Irish and UK bus photos

Llandudno 2008

Sat May 3 2008

Saturday 3 May 2008: Llandudno 2008

Isle of Man Road Services

Thu Oct 18 2007

Thursday 18 October 2007: 48 photos of the Isle of Man's red buses and grey coaches, 1904 - 1976. Last updated on 10th January 2009.

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Douglas Corporation

Wed Oct 17 2007

Wednesday 17 October 2007: 32 Photos of Manx municipal buses, last updated on 8th November 2009.

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London in August 1986

Wed Aug 20 1986

Wednesday 20 August 1986: 117 photos August 1986 saw my first solo trip to the U.K., and given the then ever increasing variety of buses around London, this seemed as good a place as any to explore. So, having travelled "economy" on the coach and overnight ferry from Dublin to London via Holyhead (no cheap RyanAir flights back then), I disembarked from a Crosville Bova Futura into the early morning at Victoria Coach Station, and made my way along Buckingham Palace Road. From here on, all I had to go on was a series of one day travelcards, a London bus map and some basic info gleaned from reading BUSES magazines. First off was a route 39 Metrobus to Clapham, followed by a DMS on the 156 to Raynes Park and my accomodation for the next few nights. During this trip I tended to concentrate on the area around Morden, Victoria, Marylebone, Oxford Street and Clapham, with a visit to the London Transport Museum and Heathrow Central as well. Non bus interest involved a visit to a rail display in Cannon Street on the Sunday of that week, with a shuttle service of vintage EMUs of Southern Railway origin operating from London Bridge station. On Monday 25th August 1986, I left Raynes Park (a bit overcast) and headed for Victoria to catch the 18.00 coach to Dublin. Emerging into the open air at Victoria it seemed to be getting darker (at 16.30 on an August afternoon!!), and by the time we pulled out of the coach station it was chucking it down. The rain got more and more heavy as we headed north and west towards Anglesey, and once there the full horrors of the storm became apparent. The ship (due to sail at 02.45) didn't arrive in until 04.00, and stayed in the port until 19.00 on Tuesday. So, while stranded there, I managed to get a few shots of Crosville vehicles in the local garage, and two B.R. shots, including a Mk. 1 buffet car!! And so those seven views remind me of one of the longest nights (and days) of my life!!!` After arrival in Dun Laoghaire at around 23.00, CIE had thoughtfully laid on special buses to bring the passengers to their homes. Leopard MG105 was the one allotted to go as far as Dundalk, and it took the "scenic" route via Skerries on the way. A horrendous end to an interesting week, but the chance of photographing more London buses in different areas still beckoned, so a return trip was planned for early the following year......

