Day 190 After a busy morning the No 292 was a significant trek.

 I had a number of things to do before I could leave the local area so I was aiming for the 1205 to London Bridge when aboard the No 410 bus. However, as I got onto the platform at Waddon the 1200 to Victoria arrived and when aboard I saw that the 1205 had been cancelled. This train arrived at Victoria at 1243 and after taking a Victoria line train to King's Cross and St Pancras I arrived at 1259 just in time for the 1303 St Albans train to convey me to Elstree and Borehamwood. On the journey we passed through the almost ready Brent Cross West station but I didn't see how trains would get from there to Dudden Hill without crossing the fast lines on the flat.

A No 292 bus leaving for Borehamwood

Walking down Theobold Street with a No 292
approaching

A Cessna 172 descending to Elstree airfield

I arrived at 1327 at Elstree and Borehamwood station and as I emerged a No 292 was leaving bus stop C. However when I got to this stop I found it was the stop to catch the bus the 8 minutes to Rossington Avenue Borehamwood. I didn't think this would take me too long to walk, so I set off in pursuit of the bus. I was mistaken though, as the walk took me 28 minutes, but it was only as I neared the end of this walk that a No 292 passed me. The total walk was almost 1 3/4 miles and my thighs were protesting as I had already done almost a mile with in addition all the stairs at the various stations. Lets hope it will stand me in good stead for the Ride and Stride 17 mile cycle ride in week's time.

The terminal bus stop

Looking across to the first bus stop

Metroline's VWH2053 No 292 arriving
at terminal point

Metroline's VWH2053 as No 292 arriving
to pick me up

Metroline's VWH2053 arrived opposite at 1419 and at 1423 was picking me up to retrace my steps back to Elstree and Borehamwood station, albeit not crossing the football pitches diagonally as I did on foot. Most of this area seems to be made up of post war estates and after Leeming Road shops we headed up Gateshead Road to intercept Theobald Street and headed back towards the railway station where there was some roadworks which caused a brief hold up.

Roadwork created queue in Theobald Street

At the end of this road the bus does a circuit outside the station stopping this time at bus stop A at 1433 (an hour after leaving) before the bus took Borehamwood High Street. There was a right turn into Tesco's before we passed the Elstree Studios where there were two Sullivan buses single deckers, one of which was branded for their Thorpe Park shuttle service.

Elstree Studio

Briefly the bus took the A5135 with the No 107 but at the Studio Way roundabout it headed off alone along Manor Way until it reached Furzehill Road. There was a broken down Swedish lorry on Manor Way but it didn't impede our progress very much. At Furzehill road we turned left and soon were joined by a No 107 as we headed for Stirling Corner where I had previously changed buses between doing the No 262 and 263. The bus unlike the No 107 turned right and ran along the A1 to its junction with the A41 at Apex Corner passing Scratchwood as we did so.

Heading down the A1 from Stirling Corner we
 reach the ULEZ boundary created from yesterday

The bus then ran into Edgware and we dwelt a very long time in the bus station from 1503 to 1510 and as we exited I found out the reason: the traffic lights had failed where the pedestrians walk into the bus station. From here we headed to the A5 and ran down this through Burnt Oak on a road I had covered with five other buses. The bus remained on the A5 until it reached the turn for ASDA Colindale where we terminated at 1521. 

Entering Edgware bus station

Arrival at Colindale Superstores

I then walked to Colindale Underground station where I caught a Northern line train to Kennington and there I changed to a Morden train as far as Balham. There was only 2 minutes to wait for the train home so I made it home soon after 5pm.

Day 189 A short trip from Woolwich to Plumstead on the No 291.

 After waiting in for a replacement double glazed unit to be fitted in our porch I drove to Eltham with the intention of parking in Well Hall Road, but on arrival found roadworks were in progress. So driving on I turned left at the old Brook Hospital site and found a side road to park in Wricklemarsh Road. From here I walked to the hospital and saw the bus called at stops H1 and H3. H3 was the nearest stop to the layover point so I waited there and boarded London General's E275 at 1209.

Layover point opposite bus stop H3

Two No 291 buses with single decker the No 244

Total journey time to Garland Road 21 minutes

London General's E275 with tell tale destination which was not
reflected by announcements within bus that stated Woodlands
Estate

The No 291 takes Repository Road unlike other buses I had used so far that took Ha-Ha Road and this meant we reached Artillery Place. I used this road on the No 54 and here the bus turned right towards Woolwich. However, unlike some other buses on reaching John Wilson Street the bus went left rather than straight on into the town centre. It was the second turning on the right that allowed access to the town centre for this bus route via Monk Street and we halted in Calderwood Street for bus drivers to be exchanged. This exchange took three minutes and by 1219 we were underway through to Woolwich Arsenal. The bus turned right up Vincent Street to Burnage Street where the bus headed uphill away from the river. 

Awaiting driver exchange at Calderwood Street

New leisure centre being built at Woolwich

New leisure centre at Tramshed Woolwich

At Foxfield Primary school the bus turned left along Raglan Road which mutated into Brewery Road until we reached Griffin Road. The bus turned right and climbed further uphill where we met the No 53 which terminates at the river end of this road.  

