234 Routes RevisitedSunday 17th March 2013Prepared by Ian Smith, 18th March 2013.234A: Croydon Garage to Wallington: RF429We set off south along the Brighton Road, pausing to pick up at the stop just south of the garage, then following RF486 south past the Red Deer. There were glimpses of other red single-deckers through the rain-spattered windscreen: Arriva's PDL123 on the 166 to West Croydon, and Abellio's EnviroDart 8526 on the 407 to Sutton. One belonging to German state railways, the other to Netherlands state railways.
We rolled down into Purley. DAF Alexander DLA250 rumbled up the other way on a 60 to Streatham Vale. RF486 was turning left in Purley, towards Selsdon, while we were to turn right. The vagaries of traffic meant that we caught them up as we approached The Fountain. Proving that the timetable was working well to provide connections, RT3251 passed across in front of us, heading from Wallington to Selsdon on the 234.
Briefly the two RFs were side by side as we went round the roundabout. We made the turn right round to the west, to climb away up Foxley Hill. And there came RF395, rolling down the hill on its way back from Wallington towards Old Lodge Lane. We climbed up out of the valley, and turned right at the very wet roundabout onto Woodcote Road, and headed north, through Woodcote Green and down into Wallington. There we terminated, not at the old 234A stand, but at TfL's request, round the corner in Shotfield.
234A: Wallington to Old Lodge Lane: RF429We had a five minute layover at Wallington - time to change the blinds and stretch our legs.
Further up the Shotfield stand was PDL100, working the modern-day 410. (It still seems wrong to see red single-decker 410s far from Biggin Hill!) These 9.3m Darts, one of the most successful single deckers in the London area, emphasise the enduring legacy of the 9.0m RF in being the right size bus for London. This one, delivered in 2005, still has a bit of life left in it for London service.
We set off again, back the way we had come. The timetable was working well enough to allow us a short photo-stop at Woodcote Green - and allowed Alan Charman, our driver, to buy a newspaper.
The puddle at the junction of Woodcote Road and Foxley Road was getting larger. We turned down the hill, and rolled down to Purley. As we circulated round the one-way system there was a glimpse through the rain-spattered windows of RT3251 heaqding back towards Wallington. We went the long way round the system, to use the layby bus-stop at Purley (Tesco), where we picked up some local passengers for the Old Lodge Lane run.
We headed south on the Brighton Road, passing another RF, and by Reedham Station turned up Old Lodge Lane. We passed under the railway bridges - one at 13ft 6in headroom precluding the use of double-deckers - and forked left. We continued up Old Lodge Lane for almost a mile, carefully over the speed bumps. At Wattenden Primary School we found a bus turning circle, already part-occupied by Abellio's Dart/Caetano Nimbus 8493 on the 455.
It should be possible to turn an RF on this turning circle - but not with a bus already there. Alan manoeuvred the RF round to stand alongside its modern equivalent.
I spoke with the driver of the Dart, who said that he probably drove RF486 when it was at Croydon in 1965-69.
234A: Old Lodge Lane to Purley: RF429The extra turning time had eaten up our terminal allowance. With blinds reset to Wallington, Alan took the bus down to the bus stop to release the Dart. We rejoined, and we set off back down the long hill.
I checked the bus times in my programme, and alighted at Purley Library, at the foot of Foxley Lane.
I carefully negotiated the various crossings of the gyratory system, while buses whizzed in various directions. New Arriva EnviroDart ENX11 whirled past on a northbound 289, and Metrobus Scania 924 made more stately progress north on the 127.
I headed for the eastbound 234 stop, to wait for the RT... Photos by Ian Smith. Click on any of them for a larger picture.
|
Part Three: RT3251 on 234
Red-RF
1
2