From the Editor

An interesting page for readers covering a number of recent events. 

Several interesting allocations around our area.

In this issue

Windsor Classic Running day as seen by contributors

Winchester Bus Rally with David Gray

Luton Area from Gary Seamarks

COMS 390 remembered by Grahame Wareham

Readers Write

David Beynon sees Flixbus in Oxford

Fleet News & Developments 

London from Andrew Webb

Events – Amersham & District Motorbus Society


Gavin Francis was there

Last Sunday saw Amersham and District hold one of their Classic Bus Running Days. Last held 2 years ago this year saw a change of venue being based at Windsor Coach Park which was celebrating 40 years since it opened on 10^th July 1986.

 

From past experience I had learnt that it is difficult not to mention very expensive to park in Windsor so decided to drive into High Wycombe, park in The Bus Station Car Park which at £2.50 for all day parking on a Sunday is very good value then catch the 37B bus to Windsor. It takes 90mins to do the journey as the route takes it through many villages but overall an enjoyable start to the day.

 

Carousel supplied 80455 for the journey to Windsor, a well appointed bus with the useful feature of announcements at arrival at each stop.

 

 
To get to the coach park I walked through The Railway Station forecourt where The Thames Valley & Great Western Omnibus Trust had parked Thames Valley 152.

 

From there it was down the steps and into the coach park where many modern coaches had already arrived with crowds of tourists. With 16 routes being operated there was a wide choice of places to go to from Chalfont St. Peter in the North, Maidenhead to the West, Ascot in the South and Pinewood Studios in the East.

 

As always a good variety of buses to chose to ride on.

 

       

       

      

     

 

Buses shown are – RML 2456, GS 13, Wilts & Dorset 279, SNB 448, Jersey 24, RFW 14, RML 2440, RT 604, RT 2177, RM 2208, RF 280, Reading 38, RM 188, Thames Valley 556, Western National 1106, Reading 732 and RT 2083.

It was a cold day and I decided to make my way home mid-afternoon but this time I chose to use more direct Rte 103 back to Wycombe and for this trip Carousel supplied former Pulhams Citaro recently rebranded for the 458 but not needed on a Sunday.

 

Carousel 80888 stands in The High Street in Windsor ready for the return trip to High Wycombe.

 

Overall a very enjoyable day with plenty of old buses to see but just as importantly I met a great number of old friends many of whom I had not seen for a good few years.

 

The next Amersham and District Classic Bus Running Day is Sunday 26^th July at Oxted followed by Chesham on 27^th September. 

Winchester Bus Rally May 4th 2026
with David Gray

A really enjoyable event with a variety of buses being used in the routes and many others on static display at St Catherine's Park and Ride. There was, as always a few surprises with vehicles not seen before. 

One of the journeys I undertook was very memorable with LLJ 443F, a very loud semi automatic Bristol FLF6G. 

As ever the event was well organised and you have to marvel at the volunteers being able to organize vehicles on 27 different routes.

     
     
 

Luton area on Thursday May 7th
from Gary Seamarks

Few from Luton & Dunstable Thurs 7/5, including some taken at Airport roundabout,

(Prefix A is Airport D is Dunstable rest Luton)  The background in Luton is changing rapidly, the trio of blue tower cranes are building on the old Bute Street car park, and the red ones are the new home of Luton Town FC at Power Court, also work is on going on getting the rail station out of the steam era by adding lifts.

The area is becoming an eVoRa stronghold with Arriva’s 30, Grant Palmer and Centrebus 3 each, Uno has a batch of 8 that are regulars, and Airparks have another 8 on off airport parking shuttles, Uno of course also operate the 5 eVoSeti on the X10 into town.

 

Was told of revisions coming up in Luton soon, with MK taking the X2,X3 with 10 eVoRa’s included in the deal, also mentioned was that 6 more eVoRa’s may be due for the X1 and X4 that it seems Luton are taking, with the latter extended to the Airport, and that a batch of new E400mmc’s are due for the 321.

