A tap at last.

The story I published two weeks ago concerning the unwelcome changes made to the 99 bus route between Bexleyheath and Woolwich, and the replacement of the modern, ecologically sound and very comfortable Alexander Dennis Enviro 400 buses with older, less reliable and pretty much worn out Wright Gemini 2 buses sourced second hand from Tottenham have caused quite a bit of commotion in the transport world, and I have had considerable correspondence from readers who either use the bus service, or others who operate it, but need to remain anonymous. Following the piece I published last edition, which included a guest written article by a person who requested anonymity, due to their close involvement with the story, I received a couple of very interesting Emails from a very well known transport industry expert, who has worked in the bus business for many years. He writes:- "I was interested in your recent notes about bus route 99. This passes through my former home in Barnehurst and so was of interest. The new 5 year contract was awarded to Arriva London from Stagecoach Selkent to commence on Saturday 20th January 2018. It is indeed being operated from their Dartford garage which these days falls under the Arriva London entity. TfL specifically awarded the contract to be operated by existing fleet double deck vehicles. They have actually been drawn from the DW class vehicles used previously elsewhere in North London. As you say these have Wright Gemini 10.4m bodies fitted on the VDL (DAF) DB300 chassis. They were actually decent bits of kit when new, but have had a fair pounding in London service. While the route is being operated to a new timetable I am a little surprised at the statement that it actually required no change to the previous peak vehicle requirement. It had previously required an 11 bus pvr, but the new contract apparently calls for 14 vehicles. This is no great surprise as the route obviously requires significant dead running from Dartford garage whereas Stagecoach buses had passed the Plumstead garage from which they operated the route. Interestingly the 99 has previously reached Dartford during its lengthy history, but that’s another story. The substantial funding reduction for TfL going forward means that the number of new vehicles being specified for bus service contracts will be far less than previously. This is because operators will usually provide a variety of compliant bids for contracts and these will include alternative bids for new and existing vehicles. Whereas previously lower cost bids might have been less attractive, now it is far more likely that TfL will look favourably on lower cost bids because of the funding reductions they are experiencing. Stagecoach of course took over the 422 service the same day as Arriva took over the 99 so they more than made up for the loss as the 422 has a pvr of 16. The DW class vehicles are indeed 5 years older than the previous ADL E40H hybrids fitted with the Enviro 400 MMC body that started to take over the route during the summer of 2016. I must admit though that I didn’t realise the Stagecoach vehicles were fitted with the Gyrodrive facility. I thought they were standard diesel-electric hybrids. They would still appear to demonstrate the characteristics you described in your blog. You don’t seem to have mentioned the recent (December 2017) closure of the GoAhead depot at Belvedere. This was, of course, originally opened by Harris Bus that esteemed operated originating in that fine West Essex town of Grays. The Belvedere bus depot closed in December. The site was originally set up by Harris Bus (the bus operating offshoot of Harris Coaches based in West Thurrock) in 1998 to house its operations that had moved from the London Borough of Bexley base at Crayford. The Crayford base had itself been previously used by Maidstone Boroughline. Harris took over some of their operations, but needed a more suitable base when they won the 108 cross river service. Harris Bus expanded too fast and under costed their London operations and went into receivership in 2000. They were effectively re-nationalised in a similar manner to some of the railway franchises and taken over by London Buses under the guise of East Thames Buses. East Thames Buses was created to take over failed contracts pending procuring new operators. In October 2009, East Thames Buses was sold to Go-Ahead London. Even though Belvedere was a London General Garage it operated as a satellite of London Central's Bexleyheath garage. All of Belvedere's engineering and fleet and staff management was done at or organised by Bexleyheath. It had proved to be an inconveniently expensive unit as only routes 180 and 244 plus night route N1 and school route 669 were operated from there in the end. It closed on 1 December 2017 when the lease expired. Routes 180 and N1 transferred to the recently opened Morden Wharf bus garage in Greenwich, while Routes 244 and 669 transferred to Bexleyheath which had  some space freed as a result of other tender losses".

