Throwback Thursday

Csalem

2010 finds AV 401 on Hawkins Street dressed for route 51B. This Volvo ALX400 was new to Dublin Bus in 2005 and was withdrawn around the end of 2018. It was then sold on to an operator in the United Kingdom.

Route 51B started running between the city centre and Bawnogue in 1981, but moved to Dunawley around 1998. The year before, in 1997, it became a CitySwift route, replacing the 51 as the main bus route to Clondalkin. The business park at Grange Castle became its terminus in 2004 and remained so until the route was absorbed into the new, cross-city route 13 in October 2011 under the Network Direct revisions.  

08/11/2010

https://flic.kr/p/2peJymF

Csalem

This week we are going back thirty-five years to 1988 and to LD 1 in St. Stephen's Green on route 44. This bus was a Leyland Olympian demonstrator sent to Dublin Bus for evaluation, along with an MCW Metrobus. Even though the latter went to the effort of painting their bus in Dublin Bus livery, the Olympian eventually won out. Dublin Bus went on to order 640 Olympians, delivered between 1990 and 1999, with the final one withdrawn in 2012. The Dublin Bus vehicles did have a different body style though compared to that of the demonstrator. LD 1 went on to the Isle of Man before reaching Solent Blue Line in Southampton in 1990. In 2008 it moved to York Pullman and it seems around 2012 it was withdrawn, though still existed in some form in 2017.  

The DUTC started running route 44 between the city centre and Enniskerry in 1936. In 2012, Dublin Bus extended it to Larkhill replacing route 3 on the northside. In 2014 it was extended slightly further to Dublin City University (DCU).

15/11/1988

https://flic.kr/p/2pg1yPG

Csalem

This week we are going back ten years to 2013 and AX 491 on Fleet Street. The bus is at the terminus for route 150 and is dressed for a service on that route to Rossmore. This route started around 1994 as one of the City Imp routes introduced in the mid-1990s. It replaced route 50 to Willington Roundabout, operating a higher frequency and using minibuses. After the year 2000, bigger buses started to be used on the route, ending up with double-deckers as seen here. In 2017 the terminus moved from Fleet Street (as seen here) to Hawkins Street, where it still operates from today. 

AX 491 was new to Dublin Bus in 2006 and was withdrawn in 2021. 

23/11/2013

https://flic.kr/p/2phwztQ

Csalem

This week we are going back forty-one years to 1982 and to D 397 on Burgh Quay. The bus is dressed for route 62. This route started operating in 1936, being extended from Goatstown to Kilmacud in 1962, and to Beaufield Park (behind the Stillorgan Shopping Centre) in 1966. The route ceased to operate in 1999 when it was replaced by an extended route 11. 

D 397 was new to CIE in 1971 and was withdrawn in 1985. 

29/11/1982

https://flic.kr/p/2piH84E

Csalem

This week we are going back nine years to 2014 and to DM 2 on Rosie Hackett Bridge. DM 2 was a Wrights demonstrator bus on a Volvo B5LH hybrid chassis. It entered service with Dublin Bus in July 2014 for initially a six month trial period. It was the second hybrid bus Dublin Bus had trialled, although WH 1 had arrived in 2008 and left in 2012. DM 2 lasted with Dublin Bus well into 2015, leaving in the second-quarter of 2015. It then went on to National Express West Midlands in the UK, arriving there around September 2015, but was returned to Volvo in November of that year. It was then sold on to Go-Ahead London and is still in service there today as WHV 111.

The bus is operating a service on route 151 to Foxborough. This route started in 2007, initially operating between Docklands Station and Grange Castle, although it was soon extended to Adamstown. In 2009 it moved its Docklands terminus to East Road, providing an interchange with route 53. Under Network Direct in 2010 the route was moved to terminate at Foxborough instead of Adamstown, and still does so today.

The bus is crossing Rosie Hackett Bridge which opened in May 2014.

05/12/2014

https://flic.kr/p/2pjYvcn

DM 2 in London October 2023:

https://flic.kr/p/2pejr1S

mikeybhoy

Interesting bit of trivia that DM1 was the first DB vehicle to transfer to the Go-Ahead Group

Csalem

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121473640#Comment_121473640

They bought some Olympians. RH 1 went to Go-North East in 2005 and now preserved:

https://flic.kr/p/2nj4CEs

Rawr

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121462130#Comment_121462130

This prompted me to look up why TfL would “downgrade” that Digital destination display DB use to a analog destination roller. Had noticed that otherwise very modern busses with TfL all have this too.

Trawling some forums it seems TfL have some kind of rule where the destination must use their official font. (Very open to correction or clarification, this is from a casual Google-search) One theory was that TfL want to wait until the digital displays have enough resolution to display the font clearly.

