Light at the end of the tunnel

The saying goes there's a light at the end of the tunnel, that's certainly been the case with Stagecoach who after a long string of losses recently has managed to finally win a new contract. The route involved is route 128 which runs between Claybury Broadway in Clayhall to Romford Station. Route 364, a route very well known for its very unpopular allocation has also received a brand new allocation of buses.

VLA131 seen on route 128
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T79 seen at High Road Ilford
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Route 128 isn't a particularly old route, starting operation in March 1993 running between Romford Station and Ilford Broadway via Green Lane and Becontree Heath. It fittingly started life under Stagecoach operating out of Barking (BK) garage for a few months before moving to Romford (NS) in December. The contract was awarded to Harris Bus in 1997, although that didn't last very long as Harris Bus were placed into administration at the end of 1999 resulting in East Thames Buses taking over the contract, who themselves were a subsidiary of London Regional Transport who later became a part of Transport for London. The route was operated out of their Ash Grove garage, therefore it was no surprise next tendering 2005 saw it move a lot closer to home with Arriva operating out of Barking (DX) garage where it remained until 2019. A night service was added to the route in 2007.

VLA143 seen at Hainault Street
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Arriva operated it using Alexander Dennis ALX400 buses on the Volvo B7TL chassis, a model which was favoured by Arriva at the time. This gained the route a special identity, especially towards the end of the second contract where it became the last bus route in London to operate using the bus type. As you can see in the picture to the right most of the buses fell victim to a very poor branding effort by TfL, you can read more about that scheme here.Various other types also did appear on the route during Arriva's reign. The most prominent of these was the Enviro400 which became the allocation for the night element of the route, however since 2017 Wright Gemini 2 bodied DB300 buses also did make appearances. 

DW324 seen at Ilford Station
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When the tender came out in February it was announced that Stagecoach would take on the route using existing buses, unsurprisingly these were to be the Enviro400s which were relieved of their duties on route 208 earlier this year when that route moved over to Go Ahead London. Stagecoach took on the 128 in the early hours of the 12th of August with aptly numbered 10128 being the first bus, almost as if it was intentional. Arriva followed shortly and wrapped up their phase on the route with T190 being the last bus. 

19748 seen at Ilford Broadway
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Since the takeover Stagecoach have had plenty of time to get used to the route, service has been excellent since the takeover with Stagecoach not taking much time at all to get used to the challenges that the route presents, probably helped by the fact they already operate many routes in the Romford, Ilford and Barkingside areas so are well accustomed to the variable conditions in the area. The allocation has been solidly 12reg Enviro400s apart from two 11reg Enviro400s - 19747 and 19748 and MMC 10301, a big change from the variable allocation that Arriva used to provide on the route. However with the way Stagecoach have performed on the route so far it's safe to say that this route has a bright 5, or maybe 7 years ahead for it. 

10148 seen at Ilford Station
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Route 364, a route which also operates in the Ilford area running between Dagenham East and Ilford via Newbury Park, Seven Kings and Goodmayes had its contract retained with Go Ahead London on the 2nd of November 2019. If you have already heard of the route, you will probably be aware of how unpopular the previous allocation of Enviro200s were, but like with Stagecoach there was light at the end of the tunnel as this new contract has seen those buses replaced with brand new Enviro200 MMCs. 

SE25 seen in Ilford
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Route 364, like route 128 started operation in March 1993 and it initially ran between Ilford and Dagenham East running through its current route with a few extra peak workings running down Ballards Road to Ford Works. This arrangement remained until 2004 when the peak workings to Ford Works were withdrawn, forming the same 364 that is still in operation today. Although despite this relatively boring history the route has been across its fare share of operators, initially being operated out of Barking (BK) by Stagecoach before moving to First at Dagenham (DM) in 2002. In 2007 the route was won by Blue Triangle (later Go Ahead) out of their infamous Rainham (BE) base where it remained until 2016 when Go Ahead built a brand new garage in Barking called River Road (RR) where the 364 moved to. 

SE311 seen on the 364
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As you've probably gathered by now, the previous contract on the 364 consisted of Enviro200s which were brought new for the route in 2007 when Blue Triangle initially gained it, being an early batch they were notorious for their rattles and uncomfortable nature. The tender result in February 2019 was for brand new buses, initially it was expected that these would be Wright Streetlites as this had been Go Ahead's preferred order for diesel single deckers however it was announced to be Enviro200 MMCs (SE304-319) - probably for the better as Wright since went into administration and any ordered buses from them would have had a doubtful future. 

The USB ports seen on the buses

There was a slight delay in the buses entering service, they didn't enter service until the 21st of November. This can be attributed to a few covering Luton airport shuttles while the others were used for type training drivers with the brand new mirrorless technology, the same as those found on the buses for routes 209 and 378. I didn't have time to have a ride on them on their first day of service so caught up with them the day after. Upon boarding there were many passengers taken aback by the brand new bus, with many of them commenting on it. There was also a period of excitement when one of the passengers realised the USB ports on the bus and then started spreading the information throughout the bus. 

The buses themselves feel like all other Enviro200 MMCs with stop-start technology. They also come equipped with intelligent speed assistance which automatically prevents the bus exceeding the speed limit of the road that it is on. Currently it's early days for these buses which are filled with technology and there's been many cases of buses breaking down at various points along the route and the old Enviro200s needing to be brought back to cover for them. However it's still early days and no doubt these issues will be ironed out over the forthcoming weeks. 

SE312 and SE314 seen on stand
© EastLondoner

Both route 128 and 364 have no doubt seen an improvement with these changes, more changes are on their way in Ilford next year when Stagecoach take on routes 25 and 425 with brand new buses.