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 Red RF routes
Route 237
This was London's longest-running RF route, pottering quietly
out in the western suburbs. It is another long-lasting route,
with not one but two periods of one-man operation. In 1978
it became double-deck and moved closer to London; it no longer
serves Sunbury Village Flower Pot.
Dates of RF operation
3 Dec 52 to 16 Apr 77
(total 24 years, 4 months, of which exactly half was
crew-operated and half one-man)
Destinations
Hounslow to Chertsey
RF617, a former green bus
repainted red whilst at Muswell Hill, bowls round the Sunbury
roundabout in 1976. It appears to have had half its fleetname
reapplied.
Photo ©
Eamonn Kentell
Route history
As the 137, the route was one-man operated by Dennis Darts
(the early 18-seat version!) when London Transport was born in
1933. Becoming 237 in the numbering change the following
year, the route was then host to the prototype C-class Leyland Cub,
the 20-seat Chiswick-built class. At the beginning of the
war, all the remaining Darts were withdrawn and the route converted
fully to Cub. But the focus in wartime was to maximise
capacity; bigger buses in the form of the LTL Scooter were
introduced in 1941.
LTLs still ran the 237, with a little help from Ts on Sunday,
when the route was converted to RFs in 1952, one of the first batch
of routes using brand-new buses. The first two were licensed
on 3 Dec 52 and conversion completed on 9th, the spare bus
RF367 being licensed on 10th. The two trainer buses
(ex-MH) were licensed in February 1953, allowing a summer increase
in the Sunday allocation.
Fourteen years on, the 237 became OMO again, on 27 Jan
65. In April 1977, Hounslow lost its RFs leaving only
Kingston operating the class. They were replaced on the
237 by BL-class Bristols for 9 months, before Routemasters
took the route over new roads to Shepherds Bush.
RF route in detail, with timing points
HOUNSLOW GARAGE, Hounslow High St, Staines Rd, Hounslow Heath Hussar, Hounslow
Rd, Feltham Stn, Feltham High
St, Sunbury Rd, Groveley Rd, Vicarage Road, Bridge St, Sunbury Clock Tower, Green St,
Sunbury Village Flower
Pot, Halliford Rd, Gaston Br Rd, Green La Gaston Br Rd, Green La,
Shepperton Station
Appr, High St, Church Rd Shepperton, Chertsey Rd,
Chertsey Br Rd, Chertsey Br, Chertsey
Cricketers, Bridge Rd, London St, Guildford Rd,
CHERTSEY STN
Garages
AV Hounslow
Vehicle allocation
New RFs delivered Dec 52: 357, 361-367, 376 (total 8 + 1
spare)
PVR 1952 (Dec): Mon-Fri 8, Sat 8, Sun 6
PVR 1953 (May): Mon-Fri 8, Sat 8, Sun 10
PVR 1953 (Jul): Mon-Fri 9, Sat 8, Sun 10
PVR 1953 (Oct): Mon-Fri 9, Sat 8, Sun 6
PVR 1954 (May): Mon-Fri 9, Sat 8, Sun 10
PVR 1954 (Oct): Mon-Fri 9, Sat 8, Sun 6
PVR 1955 (May): Mon-Fri 9, Sat 8, Sun 8
PVR 1955 (Oct): Mon-Fri 9, Sat 8, Sun 6
PVR 1956 (May): Mon-Fri 9, Sat 8, Sun 8
PVR 1956 (Oct): Mon-Fri 9, Sat 8, Sun 7
PVR 1957 (May): Mon-Fri 9, Sat 8, Sun 8
PVR 1957 (Oct): Mon-Fri 9, Sat 8, Sun 7
PVR 1958 (Apr): Mon-Fri 9, Sat 8, Sun 8
PVR 1958 (Nov): Mon-Fri 9, Sat 8, Sun 7
PVR 1959 (May): Mon-Fri 9, Sat 8, Sun 8
PVR 1959 (Oct): Mon-Fri 9, Sat 8, Sun 7
PVR 1960 (Mar): Mon-Fri 9, Sat 8, Sun 6
PVR 1960 (May): Mon-Fri 9, Sat 8, Sun 8
PVR 1960 (Oct): Mon-Fri 9, Sat 8, Sun 6
PVR 1961 (Oct): Mon-Fri 9, Sat 8, Sun 4
PVR 1962 (May): Mon-Fri 9, Sat 8, Sun 6
PVR 1962 (Oct): Mon-Fri 9, Sat 8, Sun 4
PVR 1963 (May): Mon-Fri 9, Sat 8, Sun 6
PVR 1963 (Oct): Mon-Fri 9, Sat 8, Sun 4
PVR 1965 (Jan) OMO: Mon-Fri 10, Sat 9, Sun 6
PVR 1962 (Oct): Mon-Fri 9, Sat 8, Sun 4
PVR 1966 (Feb): Mon-Fri 9, Sat 8, Sun 6
PVR 1967 (Jun): Mon-Fri 10, Sat 8, Sun 6
PVR 1969 (Feb): Mon-Fri 10, Sat 8, Sun 5
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