suzyscottdotcom (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
suzyscottdotcom) wrote2009-02-25 08:34 pm
suzyscottdotcom) wrote2009-02-25 08:34 pm
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A busy Tuesday
Following Saturday’s adventures, remember I had left a bag on the 366 on Saturday... so another day around! Decided to do a couple of other notables in the London transport scene too, but one or two of these happenings were purely spontaneous.
So, I started just after 0900 with a First Capital Connect train Royston - Finsbury Park then onto Essex Road Station. Check out the rather old Network SouthEast branding on the route panels…
From here, went down New North Road to look for the CT Plus/HCT Service 812 – a Monday to Friday off peak non-TfL bus service that runs around Camden and Islington. As I was trying to find it, it came up on me (first pic naturally a little shaky), but I managed this shot of Optare Alero LF01 going back into a side street.
As the Metroline 271’s were running freely through at regular intervals, I took TP62 south via Old Street to Moorgate Finsbury Square, and here it is at the other end.
From here I was planning to go down to the St Paul’s area, before heading in the direction of Victoria (eventually). I got a phone call from the voluntary organisation that I mentioned in this post back in early February. I thought I got on well enough, but I could feel some resistance. I thought I’d done enough to overcome it. But, no. My references hadn’t came back – now she’d used details that I’d given then back in 2007, and wondered why they’d not responded… and as a result, I couldn’t start next week as planned, because the person doing the work goes on holiday tomorrow. She didn’t tell me until now… I thought something like that might happen. I could feel that something might happen. (As I type this on Wednesday night, I am going to post a letter to her tomorrow to say that I withdraw my application and offer of assistance, as I can take the hint).
Anyway, as I was thinking about this, something fairly interesting came along, that was a genuine surprise…. former Stagecoach Scotland and Oxford Tube MAN double deck coach T53 BBW… in plain white, now with Leggs Travel.
Two rather confusingly intriguing moments, each on their own right! After some photos of buses passing through the Moorgate area, took Arriva Volvo VLA74 on the 76 through to, ironically given the last phone call, New Change, before snapping a selection in the vicinity of St Paul’s Cathedral. One bus that passed first was a First Citaro from the RV1, with passengers, but First logo on all blinds. No idea what it was doing, but it went from New Change to Mansion House, and on.
Here’s a Routemaster at St Paul’s – following the Silver First example on Saturday, here is one of the East London “heritage” vehicles for the 15 extras.
From there, I crossed over the road for a bus heading west, and got East London Trident 18208 on one of the full-length one person operated Service 15’s. The bus was heading on the extended route to Paddington Basin, but I got off at Aldwych South. Nominally for the loo, I got an interesting selection of pictures.
Firstly, here’s a picture of the former Piccadilly Line station at Aldwych/Strand. Decommissioned many years ago, this location was also the site of the video to the The Prodigy’s Firestarter…
From there, London General WVL134 on the 11 to Victoria (and beyond), where I’d got off. Here’s the station, with building work on the former site at the left ongoing.
From here, I stopped for lunch, before going for the 1241 Southern train from Victoria to London Bridge, via parts of South London. (Stopped for a couple of books in WH Smith, including a new penguin to add to the collection!) This half hourly route is a two car service (at least the one I was on certainly was), and I alighted seven minutes later at Wandsworth Road. A very quiet station, not staffed at all.
Here’s one going the other way over the bridge…
… and a Travel London Enviro400 double decker approaches the last stop on Service 452…
… So, the reason for going here? As part of the CrossCountry rail changes in December 2008, passenger service was lost from a small section of suburban lines in west London. It was brought to government attention that proper procedures had not been followed for a closure, although I don’t envisage this was thought of. Subsequently, the line will become part of the new South Central franchise requirements. While the Ticket Collector’s new webpage can explain a bit more about this, but in the meantime, a once-a-week rail replacement coach is running… yes, on Tuesdays.
The coach is being provided by Tellings Golden Miller – a subsidiary of Arriva plc, who also operate the CrossCountry rail franchise, and TGM are being paid £500 a day (obtained via parliamentary answer) to provide the service in the short term. Here, this Volvo/Plaxton coach, with a cherished registration number more familiar to sister company Burtons Coaches of Haverhill, waits for me to catch up on Wandsworth Road, shortly before 1315 (yes, just a minutes or two before the next train arrives from Victoria!)