Some good news; Erith Riverside Gardens have finally got connected to the mains water supply. This means that the Friends of Riverside Gardens Erith (FORGE) will in future be able to water the gardens in the summer. As I wrote some time ago, plants and bushes planted by a contractor for Bexley Council last year died after the contractor neglected to water them during the very hot spring and early summer. FORGE members, myself included, had offered to water the gardens, but we were told that no water supply was actually available on the site. That has now been rectified, and there is to be an official opening of the new water tap / hose facility, along with  Councillor June Slaughter, Councillor Peter Craske, Cabinet Member for Community Safety, Environment and Leisure and Colin Rowland, Head of Parks and Open Spaces on Monday 19th March 2018,  at 12 noon. FORGE are also getting a notice board on site where news and information regarding the Riverside Gardens can be displayed. I know it is short notice (FORGE were only informed of the presentation on Friday morning of last week), but if you can make it to the opening at midday on Monday, I will be there with my camera. 

The two photos above show Belvedere Police Station in Nuxley Road, Upper Belvedere. The upper of the two photographs was taken in August 1968 when the Police Station had not long been opened. The lower photo was taken by me last Monday afternoon, and shows the former Police Station before it is demolished to make way for flats. All of the outside signage and the iconic blue light that hung next to the main entrance have now been removed in preparation for demolition. I am not certain if the large emergency generator that was located in a dedicated area to the rear of the station has now been removed; I can recall that on the night of the 1987 hurricane, when the entire area was blacked out due to downed power cables, the Police Station was the only building still lit, due to its independent generator system. It is currently unclear who the owner of the building now is; the last time that I was able to ascertain, the status of the old Police station was "Under Offer". Large concrete barriers have been placed over the entrances to the car park at the front of the building to prevent locals from using it to park whilst visiting Belvedere Village. It is a prime site for a residential development, located as it is on the corner of Nuxley Road and Woolwich Road. The decision for the Metropolitan Police to dispose of Belvedere Police Station has been on the cards for a very long time. The station has been only used on a part time, limited hours basis for years, and the formal decision to close it and sell it off was started back in 2013. The document proposing the closure of Belvedere Police Station states:- "In 2013 MOPAC carried out extensive consultation on both the draft Police and Crime Plan 2013-16 and the proposed local police estate and public access.  In respect of Bexley this highlighted that Belvedere Police Station was not suitable to be retained in the longer term as it did not meet operational requirements. The site was to be retained until alternative accommodation for both the operational teams and the contact point could be provided. Operational teams currently in Belvedere Police Station will be re-located between Pier Road in Erith and Bexleyheath Police Station. More agile working practices and an element of investment is necessary to achieve this arrangement. The Contact Point is proposed to be re-located to Asda in lower Belvedere. Upon the above re-locations the Belvedere Police Station will be disposed of. The sale of Belvedere Police Station will generate a capital receipt which will be used to support the MOPAC/MPS Capital Programme. The disposal will also generate annual revenue savings of £83,000. The investment to achieve the change is estimated at £8,000, and will be met from within existing MPS budgets. The report confirms the recommended option represents the best option that will support the delivery of a leaner estate which is lower in cost to run and is fit for purpose complying with modern standards, and will therefore assist MOPAC securing the maintenance of the Metropolitan Police Force, and ensure that it is efficient and effective, as required under Section 3(6) of the Act". In essence, Belvedere Police Station has been shut and sold off to save the Metropolitan Police £91,000 a year - only a little more than is paid to employ a single Chief Superintendent. I am not sure how this is meant to represent good value for money, but the decision has been made, and the current situation is a "done deal". What do you think? Leave a comment below, or alternatively Email me at hugh.neal@gmail.com.

Fellow local Blogger Richard of The Thamesmead Grump has recently reported that his website is getting a lot of visits from what appear to be people living in the Russian Federation. I too have had a marked increase in hits from Russia, but not quite to the extent that Richard has noticed. He and I are in agreement that these are most probably Bots - automated software scripts programmed to surf specified websites. The reason for this is unclear. As regular reader will already know, neither Richard or I engage in international diplomacy or reporting on terrorism, so quite why we would be targetted by some Russian software Bots is a bit of a mystery. If anyone has any insight into this, please leave a message below, or Email me at hugh.neal@gmail.com.