        

More Bedford revisions have been announced by Stagecoach with effect from the end of May, with all journey’s on town routes cut after 22.30, the core route 1 remains every 15 minutes, but most town routes have dropped to half-hourly, Sunday is still retained at roughly 9am – 6pm. Minor changes on Mk1. 905 and X5, the 9 group to Stevenage is cut to hourly north of Henlow, but a minor Stevenage town route has be secured. A new 2W has been registered to serve part of Wootton, but via a longer route that seems to have no logic except to duplicate 2 key commercial Grant Palmer  routes Most of the above has sparked outrage by locals and councilors with the Mayor (as usual) remaining tight lipped and cutting funding, the main issue with Bedford at present is the lack of retail and general neglect and MK is only 20 minutes drive away.

     

     

Another interesting point is the Bedford Park & Ride is hourly 7am to 7pm, but with X5 and a much slower Uno route there are almost 3 times the amount of journey’s form MK (Coachway)P&R to Bedford !!!

Events – Amersham & District Motorbus Society


an alternative view from Tony Bungay

You have probably been inundated  with contributions in respect of this event, as always I have provided some photos which you may be able to use where possible.  

I was able to attend the Amersham and District running day at Slough and Windsor last Sunday, despite being May the weather was very similar to the Watford running day in March! Generally being cloudy with a very chilly breeze despite the day before being hot sunshine!

The event also run in conjunction with the Thames Valley and Great Western Omnibus Trust recreated in part long time historic services, to places such as Gerrards Cross, Staines, Maidenhead, Pinewood Studios as well as old style Tours  to Ascot, a circular taking in Runnymede - Egham - Virginia Water and back to Windsor, as well as a couple of journeys to Slough Trading Estate. 

In addition there were feeder services to the event from Aylesbury and High Wycombe as well as a number operating as Green Line services to central London or part of the former south circular 725 route.  

Another circular tour numbered the 100 was to feature former First Bus VDN 34218 which had indeed operated the route when it was an actual service, suffered a damaged window just aft the front door on the way to Windsor Coach Park, so another vehicle covered the recreated service. 

RT 2083 on the start of it's outward feeder service to Windsor, though in LT/LCBS days the Aylesbury - Amersham service was numbered 359

RT 2177 At the Pinewood end of 457b service

Reading Transport Bristol VRT working the 20 service to Maidenhead passed by RT 2083

Former London Country Leyland National 'B' series SNB 449 working recreation of  part of service 335. If it wasn't for the cars the scene could have been late 1980

RCL 2229 on an outward part working to Staines on Green Line 718

Working as advertised in programme Royal Blue Tour to Ascot is Wilts and Dorset 278 in Windsor passing the Castle

RM 188 heads for Windsor Parish Church on service 441 from Staines

RT 2177 returning from it's 457b service from Pinewood passes Reading Buses Enviro 400 City 735
at Windsor Parish Church. Illustrating the change in Double Deck Bus design over roughly 80 years

RF 406 also working service 441

 
RF 406 passes the other former London Country Leyland National 'B' series at the event. The concurrent numbered SNB 448 also recreating the 441

 
RML 2456 heads to Windsor Parish Church, having worked service 353 from Gerrards Cross.
The 335 which also was recreated that day to the same terminus differed by operating via Fulmer

 
RFW 14 performed on the Windsor - Datchet - Runnymede- Egham - Virginia Water Sunningdale - Windsor Great Park - Windsor Tour.
Back in Windsor it is seen with RF 280

Former Thames Valley Bristol L 556 back in Windsor  having worked a journey on Service 20 to Maidenhead.

In Thames Valley days for a time the 20 actually worked to Aylesbury, but the length even in the 1960's caused reliability issues so it was cut back to High Wycombe. The 20 remained the route number until April 1980 and the Chilternlink MAP.

