London's traditional form of bus
operation is fast running out of time. Crew operation in
north London was extinguished after Friday when the 13
ran its last Routemasters. The 13 was the service that
operated them for the longest period of time; an
incredible forty-three years, very nearly, since their
introduction in December 1962 as part of the first wave
of RT-family replacements. That unbeatable record is even
more pronounced when you consider that the 13's Sunday
service reverted from OPO to crew not once, but twice.
Seven of the 22 RMs based at Edgware survived to the last
day - there might have been fewer, had the replacement
SLE-class Scania OmniDekkas not arrived late. Eight
specials and a duplicate joined them for the final day,
with the last journey into Golders Green at ten o'clock
being accomplished by RM 1005. |
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The 13 was
most famous in its last decade for being the
'other' Routemaster route to pass to a
then-private company. BTS of Borehamwood were the
lucky winners, and their hired RMLs' livery was
allover poppy red, which weathered over time to a
more orangey shade as shown on RML 2663 (SMK 663F) at Trafalgar
Square on 17th April 2001. In the decade
following the 13's move to BTS, company name,
garage, livery and vehicles all changed, so that
the final day of operation was by Sovereign from
Edgware with red RMs. Not long after London
United purchased Sovereign's London operations
from Blazefield, two RMLs ejected from the 94
were added to Edgware's RM complement. They made
it all the way to the 13's last week, but not to
the final day. |
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The weather
forecast for today, according to the BBC, was
meant to be heavy rain throughout. It was at
first, leading to evocative
reflection-accentuated shots like this one of RM 180 (XVS 830, ex VLT 180)
at Charing Cross, but it then cleared up and was
sunny for the rest of the day. So much for the
trustworthiness of the Beeb - reminds you of
another three-lettered subsidy junkie that claims
to be representative of its people, and patently
isn't! |
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A comparison
between outgoing and incoming, as RM 2071 (ALM 71B, right)
shares stand space at Golders Green with brand
new East Lancs-bodied Scania OmniDekka SLE 22 (YN55 NHU, left).
The blinds on the Scania plumb a new depth,
mandated of course by the endlessly meddling and
patronising decrees of the DDA. With no via
points to tell the passengers where the bus is
going on its way to its terminus, the standard of
information now offered is utterly useless and
totally unacceptable, not to mention wasteful and
ugly. I wonder how people too stupid to read
blinds, or timetables, or maps, have even managed
to survive, and what hope there is for future
generations forced to rely on the buses of
today's low standards. |
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It's a shame
that Sovereign never applied any form of relief
band to their Marshall-refurbished RMs when they
started taking delivery of them in the autumn of
2001 - or that the Blazefield-style blue and
cream never made an appearance - and until London
United bought Sovereign late in 2002, they didn't
even carry fleetnumbers. But one RM looked more
conventional, in stark contrast to its
specification under the bonnet. The Marshall
refurbishments were all Cummins B-series-engined
with Allison T270 automatic gearboxes, giving
them the sobriquet of 'Dartmasters', but RM 1562 (562 CLT) was the only
one with a Cummins ISCe engine to Euro 3
specification, and thus bang up to date on
emissions standards. Its improved performance
made it a hit with Edgware's drivers, perhaps
explaining why it looked like being set to be the
last route 13 bus, as shown by the BT17 running
number clearly visible here as it leaves Golders
Green - but at the last minute it was swapped
with RM1005, which had spent the day as BT15. |
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Sovereign's
association with London United allowed the 13's
last day to host some group-affiliated specials
as well as the usual well-loved suspects. Today
was the first appearance of RML 880 (WLT 880) in service
since it saw out the 9 thirteen months ago, and
until it was called upon in the evening peak
waited patiently at Aldwych. A Fathers 4 Justice
march forced some of the specials to short-work;
not even Batman and Spiderman could use their
super powers to crush the kind of evil that's
almost finished destroying London's culture at
the moment - unless they fancy scaling City Hall
and 172 Buckingham Palace Road, that is... |
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The star of
the 13's show today married perfectly the route's
unmatched history as an operator of Routemasters.
