Busageddon: Uxbridge Road

Two routes that I use on a daily basis changed vehicle type on Saturday 8th April, with one transferring to another operator. Metroline lost route 427 to Abellio London with new vehicles and the 207 was given a full allocation of Wrightbus Gemini 2 vehicles, sourced from two garages. Here is how the services ran before the changes.

An almost-new VW on route 427 to Acton High Street, on diversion in Northfields.

The 427 is a relatively young for such a busy route, although it replaced part of the old 207 (which is still in the top 10 busiest routes today), that used to run all the way from White City-Uxbridge. In 2005, the 427 was introduced to make the 207 more reliable, running between Uxbridge and Acton High Street. First used to operate the route from Hayes garage, with some Trident President vehicles that have been withdrawn for seven years now. In 2010, the contract was renewed and Wrightbus Gemini 2 vehicles made their way over for the new contract, and these vehicles stayed on the 427 for a solid 7 years, rarely making appearances on any other route. However, these vehicles were incredibly worn out after working such a busy route and were constantly breaking down, resulting in the 427 being 4 or 5 buses down on most weekdays in the past couple of years, even with spare Enviro 400s and Scania OmniCity vehicles filling in. This was certainly noticeable on my daily commute, where sometimes the 427 simply wouldn't show up at all in the mornings, causing the 207 to be even more overcrowded than it already is! During this period the route had its operation transferred to Metroline on 22nd June 2013, when First London sold all of its operations over here.

With the shambolic, unhelpful service provided, I was hoping that this route would be lost to another operator, although this seemed unlikely as Metroline were the only operator who had realistic garage space at the time, although it eventually became clear that a new depot was meant to open up for the new contract date. Last October the tender results came through and I burst out laughing, reading that Abellio had won the 427, with brand new vehicles from an already overcrowded Hayes (WS) garage! I was ecstatic that I was getting luxury Enviro 400 MMCs for my daily commute and possibly a more reliable service. Unfortunately it was revealed that this route is on a temporary, non-extendable three year contract, which suggests that TFL are going to modify it in conjunction with the opening of Crossrail (I still refuse to call it the Liz Line).

The first day of a temporary new era...

As the contract date approached, the service became even worse and it was announced that Hayes garage will close, following the loss of the 427 and U5 to Abellio, with the 207 transferring to Greenford (G) garage, which has lots of space after losing six E-routes in two years! What surprised many enthusiasts was that the ex-134 Gemini 2 vehicles (bound for route 207) showed up on the 427 a couple of days early, allowing the 427 to almost reach the full PVR! I managed to catch this on the first day, which was rather special as they were only around for four days before the contract changed. As the final days approached I looked forward to getting rid of the shambolic service and I was quietly confident that Abellio would do a sterling job.

Metroline SN1928 working route 207 to White City.

The 207 is famous for being the last route in London allocated Mercedes Citaro "bendy bus" vehicles, which were withdrawn in December 2011. First typically ordered a mixture of Wright and ADL products for their new contracts, but Boris Johnson demanded that the articulated buses needed to vanish by the end of the year, so First ordered Scania OmniCity vehicles for the first time as they would be ready for the new contract, probably due to a lack of orders. The SNs were the final batch of OmniCity's for London and they were some of my favourites, with beautiful engines and power. Metroline adopted them in 2013, but after this period they started to wear out, feeling tired after five years on such a demanding route. As these were non-standard for the Metroline fleet, an announcement came through stating that these vehicles would be withdrawn and replaced by a mixture of ex-427 and ex-134 VWs. I was absolutely gutted about this particular change, as I was losing some brilliant local buses and keeping some atrocious ones instead. These vehicles were far more reliable than the 427 examples and I was worried that the 207 would become much more difficult to use after the SNs were withdrawn.

Note the funny blinds, another discrepancy...

On the first day the service on the 427 was mediocre, with a few gaps and bunching, which is typical for the start of a new contract. Surprisingly, most of the brand new Enviro 400H MMC vehicles were on time, with only 4 buses yet to enter service. The route has been crammed into the tiny Hayes (WS) garage, with the 195, 350 and E5 moving out to  Fulwell (TF) garage, which is quite far from all three of these routes! Apart from a breakdown on the first day (2553), the buses have performed well so far and I'm a big fan of these MMCs. They are equipped with comfortable Lazzerini seating, along with the bright Abellio interior and provide a smooth ride throughout the journey. Having been on the buses five times already, I can make a judgement and say that they are some of the best MMCs in London, with only the 277, 135, 53 and 344 batches being superior.

Abellio London 2555 heads back towards Uxbridge, with a lovely gesture from the driver.

