I introduced myself to the crew on RCL2229. Laurie Akehurst, author of the recent book on Greenline in London Transport days, was enjoying conducting. It was time for us to head for Dartford on the 701, so we headed out to the stop and loaded up.
Then we squeezed our way down through the back streets to start from the right place (the Clocktower), and headed west along the 701 route. We were allowed through part of Gravesend's restricted High Street before turning aside to the station. Then we were away to Northfleet, and the high road along the ridge top.
I popped upstairs for a short while. The load was light enough to be really pleasant, but enough to be realistic. I returned to my seat looking over the driver's shoulder as we passed Northfleet Garage and a DAF/Plaxton Prestige working on the 490 to Gravesend.
We trundled on. I wondered just how much of the Greenline network had been over 30mph restricted roads. Most of it, I presume. The RCL just purred along, the AEC engine so soft-sounding compared to the stridency of modern replacements in RMLs. The stop outside Northfleet Garage was blocked, so we made a photo stop rather further along, before descending to Swanscombe. We went on, across the Swanscombe gap, and up and down through Horns Cross to the outskirts of Dartford. We met other buses on the way: GS15 scurrying back towards Gravesend, red Arriva Dart 3279 on TfL route 428 to Bluewater and a Scania/Wright on the 480.
We descended into, um, Dartford. A peculiar kind of traffic hell. But we negotiated our way through to stop at the traditional stop outside Dartford Library. The blinds were changed for the return leg.
A later, less luxurious and rather more spartan breed of Greenline coach roared past, to stop at the bus station. It was Leyland National SNC168, also working a Gravesend-Dartford 701. We set off round the large one-way traffic loop to Dartford Station, where we paused again, in company with Stagecoach Trident 17867 on the 96, a reminder that trolleybuses used to reach Dartford - solidly Country Area - on the 696.
We climbed up East Hill again to escape from Dartford, and rumbled on along through Horns Cross, passing another red bus coming back from the shopping pit, an Arriva DAF/Wright on the 492 to Sidcup Station. Further on we passed RF600, heading west past Swanscombe on another 725 working.
SNC168 caught up with us, and we climbed the bank to Northfleet together.
But the SNC went past us when we stopped in the sunshine opposite Northfleet Garage. We only paused for photos, then rolled on into Gravesend, where we met up with another later generation of Greenline coaches in the shape of RB51, out on a tour.
We turned up towards our nominal journey's end - Gravesend Clocktower - and continued round the corner to Parrock Street. And there came another RCL! Blue Triangle's RCL2260 came down the road towards us, before diving off into the backstreets to reach the clocktower.
We turned in to the big carpark, and I alighted. There was RT3148, just heading out on a Greenline trip. I ran...
All photos by Ian Smith. Click on most of them for a larger picture.
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Part 5: 701 to Dartford and back: RT3148