The line from the famous song in the title provides a clue that we are off to East London this time, catching up with disappearing diesels on routes from Grays, Romford North Street and Rainham Garages.

***A foggy morning in Leytonstone…***
***Arriva London VDL DB300 Wright Gemini DW211 on stand at the station before my first journey of the day aboard on route 66 to Romford.***

*The vehicle looks grubby and careworn, perhaps a reflection that the batch of DWs in the 2** series at Grays (GY) Garage are in process of withdrawal.*

Route 66: Leytonstone to Romford

By Central Line to Leytonstone, where I emerged from the station on a foggy Saturday morning, my first target being TfL Route 66, operated by Arriva London. This and other double deck services from Grays (GY) Garage have recently been retained on retender using hybrid buses made spare from elsewhere within the Arriva London empire by the arrival of new electrics. However, pending the release of the hybrids, T class Enviro400s from Edmonton (EC) and Enfield (E) Garages, many being freed up from the electrification of the 279, are being temporarily cascaded to GY Garage to replace even older DW class vehicles in the 200 series. LVF was showing a roughly 50:50 split between T and DW class vehicles on the double deck routes from Grays at the time of my trip, but my focus was on the latter as the outgoing type.

A grubby DW211 was simmering in the murk on the Leytonstone Station stand when I arrived and I boarded with a couple of others when it departed. Being reasonably early in the day, the roads were quiet and we were treated to an usually easy departure from Leytonstone, up to the Green Man Roundabout and on to Wanstead. After serving the High Street, we turned left onto the long straight Eastern Avenue dual carriageway stretch, which allows some fast running when traffic allows, as on this occasion. A few on and off at Redbridge Station, where we stopped in the lay-by just beyond, rather than circling through the forecourt as used to be the case. Then on to Gants Hill, where the often busy roundabout was strangely almost deserted. A good lick of speed on our superannuated bus to Newbury Park, serving the slightly grandiose Bus Station with its curved concrete canopy, which I think is unique in London.

Leaving here, we continued at pace with only a few stops to retard our progress through to Whalebone Lane with its short countrified sections either side, the fog providing a slightly “Lord of The Rings” atmosphere! All too soon, we entered the right hand filter to turn towards Romford, passing Stagecoach North Street (NS) Garage and dropping off most of our load at Romford Market and Western Road. Just a few us left to the final drop off stop at Romford Station, after a ripping run of just 40 mins end to end.

The 66 once ran between Leytonstone & Hornchurch, but route changes in 1970 saw it diverted to Harold Wood at the eastern end on M-S, with a 66B variant continuing to serve Hornchurch on Suns. Conversion from crew RT to one man SMS occurred in 1972, with upgrade to DMS double deck in 1976, replaced at the end of the decade with T type Titans. In 1982, the service was cut back to Romford, apart from some journeys to Gidea Park which lasted a short while longer, with the 296 taking on the Harold Wood leg, later replaced by today’s 496.

Tendering saw the 66 pass to County Bus with Leyland Lynx types in 1990, although operation later passed to successor companies Grey Green then Arriva. In 2003, Blue Triangle assumed the contract with Darts, although Arriva came back in 2010 with Enviro200s. Double deckers returned to the route in 2014 with the current DWs, although VLAs sometimes appeared in the early days.

***Stagecoach London Enviro400 10152 of Romford North St (NS) Garage on the 247 at Barkingside Station, pausing between my trips on it.***

*The route has recently been retained by Stagecoach on retender on the basis of new Wright StreetDeck Electroliners, of which two were out on the day I travelled.*

Route 247: Romford to Barkingside (& back to Collier Row)

Next on the list, the 247, another route retained by the incumbent operator, Stagecoach, on retender this year, but in this instance with new Wright StreetDeck Electroliners specified. A number have been operating on the service for a while now, ahead of time, making use of an earlier batch whilst their intended allocation to Ash Grove (AG) for the 242 awaits the installation of charging equipment.

However, on the day of my visit, only a couple of electrics were out, together with a pair of Enviro400 MMCs, the majority of the run-out being “classic” Enviro400s. Luckily, I only had a minute or two to wait at Romford Station before one of the latter, 10152 of Romford North Street (NS) Garage, emerged from the stand and halted at the first pick-up stop, where I got on with a reasonable crowd. Back around the town, past the Market and up North Street again, before crossing the Eastern Avenue through the inter-war suburban housing to Collier Row. Most alighted at various stops here and by the time we left White Hart Lane, we were almost empty as we traversed the central countrified section of the route past the farms and fields to Hainault Golf Club. An easy sprint up the fairly steep hill through Hainault Forest and then down the other side, before rejoining suburbia at New North Road, where we started to fill up again, picking up at most stops through to Hainault Station. The final section to Fulwell Cross and into Barkingside High Street was in tandem with a 150, which helped spread the load. We then traversed the one way loop to the terminus at Barkingside Station, arriving after a run of just over 40 mins from the start.

