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Post by jrussa on Jul 4, 2015 14:20:20 GMT
Hello everyone! I received a surprise treat earlier during the week while waiting for the 364 in Ilford, heading towards Dagenham East. I think my thread title makes more sense when you see the picture below! Attachment DeletedI was reminiscing back to when First London operated this route with these DML buses!
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Post by croydonguy on Jul 4, 2015 20:49:19 GMT
I have slightly different memories of these when First used to run them on the T31 and T32 from Orpington. I also remember the earlier W***VLN batch which had different style seating and were in the red and white livery... Those were the days
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Post by Deleted on Jul 4, 2015 21:31:56 GMT
I miss the early Capital City buses days - a huge variety of second hand buses, never knew what would turn up on a route.
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Post by YY13VKP on Jul 4, 2015 22:07:55 GMT
I miss the days when Metrobus first ran the 434 and 317 on the route in its blue and yellow livery, which was the best at the time. It was my favourite bus at the time I also remember very well the first gen DW's when they were fairly new
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Post by Nathan on Jul 4, 2015 22:27:50 GMT
This isn't exactly a first memory but I also remember GAL running 188. I hope they get it back in 2017. Ah, I remember riding on those center-staircase PVLs back in 2002/3 And I remember seeing PDLs on the route in Surrey Quays and Evelyn Street, Deptford
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Post by LX09FBJ on Jul 4, 2015 23:55:05 GMT
Riding a VA on the 281 when I was about five/six-ish is the first thing that pops into my head, can't remember much more than that apart from the fact it was raining and we sat upstairs. Other memories include (most of which are when I was 10/11) Metrobuses on the 111, though these would've been very very vague, the only case I can clearly remember is seeing one in Hampton Court in 2002 when I went to Bushy Park to see the Queen in her Limousine for a Golden Jubilee event. Brand new TAs on the 111 Riding on the VAs and VPs when I first got my free bus pass (no prizes for guessing how got into buses!) Drawing a picture of a VP on the 111. I would also make paper buses from sheets of 'scrap' paper! On the subject of paper buses, I'd download pics from the Stagecoach Fan Club paper bus page (an archive of which exists I think) and the London Paperbus Website, which has no trace of existence sadly Black Friday and riding on RML2665 on the 73 (the one which was in the provincial Stagecoach at the time) and VE3 complete with a conductor on board while we followed a VA formerly based at AV (87, 88 or 89- can't remember which exactly) was following us with a loose panel door at the rear. CrystalEyes, the infotainment system fitted to many gold-frame services and all of First's 53, 04 and 54 reg buses. Killed off by iBus, the reason I liked it is because it rekindled memories from the time when I was... ...well more carefree. And lastly, the vareity on routes 10 and 414, when you didn't know what you'd get! I like the LTs but they've become boring now Travelling on buses to and from East Dulwich where my sister lived for a while. The VPs on the 185 and the Ls on the 176. The more varied colour schemes, such as Metrobus, TGM and London & Country. Today there's not much difference between buses except from the interior colours
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Post by vjaska on Jul 5, 2015 2:10:39 GMT
First memories were riding T's on the 45 under London Central as a kid and being mesmerised by the reversing mirror in the rear window.
Others were riding TH & N's motley collection of L's especially when N had 41 L's refurbished quite thoroughly - you never knew whether a refurbed or unrefurbed L turned up.
Cowie & Arriva operation on the 118 using M's and riding a 133 to Tooting Broadway on a VC were other lovely memories. Sadly, they don't make buses today like any of the ones mentioned above.
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Post by M1104 on Jul 5, 2015 11:15:46 GMT
One of my first classical memories was an MD class Scania on the 36 back in 1979. I remember us coming out the tube Station at Oval where we waited for this Lewisham-bound route expecting either a Routemaster or a mark 1/B20 DMS... Only to see this square headlight double decker come around the corner into view as it approached the Oval Station bus stop towards Lewisham. Had thought that the gear changes was very much like the Fishbowl buses in America. I also remember the driver pumping the brakes quite a few times when slowing down, even when in slow moving traffic. Only ever been on the MD twice, to Lewisham and back as I didn't really know South East London that well and never went on the 36 for at least another 5 or 6 years, where I was surprised that it had changed back to Routemaster operation. I remember seeing the Scanias a few times on the 45 (Battersea) as a kid and wanted to ride the bus again, but sadly neither my mum nor grandma ever needed the 45. This was also another route where I was shocked with its revertion back to Routemaster operation. As a kid I thought it strange that newer buses were replaced with older ones, but apparently quite a number of routes have been done... Also remembering the 43 which had Mark 2 DMS then Routemasters.
