Series of bus garage open days to celebrate the Year of the Bus

28 May 2014
All aboard for next in a series of bus garage open days this summer to celebrate the Year of the Bus

 NEXT STOP: ALPERTON BUS GARAGE OPEN DAY

DATE: SATURDAY 7 JUNE 2014

TIME: 10:30-16:00

LOCATION: 330 EALING ROAD, WEMBLEY HA0 4LL

£2 ADMISSION BY PROGRAMME WITH ALL PROCEEDS DONATED TO CHARITY  

On Saturday 7 June 2014, Alperton Bus Garage in north west London will open its doors to members of the public in the second of a series of bus garage open days across the capital in celebration of the Year of the Bus.  

The first bus garage open day was held at Catford on 10 May and attracted around 3,000 visitors.  

Visitors to Alperton Bus Garage, which is operated by Metroline and celebrates its 75th birthday this year, will get the chance to:

  • Take a free non-stop ride on vintage and other interesting buses from the garage, via either Harrow-on-the-Hill or to view Metroline's Central Engineering and Logistics Facility at West Perivale. There will be regular departures from 10:45 until 15:30
  • View the Year of the Bus mobile exhibition which tells the story of the London Bus and looks to its future
  • View old preserved vehicles
  • See behind the scenes in the maintenance area
  • Take part in family activities about how to use the transport system safely and responsibly with the Transport for London (TfL) Safety and Citizenship team and pick up your free bus-themed family activity pack
  • Get up close and personal with objects from the London Transport Museum collection and find out more about the stories behind them with the Tickets Please! handling collection
  • Browse the London Transport Museum pop-up shop selling exclusive Year of the Bus gifts, and stalls selling centenary merchandise and bus-related memorabilia.  

The bus garage open days are part of TfL's celebrations to mark the Year of the Bus, in partnership with London Transport Museum and the capital's bus operators.  

Events and activities are being held throughout 2014 to celebrate the role that London buses, bus drivers and the staff who support them play in keeping the capital moving, and mark a number of important anniversaries.

These include 60 years since the creation of the original and iconic Routemaster, 75 years since the launch of its predecessor the RT-type bus, and 100 years since hundreds of London buses were sent to the Western Front to play a crucial role during the First World War.  

Alperton Bus Garage was opened on 7 June 1939 next door to the London Underground station of the same name on the Piccadilly Line and was built to serve the expanding suburbs of north west London. Due to lack of facilities elsewhere, body overhauls were undertaken at the garage during the Second World War. Indeed, the garage itself suffered some bomb damage during this period. The garage was extended in the second half of the 1970s but still looks very similar to the original building constructed 75 years ago.  

Buses are a vital daily service for millions and one that is very local, with the vast majority of Londoners (95 per cent) never more than 400 metres from a bus stop.  Buses link homes to jobs, schools and hospitals in every part of the capital.  They are the backbone, and often the forgotten workhorses, of London's transport network.  

Other London bus garages opening their doors on Saturdays this summer are Stockwell Bus Garage (21 June), Fulwell Bus Garage (28 June), Potters Bar Bus Garage (5 July) and Walworth Bus Garage (19 July). There will also be an open day at Dartford Bus Garage on Sunday 7 September.  

Further information about bus garage open days and other Year of the Bus events can be found at www.tfl.gov.uk/yearofthebus and www.ltmuseum.co.uk  

The Year of the Bus is supported by and delivered in partnership with Exterion Media, Abellio, Arriva London, Clear Channel UK, Go-Ahead London, Metroline, RATP Dev UK Limited, Stagecoach, Wrightbus, Optare and telent Technology Services Ltd

  • Alperton Bus Garage has 84 buses operating on 6 routes. There are 320 staff based there of which over 260 are drivers
  • All proceeds generated from admission to the Alperton Bus Garage Open Day will be donated to The St Luke's Hospice in Kenton