Road. At the Bakers Arms the bus crosses over into Hoe Street and ran into Walthamstow bus station at 1535 which means the journey took only one minute longer than the booked time.
(The remaining photos seem to corrupt this blog post so I've had to leave them out)


We moved into The Goose for a pint each and then returned home via Victoria line to Finsbury Park and then Thameslink to East Croydon. I then caught a No 407 bus home with our son who had got back from work at Crawley at exactly the same time.

 

Day 167 To Aldgate for the No 254 and No 255 on the way home via Balham.

My original intention was to catch the 1030 to Victoria but just before it arrived an announcement was made about problems causing disruption near Clapham Junction. I thus waited the extra 5 minutes and caught the fast train to London Bridge. Had I gone to Victoria I would have used the District and Circle line to Aldgate but from London Bridge it was easier to walk. The train arrived at London Bridge at 1101 and I walked there via London Bridge, Monument Street, Lower Thames Street, Mark Lane, Fenchurch Street Station, Fenchurch Street and Aldgate where I arrived at the bus station at 1120 where the display said the next bus was in twelve minutes.

The next No 254 resting before taking me to
 Holloway

Arrival at pick up point for LT337

At 1132 LT337 of  Arriva arrived at the stop from its resting point in the bus station yard. The display had changed to next bus in fifteen minutes prior to its arrival, so I was a little concerned. Nevertheless we departed smartly turning right and heading up the Whitechapel Road past Aldgate East and Whitechapel Underground stations. There were large numbers of police in the Aldgate East area so I presume there was soon to be a union demonstration, perhaps from the London Hospital.

Whitechapel Road before Cambridge Heath Road turning

After Whitechapel station the bus turned left up Cambridge Heath Road to Bethnal Green, where the Museum of Childhood is closed until the coming summer.

Bethnal Green approaching Museum of Childhood

Continuing north we stopped at the stop just after the Regent's canal where we entered the London Borough of Hackney. This was the nearest stop to Ash Grove depot and here we exchanged drivers for two minutes, from 1154 to 1156. The road changes name to Mare Street at the same point and continues straight into Hackney town centre.

Interesting venue under the railway viaduct in Cambridge Heath

Beside Hackney Town Hall with Hackney Empire
ahead of me

After dipping under the railway bridge I reached the point where I had disembarked from the previous bus and from here onwards I was retracing the same route I had covered on the No 253. So up Amherst Road, right into Dalston Lane which morphs into Lower Clapton Road following this left to pass Clapton pond and on to the roundabout. Straight over this took us into Clapton Road and later Clapton Common which delivered us to Stamford Hill Broadway at 1228.

The original Clapton Tram depot

A No 253 coming the other way

Stamford Hill Broadway at point of crossing the A10

A No 254 closely followed by a No 253 going the same way

From here we continued on the A107 straight over the A10, the road now called Amhurst Park until the end where we turned left onto Seven Sisters Road to Manor House and on then to Finsbury Park. We took Isledon and Tollington Road to reach the Holloway Road which after crossing the bus took the left fork and terminated at the first stop in the Caledonian Road at 1246.

Passing Manor House

Final arrival in the Caledonian Road
Holloway

This looks likely an old bus or tram depot opposite where the bus terminated

To get to the next bus in Balham required me to find the Northern line and at the same stop where I alighted both the No 29 and No 253 would take me to Camden Town. So the first one to arrive, a No 29, was taken at 1251. I took the first southbound train which was a Charing Cross branch train to Kennington and changed there for Balham. This route should have been quicker but I had no way of knowing. I didn't have to wait long for either train and at 1335 I emerged from Balham Underground station to see a No 255 waiting.

Just had time for this before boarding bus

I quickly took a photo of the front of Arriva's ENL58 and noted the timetable said the route should take 38 minutes. The bus left at 1337 and swiftly turned left along Bedford Hill to reach the Balham High Road but soon swung east along Old Devonshire Road and then Weir Road to turn right down Radbourne Road to almost reach the northeast corner of Tooting Bec Common. 

Typical late Victorian or Edwardian dwellings in Balham

Since leaving Balham High Road this bus is the only route to cover this area until Emmanuel Road runs into Thornton where the bus turned right and made for the A23 at Streatham Hill railway station. Into Streatham High Road at 1352 I was now covering a road I had previously covered on 8 different bus routes. This number thinned to 7 as we took the A23 Croydon fork at St Leonard's Church and continued to decrease once we approached the borough boundary at Hermitage Bridge Norbury. Climbing up Norbury High Street the bus took the right called Stanford Road and this took us after a brief sojourn in the London Borough of Croydon into the London Borough of Merton. Here the housing is inter war years rather than the late Victorian and Edwardian styles of Balham and Streatham. The bus headed right to the end of this road before turning left into Rowan Road and then went in a straight line towards the centre of Pollards Hill and having passed the library we terminated in South Lodge Avenue at 1420. The bus therefore took 43 minutes.

Journey's End at Pollards Hill

Pollards Hill is rather isolated from the area to its south with the only practical way to get home the No 463 bus which luckily arrived at 1423. It is quite a tortuous route and it was after 3 pm before I walked through the front door.