Whilst I am well known for my personal dislike of travel, I know that I am rather unusual in this regard. A landmark has been reached in the last week which many holiday makers and business travellers will be very familiar with; The most popular and numerous passenger jet of all time has just sold its 10,000 aeroplane. The very long running Boeing 737 released its latest model last week, after being in production for fifty years. The 737 debuted in 1967, a time when demand for air travel started to boom. Boeing decided to cash in by making a smaller, cheaper plane to complement its long-haul ~200-seat 707 and the mid-sized and mid-range 727. The first 737, the model -100, carried up to 124 passengers on journeys up to 3,000km. Only 30 were made because airlines preferred the model -200 which added another dozen passengers and extended the plane’s range to almost 5,000km. Boeing’s history of the type says the company wanted to get the 737 to market fast and therefore used “the same upper lobe fuselage as the 707 and 727 so that the same upper deck cargo pallets could be used for all three jets.” But other elements were new in important ways: placing the engines beneath the wings made for a wider fuselage and six-abreast seating, which beat other small jets of the time. A flight deck capable of operation by a crew of two also made a difference, by reducing costs. Airlines therefore quickly came to appreciate the 737, as it added superior passenger capacity when compared to its competitors, could haul freight and had no trouble with rough runways which meant it could go where other planes could not. The -100 and -200 are known as the “Original” 737. Next came the “Classic” models. Introduced in 1984, the new -300, -400 and -500 models increased passenger capacity to 188, added new engine options and updated plenty of on-board technology. A bigger change arrived with the Next Generation 737, which debuted in 1993 and was designed to make the type more competitive when compared to Airbus’ A320. The new −600, −700, −800, and −900 models could handle over 200 passengers in some configurations and featured larger wings and winglets to make them more efficient. The Next Generation planes sold well and in the year 2006 Boeing pushed the 5,000th plane out the door. That the type has remained popular is easy to see by the fact that it has taken 12 years to double that number. Indeed, Boeing has 4,600 orders to fill, most for the 737 Max variant that adds a new split wing, quieter engines, passenger capacities up to 230 and range over 7,000km. The plane has also spawned several military variants and a line of business jets. The type arguably made low-cost airlines possible: pioneering carriers Southwest Airlines and Ryanair both made the 737 the only model they would fly, which helped them to reduce costs. Airlines are now putting the 737 MAX to work on transatlantic flights and other routes once thought unsuitable for single-aisle aircraft. So popular is the 737 family that Boeing recently announced it would increase production from 47 to 52 a month. Airbus will operate at a similar pace as it works to fill the 5,000-plus orders on its books for the A320. Airbus, however, has only delivered around 7,000 A320s, making the 737 the most common passenger aircraft in the skies. And that is a position it looks set to enjoy for many years to come.

