Route B15

Route B15
8 January 2005

The B15 is unusual for a London Buses route in that its main catchment area, Joydens Wood, is almost entirely outside the greater London area. At this end buses operate in a loop, from Maypole via Leyton Cross, Birchwood Road, Summerhouse Drive, Joydens Wood and Baldwyns Park. Before midday buses run clockwise and after midday they run anticlockwise, the logic being that in the morning there will be people travelling from Bexleyheath and Bexley to Bexley Hospital, and also from the local areas of Joydens Wood into Bexleyheath, and in the afternoon they will be returning, and thus this arrangement minimises the chances of people having to ride right round the loop!

One should not forget, however, the section of route between Bexleyheath and Welling via Dorcis Avenue and Elsa Road, and the more recent extension to Eltham via Welling Way and Riefield Road. The latter was introduced at the commencement of a new operating contract on 24 January 2004, and makes the route rather long. The original intention had been to remove the loop arrangement at Joydens Wood, with a terminus established at Bexley Park (the site of the former Bexley Hospital), but it has not been possible to locate a stand there so the old arrangements continue for the time being – even though Bexley Hospital is now a housing estate!

Since 1991, when operation was transferred from Bexleybus to Transcity Link, there has been no Sunday service, despite the new contract last year. This leaves Joydens Wood completely unserved on that day, the only other route serving the area, the 476, not running on Sundays either. Prior to 1991 the service pattern was quite complicated: during the day on Mondays to Saturdays some buses ran direct to Bexley Hospital and others ran to Puddledock Lane, where most terminated, although a few went round to Bexley Hospital via Leyton Cross Road in peak hours only. During evenings and Sundays the route operated as a shuttle between Puddledock Lane and Bexleyheath only, via Bexley Hospital!

The B15 was a replacement for country area route 401^A, which did not operate in the evenings, early Saturday mornings or (apart from a single journey) Sundays, but until 1993 a limited Sunday afternoon service to Bexley Hospital was provided by route 124.

Transcity Link was bought up by Kentish Bus in 1993. The route returned to Bexleyheath garage – now in the hands of London Central rather than Selkent – in 1999, but has now gone back to Arriva again, who use short single door Wright Cadets, based on DAF SB120 chassis, from Dartford garage, represented here by 3947 (GK53 AOL) in Eltham High Street.

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Chronologically 83 112

Numerically A10 C1
See also routes 476, 401, 124, B12, C3, 413

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