Bus route on its own along Raglan Road
and Brewery Road

In Griffin Road bus joins with No 53

The bus stop at which we terminated unexpectedly

As can be discerned it was only 4 minutes
 prior to the end of the route

At Heavitree Road stop the bus announced it would be terminating at exactly 1230. This was the 21 minutes from departure the timetable had suggested, but I knew I wasn't in the Woodlands estate so alighted and waited for the next bus. 

E275 returning to Woolwich having gone
 I knew not where, as it was carrying passengers

E234 Abreasting Griffin Road soon to pick me up

The bus I had got off passed me going the other way before I saw the next one arriving. This was E234 and boarding at 1241 the bus immediately announced it terminated here. However, the bus driver let me on and we moved off. But it was only three minutes later we came to a halt on Plumstead Common and the driver said this was as far as we were going. I enquired and he said because of works going on TFL were not allowing the bus to go any further. 

Journey's End for today-Plumstead Common

I thus walked across Plumstead Common to get a bus back to Woolwich, but the first bus to come was E234 on the No 291 to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital. This did afford me the opportunity to do a number of one way roads that I wouldn't have covered, if I hadn't gone both ways on the bus.

Back at the bus lay over outside the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Woolwich

I walked back to the car and drove to Orpington to pay in some cheques for me and some for church and then met the guy who was going to scrub our daughter's car clean after a container of double cream had been spilt inside.

Day 188 Completion of the No 289 and then the No 290 back to Staines.

 At 1107 I was back at Alton Road to catch a No 289 further along the A23 towards Purley. Once again a bus had left the stop before I could get to catch it. However, I only had to wait until 1113 for Arriva's ENX10 to arrive. 

Alton Road bus stop

ENX10 approaching

From Four Ways to Five Ways only the No 289 stops but the X26 runs through before turning for East Croydon at Five Ways. The No 119 accompanies the No 289 as far as Croydon Airport reached at 1122 but then the No 289 forges on alone to Purley.

The Croydon Aerodrome hotel

DH114 Heron outside terminal building

The first control tower in the world with dynes pressure tube anemometer

The bus reached Purley just before 1130 and terminated at Purley railway station at 1132.

Purley station stop with bus I missed in front of ENX10

At Purley station the next train north was at 1146 but there were none heading for Clapham Junction or Victoria. Thus I caught this train as far as East Croydon then crossed to platform 1 for a Gatwick Express service to Clapham Junction at 1158. The arrival was perfect for catching the 1214 to Windsor and Eton Riverside which then reached Twickenham station at 1228.

BE37069 of London United

Timetable suggests a 43 minute journey

It was a short walk towards Twickenham that I found a No 290 was resting before heading for Staines. This was London United's BE37069 a Byd electric single decker which left at 1237, the timetable stating the journey should take 43 minutes.

.

Initially we turned left to run along Twickenham High Street and on past Twickenham Green until we reached Sixth Cross Street thus copying the route of No 267 and No 281, both recently used. At Sixth Cross Street the bus swung right now accompanied by the No 481 to Staines Road and then left, this time in concert with the No 490. At the Hanworth roundabout we went left so as to enter the Hampton Sainsbury's which had been visited very recently on the No 285.

Hampton Sainsbury's

However, from here we ploughed a new furrow as the bus joined the Chertsey Road (A316) and followed this dual carriageway to Sunbury occasionally leaving the main road to reach bus stops and then rejoining it.

Dual carriageway which becomes M3 at Sunbury

Passing Kempton water works

At Sunbury, arriving at 1309, the bus joined the A308 road which links Hampton Court with Staines and maintained travel on this road until we reached the right turn for Ashford. This would normally not be with any other bus but because of roadworks the No 117 was being diverted this way. The bus turned left along the lovely named Town Tree Road which morphs into Church Road before arriving at the shops of Ashford (Middx). By this stage I was wondering how we could possibly reach Staines in 43 minutes. Turning left in Ashford we met the A308 on a roundabout just where it becomes the Staines Bypass and headed into Knowle Green. From here we ran straight to Staines station arriving at 1334 and then on to the bus station where we terminated at 1338. A full hour after leaving Twickenham. However, it seems at Staines there is a difference in opinion as to how long the bus journey takes.

Arrival at Staines with buses from the
White bus company in the background

From Staines to Twickenham the journey is shown to take 54 minutes?!

From here I caught a First Bus No 8 which was going to Heathrow Terminal 5 at 1403 which cost me two pounds and there intended to get the Elizabeth line to Woolwich for the No 291. 

Advert inside First 69401 stating the origin of the 'wheely bin'.

First 69401 at Terminal 5

Bus ticket costing me £2. First time
I've paid since doing the No 271.

s

However, there was no such train advertised and indeed it was an half an hour wait for the next train anywhere. I therefore boarded a Heathrow Express at 1427 to Terminal 2/3 and changed onto the Piccadilly line to Earl's Court. I hadn't realised there is no physical connection between these lines and it was a considerable walk but on arrival I only had one minute to wait for the train to Earl's Court. At Earl's Court I took the District line to West Brompton.