Now for the weekly safety and security updates from Bexley Borough Neighbourhood Watch Association. Firstly from Barnehurst ward:- "Another fantastic week for Barnehurst ward with no crimes of note reported On 7th March the team assisted Crayford ward and Fraud investigators from the local authority to carry out warrants in Crayford and Erith. This resulted in an arrest for fraud related offences Sadly the team said farewell to Gwen Biagioni, Neighbourhood watch co-ordinator for Dorothy Evans Close, who is standing down due to health reasons. Gwen ably assisted by her husband Eric is one of the longest serving coordinators who has dedicated over 20 years to neighbourhood watch and will greatly missed by the team, (we will keep in touch Gwen) A big thank you to another resident who has volunteered to take over the scheme. Our next in door Drop in surgery will be on the 27th March 2018 at Barnehurst Golf Course at 1PM. Please join us for a chat about local issues that may be concerning you and crime prevention advice We will also be holding pop up surgery’s at various locations across the ward utilising the boroughs CCTV van (or other vehicles if unavailable) to give residents who may not be comfortable attending our indoor sessions a chance to talk to police in a less formal environment. Please follow us on twitter @MPSBarnehurst and Face Book - Barnehurst Police, where dates and locations will be advertised". Belvedere ward:- "On Tuesday 13th March 2018 at about 8:30pm there was a fatal collision on Picardy Manor Way at the junction with Anderson Way. A 60 year old male who was the driver of a Mercedes was announced dead at the scene. A dark coloured Audi was involved however failed to stop at the scene of the accident, we urge anyone with any information to get in touch with the team. On Wednesday 7th March PC Rob and PC Ash stopped two males in relation to an incident outside the Erith Police base. The two males were arrested for possession with intent to supply class A drugs. The male arrested by PC Ash was also arrested for theft and the male arrested by PC Rob was arrested for possession of an offensive weapon, namely a large kitchen knife. The investigation remains on-going. The team received calls of an off road bike riding around Franks Park on Tuesday 13th March. While Franks Park is not currently covered by the Belvedere team, we will inherit it in May 2018, as such we attended the call. We recognised the males on the off road bike and managed to stop them. They have been issued with a “section 59” warning, which if given again, whether in the same vehicle or a different vehicle, means the vehicle will be seized. Finally, on Wednesday 14th March 2018 PC Rob arrested a female who was wanted for a breach of court order. Our next Community Contact Session is on the 19th March at 5pm in the Asda café". Brampton ward:- "Brampton had 1 Burglary over this week that occurred in Long Lane, rear access was gained by unknown suspects by smashing a kitchen window , jewellery was stolen. Prosecco and chocolates were stolen from Co Op Long lane during a shoplift Theft of a motor vehicle in Fairlawn Avenue , a motor bike was taken from the driveway Theft from a motor vehicle in Barrington road , a mobile phone was stolen , please do not leave anything in or on show in vehicles Incidents in Pickford lane were communications act offence , indecent photos shown without permission and public order offence when a victim was sworn at by an unknown suspect. An Harassment offence occurred in Mayfair Avenue victim was sent letters that caused Harassment , Alarm and Distress. A person was arrested for possession with intent to supply a psychoactive substance (nitrous oxide) in Brampton Road". Christchurch ward:- "Over the last week we have had 5 burglaries reported on the ward. Below is a brief summary of them: 04/03/2018 – Midhurst Hill Bexleyheath. Entry was gained via a rear ground floor window and property stolen. Burglary was reported on the 12/03/2018 05/03/2018 – Lewin Road Bexleyheath. Rear door was smashed and entry gained. Burglary was reported on the 07/03/2018 07/03/2018 – Midhurst Hill Bexleyheath. Entry was gained via a rear patio door. 13/03/2018 – Olron Crescent Bexleyheath. Patio door window smashed to gain entry. 13/03/2018 – Olron Crescent Bexleyheath. Patio door window smashed to gain entry. We have also had two reports of items stolen. One was a mobile phone and the other was a purse. Brief details below: 12/03/2018 – Phone was stolen from whilst victim was in the Bowling Alley. Phone was left with clothing and was then taken. 