Day 211 A very long way round to get not very far, the No 325 from Prince Regent to Beckton Sainsbury's.

 I caught a No 407 at 1047 to Croydon's Whitgift centre and then walked to East Croydon station to get  a Thameslink train to Farringdon at 1115 and from there an Elizabeth line train to Custom House. The No 325 starts from the Prince Regent bus station which is the next stop on the DLR, but having just missed one of these, I exited the station with the intention of walking there. However whilst walking along a No 241 arrived just as I got to a bus stop so I jumped aboard to avoid the cold air the one stop.

Journey should take 52 minutes

Arriva's ENL65 awaiting departure time

Bus now heading away from Beckton as it approaches me 

I as usual missed a bus in this process but the timetable suggested I should have less than ten minutes to wait. I arrived at Custom House at 1154 and at 1205 I was sitting in Arriva London's ENL65 which immediately took me back the way I had come to Custom House station. It took Freemason's Road here and as with the No 241 and 300 previously went under the underpass at Newham Way. There buses accompanied us across the Barking Road and then the Greenway before we turned left at Plaistow Broadway.

Hole in the wall garage on Plaistow Broadway

The bus was on its own for the first time when it turned right into Clegg Street and remained alone as we passed West Ham Park into Upton Road which became Upton Lane. At 1226 we were turning into Romford Road in Forest Gate and for the first time were heading East rather than away from Beckton. After a short period heading east along Romford Road the bus swung right into Katherine Road and was again on its own now heading in roughly the correct direction for Beckton. We took a left joining the No 238 and 376 which meant we passed Plashet school. However from here it was very slow going and it was at least ten minutes before the cause was revealed- roadworks just south of East Ham station after we had turned right and joined East Ham High Street at 1254.

Alms houses in Upton Road

Station Parade opposite East Ham
Underground station

It was 1254 before we had passed the roadworks and used the western bypass road Ron Leighton Way. At the end of this the bus turned right into Barking Road and remained on this road until we reached the North Circular Road roundabout. We did not take the north circular road but ran parallel with it along a private road called Freshwharf Road which took us past the Newham dump and Eric Clarke Lane into the Beckton Triangle retail park. Working our way around the back of this retail park we terminated at Sainsbury's at 1308, about 11 minutes longer than scheduled.

Arrival at Beckton Sainsbury's

Maneouvering ready to return

Given I would have to get to Brent Cross or Barnet for the next bus I resolved to go home and caught a No 366 to Barking station, then a District line train to Whitechapel and a London Overground train to West Croydon arriving home at 1515.