We drove through Lavendar Hill, over Chelsea Bridge passing the harbour, through some one way streets around Earls Court, before continuing to Olympia, then (after waiting to 1345) onto Chiswick, Gunnersbury, and arriving at Ealing Broadway a little earlier than intended. Poster at Ealing Broadway was about the only publicity I saw for it (the pic is a little shaky as I turned the flash off, but it’s here if you want it). The journey was a rather civilised one, but utilised by myself and ONE other passenger throughout the way. If we count that the £500 a day paid to TGM is half each trip, just for the sake of argument, then both of our journeys were subsidised to the tune of £125 each.
From there, a District Line train heading east, and here is a quick look at the District Line platforms at Ealing Broadway.
The refurbished District Line train was heading to Tower Hill only, so I took this to the second last station (Monument) and got a busier train heading for Upminster, through to Barking. Climbed back out of the station, and out for a bus to Barking bus garage. East London Trident 17371 on the 5 took a little while to arrive, and was heavily used as a result. I picked my way through the drivers hanging around the garage, and was kindly pointed in the right direction by a few men in hi-vi’s. Initially it seemed a little confusing, as the bag wasn’t there. It turns out it was logged on the Sunday – presumably either a late shift driver handed it in at the end of the shift, or a cleaner found it the following day. Thanked them, (checked the little beany teddy purchased in Gravesend was still there), and went back to Barking Town Centre on the 387 (Trident 17213) before waiting for a Dart on the 366 – 34163 – to Triangle Retail Park, once more.
I went back to the previously aforementioned Boots Clearance Store. The news that I couldn’t mention online before when I was sworn to secrecy initially, would presumably be given away if I mentioned my sister asked if I’d go and look out for some baby stuff for her… and after a phone call or two to bridge the 470 or so miles, I headed back to the bus stops (via Staples – no purchases this time! – and KFC) before getting another 366 to East Beckton/Beckton Asda/Beckton DLR (Dart 34287). DLR trains from Beckton are going to Canning Town (from next week, Tower Gateway reopens, and they can go through again) at the moment, so changing there to another train which was only going to Blackwall would not have done me. I therefore ran downstairs to catch a Jubilee Line train to London Bridge, and onto the Northern Line (the northbound platform still has a Millennium Dome logo, on one of the signs for the Jubilee Line – I also spotted one of those inside the ticket office at Barking) to Kings Cross St Pancras, then FCC train back to Royston. I didn’t get the 1902 or the 1915, but the 1945 instead.
Despite being hugely tiring, and exhausting, I’ve enjoyed the last few days of shopping, spotting and touring around London, including some of the notable aspects of the capital’s transport, as well as stretching my travels into Essex and Kent. You can see all the pictures here.
So, I started just after 0900 with a First Capital Connect train Royston - Finsbury Park then onto Essex Road Station. Check out the rather old Network SouthEast branding on the route panels…
From here, went down New North Road to look for the CT Plus/HCT Service 812 – a Monday to Friday off peak non-TfL bus service that runs around Camden and Islington. As I was trying to find it, it came up on me (first pic naturally a little shaky), but I managed this shot of Optare Alero LF01 going back into a side street.
As the Metroline 271’s were running freely through at regular intervals, I took TP62 south via Old Street to Moorgate Finsbury Square, and here it is at the other end.
From here I was planning to go down to the St Paul’s area, before heading in the direction of Victoria (eventually). I got a phone call from the voluntary organisation that I mentioned in this post back in early February. I thought I got on well enough, but I could feel some resistance. I thought I’d done enough to overcome it. But, no. My references hadn’t came back – now she’d used details that I’d given then back in 2007, and wondered why they’d not responded… and as a result, I couldn’t start next week as planned, because the person doing the work goes on holiday tomorrow. She didn’t tell me until now… I thought something like that might happen. I could feel that something might happen. (As I type this on Wednesday night, I am going to post a letter to her tomorrow to say that I withdraw my application and offer of assistance, as I can take the hint).
Anyway, as I was thinking about this, something fairly interesting came along, that was a genuine surprise…. former Stagecoach Scotland and Oxford Tube MAN double deck coach T53 BBW… in plain white, now with Leggs Travel.
Two rather confusingly intriguing moments, each on their own right! After some photos of buses passing through the Moorgate area, took Arriva Volvo VLA74 on the 76 through to, ironically given the last phone call, New Change, before snapping a selection in the vicinity of St Paul’s Cathedral. One bus that passed first was a First Citaro from the RV1, with passengers, but First logo on all blinds. No idea what it was doing, but it went from New Change to Mansion House, and on.
Here’s a Routemaster at St Paul’s – following the Silver First example on Saturday, here is one of the East London “heritage” vehicles for the 15 extras.