07/03/2018 – Purse was stolen from victim and then cards were used. After reports of youths being anti-social on push bikes. The team had conducted patrols around Iris Avenue and Upton Road, numerous amounts of stops were also conducted. Youths were advised about behaviour and of possible letters to parents. Bexley Police are spending a week raising awareness about Child Sexual Exploitation. As a result of this the Christchurch team were out on the Broadway last Monday and Tuesday, engaging with young people to raise awareness". Colyers ward:- "Three vehicles have been stolen from the ABC roads this week. The most recent being at approx. 10am on Wednesday when a blue Volkswagen Carravalle van was lifted from outside the owners house in Appledore Avenue by a green pick up truck. A neighbour spoke to the driver of the truck but didn't think anything was suspicious. The truck was sign written 'Pick a Part', the driver is described as white approx. 50 years of age with dark hair. With the snow hopefully well behind us, and spring on its way, it is back to business as normal here on Colyers Ward. Starting with some good news, we have not had any burglaries in the last week. This is a great outcome and long may that figure stay at zero!! In regards to motor vehicle crime, we have had two vehicles stolen. One was in Cumbrian Avenue, where the car was clamped to be reclaimed. However when the enforcement officer returned to collect the vehicle, the clamp was there but the vehicle had gone. The other was a straight forward theft from outside 21 Beechfield Road, where the vehicle was stolen despite being locked. In other news, the team has assisted with some of the disorder that took place in Erith Town Centre last week, while work continues at Hampton House to deal with the ongoing ASB/drug issues currently taking place at the location. Please continue to be vigilant, keep your possessions locked and secured, and above all, stay safe". Crayford ward:- "Thankfully crime has been quite low this week. There have been reports of shoplifting and domestic assaults but generally we do not include these crimes in this report. Between 18.00 on 06/03/2018 and 11.30 on 07/03/2018 the seals were damaged on windows of a Mazda parked behind the flats in Green Place. On 08/03/2018 between 04.30 and 15.00 a Vauxhall Astra had all four tyres deliberately punctured whilst parked in a car park on the Acorn Estate on Crayford Road. On the 10/03/2018 a lady had her bank card stolen whilst shopping at Sainsbury's. She had paid for her goods and believed she had replaced her bank card in her purse. The card was used to withdraw cash and buy other goods. The only way the suspect could have obtained the pin number was by seeing it when the card was used. The card was stopped so that further transactions were declined. Please be sure to cover your pin when using your card in a public place. Between 15.00 on 09/03/2018 and 06.00 on 12/03/2018 a shed by a marketing office at Acorn Industrial Estate was broken in to by removing a padlock and tools were stolen from within. Between 16.00 and 17.30 on 10/03/2018 business in Crayford Road was broken into and tools and clothing were stolen, a padlock was broken to force entry. A CPN (Community Protection Notice) was issued to a youth who had been causing anti-social behaviour at Town Hall Square and the Europa Gym. Two home visit were also made to youths who had caused anti-social behaviour at Town Hall Square, each youth agreed not to go there again and was very apologetic, the parents were very much on board and pleased that the issue had been highlighted to them. PC Scott Gardiner and PC Chris Murphy have issued several process tickets this week for offences including jumping a red light, using a mobile phone whilst driving, no insurance on a vehicle. At other times, words of advice were given". Erith ward:- "In community work from last week PC Tom + PC Gill visited Trinity Secondary School, visited the Sikh Temple to speak with the new president and held a pop up surgery in Erith Library. All local hotspots were patrolled: Compton place, West Street and Erith High Street. Praise for weekly NHW Champion - Pam from Sherwood House. A massive well done to Pam who brought to PCSO Adam and PCSO Mark's (North End ward) attention that there was a fight going on in Erith High Street where it looked as if a knife was seen. We made our way to the area and with some great work from Erith town centre security, we managed to find those involved. Arrests were made as well as a knife being found. Without Pam’s quick thinking in letting us know what was going on, we would not have found those involved as fast as well did. Also great work from the Belvedere Safer Neighbourhoods Policing team who rushed out of the office to join us even though they were due off shift. PC Ash and PC Rob both made arrests. This shows what great work can be done by a NHW member. Crimes from the last week: Theft of a motor vehicle in Rutland Gate, Silver Spring Close, West Street and Lower Road; Burglary in Stanmore Road and Lower Road; Shoplifting in Iceland. Looks like we are being hit with quite a few thefts of motor vehicles".  