Two blogs for the price of one!
Wednesday saw my first job of the season for Crosville Motor Services, and an easy one to get me back into the cab! Hestercombe Express, although express is probably a misnomer! As is my wont, I arrived at the Crosville Depot on the Tuesday evening and spent the night in my motorhome.
My good friend and Busman’s Holiday blogger, John Dawkins, has recently been appointed Heritage Manager for Crosville, (congratulations are in order!) and he’d sent me a message on the Tuesday to say he thought I would be allocated LEU 263P, a 1976 Bristol VR new to Bristol Omnibus. Waking up on the day, I began to question the wisdom of allocating an open top bus! It was grey, overcast and cold. Nevertheless, I went into the depot to confirm this was indeed my bus for the day and begin my walk round checks. This bus is dual doored and I have had problems with this in the past. If the centre exit doors aren’t shut, you lose your accelerator. Of course, it had been left with all the doors open! Having found the battery isolator switch, I checked the oil and water levels. The latter is a problem for me as I’m only 5’4″ tall, and the filler cap is above my head height! But having sorted out everything and checked that the bus was ok to go, I set off southwards towards Bishops Lydeard Station on The West Somerset Railway line. Bristol VRs are great to drive. Semi automatic gearboxes, and this one had power steering. Didn’t take me long to feel comfortable in the cab.
LEU 263P
On the way down, just north of Bridgwater, I pulled into a service station to buy a paper. Getting back to the bus, I found a Somerset Buses‘ inspector getting his camera out and photographing my bus. I was quite happy to pose for him! By the time I’d driven out of the service station and back onto the A38, he had got back to his bus stop and was still snapping as I drove past. If anyone from Somerset Buses knows this chap, I’d appreciate a copy of his photos!
Then back on route. No incidents but plenty of roadworks. Bristol Road, Bridgwater was closed northbound but causing tailbacks for southbound traffic. Roadworks to the north of Taunton, and finally, major road works outside Bishops Lydeard Station! Took me ten minutes to cover the last 1/4 mile.
LEU 263P at Bishops Lydeard Station
But, I still managed to arrive in plenty of time. On the other hand, the gremlins had struck on the railway! the 11:05 to Minehead should have been steam hauled but a three car diesel unit was at the platform, at 11:15! Seems she wasn’t too happy about being pressed into service and wasn’t moving. Eventually the railway staff got her going but this meant the train I was meeting, due in at 11:38 would be late. Nothing else for it but to head for the cafe and get a cuppa!
My train arrived, and I stood by the gate wondering how many (any!) passengers I would have. No one asked if I was going to Hestercombe, but I did see several intending passengers getting onboard. So, quick briefing to them, and congratulations to those brave (foolhardy?) souls on the top deck. Because of the road works, I told them that I would be leaving the car park slightly earlier than normal at 3:40, or twenty to four, whichever came sooner! Sometimes, the corniest gags get the biggest laughs!
An uneventful journey up to Hestercombe. Yes, I know this makes for boring reading but I do prefer that! Hestercombe itself was unusually busy with a rather full car park. Some cars had decided to reclassify themselves as coaches! Luckily, I did have space to park and unload my passengers. Back to Bishops Lydeard!
The station cafe has a limited hot food menu but it’s good. Jumbo sausage roll or pasty, plus a cup of coffee and cake. Nothing healthy, you’ll notice!
After my lunch break, time to head back to Hestercombe and retrieve my passengers. I did note that the weather had brightened up considerably since the morning and it’s now a very nice day, albeit with a cold breeze. On Cheddon Road, leading north from Taunton to Hestercombe, I noticed two cars parked opposite each other on a narrow section of the road, leaving just enough space for me to squeeze through. One car had a rear view mirror dangling limply below the driver’s mirror. One could hope this was a case of Karma, and he was the thoughtless parker but I know Sod’s law also applies!
At the estate, I didn’t have to wait too long for my passengers to appear and just after 3:30, I started back to the station. The two badly parked cars were still there but if I could get through one way, I should be able to get through the other! Back at the railway, their train was waiting at the platform and I bid them farewell. They all seemed to have enjoyed their day out.
Only thing left for me now was to negotiate the roadworks on the way back to Weston super Mare!
Two days later and on Good Friday, I found myself at The South Devon Railway. John Keohane, the volunteers co-ordinator, had asked me to be at Buckfastleigh Station by 9:30 to meet him and then he’d drive me up to Newton Abbot where RM 1872 is stabled. In a rather tight space!
Once again, it’s walk round checks. And the coolant is much easier, being chest height for me, and in any case, I can see the level in the translucent header. All is ok and I set out for Buckfastleigh Station, back along the A38 which is surprisingly quiet for a bank holiday weekend. Again, this gives me time to settle down in the cab. The bus is superb to drive. Excellent visibility from the cab and she purrs along. Back at the station and I’m introduced to John Harris, my conductor. Then a moment of panic! A change of plan. When I last drove this route, the town centre of Ashburton was closed by (more!) roadworks but for the Easter weekend, they’ve been lifted and we can go through the town, a route I don’t know. I’m reassured to hear that John K will sit behind me and give direction!
RM 1872
There are four trips on this duty, leaving the station at 11:35, 1:10, 2:10 and 3:10 with a 4:10 if there’s a demand. The route leaves Buckfastleigh Station, heads to Buckfast Abbey and then up the A38 to Ashburton where it turns back and heads along the old A38, passing Buckfast Abbey and going over the (steep hill!) to Buckfastleigh Town and returning to the station.
How did it go? On the early trips, I did notice that a disconcertingly high number of passengers got off at Buckfast Abbey, only a mile into the journey. Had they planned to get off there, or did they think the monks were a safer option than continuing with me?
The route is challenging for any driver, mostly due to thoughtless parking but on the first loop, I encountered several cars in West Street, Ashburton. Luckily, they all moved over or backed up. Second trip, it was a badly parked car in Station road, Buckfastleigh that left me with a narrow gap. Car one side, low stone wall the other. Slowly does it. Back at Buckfastleigh Station, a woman passenger got off and told me, she didn’t think I was going to get through. I told her, she wasn’t the only one thinking that! Third journey and I’m held up by a car with a trailer trying to reverse into a narrow entrance In West Street, Ashburton. Just had to be patient and wait. Last trip, same spot, I encounter the service bus! Fortunately, we saw each other in time and he pulled into the hedgerow whilst I mounted the pavement. Does any driver on this route ever have an incident free run?
Buckfastleigh Station
John Keohane told me that when they went to the auction to buy a Routemaster, they had RM 1872 in mind. There were only two RMs in the auction, the rest being RMls. At 2’6″ longer, I don’t think they would negotiate the narrows here. Good choice, John!
No demand for a 4:10 service so I drove up to the yard with John. Still a very tight parking space, so I asked John to park the bus up for the night. I’d had a great day driving her, I didn’t want to spoil it by putting a gouge down one side!
Dave Moore 