I rarely cover first day changes, although I had to make an exception for these two local routes, to sample my new service. I found my first 427 journey very relaxing and I was really excited for when I got the chance to take these vehicles on a regular basis, a massive improvement to the 10-reg VWs. A week after the changes, I can conclude that Abellio are doing well on the route so far, with necessary curtailments and measures to make the service as reliable as possible. It's nowhere near perfect, but the service levels are adequate and it's showed up every single morning, which is a brilliant start! I'm loving my new 427 so far, and I hope that this level of excellence is continued for the next three years. Abellio just need to get used to the daily drama that occurs on this route, as sometimes the drivers are struggling with the extreme loadings and last minute diversions, especially when a hotel caught fire and a police incident occurred on the same stretch of road at the same time, causing chaos and the abandonment of many buses along Ealing Broadway!

Abellio London 2401 stands on route 427 to Uxbridge.

In order to fill the void left by the MMCs that haven't entered service yet, four "classic" Enviro 400 Hybrid vehicles are currently working the 427. They are nowhere near as nice as the MMCs, although they are pleasant addition to the route, adding some variety into the equation. These might be staying at Hayes (WS) garage permanently, for the new U5 contract which begins next Saturday, using 9 existing E400 MMCs from the 350, as well as four other buses, which might be these vehicles here. I wish Abellio luck for the next five years, and I'll talk more about this in my conclusion!

Metroline VW1272 working the 207 to White City.

I wasn't looking forward to the vehicle change on the 207, although the service provided would certainly be an interesting comparison. The first day didn't get off to a great start, with the 2nd bus in service being curtailed to Ealing Hospital, something which rarely happens on the 207. Throughout the day it became clear that Greenford (G) garage were really struggling with the 207 on that particular day and I was sceptical that it would get any better, especially with the unreliable part allocation. On the other hand, the 12-reg VWs are lovely vehicles and they are the only enjoyable thing left on the 207, so I'm trying to catch them as much as possible. To make things worse, the new schedule involves some ridiculously loose running time, resulting in frequent regulating and very slow journey's, something which isn't ideal on a boring, overcrowded route like the 207.

Lacking correct blinds, VW1830 heads towards Shepherd's Bush.

The ex-427 buses don't even have blinds for "White City", which is an embarrassment in itself, but Metroline are showing no indication of changing them. My first ride on one of these vehicles was dreadful, with an extremely slow and depressing run from Ealing Broadway-Acton High Street, with frequent regulating and an uncomfortable, worn out interior. These buses need a refurbishment badly, or ideally the Scania OmniCity vehicles would continue to plough the 207 for the next couple of years, but fleet standardisation always takes priority. Since these vehicles took over the 207 I've witnessed two breakdowns in two weeks, which really isn't ideal for such a busy route, especially considering I only use a small section of the 207. Most of the buses have problems such as emitting black smoke, roaring, or broken interior compartments, which is why I was campaigning for these vehicles to be stood down!

Metroline VW1284 on route 207 to Hayes By-Pass.

In terms of reliability, the operation of the 207 has been terrible since the vehicle changeover, with frequent gaps and bunching. The 207 never runs as frequently as advertised, providing an every 8-10 minute service instead of running every 4, resulting in overcrowding on other routes such as the 483, 427 and 607. This past week, I've only caught the service 3 times out of 8 journey's where it could've been useful, which is pretty poor considering it's supposed to run at double the frequency of the 427. At the moment I'm just looking forward to the next contract, where hopefully the 207 is lost to another operator, or at least gains new buses, as at the moment the service is terribly unappealing.

Metroline TE1741 on route 207 to White City.

Since bendy bus operation, the 207 has always had an extremely strict allocation, with strays from other routes being extremely rare. However, Greenford (G) have decided to buck the trend and stick Enviro 400 vehicles allocated to the 92/282 on the route every day, partially because the ex-427 buses spend a concerning amount of time off-road. This does mean I get even more variety on the Uxbridge Road corridor, although the 207 service as a whole is one I'm going to try my best to avoid.

Abellio London 2557 strays onto the E9, from the 427 batch of MMC vehicles.

Overall, I have mixed feelings about the changes. The new 427 is brilliant, with a reliable service and fabulous buses and I now look forward to using the route as much as possible, a massive improvement from before. However, the new service on the 207 is disgraceful and it has forced me to undertake a difficult task, which is avoiding one of the most useful routes along the Uxbridge Road corridor. Unfortunately, this may not always be possible, but my hope for a new contract will live on until the day the tenders are released in two years time. 

Thanks for reading, stay safe!

p.s: I know you're probably fed up with constant route changes posts, so we'll be taking a break next week from Busageddon.