Another favourite memory was my first time on a Metro bus, route 111 from Heathrow to Kingston... Back at a time when London transport were experimenting with red and white double deckers on the DMS, Titans and Metros. again, it took me a while getting used to the gear box as it sounded reminiscent of American buses. I also remembered how smooth the suspension was as it was air assisted, I believe a relatively new feature on buses from the late 70s. The rear of the bus took some getting used to as the rear lower deck window wasn't 'tucked in' like on the DMS. Sticking with the Metro I remember the first time I heard a Cummin engined example on the 118 and thought that something was wrong with the engine. Then I heard it again another day and assumed it was the same bus I saw before. It wasn't until I heard about three or four of them sounding that way then I realised they had different engines... not to mention that they sounded like buses of the same age in New York, not surprising as they both use the Cummin engine which is American anyway.
In 1986 when I first saw the L class Olympian on the 'old' 184 I thought it was a Mark 2 Titan with a modified rear lower deck window. lol
There have been plenty of first moments but the above are some of my highlighted ones.
Ps: one of my ultra earliest remembrance of buses in general were the headlights of DMS, some being more centralised than others and sounding different, almost like a Titan. I must say I preferred the ones with the headlights further apart though my favourite version DMS are the B20s with that howling turbo, a bus I was honoured to drive during training, even though by that time they gained Iveco units... Which I also like that as they were quicker and had a slightly longer / higher revving gear hold. Used to love the trashing of those on the 152 and 157.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 5, 2015 11:44:36 GMT
I have vague memories of traveling on the bendies on the 25 and Pointers (?) on the 100.
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Post by thesquirrels on Jul 5, 2015 13:13:38 GMT
c.1990!
'Wrong coloured' Thamesway VRs on the 359 in Tottenham.
Slipping and falling on the platform of a routemaster as it moved away. Was living around the Aylesbury / North Peckham at the time so would have been a 12 or 36. Also remember DMSs on the 37 (with its older moquette) Titans on the P3 (now 343) and the 63 (far and away my most regular route: I can actually remember not knowing how high 63 was as a number - I couldn't count that far initially, I only knew it as a bus!!)
I too remember the 'old' 184, a number which would eventually follow me across the river!
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Post by LT 20181 on Jul 5, 2015 17:46:57 GMT
Dual door Pointer 1s on routes 90 and 245
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Post by ilovelondonbuses on Jul 5, 2015 21:21:52 GMT
TH's S reg DLAs previously allocated to routes 109, 198 and 250. Loved those DLAs in particular.
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Post by vjaska on Jul 5, 2015 21:33:23 GMT
TH's S reg DLAs previously allocated to routes 109, 198 and 250. Loved those DLAs in particular. I didn't enjoy all of them - some were excellent whilst others were pants. DLA40-49 were bad, DLA2-10 & 58 were excellent whilst DLA63 is the worst bus I've ever used. Still, I really miss the good ones and I'd take them over any T's full stop. I'd even have DLA63 resurrected from the scrap yard just for the fact it was so bad lol.
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Post by M1104 on Jul 5, 2015 22:12:30 GMT
I can actually remember not knowing how high 63 was as a number - I couldn't count that far initially, I only knew it as a bus!!) I experienced something similar when my mum took me to Croydon in the 70s where I saw an RT on the 75. Had asked my mum why that 57* bus is written backwards. lol * - having lived not too far from our local route 57
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Post by M1104 on Jul 5, 2015 22:19:02 GMT
TH's S reg DLAs previously allocated to routes 109, 198 and 250. Loved those DLAs in particular. I didn't enjoy all of them - some were excellent whilst others were pants. DLA40-49 were bad, DLA2-10 & 58 were excellent whilst DLA63 is the worst bus I've ever used. Still, I really miss the good ones and I'd take them over any T's full stop. I'd even have DLA63 resurrected from the scrap yard just for the fact it was so bad lol. I remember when I first saw them on the road and was amazed at how slow they were, especially as they used similar engines to the SP* class deckers which were like rockets. It was around that time where I started to learn more about engine specs and gearboxes. Got amazed again when Thornton Heath got the supped up euro 3 variants. Had remembered one 52/03 reg DLA was still on factory settings where on the kickdown it didn't change to second gear until 2200rpm... near enough 30 miles an hour. * - Optare Spectras on a DB250 chassis mainly on route 3/N3 back in the early 90s
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