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London visit in March 2007

Wed Mar 14 2007

Wednesday 14 March 2007: 33 photos. The weekend of March 10th and 11th 2007 marked the 75th anniversary of the opening of Victoria Coach Station, so a visit to that event was tied in with a further look at the modern scene in London, some seventeen months since my last visit for the end of Routemasters on route 38. After arriving at Heathrow on Friday March 9th, my itinerary was to take in a nostalgic trip to Morden, which had been the nearest tube station to where I stayed during my first visits in 1986/87. So three hours after getting off the plane, and four changes of tube train later, I finally emerged into daylight at the southern end of the Northern Line. Outside, just as in 1986, routes 93, 118, 154, 157, 164 and 293 were all still running, but the buses (as might be expected after 20 years) had completely changed. Green London Country Atlanteans had given way to Mercedes Citaros, and Volvo B7TLs and Dennis Tridents had replaced Fleetlines. But where was my old route 156 (Clapham to Morden)? Cut back to Wimbledon it seemed, with new route 163 with Dennis Darts filling the gap. After a few pics, and a lunch break in a nearby cafe, it was time to head towards Croydon on route 154, with an East Lancs bodied Volvo B7TL doing the honours --my second one of the day, as a similar Bus Eireann machine had taken me to Dublin Airport that morning. Croydon is now home to the superb Tramlink system, with the trams being of Bombardier manufacture, albeit a good deal quieter than the (in)famous Detroit Diesel powered buses from the same manufacturer which once graced the CIE fleet in Ireland. A further Irish link with Croydon's buses is the presence of several Wrights Gemini bodied double deckers, most of the ones I saw having registration numbers previously carried by Routemasters. The next leg of the journey was to travel on a tram to Wimbledon, and then change to a 156 bus to Vauxhall. The tram journey was superb, and after observing the "interesting" red/blue/yellow livery on a South West Trains EMU in Wimbledon station, it was outside again to find the 156 stop. Now, Wimbledon on a Friday afternoon is a brutal place to try and get photos of buses, due to heavy traffic and daftly timed traffic light sequences. Of the few I took, none survived the delete button on my camera!!! The next stage was to leave the 156 at Vauxhall and change to an 87, which would reach Routemaster territory at Aldwych. The 87 journey provided the opportunity to sample a Go-Ahead London Wrights Gemini, in this case WVL109. Of all the varied bus types that have entered London service in recent years, surely this design has to be the most distinctive with its "D" shaped windscreens and stylised "W" grille. Leaving the WVL at Trafalgar Square, RM324 soon appeared on route 15 to Tower Hill. Once aboard, I was struck by how quaint it looks now with its shallow window line, although its pleasant to see them still in use. The same bus took us back to Trafalgar Square, followed by a route 24 Alexander Enviro to Victoria, dinner in a local restaurant, and a final round trip on route 73 from Victoria to Kings Cross. Dare I use the word "flamboyant" to describe the driving technique of the Citaro bendy bus -- perhaps not, but it's still a bit weird to sit in the back of a bus and watch the front section partly disappear on bends or at junctions. Saturday morning provided the chance to get some more RM trips in, preceeded by an 11 to Trafalgar Square. Former Blackpool bus RM1735 took me to the Albert Hall, and after pondering what route I would use to get back to Victoria, I regained the RM thread again back as far as Green Park, changing there to a packed route 38 Citaro, standing room only. After observing the classic Royal Blue, East Kent and Crosville coaches on display alongside their modern white counterparts in the coach station, the afternoon was taken up with a trip on route 148, using one of Transdev's rare Scania OmniDekkas. Only 21 of these have been built so far, and it's not difficult to see why there hasn't been serious interest in them. From a passenger point of view they creak, rattle and squeak way too much for a new vehicle. Leaving the thing at Shepherds Bush, the return trip was on route C1, this time worked by an Alexander Enviro 200 Dennis Dart. Given the loadings on the service, it would seem that bigger buses would be an advantage. For most of the journey I was sitting at the back, over the engine, and with a standing load, it got unbearably stuffy. To complete the day, some of the interesting vehicles around Victoria and Buckingham Palace Road were observed and photographed. Almost at the last minute, the coach scheduled to do the 18.00 departure for Dublin turned up, this being one of Bus Eireann's Irizar bodied Scanias of 2006.

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Victoria Coach Station 75th anniversary

Sun Mar 11 2007

Sunday 11 March 2007: A selection of 43 photos of visiting preserved coaches in London Victoria Coach Station on the occasion of its 75th anniversary, March 10th and 11th 2007. Of the 30 or so vehicles entered, ex Tricentrol Bedford YMT RGS 598R did not attend, but to complete the collection, a photo of Red and White SWO 986, which attended on Sunday March 11th is required. Can anyone help? If so, please e-mail me at shaneconway63@iolfree.ie. Thank you. Please note: Photos by Peter Edgar are reproduced here by permission of Malcolm Crowe of the Oxford-Chilterns Bus Page (www.oxford-chiltern-bus-page.co.uk).

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Dublin Bus Olympians

Sat Feb 24 2007

Saturday 24 February 2007: 140 photos of the Dublin Bus fleet of 640 Leyland and Volvo Olympians, both with Dublin Bus and with other owners. Last updated on 27th May 2008.

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Drogheda's buses and coaches

Fri Feb 23 2007

Friday 23 February 2007: A selection of 143 photos of some of the buses and coaches which have served Drogheda, with photos taken from the early 1960s to the present. CIE/Bus Eireann and independent's vehicles are included. Last updated on 7th June 2008.