Seems a bit mad to hold onto a legacy roller system, and wait for more expensive HD digital displays, just to satisfy a font rule. Digital displays used on Irish busses always seemed pretty clear to read.

mikeybhoy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121478041#Comment_121478041

They are starting to use LED displays now on the newer buses. I guess they want to make the destination display as clear as possible. Also helps distinguish TFL contracted services from non London services where the two overlap usually in the outer suburbs of London.

Csalem

This week we are going back twenty-eight years to 1995 and to RH 47 on Earlsfort Terrace with a service on route 48A. This route started running between the city centre and Goatstown in 1928. In 1933 it was extended to Ballinteer, going via Milltown and Dundrum. Its last terminus within Ballinteer was at Broadford, which it served from 1978 to 2011. In that latter year the route ceased to operate when it was replaced by routes 14 and 61 under Network Direct.

RH 47 was new to Dublin Bus in 1990 and was withdrawn in 2002. The following year it was sold to an operator in the United Kingdom, and it was eventually scrapped in 2015.

The KD on route 14A behind the RH is advertising Mariah Carey. The year before this photograph was taken was when she released "All I Want For Christmas Is You". The 14A also terminated in Ballinteer between August 1995 and November 2005, but it went via Rathmines.   

12/12/1995

https://flic.kr/p/2pmxNFg

Csalem

First up, I would like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! I would like to also thank everyone for viewing my pictures throughout the year. It really does mean a lot.

Secondly, this is also Throwback Thursday (413). We go back thirteen years to 2010 and AV 397 arriving into the interchange at Dundrum with a service on route 44 to Enniskerry. This Volvo ALX400 was new to Dublin Bus in 2004. It was withdrawn in 2018 and later sold on to an operator in the United Kingdom. 

Route 44 started running between the city centre and Enniskerry in 1936. Up until 2012 it went via Ballyogan, as shown on the bus destination here. However, Network Direct in that year saw the route taken out of there, as well as extended to Larkhill on Dublin's northside. In 2014 it was extended slightly further to Dublin City University. In November 2023 it was rerouted slightly to not serve this interchange directly, but rather a new stop on Dundrum by-pass.

09/12/2010

https://flic.kr/p/2pnRn8n

Glaceon

Merry Christmas to you too @Csalem, I always enjoy the photos!

Csalem

This week we are going back twenty-seven years to 1996 and MA 3 at Blanchardstown Shopping Centre on route 237. This was a local route that connected the surrounding Blanchardstown area to the shopping centre. It started in October 1996 (along with the 238 and 239 when the shopping centre opened) and ran on a loop via Castleknock and Coolmine. The route was withdrawn in October 2010 under Network Direct. Its only change in all of that time was when the terminus within the Blanchardstown Centre was moved in 2006. The bus is seen here at the original terminus. The route was eventually replaced by route 37 between Castleknock and the Blanchardstown Centre.

MA 3 was new to Dublin Bus in 1993 and was withdrawn in 2001. It was initially allocated to City Imp route 120, but did also appear on the Blanchardstown local routes when they started.

28/12/1996

https://flic.kr/p/2pp6CyG

Csalem

This week we are going back eleven years to 2013 and to AX 526 on route 47 in Sandymount. The modern route 47 to Belarmine started in 2008, though the closest it got to the city centre was Donnybrook. In 2010 it was extended to the city centre, but it was not sent via Sandymount until 2012, when it partially replaced route 3 under Network Direct. 

The bus is seen here on St. John's Road about to turn onto Strand Road. It, along with route 1, was rerouted away from here in 2021, with both routes sent along Park Avenue instead.

AX 526 was new to Dublin Bus in 2006. It was withdrawn in 2021. 

05/01/2013

https://flic.kr/p/2pqw4ej

Csalem

This week we are going back twenty-seven years to 1997 and RA 228 on Middle Abbey Street. The bus is dressed for route 66. 

The DUTC started running this route between the city centre and Maynooth in 1934. Around 1988 some departures started terminating on Straffan Road in Maynooth, but around 1996 it became the full-time terminus for the 66. The route ceased to operate in November 2021 when it was replaced by route C3 under Bus Connects. The C3 still uses Straffan Road as a terminus.

RA 228 was new to Dublin Bus in 1995, and was delivered in Wedding Bus livery. It was withdrawn in 2007 and sold on to an operator in the United Kingdom. The Wedding Bus concept lasted until 2017.

11/01/1997

https://flic.kr/p/2prSgDs

Rawr

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121601974#Comment_121601974

Yay! My old route finally makes the cut! Surprised it dates all the way back to 1934.