Lesnes Abbey ward:- "Crimes from Wednesday 7th March to Wednesday 14th March. Burglaries on Tuesday 13/03/18 a burglary occurred in Bedonwell Road between the hours of 12:00pm and 04:00pm. Entry was via the front door, however the porch door was not fully locked. Motor Vehicle Crimes Between the hours of 10:00pm of Wednesday 07/03/18 and 10:00am Thursday 08/03/18 a vehicle parked in Wolvercote Road was broken into and items taken. Date for your diary - Police Surgery on Tuesday 20/03/18 between the hours of 4:00pm and 5:00pm at the Bostall Library, King Harold's Way. Follow Lesnes Abbey on twitter@mpslesnesabbey Any Burglary or Motor Vehicle Crime prevention information wanted, Contact the Lesnes Abbey team below on the details below. PCSO Dennis Hobbs 7253 RY Lesnes Abbey Dedicated Ward officer, Thamesmead East Police Base".  North End ward:- " On 08/03/2018 PC Brookes-Smith arrested a male for possession of cannabis after he was stopped and searched on Whitehall Lane and found in possession of a small amount of cannabis resin. The male was unable to produce any form of identification and as such, he was arrested and taken to Plumstead Custody where he later received an Adult Caution. The male was also flagged up as being of interest to immigration. Almost simultaneously while PC Brookes Smith and PC Telfer had the male stopped on Whitehall Lane, PCSO Pigott assisted with a call to Erith Town Centre in company with a number of officers including officers from Belvedere and Erith Safer Neighbourhood Teams. There were reports of a large scale fight involving weapons and during the chaotic incident PCSO Pigott detained a suspect and provided excellent radio commentary. As a result of great work by all involved, two males were arrested for a variety of offences including affray, possession of offensive weapon and drugs related offences. Unfortunately we did have a burglary on the ward during the early hours of 10/03/2018 on Whitehall Lane. The suspects have stolen a vehicle which was located on the drive after entering from the rear of the property and taking the keys. Reassurance was conducted with thanks by our colleagues from Erith and Northumberland Health LPT in our absence. It is worth remembering to keep car keys well out of view and in a safe place especially if you have valuable vehicles on the drive. A male was searched for drugs on Hazel Road on 13/03/2018 and found to be in possession of a partially smoked cannabis joint. He was suitably given a cannabis warning. Finally, we have been receiving reports of an increase in Fly Tipping on Ray Lamb Way (Erith Marshes) and at the entrance to the footpath near Erith Yacht Club. Although the council are aware we would ask residents to be vigilant and to pass any relevant information onto us as soon as possible". Northumberland Heath ward:-"Two burglaries in Northumberland Heath over the last week. The first burglary took place in Northumberland Park on Wednesday March 7th between 12.30 – 9.20pm. The victim was burgled previously in February of this year. The suspect entered the property by kicking a piece of board off the back door which the victim placed over the broken glass from the previous incident. A laptop was stolen from the address. The second burglary in Bedonwell Road took place between Friday March 9th 1800 to Saturday 10th March at 2.50pm. The victims were on holiday at the time of the incident and a family member was checking the property daily when the burglary was discovered. It is believed the family were targeted for Asian gold. It is unclear what was stolen as the family have just returned. The suspects entered the property having jumped fences in neighbouring gardens. The rear kitchen door was smashed in and an untidy tidy search was conducted in the property. Two thefts from motor vehicles this week. A light was stolen from a van in Walsingham walk overnight on Friday 9th March and theft of number plates in Ethelbert Road also on Friday evening". Thamesmead East ward:-"Criminal Damage to Motor Vehicle – Monday 05/03/17 between 9pm – 9am Lime Row informed by the mechanic that a very sharp object was used to puncture the tyre, believed deliberate. Theft of Motor vehicle - Tuesday 06/03/18 between 11pm-5am Thamesbank Place Theft of Motor Vehicle – Saturday 10/03/18 between 7pm – 7am Glendale Way PC’s Nana and Pruden issued Community Protection Notices to 2 males and 1 female all were aggressively begging in Wilton Road. If the continue they will be fined. PC’s also assisted Bexleyheath CID in arresting a person wanted for Public order Act".

Finally a short flashback to last Summer in Erith Riverside Gardens, with a video showing the Erith Lighthouse pop - up restaurant and bar. I gather there are plans for further events in the future, though at present the details are not very clear. No doubt I will be able to report in more detail closer to the time. Please feel free to leave a comment below, or Email me at hugh.neal@gmail.com.