RML 903 (WLT 903) was one of
the first 'showbuses', and during its long period
of service at Finchley garage was restored to the
original condition that was so much more
attractive than any livery since. Its home was
the 13, and the loss of the route to BTS in
December 1993 proved the death knell for
Finchley. The bus moved on to Holloway and after
that to Kings Cross, where it finished its days
as duplicate to the last 390 on Black Friday 3rd
September 2004, but by that time it was in a
pitiful state. Now donated to a group of
preservationists, RML 903 has been returned to
its former glory and made its debut today on the
13, where it belongs. It is seen in Oxford Street
as night falls. |
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A surprise
twist at the last minute denied RM 1562 Last Day
glory and handed it to RM 1005 (ALC 290A, ex 5 CLT)
instead. I do prefer it if the Last Bus is
something bog-standard, as it represents the
route in its normal form, and RM 1562, while
distinctive, was very much a Johnny-come-lately
to the 13. RM 1005's service days looked finished
as far back as the early 1990s when this
BUSCO-equipped vehicle was retired from Peckham,
losing its 5 CLT registration at the same time,
but it found its way into the Reserve and rested
there for a few years. The Reserve duly formed
the source for many of the Marshall
refurbishments in 2001, and RM 1005 returned to
service as a Sovereign vehicle. At half past six,
now plated as BT17, it is seen in Oxford Street
heading south on the 13's penultimate
crew-operated rounder. |
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Even though
the entry of BTS into the 13's story necessitated
a return to crew operation on Sundays due to the
lack of OPO buses available on that day from the
then-still small company, belt-tightening
persisted and in 1997 the evening and Sunday
service were put out to tender separately.
Holloway (then of MTL London) stepped up with Ms,
but when the next contract came around it went
wholly to Sovereign and RMs resumed Sunday
runnings. However, the 13's conductors still
finished early on weekdays, with OPO buses
phasing in, and thus the last crew journey was
scheduled to depart Aldwych at 21:01 for a 21:47
arrival at Golders Green. Under the able hands of
long-time route 13 driver (first at Hendon and
eventually today's Sovereign) Jim O'Leary, on his
final duty before retirement, RM 1005 (ALC 290A), led out by
three duplicates in the shape of RT 3871, RTW 75
and RML 880, swept into town with a three-bell
load - there simply wasn't enough room aboard to
pick up 'normal' passengers! The risk of being
left behind at Aldwych was too much to chance
getting off to take photos there, so I stayed on
and recorded the bus's final arrival at a teeming
Golders Green at five past ten. And not a moment
too soon, as the bus was on its way again within
two minutes, heading back to Edgware for the last
time. There a party beckoned in a local pub for
the large number of outgoing Sovereign crews. |
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And so to the lists. The left-hand
column below details which Routemasters were running on
the 13's normal runout of 19 vehicles on a Friday - seven
buses, backed up by eight SLEs, three VLPs and a VLE
which I needn't list here. The disruption to normal
running caused by various marches and activities in
central London caused quite a bit of stepping back, with
some buses merely swapping running numbers with others,
regardless of type, and still others assuming the duties
of vehicles lower down in the schedule. It can be seen
that RM 659 was the busiest bus of the day! Finally, RM
1562 and RM 1005 simply swapped places so that the latter
could be the last bus in.
In the right-hand column is the list of special buses
performing extra duties over and above the 13's scheduled
Monday to Friday runout. The running numbers adopted
'heritage' garage codes to pay tribute to the variety of
garages that operated the route over the years, with MH
being Muswell Hill, P Old Kent Road, FY Finchley, RL Rye
Lane and AE Hendon. |
| RM 180 (XVS 830) - BT12 |
MH21 - RML 2665 (Stagecoach
East London) |
| RM 324 (WLT 324) - BT1, BT19 |
P22 - RTW 75 (Blue
Triangle) |
| RM 659 (KFF 239) - BT14, BT13, BT9, BT8 |
RL23 - RM 9 (London
Central) - left early for a private
hire job. |
| RM 1005 (ALC 290A) -
BT15, BT17* (*last bus). |
FY24 - RML 903 (preserved
ex-Metroline London Northern) |
| RM 1562 (562 CLT) - BT17, BT15 |
P25 - RLH 61, then RT
4421 (Ensignbus) |
| RM 2071 (ALM 71B) - BT19, BT2 |
AE26 - RML 2735 (First
CentreWest) |
| RM 2089 (ALM 89B) - BT18 |
AE27 - RM 613 (on
behalf of First) |
| |
P28 - RT 3871 (Blue
Triangle) |
| |
BT17 (duplicate) - RML
880 (London United) |
| The
loss of the 13 means there are just TWO crew-operated
services left in London, and we can barely afford to
catch our breaths before the next one goes, as that is
the 38 on Friday 28th October. Once again a convoy of
specials will assist the 50 scheduled workings between
Victoria and Clapton Pond, with a full runout and a late
finish. And after that, it's just the 159, which will go
out in what is hoped will be a blaze of glory with a
two-part commemoration on Thursday 8th December (a day of
special workings) and Friday 9th December (the last day,
with a midday changeover to OPO VLAs and a number of
duplicates leading out the last journey of all). Thanks to all who participated in
the 13's last day and to those who have been making these
events so special in such a bittersweet time - it's very
much appreciated, and will be very much missed when the
end comes.
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