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Post by Mokujin on Oct 27, 2013 13:59:32 GMT
This thread is about your favourite bus garages (of a London bus company) maybe because of the service they provide, the drivers that are friendly or the good maintainance the buses receive.
For instance these are the ones I like: Arriva London/Shires/Kent Thameside: Barking DX Wood Green WN
Go Ahead London: Rainham BE New Cross NX Camberwell Q
Stagecoach London: Catford TL Romford NS West Ham WH
London United: Tolworth TV Fulwell FW Stamford Brook V
Metroline: Hayes HZ Greenford G Edgware EW Perivale West PA
Abellio London: Walworth WL Hayes WS
Transdev: Edgware BT
NOTE: You don't have to list all the garages you like for every operator.
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Post by marlon101 on Oct 27, 2013 14:04:02 GMT
There's a slight oxymoron in titling the post "favourite" and listing 18 garages!
Would be tempted to offer up TB as a long-standing favourite of mine for a variety of factors including driving staff, service and presentation of buses.
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Post by snoggle on Oct 27, 2013 14:19:39 GMT
Boring answer - I don't have enough experience of regularly using buses *right across London* to have a favourite garage. Leyton garage seem to do a decent job of vehicle presentation but I can't comment objectively about how well how they might maintain their buses or look after safety or whatever. It's almost impossible to judge from the viewpoint of the passenger who doesn't get to see behind the scenes except during garage open days.
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Post by ilovelondonbuses on Oct 27, 2013 15:11:45 GMT
Well definitely for South London, the best garages are N, NX, Q and SW. The garages all have a brilliant design and layout. As well the staff are great, the allocations of contracted buses on their routes are always on point and the buses themselves are well look after and look in great condition presentation wise.
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Post by Paul on Oct 27, 2013 18:36:00 GMT
There's a slight oxymoron in titling the post "favourite" and listing 18 garages! Would be tempted to offer up TB as a long-standing favourite of mine for a variety of factors including driving staff, service and presentation of buses. I nominate marlon101 as my favourite forum member
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Post by guybowden on Oct 28, 2013 6:19:14 GMT
Although it wasn't an operating bus garage Aldenham overhaul works is my number one garage simply because of its size and whenever I see photos of it it just looks vast!!!
Operating garages my top 3 (not in any order) are Stockwell because of its roof but when I visited it on the training bus I was a little disappointed as I thought it was bigger than what it is. Bromley as it is my local garage and when it was built by Tilling, they built the roof first and the jacked the roof up as they built the walls. Fulwell garage, when it was one complete garage full of trolleybuses.
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Post by M1104 on Oct 28, 2013 11:19:48 GMT
I like Merton because from the high street the garage hides its true size. The entrance, which is also the exit, is not all that large, but the further in you go the bigger it actually is, practically the length of Wandle Bank, the nearby side road between it and the park.
Camberwell is another garage that looks tiny from the Camberwell New Road exit. From certain angles at the front it looks like it can only hold about seven buses, as there is a wall not far behind and the access further into the garage is partially secluded.... especially when all the buses are packed inside. Like Merton, this garage is practically the length of the nearby side road, Warner Road.
Would love to have seen the old Streatham, Norwood and Putney garages before the 1980's rebuild. I passed streatham garage once in a while as a kid in the '70s but don't really remember what it looked like.
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Post by goaheadswvlrbest on Oct 28, 2013 19:19:18 GMT
I like Go aheads Merton, Stockwell and London Uniteds Hounslow, just for the sheer vehicle choice and various routes operated from each garage.
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Post by M1104 on Oct 28, 2013 19:41:14 GMT
I like Go aheads Merton, Stockwell and London Uniteds Hounslow, just for the sheer vehicle choice and various routes operated from each garage. I like BN, WL and X for their double deck variations...BN being the best of the three.
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Post by vjaska on Oct 28, 2013 21:59:03 GMT
I don't have an out & out favourite but I like SW, Q, N, QB TC, TH & TB mainly for decent standards. TH is the most improved garage - back in 2009, standards there were diabolical but they've really improved.
BN must not be mentioned at all
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Post by l1group on Oct 28, 2013 22:17:49 GMT
AV - they run the 111 and N9 - both my most favourite routes (in that order). There is a variety of vehicle types, the garage is nearly full to bursting (that's why they operate the 27 night service), the variety of routes. The dislikes - they run 120, my disliked route, and they insist on subbing ADEs on the 111 with SPs. And never put an odd working on the N9. Grrrr....
Other notable garages - V, SW, HT, HO, WH. Due to either kind staff, the routes/buses or the sheer amount of PVR they operate.
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Post by COBO on Oct 29, 2013 0:58:33 GMT
I like G, HD, PA and ON. Because of the buses they have.
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Post by paulsw2 on Oct 29, 2013 2:49:58 GMT
I don't have an out & out favourite but I like SW, Q, N, QB TC, TH & TB mainly for decent standards. TH is the most improved garage - back in 2009, standards there were diabolical but they've really improved. BN must not be mentioned at all If I remember this correctly BN used to be one of the best garages in LT days for bus maintenance but nowadays the bus companies have got to put money in the shareholders pockets so costs have to be reduced (wages longer duties etc) mechanics used to be a skilled job so wages can't drop as such but there is now fewer mechanics to deal with more vehicles. When CN was mothballed I believe the mechanics were transferred to TH and TC more mechanics mean more maintenance. When I worked at BN the mechanical standards were still reasonably good but a lot of the LT trained mechanics have now retired/severence and not been replaced.
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Post by vjaska on Oct 29, 2013 11:00:09 GMT
I don't have an out & out favourite but I like SW, Q, N, QB TC, TH & TB mainly for decent standards. TH is the most improved garage - back in 2009, standards there were diabolical but they've really improved. BN must not be mentioned at all If I remember this correctly BN used to be one of the best garages in LT days for bus maintenance but nowadays the bus companies have got to put money in the shareholders pockets so costs have to be reduced (wages longer duties etc) mechanics used to be a skilled job so wages can't drop as such but there is now fewer mechanics to deal with more vehicles. When CN was mothballed I believe the mechanics were transferred to TH and TC more mechanics mean more maintenance. When I worked at BN the mechanical standards were still reasonably good but a lot of the LT trained mechanics have now retired/severence and not been replaced. BN were good until a couple of years where for whatever reason, standards have woefully gone downhill - seems like the closure of CN & the 109 transferring has transformed the standards at BN for the worse & TH for the better.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 29, 2013 11:38:33 GMT
Selkent : TB for their excellent presentation of vehicles. They obviously take pride in clean buses.
London United : FW , historic and childhood reasons mainly. Grew up riding on their former Metrobuses on the 33,90b,110,267,270,281,285 & 290
Metroline : PB , only former LT shed outside the London boundary
London General : AF , nice routes
Arriva : N , nice routes and out of all the Arriva London South sheds, best presentation of buses
London Central : BX because it came back from being closed to a garage full up . Don't like the single deck routes though.
Abellio : Would have to be TF but only because the site is so historic and i am pleased it remains a bus garage. Would rather London United be in charge of it though !
East London : BW , nice garage , old design , interesting routes.
Arriva North : AD , seems like a nice close knit shed
Tower Transit : X , unique because a motorway runs over the top of it.
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