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Coras Iompair Eireann 2

Sat Oct 7 2006

Saturday 7 October 2006: 16 photos of CIE's Leopards, Atlanteans and Bedford school buses. Last updated on October 8th 2009.

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Coras Iompair Eireann 1

Mon Sep 25 2006

Monday 25 September 2006: 182 photographs of CIE's Tigers, Royal Tigers, Titans, Regents and Regals. Last updated on 8th November 2009.

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London visit in 2005

Mon Oct 31 2005

Monday 31 October 2005: 56 photos. 18 years had elapsed since my last visits to London, in 1986 and 1987, and as might be expected the transport scene had changed totally in that time. New operators, new low floor buses, changed routes _ yet the Routemasters were still there, albeit in their final months of service, and in far fewer numbers than they had been in the 1980s. So while my visits this time round were mainly to travel on RMs on their final day on routes 14 and 22 (July 22nd), and route 38 (October 28th), I also took the chance to photograph other vehicle types as well. Apart from the RMs and newer buses, several classic London buses also took part in each of the last day events. While the RT family was well represented, examples of the RF, RLH, a lowbridge Bristol new to Hants and Dorset, and some preserved Routemasters were also turned out, including the rare RMF1254. Cobham Bus Museum provided an STL class bus in July, and an even older ST in October. On the sightseeing circuit, the Big Bus Company vehicles were much in evidence. Very surprisingly I discovered they were running ex LT Fleetline DMS2390, which was almost the standard red bus type in South London during the mid 1980s. Indeed I had travelled on them several times on route 156, maybe even on this bus as well. The company also has some of the Leyland Titan T class buses, and even more impressive were larger buses living up to the company_s name. At first glance they looked like Northern Counties bodies, particularly on the upper deck front, but closer inspection revealed Duple-Metsec and Dennis badges on the front panels. The G9xx FVX registration (also used on ex Dublin Bus Olympians imported to the UK), narrow doorway, and three axles signified these vehicles as being of Far East origin. In 1986 RM5, 6, and 9 were all still in service, and amazingly all three were still running in 2005, RM9 being observed on route 14 and the other two appearing on the 38. These buses had thus seen almost 47 years of service in London, which is remarkable by any standards. Alongside these veterans were seen Volvo double deckers with Wrights, East Lancs, Alexander and Plaxton bodies, and artics or bendi-buses in the form of Mercedes Citaros. A few single deckers were noted on outer suburban routes around Putney, such as the 39 and 493, and a good mix of vehicle types was also seen while covering the last RMs on the route to Clapton.

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London in February 1987

Thu Feb 19 1987

Thursday 19 February 1987: 121 photos. After the somewhat chaotic trip to London in 1986, the itinerary for my second visit six months later was subject to a good deal more planning. Unlike the National Express Rapide Bova of Crosville which made the journey from Holyhead, this time we were "treated" to AUJ 528T, an eight year old Ford R1114 - Plaxton Supreme. The London Regional Transport route tendering scheme was by now well underway, and thus some routes had become home to vehicles not previously generally seen in London service, while other operators took to using ex London Transport DMS class Fleetlines, in a variety of colours. The one vehicle operated route 146 had a Wadham Stringer bodied Ford, while Eastern National used Bristol VRTs in yellow and green. London Country acquired secondhand Atlanteans from Southdown, Strathclyde and Northern General, while the midibus revolution had hit London too, with red Optares on route C1 and London Country Renaults on the 268. New operator Scanbus had won the 283, appropriately using Scanias with Jonckheere bodies. Other than these, a few surprises also turned up, including a sighting of preserved RT1702 in the yard of Catford garage, while a glimpse of a black double decker prompted me to leave the 88 bus I was on and take a closer look. An urge to break a tube journey at Southgate was rewarded with a nicely parked RMC driver trainer outside. L.T.'s last Fleetline, D2646 also appeared on route 93, contrasting with RML2760 seen on the previous visit -- thankfully both of these historic buses are still around.

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