please empty your brain below
I do agree with you about the inconsistency of practice on hail and ride services and the Countdown displays. I've spotted this on many recent bus rides in different bits of London. It's a mess and if you don't know an area or what the bus does then Countdown often doesn't tell you if the bus does run Hail and Ride.
On that older linked post about infrequent services, people were questioning the need for the 969 given that there is an Asda in Hounslow. Having taken that bus, I can confirm that it's basically 3 bus routes in one.
The people going to Roehampton Asda all live in some old people's estate on Arabella Lane, after Barnes station.
People getting on in Whitton etc all alight at Richmond / Sheen.
The rest of the route is for people who happen to be waiting for a bus when the 969 turns up and get it (either to where they were intending to go, if it goes there, or not, if it doesn't).
There was a Roehampton University student at Barnes who was late for classes, but the driver didn't bother to tell her that she would be better off just waiting a few more minutes for the 72 or 265. Instead she had to go to Priory Lane and wait for 15 minutes while the driver helped about 30 elderly folks bring their shopping trolleys aboard.
All these 4xx numbers north of the Thames - it isn't natural. (The original London Country 49x routes were in the Gravesend area - the current 496 was split from the 296 and the 498 and 499 have continued the theme)
Two heavy hints given as to what happens next: the rarest bus in London has been in a DG blog before, and the next two both serving Romford narrows the field down. Back at Bluewater on Monday?
A throw-away line that begs so many questions! What's the back-story to this DG?
@NLW Yes this puzzled me too. Was the cab stationary or was it to take him back to the depot? Perhaps the end of his shift. Although I wonder why he couldn't take the bus back.
No such thing these days as canteens, toilets, rest rooms for many drivers. They have to sit in a car in a supermarket car park and rely on there being loos in the supermarket and buying their own food in store. Other times they may well drive the shuttle car back to the garage. Only the oldest garages have the traditional facilities and there's no guarantee that changeovers take place at the garage anyway.
Ah - but how long will WE have to wait? I wasn't expecting a break in the itinerary at Gallows Corner
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