To 2 too

It's been a long time since I've done my bus route series, where I touch up on certain routes in their individual posts, and go on about them. Most of the time these are local routes so I have more to talk about.

In today's one, the 2. West Norwood to Marylebone via Brixton and Victoria.

HV323 (LK17AKG), Norwood Road, West Norwood

It's a trunk route that connects Norwood and Tulse Hill estates to Brixton, there to Stockwell, to Vauxhall, and into central London.

An average speed of 7.7mph, maximum end to end trip at 80 minutes of 8 miles length, a frequency of 7-8 minutes providing 8 buses an hour, and a Peak Vehicle Requirement of 24. It's carried 9.2 million in the last year with 1.3 million kilometres operated.

VLA45 (LJ53BCY), Brixton Academy

Like many other trunk routes, it's a shadow of it's original route. 

Like many other trunk routes, it's been split. 

Like many other routes, it's received it's own batch of hybrids. 

Like many routes, it's timetable was altered to cater for 20mph speed limits.

Unlike many routes, it disobeys 20mph limits. Like a boss.

This is typical 2 nature so nothing to praise here, what we can instead praise, is it's unlikelihood of regulation, which I've only had a few times in my constant use of the route.

VLA64 (LJ04YWT),
West Norwood Station

The route starts at it's home in Norwood (N) bus garage where it stands in, terminates at, and starts at. It goes over the Southern tracks at West Norwood Station (going under it in the other direction), down Knights Hill to the main town, thereby passing shops and apartment buildings, the stop after this is immediately Tulse Hill Station, turning left onto the A205 one-way gyratory.

Onwards, on Tulse Hill, you're greeted by High Trees, the name of a bus stop, high tenements to your left and old small houses to your right, as well as a school. The sight of estates doesn't end until you've entered Brixton territory, when you see St Matthew's Church.

Brixton. The Victoria Line's terminus, a bustling town centre. The 2 joins the likes of 345 and 333 along Stockwell Road to Stockwell, another place of interest at similar distance from Norwood-Tulse Hill, but on a higher scale of usage. It breaks up with them to serve South Lambeth Road, home to Tate Library. After the library is a small park. You then go under a huge tunnel with multiple South Western Railway tracks to the main interchange at Vauxhall, with a bus station and the Victoria Line.

VLA68 (LJ04YWX), Vauxhall Bus Station

Crossing Vauxhall Bridge, cyclists, commercial buildings and the heavy traffic meets you, thereafter is circling the construction site called Victoria, then the huge roundabout attraction known as Hyde Park Corner, with Knightsbridge not far off. Anyways, the 2 dives down Park Lane, one of few roads with open space for going over normal speeds. London Hilton Hotel, Dorchester Hotel, BMW and Mini dealerships across the road and the large park to the left, as well as parked coaches.

Marble Arch. Or Stone Arch. For a short while we get to see the glory of Oxford Street before abruptly turning onto Baker Street, crossing the junction of Baker Street, and terminating at the train terminal Marylebone.

In summary, a central route that goes into less valuable parts in South London, terminating at a normal town of no interest.

T110 (LJ59LYK), West Norwood

The route from the southern end is mainly used to get to and from Brixton. Brixton to Stockwell or Central London, and in rarer cases south of Brixton to north of Vauxhall, not many do this trip off-peak but it's done. For the most part 2 is the bigger route wherever it goes, except between Vauxhall and Marble Arch where it's bested by the more frequent 36, which gained lost patronage after 436's diversion to Battersea.

Now, for a low numbered route, the current 2 has lived as much as most other below-50 routes. However, the 2 we all know today is the 2nd incarnation of 2. New on the 17th October 1956 to replace the ancestor 195, Stockwell to Norwood as the first and then only route along Tulse Hill [estates] between Tulse Hill [Station] and Brixton.

At first the 2B was simply a Sunday service, extended to Golders Green via then 2 (now 322). A frequency of every 20 with a requirement of 14 buses for that length.

Ancestor 186 (Woolwich - Crystal Palace - Victoria) replaced the 195's weekday operation in '64 but was culled in favour of 2B gaining 7 days operation and 122 extended over to Crystal Palace. The upstart and new 2B rose in ranks endlessly, evolving constantly until 1986.