I had noticed the Wedding Bus livery over the years, but I had only ever seen these busses on normal routes. I don't remember ever seeing them actually on a private hire for a wedding.

I wonder what prompted them to end the concept. Not enough business for it to be worth the effort?

Glaceon

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121605186#Comment_121605186

I think it was to do with the NTA owning the new buses, so Dublin Bus couldn't use them for commercial purposes such as private hires. I remember seeing an AX kitted out for a wedding, was decorated with flowers internally and the side and back displays had rings on them.

LollipopJimmy

I have a wedding bus model. My bus dealer had these, Molly 2 and an Airlink on special.

Csalem

This week we are going back a decade to 2014 and to EV 85 in Howth on route 31A. CIE started operating the first version of route 31A in 1958, taking it over from the Great Northern Railway (Ireland). It operated between Dublin city centre and Strand Road in Sutton. That route ceased to operate in 2005. In 2012 the route was resurrected under Network Direct, this time terminating on Shielmartin Road but going via Howth village and Howth Summit. The route lasted until June 2021 when it was abolished under Bus Connects. New route 6 replaced the 31A in the Shielmartin Road area, but new route 6 terminated at Howth Station, with Shielmartin Road becoming a via point instead of a terminus.

EV 85 was new to Dublin Bus in 2008. It is still in service today, although now in Transport for Ireland livery. 

In the past the Hill of Howth tram used to cross the road just behind the bus on a bridge. The path behind the bus shelter leads up to a foot path built on the old tram route that leads up to Howth Summit.

16/01/2014

https://flic.kr/p/2pt8fns

Csalem

This week we are going back twenty-six years to 1998 and to KC 56 on O'Connell Street. The bus is operating a service on route 3 to Larkhill. This route started running between Larkhill / Whitehall and Sandymount in 1940. Originally terminating at Sandymount Tower, it moved to St. John's Church in 1972. Around 1990, certain departures were extended to / from UCD Belfield. In 2012 the route was replaced by a new route 1 between Santry and Sandymount, with Larkhill being served by an extended route 44, as part of Network Direct.

KC 58 was new to CIE in 1984. The final KC Class buses were withdrawn from the Dublin Bus fleet in 2000, with a farewell run for this class and the KD Class double-deckers taking place on the 13th January 2001. Members of the KC Class lasted a little longer with Bus Eireann.

There has been a few changes to O'Connell Street since this photograph was taken. Tram lines now go down the road as part of the Luas Green Line. The public toilets in the centre of the road are gone, and the Spire dominates the centre of the background. 

23/01/1998

https://flic.kr/p/2puskFk

Losty Dublin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121634353#Comment_121634353

Fun fact; routes 31 and 31A were the only tram routes that the DUTC surrendered to a private operator.

When the Howth-Dublin tram ceased in 1941, the GNR were approached by DUTC and duly expanded their bus services on their services. Doubtless the ongoing rubber, fuel and bus shortages owing to The Emergency played a part in the decision.

Csalem

This week we are going back forty-one years to 1983 and to KD 238 on Charlotte Street. The bus is displaying route 20B to Beaumont as a destination. Route 20B started operating between Bulfin Road and Beaumont (Ardlea Road) in 1980. In 1988 it was cut back on the southside and only operated to Ardlea Road from the city centre. Into 2011 the route was absorbed into a new cross-city route 14 which still runs between Ardlea Road and Dundrum. 

KD 238 was new to CIE in August 1982. It was withdrawn by Dublin Bus in October 2000.

If you look at a map of Dublin today, you won't find Charlotte Street on it. It was closed in 1992 and the area was extensively rebuilt with new offices and a hotel. Charlotte Street basically the continuation of Charlemont Street to Camden Street, passing through what is now the entrance to the Camden Court Hotel car park. The Charlotte Inn behind the bus in the photograph was previously Cotters Bar. This website can provide more details on the history of Charlotte Street: https://wideandconvenientstreets.wordpress.com/2013/04/07/charlotte-street-now-gone/

02/1983

https://flic.kr/p/2pvU2zY

LXFlyer

That 20b would have operated from Bulfin Road and then SCR-Harrington St-Camden St-Charlotte St-Harcourt Rd-Harcourt St to St Stephen’s Green - quite the pair of doglegs!

Losty Dublin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121707620#Comment_121707620

Pre traffic flow and one way streets, it continued straight onto Harcourt Road before taking the turn down Harcourt Street. Far easier than the hairpin bend and two significant lane changes in a short distance to make the turn. The new flow made things a lot easier all told.

