The 49 was part of Tranche 449 (oh, the irony), and was the only route not to gain a 2-year contract extension, for the third consecutive time under London United. Unfortunately for them, this time, the route was lost to London's second youngest bus operator, Abellio. The change does bring a few positives to London United, it allows them to displace older buses in their fleet with the current Scania OmniCity (SP) buses on the route.
Now, let's take a look at the history...
London United won the route from London General back in September 1999 with 10.8m Dennis Dart SLF/Plaxton Pointer 2 (DP80-99) buses, converting the CBC (Chelsea-Battersea-Clapham Junction) link to single-deck operation, with the 319 and 345 already single-decked. However,
London United's takeover of the London General route didn't go so
deckers. Due to weight restrictions on Hammersmith Bridge, the new 10.2m Plaxton Pointer 2 buses for the 209 were unable to cross the bridge as they were too heavy, and with the 49's DPs running late a logical deal was agreed that
London United would continue to operate the 209 with the existing buses and Armchair would operate the route with the new buses intended for the 209 until they were cleared to cross.
smoothly.
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| Taken at Clapham Junction on 04/09/2014 |
Moving into 2004, the route was retained by London United for the first time, with much needed double-deckers, those consisting of new buses in the form of ten East Lancs Myllennium
Vyking (VE) buses on a Voith Volvo B7TL chassis and existing buses in the form of 12 Alexander ALX400 (VA) buses on a ZF Volvo B7TL chassis transferred from the 337, which was lost to
Arriva. These buses went on to work the route for the next 5 years.
The 49 was re-awarded to London United in 2009 with new buses to run alongside the VEs. The VAs were replaced by Scania N230UD
chassised Scania OmniCity (SP) buses, this remained the allocation up to 2014 with a few other bus types temporarily filling in, more on that later. Shortly after the second contract renewal, the 49 was listed in London's Top 10
bunching on the route being recorded. As timed move forward, certain bus types were no longer to be seen on the 49. Common workings of the 52-
reg VAs allocated to the 220, disappeared after new buses were bought for the 220. The two lingering Wright Eclipse Gemini bodied Volvo B7TLs (VR) buses were withdrawn, followed by most of the spare Euro 2 VAs.
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SLE43, YN55NKM on route 49
©Au Morandarte |
Worst Performing Bus Routes, this has stayed with the route since with many instances of
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| SP32, YN08DHY on route 49 to Clapham Junction |
During 2013, Shepherd's Bush became short on buses and needed some more if they were to provide for the scheduled PVR increase to 20. The two buses sent on a long-term loan were East Lancs OmniDekka bodied Scania N94UD (SLE) buses, numbered SLE43 and SLE44. This was a new type to Shepherd's Bush and nobody knew how long they would stay. They then became important to the 49's allocation with few SPs becoming problem buses (SP30 and SP35). Towards the end of 2013, the last two remaining VAs were withdrawn from service, to cover the loss, two TAs redundant from the 57 transferred over. Later on in 2014: SLE44, SP39 and SP40 all departed Shepherd's Bush, this then allowed a further four TAs to make the switch. They remained allocated to the 49.
Going back to November - On the 21st, the 49 was lost to Abellio London with 22 new hybrid double-deckers. The route was widely expected to be lost because of its inconsistent service. The specified hybrids for the route was to be a relief, cleaning the air along the busy
roads it travels along. If you want to get an idea of the inconsistent service, I took a few screenshots on London Vehicle Finder of the route at some of its bad moments.
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| SP34, YN08MRU on route 49 |
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| ADH16, SN60BYM on route 49 |
Towards the end of March (2014), the 49 was treated to an ADH (13) off route 94, this was the first time a bus of this type had made it onto the 49 in nearly 6 months. Previous workings of this bus type usually occurred during unsociable hours of the day or only made one or two trips, so yes, they were very rare. The spontaneous working of ADH13 on the cool Sunday evening was a surprise to many of us at the time, I myself, went out to get a picture, but the bus was
running earlier than I expected, thus missing the rarest working Battersea had seen in ages.
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TA248, LG02FBV on route 49 to White City
©Au Morandarte |
This working became a hot topic, many wondering whether they would continue to appear on the 49... And they did, becoming a vital part of the 49's allocation towards the final months of London United operation.
Apart from the increase of ADHs and TAs on the 49, the route remained quite quiet up to the last day. Scania OmniCity SP37, YN08MRY was the last bus on the 49, ending 15 years of service.
At current, SLE44, SP29-37 and TA231/8/40/5/7/8 are still in service or have no confirmed future. However, VE1-10 are all expected to return of
lease in the coming weeks.
London United Fleetlist
Paper:
SP29 YN08DHU
SP30 YN08DHV
SP31 YN08DHX
SP32 YN08DHY
SP33 YN08DHZ
SP34 YN08MRU
SP35 YN08MRV
SP36 YN08MRX
SP37 YN08MRY
SP39 YP58ACJ
SP40 YP58ACO
VE1 PG04WGN
VE2 PG04WGP
VE3 PG04WGU
VE4 PG04WGV
VE5 PG04WGW
VE6 PG04WGX
VE7 PG04WGY
VE8 PG04WGZ
VE9 PG04WHA
VE10 PG04WHB
Drafts:
SLE43 YN55NKM
SLE44 YN55NKO
TA231 LG02FAJ
TA238 LG02FBC
TA240 LG02FBE
TA245 LG02FBN
TA247 LG02FBU
TA248 LG02FBV
The change...
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| 2482, SN64OFH setting off for Clapham Junction |
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2480, SN64OFE and the Westfield logo
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2469, SN64OET on route C2
This was the first 64-reg to enter service
in London. |
Abellio London took the operations of route 49 on the Saturday, although the buses weren't kept 'fresh' for the route, with 20 of the 22 buses all entering service prior to the changeover. Early comers, 2465 (SL14LOA) and 2466 (SL14LOD), entered service nearly 2 months before they were due to, registered
on 14-plates, they worked along the other hybrids on the 211. The remaining 20 buses for the 49 came
on a 64-plate, some entering service on the first legal day for 64-plate vehicles. For most of the week (Tuesday 2nd to Friday 5th), the new hybrids worked on route 156 (Wimbledon - Vauxhall), showcasing the new beasts of the 49.
After a week of service, Abellio still haven't quite got the hang of things yet, let's hope it doesn't take them too long to settle in!
