Random Observations: March 2017

I am extremely sorry for the month-long gap between posts, unfortunately I've had even more heavy exams, but they are over for now, and I can promise that posts will be out every week until June, hooray! I haven't been out much lately, so I thought a Random Obs post would be appropriate in this situation. Enjoy!

Go-Ahead London DOE12 on route 63 to King's Cross.

Putney High Street has become infamous for the overwhelming pollution levels it presents to the general public, so now every single route that travels along it has to be allocated Euro 6 Hybrid buses, which means that they produce very low emissions. At the time of writing (18th March), every single double deck vehicle scheduled to arrive there was Euro 6; well done to Go-Ahead and RATP for allocating vehicles correctly! As a result, the 93 (Putney Bridge-North Cheam) stole the brand new MCV EvoSeti vehicles allocated to route 63, which means that Olympi are travelling around Central London again, which is great news for me.

Stagecoach London 36329 stands at Woolwich, before tackling the 386.

The 386 is definitely not direct, taking over an hour to cover a section which takes 15 minutes on the direct 53. It looks fairly interesting, especially the section by Greenwich Park, although the Blackheath-Cutty Sark section is rarely ever used. The route uses a mixture of 9.3m Darts and 10.2m E200s, although I would keep the Darts on this route as the 291 (which has a common user pool with the 386), gets extremely busy. Typically, an Enviro 200 is seen here on the 386.

VLA106 pauses on the 375 to Passingford Bridge.

Grays garage only had one single decker for a period of time in February, even though they operate 2 single deck routes (yes they both have a PVR of 1). As the 347 has a low bridge near Upminster, sending ALX 400 vehicles on the 375 was the only option. The route serves the village of Havering Atte-Bower before terminating at the glamorous Passingford Bridge Roundabout. I'm sure many people questioned the use of a double decker on this every 90-minute route, although the countryside views were definitely appreciated by enthusiasts. If you every feel the need to ride this route, be aware that there really isn't much in Passingford Bridge. Don't worry, these vehicles still appear on the route from time to time, but make sure that you consult LVF first and make sure that the vehicle listed is either a "VLA" or "DW."

Metroline London TEH2084 on route 332 at Paddington.

The 332 is an average route, running through a mix of residential and semi-urban areas. As all the other routes in Paddington are brilliant, it's my least favourite route there, but it really isn't bad at all. At some point in the future, the complicated one way system at Paddington will be removed and the buses will be re-routed to serve Warwick Avenue in both directions, rather than going via Edgware Road to terminate, and Praed Street on departure.

Metroline VW1038 on route 237.

Metroline have started to refurbish the worn-out 10-reg Gemini 2 vehicles at Brentford (AH) garage and they've done a pretty good job, especially with the brand new seat covers! Removing the black surrounds on the lights makes the bus look strange, but this is something I'll have to get used to. This also explains why two ex-18 former First London Gemini 2s are chilling at Brentford, in Metroline Travel territory.

Stagecoach London 15091 takes a break at North Woolwich.

The 473 provides a stunning view of London City Airport along Connaught Bridge, so if you're into planes and docks, this route is perfect for you. If you're lucky, you'll be able to see planes taking off right by the water, which looks particularly beautiful on a sunny day. However, the 473 gets extremely busy heading out of Stratford from the afternoon, due to the expansive shopping complex known as Westfield. This worsens when the 262 doesn't show up for 14 minutes-this happened when I intended to use the route so I had to let the first 473 go as it was rammed and the front seats were unavailable.

The interior of a Southeastern Class 375 train, Ramsgate-bound.

The refurb Electrostar trains on the long-distance Southeastern diagrams look pretty cool, especially with the new colour scheme on the exterior and inside. My train was completely empty from London Bridge, with only one other person in the carriage on my trip to Orpington. However, be aware that the seats really aren't that comfortable for your back, so it's best to lean forward and focus on the WIFI which will be available from next year. I use Southeastern fairly regularly, although this trip was the first time I'd got a non-class 465 unit, proving that those trains like to follow me around!

Go-Ahead London MHV19 on the lengthy route 35 from Clapham Junction-Shoreditch.

Both times I rode this route end to end I felt disappointed. This route should've been perfect for me, passing through Clapham, Brixton, Elephant and Shoreditch, four areas which I love visiting. I'm not sure if the length disorientated my views on the route, although I was perfectly fine with riding the 83 end to end. Maybe this route will prove itself one day, but I don't have the time to re-try it for a third time, so it has to be useful, or in the right place at the right time for me to try it again. It also looks like the vehicle is open top in this shot, which is rather interesting.

A Mini Pointer Dart arrives at Orpington Station, bound for Biggin Hill.

In February, the two mini Optare Solo vehicles allocated to the R8 both broke down and were off-road for almost a month. Typically, I planned to ride the interesting buses in the half term, when both of them weren't in use. They are also going to be withdrawn in April, so unless the new/existing buses are late, I may never get the chance to ride the unique vehicles. I decided to ride the route anyway and a powerful Dart Pointer showed up, which was fairly well-loaded for a route which spends most of the time travelling through narrow country lanes. I loved going through these nature-filled areas on a London bus, although my journey came to an abrupt halt in Aperfield, a couple of stops away from the terminus. After dropping off some children in Biggin Hill High Street, the bus door randomly opened in the middle of the road and the driver eventually had to stop. It became clear that part of the door flew off in the middle of the road and I had the pleasure of picking it up and handing it back to the driver! She was very friendly and told me that 12 Optare single decks were on order for routes R4, R6 and R8, although I think the poor driver was a bit confused with the StreetLite Wrightbus vehicles that are meant to transfer down to Orpington after their stint on the 462. (Un)fortunately, this means that I will have to ride this route again, although hopefully the Optare vehicles are still around!

An Arriva London E400 City arrives at Liverpool Street Bus Station.

The 133 was recently upgraded to Euro 6 vehicles, in the form of ADL's rip-off New Routemaster. These vehicles are very nice, although I would always prefer a standard MMC. The 133 itself is a very busy route, so I hope that the commuters of Brixton appreciate the new kit.

That's all for now, stay safe and thanks for reading!