Singapore Airlines A380 inboard for runway 27R at
 Heathrow over West Brompton station

Here the next train was the Southern train to Clapham Junction which meant it arrived on platform 17 and I didn't have far to walk and indeed not long to wait at platform 15 for my train home arriving at 1602

Day 187 To the far North for the No 288 and home by No 289, although still a little more of that to finish it off.

 I caught the 1300 train to Victoria and then the Victoria line to Green Park followed by the Jubilee line to Queensbury where I arrived at 1415. There was a bus outside when I pulled into the platform but it had disappeared before I got down to the gate level. However, I found the bus didn't start there but at Morrison's which was under the railway and turn left. As I crossed the car park I could see there was a bus laying over. 

The roof of the bus visible from Morrison's car park

London United's 20123

It was London United's 20123, a single decker from 2010 and I was aboard this at 1427. The journey was expected to take 28 minutes according to the timetable. To begin with we followed around the one way system around Morrison's to emerge onto Cumberland Road so as to turn right under the railway in order to stop outside Queensway Underground station. After the station the bus turned left and was soon the sole user of Turner Road which led through an estate of inter war housing until we reached Camrose Avenue. Turning right here we passed in this road the south side entrance of Barnet football club and the bus here as the only service whereas the north side of Barnet FC has at least three routes passing by. This road leads into the A5 but traffic was quite slow at the junction for a while. From here until we left the A41 the bus wasn't the only route on the road.

The station hotel in Edgware all boarded up

From turning left into the A5 the bus very soon turned right to go down Edgware High Street and right again into the bus station where we arrived at 1443. Emerging from the bus station we turned right and then left up Edgwarebury Road until the A41 Edgware Way. We turned right along the A41 and then left into Broadfields Avenue once again becoming the only bus route on the road. This road leads into Bushfields Crescent where at the stop named Meadfields the bus was supposed to terminate. However, after briefly stopping here at 1449, like the No 138 bus, this is an out and back service so it continued to run around the estate. 

Bus now on its way back to Queensbury

Shopping parade in Glengall Road

It paused longest at the parade of shops in Glengall Road at the stop called Aldridge Avenue, perhaps because it was running ahead of time owing to the lack of school traffic. The bus retraced it steps back to Edgware where I dismounted and went to take photographs of the brand new WDE series of buses that I saw operating for the first time here the Wright Electroliner.

London United's 20123 heading into Edgware bus station

New Electroliner at Edgware

Another new Electroliner

Two Electroliners with charging point at depot

At 1518 I boarded a Northern line Underground train to London Bridge and at 1602 was inside a Class 465 'Networker' to Elmers End. This arrived at 1624 and here again a bus that was in the the layover point as the train arrived had disappeared before I had got off the platform. 

ENX11 awaiting departure with Stagecoach
double decker on route No 54 beside it

Journey should take 68 minutes

A double decker No 289 which a fairly recent departure. For a good many years the route was operated by Arriva green buses always as a single decker; originally because of the railway bridge over lower Addiscombe Road

ENX11 of Arriva starting to approach the bus stop

At 1636 Arriva's ENX11 left for Purley with myself on board. The bus turned right out of the parking area and right at the lights to pass by the large Tesco's then over the Hayes line bridge and along Long Lane. This meant we crossed into the London Borough of Croydon from the initial position within the London Borough of Bromley. From The Glade to Spring Lane the 289 is the only route on the road but after this joins other routes through Addiscombe. There was a fair in Ashburton Park but there seemed to be no takers but perhaps it was too early in the day. 

Fair in Ashburton Park

Tramlines at road level have replaced low bridge

After Davidson Road the bus driver was asked to wait as they were running ahead of schedule. This short bit of the route was again only served by the No 289. After 3 minutes delay we were back underway at 1652 and at Spurgeon Bridge headed down Wellesley Road and then into West Croydon Bus Station. At the bus stop at Bedford Hall I saw an SL6 bus marked on the bus stop but I was not sure it operates yet. At 1658 we left the bus station and took London Road so as to pass the site of Croydon General Hospital, now a school and on past one of the sites of the riots of 2011 where we used to use the insurance brokers Nicholas Paul.

Site of Nicholas Paul insurance the brokers for my first car in 1979

We passed Mayday, now Croydon University Hospital at 1707 and at Thornton Heath Pond turned left down the A23; a road that the No 289 will subsequently use all the way to Purley. Croydon Crematorium was passed at 1712.

Old Croydon Power Station chimney with IKEA
 yellow and blue-not for support of Ukraine

From Ikea the bus route is joined by others and at this particular time there were tram replacement buses waiting for custom at Sainsbury's. On reaching Alton Road I disembarked at 1726 and walked home. The No 289 will be finished another day.  

Alton Road stop on the Purley way. The end of the journey-for now!