Csalem

This week we are going back forty-one years to 1983 and to to D 137 on Hawkins Street. The bus destination blinds are showing (in Irish) Rathmines and Rathgar, as well as "Via Rathmines". Along with the lack of route number, its not easy to figure out what route it was on. However, being on Hawkins Street can help deduce it was on either a 47A or 47B, and with the bus in the background on a 47B to Grange Road, we may assume it was probably on the 47A. This route started running between the city centre and Churchtown in 1932. At the time the photograph was taken, the Churchtown terminus was on Landscape Road. The route briefly disappeared around 1984, but reappeared in 1989, but this time it ran to Rockbrook. In 1999 the route, along with the 47 and 47B was completely removed from the network. 

D 137 was new to CIE in 1967. It was withdrawn four months after this picture ws taken, in June 1983.

The New Metropole cinema behind the bus opened in 1972 but closed in 2016 (as the Screen Cinema). It was then demolished and a new building is currently being erected in its place. 

08/02/1983

https://flic.kr/p/2px9ZvM

Csalem

This week we go back twenty years to RV 365 at Dublin Airport on route 230. Route 230 connected the airport with Portmarnock going via Swords and Malahide. It started in 1991 but in 2008 it was merged with the 102 and extended to railway station in Sutton. In 2018 the 102 was taken over by Go-Ahead Ireland. 

RV 365 was new to Dublin Bus in 1997 and was withdrawn in 2009. It was sold on to an operator in the United Kingdom, and was still in service in Scotland up to at least 2022. 

This bus stop at Dublin Airport has been served by a number of routes and operators over the years. Currently it is home to First Aircoach, with the 102 departing from the other side of the Terminal 1 multi-storey carpark.

15/02/2004

https://flic.kr/p/2pyhB2J

Csalem

This week we are going back thirty-six years to 1988 and to KC 118 at Bus Aras. The bus is operating one of the express services to Dublin Airport. 

When this photo was taken the service to Dublin Airport was already decades old. It started with CIE and over the years had double-deckers, single-deckers and coaches on it. In 1982 KC 116 to 119 were delivered new to CIE to operate the service. In February 1988 they received this all-over ad / livery for Aer Lingus. Then in 1990 the buses lost their centre doors to increase their capacity and allow more luggage space on board. However, in 1994 they moved from the Airport Express service to route 230 and regained their centre doors. 1994 was the year Dublin Bus received new AD Class buses and rebranded the service as Airlink. Airlink suspended operations in 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic and then announced in 2021 the cessation of operations.

KC 118 was finally withdrawn by Dublin Bus in the late-1990s.  

Aer Lingus was flew its first flight in 1936. It was floated on the stock exchange by the Irish government in 2006 and was finally taken over by IAG in 2015.

21/02/1988

https://flic.kr/p/2pzD1fo

Csalem

This week we are going back four years to 2020 and to the last leap day before this current one. 

Dublin Bus SG 365 and SG 201 are seen in Beresford Place on routes 31 and 29A. CIE took over both routes from the GNRI in 1958, and both routes were replaced under Bus Connects in 2021. In their final forms, route 29A ran from the city centre to Baldoyle and route 31 ran from the city centre to Howth Summit. Under Bus Connects the 29A became route H1 and route 31 became route H3. 

Both buses are Wright Gemini 3 on Volvo B5TL chassis. SG 201 was new to Dublin Bus in 2016, while SG 365 was new in 2017. Both buses are still in service with Dublin Bus, although SG 365 is now in TFI green/yellow livery. 

29/02/2020

https://flic.kr/p/2pAW4W3

Csalem

This week we are going thirty-nine years to 1985 and to D 762 parked just off Strand Street in Dublin 1. This VanHool bus was new to CIE in 1975 and was initially based in Donnybrook Garage. It received this all-over ad for Valspar Paint in 1983. Previously Leyland Atlantean D 189 carried a similar scheme, but before it was withdrawn it was decided that another bus would carry-on wearing the ad. D 762 was chosen. Cross-city route 11 from Griffith Avenue to Closnkeagh was the route of choice for buses in advert liveries, and D 762 became common on it. In 1986 the bus moved to Ringsend Garage, and in 1995 it was withdrawn by Dublin Bus. Presumably it lost this all-over ad around the time it moved garages.

This area between Abbey Street and Strand Street was a layover area for buses for many decades. Dublin Bus pulled out in the early-2000s when the Luas Red Line was built along Abbey Street. The Jervis tram stop was built besdie it too. There have been many plans over the years since then to redevelop the site.

Valspar can trace its origins back to 1806 and to Boston in the USA.

07/03/1985

https://flic.kr/p/2pC7snu

LollipopJimmy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121862557#Comment_121862557

Lovely, loved that Ad too. A couple of her sisters parked on my desk.