After a break of just 5 or 6 mins, I rejoined the same vehicle for the return run as far as Collier Row, with passengers gradually building as we progressed towards Romford. About 25 mins later, I alighted at White Hart Lane.

Today’s 247 is the old 247A renumbered back in 1982 after the suffix had become orphaned following withdrawal of the original 247 (Epping - Brentwood). Back then, it ran between Ilford & Noak Hill (with a M-F peaks and Sat shopping hours extension to Gidea Park which didn’t last) using Titans. From 1986 to 1988, it had an extraordinary bifurcation to Collier Row under the same number in replacement for the 150, although the latter number was restored at the end of this period.

1993 saw conversion to single deck DW / DRL Darts and the cut back of the route from Ilford to Barkingside as operates today. Following replacement by low floor SLD types at the end of the 90s, a top deck was restored in 2004 when Tridents became the preferred type. The current Enviro400s took over from 2018. Throughout its life, the route has been a Romford (NS) Garage operation, although with with a part allocation from the old Seven Kings (AP) Garage for a short while in the 80s.

***Stagecoach Enviro400 MMC 10334, also of NS Garage, stands in the sunshine at the Havering Park terminus of the 294 after my short trip on it from Collier Row.***

*This is a refurbished example with grey vinyl on the seats in place of Stagecoach moquette and a fresh coat of paint on the exterior.*

Route 294: Collier Row to Havering Park; Havering Park to Noak Hill

My next route was the 294, beginning with a short 5 min run from Collier Row, White Hart Lane, up to the terminus at Havering Park. For this brief ride, I had 10334, one of the habitual Enviro400 MMCs which are the mainstay of the route, another operated by Stagecoach London out of Romford (NS) Garage. By now, the early morning fog had gone and it had become a bright, sunny, blue sky day.

The 294 often sees one or two “classic” Enviro400s in addition to the MMCs and a check on LVF showed 3 out on the day I travelled, with 10197 a couple of workings behind the MMC I arrived at Havering Park on, so I duly awaited its arrival and joined it on departure. By now late morning, in contrast with the earlier trips which had been quite speedy, this run turned into a bit of a slog, as traffic built up towards the Saturday Midday “Peak” and we picked up greater numbers of passengers. Not too bad at first, as we made our way back through Collier Row and into Romford, discharging many at the Market and at the other Town Centre stops. Beyond this, although we were less busy in terms of usage, traffic was increasingly hindering our progress, with a queue on approach to The Drill Roundabout and slow moving through the Gidea Park area. Ardleigh Green was a nightmare and we took about 10 mins to inch up to the lights where we crossed the A127 Southend Arterial Road.

After serving Harold Wood Station, a slightly shorter queue to the next major set of lights to cross the A12. However, once beyond this and into the Harold Hill Estate, we were finally able to make better speed up to the Gooshays Drive Roundabout, before the final stretch to the one way terminal loop at Noak Hill, Tees Drive. I alighted at the terminus after an overly long 1h5m trip, the late running meaning the driver left immediately without stand time on his next journey.

The 294 began in 1970 as a new RT route between Collier Row Turpin Avenue and Hornchurch St George’s Hospital, replacing parts of the 66 / 66A. Like many new routes of this era, it was set up with OPO in mind and was converted within a year using SMS single deckers. 1974 saw the extension to Havering Park Firbank Road. Double decks returned in 1976 upon DMS conversion and, like other routes in the area, these were replaced by Titans at the end of the decade.

Changes in 1986 saw the 294 rerouted away from Hornchurch to Noak Hill (with a M-F peaks extension to Gidea Park that only lasted a couple of years or so). The early noughties resulted in low floor conversion with Tridents, although Enviro400 MMCs became the standard allocation in 2016.

Stagecoach Enviro400 19740 of Rainham (RM) Garage on the 256 at St George’s Park, Hornchurch after my ride on the vehicle from Noak Hill. This route is another which is due an upgrade to electrics in due course.

*This is the site of the former St George’s Hospital and also RAF Hornchurch, the latter represented by a small museum adjoining the bus turning area.*

Route 256: Noak Hill to Hornchurch

The traffic delays affecting the 294 were also impacting on my next route, the 256, with which it shares the Noak Hill terminus, as both routes have to cross the main A12 and A127 roads. However, I only had a short wait at Tees Drive, as another Stagecoach Enviro400, this time 19740 of Rainham (RM) Garage soon arrived on the 256. Once again, the driver departed almost immediately on the next trip after I boarded and sympathised with her about the difficulty in keeping to time due to the traffic, to which she added mention of inconsiderate parking on both sides of the road on parts of the route!