TE936 (LK09EKR), Marble Arch

The 82 we under-appreciated and only loved when it was on it's death bed, took over the variants of 2 from North Finchley and Golders Green to Victoria, a route now known as 13. The 2B in this case went as far north as Baker Street with a vehicle requirement akin to today.

At that stage, the 2B stopped evolving at it's previous speed. A year following the renumbering of baby-form 2, then Victoria to West Norwood Rosendale into 322, Vauxhall to Crystal Palace, the 2B gained the status of 2.

Under the cloak of a solid number, it's pride for evolution wasn't yet nullified. One-person operation, a way to save money by having only the driver man a bus, was a popular theme to cut costs. In today's atmosphere, similar to reducing frequencies. Instead of normally applying one-person buses to the route, the 2 had a new route of it's own, 2A. Really just 432 but to Baker Street in the evenings, no Sundays.

In the midst of this, the 2 finally received a night time service numbered N2, initially Trafalgar Square to West Norwood, then constantly changed northern termini in North London before settling as a Trafalgar Square to Crystal Palace route.

The prior arrangement with 2/2A only lasted 6 years with 2A absorbed back into 2, and 2 going fully one-person operation with ELC bodied Leyland Olympians and Metrobuses, the latter type withdrawn from Norwood (N) by the time the Arriva name was commonplace.

VLA66 (LJ04YMV), Brixton

In the early '00s, low-floor double deckers finally prevailed as successors to step-entrances, which proved difficult to have prams on board, or even wheelchair users. This as well as new congestion charges made lots of changes to the bus network. Many routes were split in two. In 2003, the 2 which worked Marylebone to West Norwood and Brixton to Crystal Palace had the latter renumbered into 432, initially meant to be 332 but confusion for the Elephant - Crystal Palace 322 would've become an obvious issue.

Later on the 2 gained it's own rightful batch of low floor buses, the first Volvo B7TLs on the Alexander ALX400 bodywork for Arriva, VLA1-55 alongside other Norwood (N) routes, mainly 68.

HV287 (LK17AKY), West Norwood

Nothing changed to the 2 until 2017, when the next evolution of double deckers, hybrid diesel-electric Volvo B5LH Wright Gemini 3's were ordered for the route for it's contract retain in April 2017, HV296-323.

Operationally the route has always been to the best. The route is prone to traffic so seeing 2s in 2s is common, however turns are rare. Northbound, Marble Arch would be forked out. Southbound, rarely ever. In which case Brixton might be used. In cases where central London has protests or the yearly cycling rides, the route is occasionally curtailed short to Victoria. Furthermore, Tulse Hill turns northbound are used. I wondered how useless it was until I thought deeper about it. The 415 starts at Tulse Hill albeit on Hardel Rise, away from the 201/P13 interchange. Though, if a 2 chucks people off there, all they do is wait for that 415 or 432, possibly even another 2 to arrive.

Transferred from Brixton (BN), DW282 (LJ59LWK)
West Norwood, heading to Marylebone.
In the past this bus performed the 2E (or 2U) in around 2009.

There's another case which only few routes are special enough to achieve, when a tube line closes. During times the Victoria closed for engineering works, the 2 would have extra buses operating from Brixton to Hyde Park Corner, often helped by Brixton (BN), neighbour depot to Norwood (N), as such, most modern buses at Brixton (BN) contain blinds for the 2, having Hyde Park Corner (137's turn) and Brixton (59's turn).

HV315 (LK17AHX), 2X to Notting Hill Gate

If the above isn't special enough, the 2 is, amongst remaining routes, the only route chosen as a Carnival express which parallels a tube line. The Notting Hill Carnival which happens every end of August each year. The 205X was a Hammersmith & City parallel, but that route didn't continue to this year's (2018). The 2X runs West Norwood to Hyde Park Corner as the 2, then non-stop to Notting Hill Gate. Return it serves Marble Arch and then as a normal 2. The 2X runs at a frequency of every 15 initially, then every 10 minutes, combined with the Sunday service of 2, a joint frequency of every 5 is offered.

I'm aware I've not posted enough on this blog as of late, however, I'll try to post more when possible. I'm not good at writing that goes without doubt, however, it's a form of stress relief, if that's understandable. Getting my point across as well as making it worthwhile reading to my abilities.

I look forward to writing more, I've a post in mind if I get round to finishing it on time, until then, as usual, stay safe!

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