From there, I crossed over the road for a bus heading west, and got East London Trident 18208 on one of the full-length one person operated Service 15’s. The bus was heading on the extended route to Paddington Basin, but I got off at Aldwych South. Nominally for the loo, I got an interesting selection of pictures.
Firstly, here’s a picture of the former Piccadilly Line station at Aldwych/Strand. Decommissioned many years ago, this location was also the site of the video to the The Prodigy’s Firestarter…
From there, London General WVL134 on the 11 to Victoria (and beyond), where I’d got off. Here’s the station, with building work on the former site at the left ongoing.
From here, I stopped for lunch, before going for the 1241 Southern train from Victoria to London Bridge, via parts of South London. (Stopped for a couple of books in WH Smith, including a new penguin to add to the collection!) This half hourly route is a two car service (at least the one I was on certainly was), and I alighted seven minutes later at Wandsworth Road. A very quiet station, not staffed at all.
Here’s one going the other way over the bridge…
… and a Travel London Enviro400 double decker approaches the last stop on Service 452…
… So, the reason for going here? As part of the CrossCountry rail changes in December 2008, passenger service was lost from a small section of suburban lines in west London. It was brought to government attention that proper procedures had not been followed for a closure, although I don’t envisage this was thought of. Subsequently, the line will become part of the new South Central franchise requirements. While the Ticket Collector’s new webpage can explain a bit more about this, but in the meantime, a once-a-week rail replacement coach is running… yes, on Tuesdays.
The coach is being provided by Tellings Golden Miller – a subsidiary of Arriva plc, who also operate the CrossCountry rail franchise, and TGM are being paid £500 a day (obtained via parliamentary answer) to provide the service in the short term. Here, this Volvo/Plaxton coach, with a cherished registration number more familiar to sister company Burtons Coaches of Haverhill, waits for me to catch up on Wandsworth Road, shortly before 1315 (yes, just a minutes or two before the next train arrives from Victoria!)
We drove through Lavendar Hill, over Chelsea Bridge passing the harbour, through some one way streets around Earls Court, before continuing to Olympia, then (after waiting to 1345) onto Chiswick, Gunnersbury, and arriving at Ealing Broadway a little earlier than intended. Poster at Ealing Broadway was about the only publicity I saw for it (the pic is a little shaky as I turned the flash off, but it’s here if you want it). The journey was a rather civilised one, but utilised by myself and ONE other passenger throughout the way. If we count that the £500 a day paid to TGM is half each trip, just for the sake of argument, then both of our journeys were subsidised to the tune of £125 each.
From there, a District Line train heading east, and here is a quick look at the District Line platforms at Ealing Broadway.
The refurbished District Line train was heading to Tower Hill only, so I took this to the second last station (Monument) and got a busier train heading for Upminster, through to Barking. Climbed back out of the station, and out for a bus to Barking bus garage. East London Trident 17371 on the 5 took a little while to arrive, and was heavily used as a result. I picked my way through the drivers hanging around the garage, and was kindly pointed in the right direction by a few men in hi-vi’s. Initially it seemed a little confusing, as the bag wasn’t there. It turns out it was logged on the Sunday – presumably either a late shift driver handed it in at the end of the shift, or a cleaner found it the following day. Thanked them, (checked the little beany teddy purchased in Gravesend was still there), and went back to Barking Town Centre on the 387 (Trident 17213) before waiting for a Dart on the 366 – 34163 – to Triangle Retail Park, once more.
I went back to the previously aforementioned Boots Clearance Store. The news that I couldn’t mention online before when I was sworn to secrecy initially, would presumably be given away if I mentioned my sister asked if I’d go and look out for some baby stuff for her… and after a phone call or two to bridge the 470 or so miles, I headed back to the bus stops (via Staples – no purchases this time! – and KFC) before getting another 366 to East Beckton/Beckton Asda/Beckton DLR (Dart 34287). DLR trains from Beckton are going to Canning Town (from next week, Tower Gateway reopens, and they can go through again) at the moment, so changing there to another train which was only going to Blackwall would not have done me. I therefore ran downstairs to catch a Jubilee Line train to London Bridge, and onto the Northern Line (the northbound platform still has a Millennium Dome logo, on one of the signs for the Jubilee Line – I also spotted one of those inside the ticket office at Barking) to Kings Cross St Pancras, then FCC train back to Royston. I didn’t get the 1902 or the 1915, but the 1945 instead.
Despite being hugely tiring, and exhausting, I’ve enjoyed the last few days of shopping, spotting and touring around London, including some of the notable aspects of the capital’s transport, as well as stretching my travels into Essex and Kent. You can see all the pictures here.