Route 212 and 233 RF anniversary

17 February 2013

Page last updated 1 March 2013
 

What a difference a century makes.  RF486 climbs Muswell Hill in 2013.  The 212 drivers

criticised the Scooters when first fitted with diesel engines, for needing first gear on the hill.

Fully loaded (which the 212s often were), RF486 needed first gear for the last section - the engine is 60, after all...

Photo © Geoff Ragg

B2706 in 1914 on route 111, renumbered 212 in 1934 and W7 in 1969.  Spot the changing roofline.

Photo John Hinson collection

 
To mark the 60th anniversary of the arrival of the new RFs on routes 212 (Muswell Hill to Finsbury Park) and 233 (Northumberland Park to Finsbury Park) in February 1953, RF486 ran (full) over the routes on its 60th birthday, 17 February 2013.  The original event page is here.
 
A nice photo-report on the day is given by Ian Smith on his Bus Stop site
 

Route 212

 

Stroud Green Road is considerably more colourful than it was in the 1950s.

Photo © Peter Larkham

 

That bridge at Finsbury Park.  Arriving to take up duty.

Photo © Adrian Palmer

 

Arrival onto the stand at Muswell Hill.

Photo © Steve Whitelegg

 

The 212 was a frequent service, so as each bus unloads at the top of Muswell Hill and moves to the stand, there should be another arriving behind.  This was a one-bus event, so it couldn't happen.  Could it?

Photo © Nigel Henty

 

A touch of colour in Muswell Hill Broadway.  RF459 tucks in behind RF486.

Photo © Steve Whitelegg

 

More Muswell Hill architecture.  The departure stop.

Photo © John Parkin

 

It's easier downhill...

Photo © Daniel Sullivan

 

Force of gravity.  Heading down Muswell Hill.

Photo © Richard Kemble

 

Crouch End Broadway seemed a little startled by its sudden RF service.

Photo © Peter Osborn

 

It was a real pleasure that RF459 decided to come out to celebrate the 60th anniversary, and running back to Finsbury Park we worked in true LT-style, here beside Crouch Hill Station.  The anagram is a nice touch.

Photo © Daniel Sullivan

 

RF459 approaches the terminus in Clifton Terrace, Finsbury Park - rather changed from the 1950s.

Photo © Daniel Sullivan

 

 

 

 

Local views

 

Christ Church Highbury forms the backdrop for the positioning working on the 236.

Photo © Thomas Drake (champion sprinter)

 

Running in as a 236, RF486 passes the end of Gillespie Road, Finsbury Park.

Photo © Nigel Henty

 

The 233 is a wonderfully mixed route, taking in the best of the Northern Heights and gritty Northumberland Park. 

Photo © Peter Larkham

 

Another Clifton Terrace shot, as RF486 returns from its 233 run.

Photo © Adrian Palmer

 

Ilex House at Crouch Hill towers over the 212.  Note the roadside ticket machine, installed on the W3 as an experiment prior to their adoption across central London.  Perhaps they will be the last too, the decision having been taken to remove the central ones.

Photo © Thomas Drake

 

An RF in our sights (see the bullet holes article and look closely at Thomas Drake's rear view picture here).

Photo © Peter Larkham

 

RFs on the 212 and 233 carried real conductors.

Photo © John Parkin

Route 233

 

Alexandra Palace's grand west front.

Photo © John Parkin

 

 

 

 

The grand southern facade of Alexandra Palace, with the new road constructed in 1938, part funded by London Transport, which allowed the operation of a through bus route and removal of the tram tracks.

Photo © Daniel Sullivan

 

The W3 and the 233 are the same route, before and after Reshaping.  Arriva's Enviro400s compared.

Photo © Thomas Drake

 

Part of the dramatic London view from the Ally Pally, looking east.

Photo © Nigel Henty

 

At Palace Gates, RF486 is just below the point of N Rayfield's late 1950s picture.

Photo © Geoff Ragg

 

Now renamed Alexandra Palace Station, Wood Green Station (ER) was a short-working terminus on the 233.  The former Palace Gates Station, whose line over Station Road required the 233 to be single-deck, was beyond the houses.

Photo © Peter Osborn

 

Unlike the 99-year old 212, the 233 is relatively recent, with the eastern section from Wood Green to Northumberland Park only being added in 1949.  One of that section's most famous landmarks is White Hart Lane Station.

Photo © Geoff Ragg

 

The Northumberland Park terminus has been rebuilt since 1949, as have its surroundings.

Photo © Peter Osborn

 

A broader view of Northumberland Park.  With enthusiasts.

Photo © Daniel Sullivan