The 256 is another route held on retender in 2025, also with new electrics promised in due course. It takes a longer route between Noak Hill & Harold Hill than the 294, effectively going around three sides of a square, serving Noak Hill Road, Straight Road and Hilldene Avenue to Gooshays Drive. A few local travellers on this section for the shops in Harold Hill. Joining up with the 294 again, we were a bit luckier in this direction, with minimal delay at the A12 junction, before serving Harold Wood Station, but then a slow crawl to the lights at the junction with the A127, which cost maybe 5 mins. Once beyond this, we did ok, despite encountering temporary lights and one-way working in Ardleigh Green Road. Then via Emerson Park Station into Hornchurch Town Centre, where most alighted. Two others continued with me to Hornchurch Station, but only me and the driver through to the terminus at St George’s Park, now a housing development on the site of the former St George’s Hospital and next to the RAF Hornchurch Museum. We were lucky to complete the trip in a touch under 40 mins.

A break of just under 10 mins allowed a stretch of the legs, before I returned on the same vehicle up to the top of the road at Hornchurch Town Centre, a short hop of no more than 5 or 6 mins.

The 256 number has had a number of incarnations in various parts of London, but three of them have been in the Hornchurch area. It was first applied to a Romford - Emerson Park service in the 1930s and again as a Romford - County Park Estate route in the 1980s. However, the latest version began in 1988 between Harold Hill Gooshays Drive and Hornchurch St George’s Hospital, with an unusual one way loop at the Harold Hill end in M-F peaks. The new route was not dissimilar to the previous 246 in its original form and began as a “Hoppa” service with MetroRiders. County Bus took the contract in 1990 with Mercedes midis, although 1996 saw an extension from Harold Hill to Noak Hill with an upgrade to Darts, although these were later replaced with Cadets.

Stagecoach have been in charge since 2013, initially with Enviro200s, although double decks came in 2020 with a mix of Scanias and Enviro400s, later settling on the latter type.

The 370 is another which will soon see the demise of the DW class with Arriva, temporary replacements being T class Enviro400s released from Enfield & Edmonton Garages, pending newer hybrids becoming available. Here is DW241 of Grays (GY) Garage at Lakeside Bus Station, looking very down at heel.

*At least a very personal service is provided for patrons of the Marks & Spencer Food Hall adjoining!*

Route 370: Hornchurch to Lakeside; Lakeside to Romford

Final route of the day was the 370, another operated by Arriva from GY Garage and also in the process of temporary conversion from DW to T types, as per the 66 at the start of the trip. I joined an almost full DW241 at Hornchurch Town Centre, already some way into its run to Lakeside Shopping Centre in Thurrock. Not only was this bus looking a bit battered and dirty, it seemed to be significantly underpowered and had difficulty attaining any sort of speed, especially when encountering an upwards incline! Over the suburban stretch to Upminster and down to Corbets Tey, with frequent stops, this was not so apparent, but on the country ssection beyond this we positively crawled along. It took an age to reach Ockendon Village Green and then we met a traffic queue on approach to Pilgrims Roundabout. We finally crept into Lakeside Bus Station after a run of almost 50 mins, nearly 10 mins longer than scheduled.

After a comfort stop and some refreshment in the shopping centre, I returned to the Bus Station for a later departure back over the full route to Romford. This time I had DW237, which appeared both in external condition and in performance to be a much better vehicle from the start. By contrast to the inbound trip, a faster run on the return, despite a reasonable crowd on board. A driver change at Pilgrims Roundabout after just one stop was a little odd - why not at the Bus Station? However, this took only a minute or so and then we were off, with good positive driving, up through Ockendon again and then around the winding country lanes. It was almost disappointing to re-enter suburbia again at Corbets Tey, with another double-run to Upminster Station, before continuing on past the windmill to Upminster Bridge and into Hornchurch once more. This time, I stayed on the bus, through Emerson Park to The Drill Roundabout then into Romford Town Centre via Victoria Road this time, rather than via Brentwood Road which I had traversed earlier outbound on the 294 between these points. We terminated at Mercury Gardens after a good 55 min run from Lakeside, a fitting final ride on a DW for this route.

The 370 was a longstanding London Transport and London Country trunk route with green buses operating between Romford & Tilbury Ferry via Grays, RTs being replaced in due course by RCLs, prior to OPO conversion in the 70s with an unusual (for LCBS) batch of Bristol VRs, which were in turn succeeded by ANs after just a few years.

By the noughties, single deckers had become the norm and the route became a TfL service in 2007, but cut back at the southern end to the new Lakeside Shopping Centre. Since then, it has always been operated by Arriva, initially with Darts, but from 2012 with double deckers. Principal types have evolved from DLA to VLA and then DW, now with T taking over and, in due course, HV.

Back at Romford, my rides were over and it was time to make my way home after a successful day.

Watton

Get Your Kicks on Route 66!

Hounding in Hounslow

Circling the Herts & Essex Borders