Though not part of the running day apart from one photo Malcolm, included some in service photos from Reading/Thames Valley

Carousel Enviro 200mmc  80454 at Windsor Parish Church having worked in from High Wycombe on the 37b,
Would this service be the direct ancestor of the 20, or indeed the vehicle and operator for that matter when comparing Thames Valley 556

Reading Buses Enviro 400 City 732 took a turn at the event on some recreated routes.

If London Country North West had remained an independent company and still operated in Slough, then a big maybe would have possibly seen this vehicle/route combination occur! London Line was a name used by Reading Buses in the later years of it's X1 service,

Fairly new Thames Valley Enviro 200mmc 696 near Windsor and Eton Central Station.

A one time Terminus for Thames Valley Traction Co Buses, which can occasionally be glimpsed in British films of 1950s to 1980s! Given the fleet name and destination would this also be the descendant of Thames Valley 556!

 
 Thames Valley Buses Enviro 400mmc's 794 and 796 both doing turns on the 703, to Bracknell and Heathrow respectivly.

AN ARTICLE WITH SEVERAL INTERESTING RECOLLECTIONS Ed. 

O&CBP Issue 390 from Grahame Wareham

390  OFC390 1949 AEC Regent III 9612A with Weymann H30/26R high-bridge body.  From new H390 was allocated to Chipping Norton depot spending its entire

COMS operational life there. In 1952 H390 was renumbered to H889. H889 was sold to Fleet Car Sales (dealer), Dunchurch in December1961 passing to Blue Belle of March, Cambs the same month, where it was fitted with platform doors. It was withdrawn in March 1966 and sold to F.Cowley (Fleet Car Sales), Dunchurch and subsequently scrapped. 

390 MJO390H 1969 Daimler Fleetline CRG6LX  with Northern Counties H41/28D low-height body. Part of an initial batch of  fifteen these were used on newly converted OMO operated duties, mainly 2 road for the first few months of their lives and then spread out to most City routes with some migrating to Witney and Wantage to operate into the City on cross City services. 390 was allocated to Cowley depot for most of its life then finding its way to Wantage depot in 1981. Because of window supply problems there were two types of window fitted, some with slider units, as in the 1968 batch, and some with full length hoppers. the vehicles were delivered as follows: Slider windows  382,385,387-389,395,396. Hopper windows:  383,384,386,390,391-394. Also 383,385,387,389,393-396 had a ventilator in the front dome as per the previous batch, but the remaining vehicles were not fitted.383-385,388,389,391,393-395 all received the simplified two colour red and green livery from 1971 onwards, the first being treated 394 in 8/71. The remainder were repainted into NBC corporate poppy red which eventually covered the whole batch during overhaul in 1976/7. The overhaul of this batch was completed at Midland Red Carlyle Works and the vehicles had their rear engine shrouds removed at the same time.390 lasted in the COMS fleet until November 1981 when it was withdrawn, being  sold to Ensign Bus (dealer), Grays in June 1982 Meynall (dealer) Carlton for scrap in February 1983.

 

     

390  GUW451W  Leyland National 2 NL10AL11/2R  B41F. Originally new to London Buses as B36D Red Arrow LS451 in 1981, it was transferred to Cetrewest for the 607 service,  as LS451 when privatisation forced a split in the operations of services in London. It was converted  to B41F by OBC and was eventually transferred through the Go-Ahead Group to Oxford for Wycombe Bus duties in April 1996. By then LS451 had received a TL11 engine in place of its naturally asprirated L11 (Leyland 690) unit and it ran in High Wycombe until the advent of low floor bus replacement in April 2000. It was withdrawn and sold to Nash (dealer), Thames Valley Bus Sales at Chertsey the same month and resold to local operator Wells, Morestead in April 2000. It was later sold for scrap by July 2007..

( I have no images of 390 or LS451)

Matt Cooper

Working a 340 service in Stokenchurch in the snow oof the late '90s.

Neil Gow

When working rail replacement at St Pancras on October 25th October 1997.