EASTERN COUNTIES PHOTOS FOR SALE

I have a vast collection of photographs and slides many of which i have are duplicates so very shortly i will be adding a page on here of stuff i have for sale all have bought from various sellers on e bay so are copyright unknown,so i thought i would include some on here tonight, firstly we see Eastern Counties Leyland National LN 784 DPW 784T at an outstation which i can't remember during the 1980's. Below that we have Ipswich allocated LS 812 3812 PW during the 1970's now repainted into National Express not as good as the Cream/Maroon livery but it's growing on me. Finally many Eastern Counties/Cambus Bristol RE's found new homes in Deregulation including RL 522 HPW 522L with Blue Bus Services in Newcastle.Photos are priced at just 50p each plus 70p postage, if you have a requirement for certain types of bus please let me know i also offer my own photos on Flickr for the same price.

THIS WEEK IN PHOTOS

Beeston's Van Hool Volvo B10M 226 LRB outside Ipswich School today.

Simmonds Volvo B10M/Van Hool Ailizee DSK 848 on a rare visit to Ipswich.

 Not unusual  just rather a nice photo if i dare say so First Ipswich Volvo B7TL 32489 AU53 HKG on the 66.

Usually on the 4 Ipswich Buses East Lancs Transbus Dart 86 had strayed on to the 15A on Monday morning which now regularly has one single decker allocated to it Monday to Friday.

EASTERN COUNTIES MAP 1964

I thought this might be of interest to some of you what i have done is to enlarge this as much as i possibly can to fit into the page on the blog, i have had to omit the western area simply because it would of been even bigger what you see is the area covered by Eastern Counties 51 years ago in 1964, the amount of work that has been lost over the years is quite staggering, many of these i would imagine at the time would have hardly paid the way even then, as a piece of historic interest it's worth showing. In other news Ipswich based 20514 WV02 EUP has returned to First Ipswich after it's refurbishment.

FLASHBACK WEDNESDAY

 So i won't be be accused of First Ipswich favouritism tonight's flashback consists of two different Ipswich pictures firstly we see East Lancs Dennis Falcon 101 YDX 101Y at Tower Ramparts when fairly new and in the second picture we have AEC Regent V 64 ADX 64B post 1980 when Tower Ramparts School had been taken down, sister bus SDX 58? is behind on the 1 to Bourne Bridge that Ipswich Buses no longer serve, 64 is on the 1A to Maidenhall which of course is now the 15.

MORE FEC ACQUIRED BUSES 2000-2005

Today i have uploaded the second section of the First Eastern Counties acquired vehicles which takes us from 2000-200, the next section will have to wait as it needs checking and updating. Above we see 20506 AO02 RBX a Volvo B12M/Plaxton Paragon on the X1 back in 2005, new in 2005 the majority passed to First Glasgow in 2008/09  with two 20500/01 going to Essex. Below we see one of the many Dennis Dart/Wright Handybus which were cascaded out of London during 2000, seen in the initial livery that they carried is 45321(499) on the 42 to Fairstead in Kings Lynn. Below that is 32493 AU53 HKL the last of the Volvo B7TL/ALX 400's bought new for Ipswich back in late 2003 for the 66 to Martlesham, and still to be found today on the 66, below that we see one of the awful Volvo B6's that Ipswich inherited from Glasgow is 48015 L105 XSU a Alexander Dash which were somewhat better than the native Plaxton ones 48084-93.

EASTERN COUNTIES IN THE LATE 90'S/EARLY NOUGHTIES

All photos Copyright Unknown.

On the front of the blog you will now an new addition, of all buses acquired by First between August 1996 and 1999, when i find time i will add the other pages from 2000-2015. so to celebrate the time in question i have added a few pictures from the time in question, although the above photo is from 2003 it represents First Norwich's first foray into Low Floor Easy Access buses in August 1996 seen here is 43437 P437 NEX when new transferred to Ipswich in 2003 was one of the first withdrawals of the batch in July 2011. Ipswich hanged on to the Bristol VR near enough to the end of VR operation finally succumbing to withdrawal in 2002 here we see VR 287 VEX 287X an long time Ipswich stalwart which transferred to Devon & Cornwall, finally below we see an bus bought from First's Beeline operation in 34875 F175 LBL an Leyland Olympian with an Northern Counties body on the 99 when it terminated in Southwold, seen here in Lowestoft bus station.

MORE ODD EASTERN COUNTIES BUSES FROM THE B.BEESTON TAKEOVER

DS 980 KBJ 968 an Dennis Lancet/Mulliner was the longest lasting of The B.Beeston fleet acquired in 1951, originally repainted into coach livery, it survived long enough to receive bus livery in 1955,seen here leaving Victoria Coach Station.

Now i must say i like odd buses the stranger or the more uglier it doesn't bother me and Eastern Counties had quite a few during the 1930's to 1950's when they took over a fair few independent operators, which bought some quite strange buses and coaches to their fleet, which in the main was of Bristol and Leyland manufactured. Looking at 1951 in July Eastern Counties acquired the B. Beeston and Son of East Bergholt fleet,the goods carrier part of the business was kept as G.B Beeston and Son, Beeston had a garage at East Bergholt and a number of services which operated in the area between Ipswich and Colchester serving Mistley, Manningtree, Brantham and Bromley and with the takeover came 2 Albion PH114/Duple B20F  N969/70 DRT 346/7, 2 Bedford OWB/Duple B30F B917/8  ERT 883/FBJ 491, 2 Bedford OB/Duple B20F B919/20, 1 Commer Commando/Thurgood C33F C990 JRR 374, 2 Maudslay Marathon/Plaxon C32F HRT 655/JBJ 12, 1 Austin K4/VT/Thurgood C29F T890 NHK 159, 1 AEC Regal III/Duple C35F KS 900 HRT 330, 1 Austin CXB/Thurgood C29F T891 JBJ 190, 1 Dennis Lancet/Gurney Nutting C35F KBJ 314, 1 Dennis Lancet/Mulliner C35F DS 980  and  2 Albion FT39N/Thurgood FB31F N972/1 KBJ 830/1.

 3 More Vehicles were on order at the time of the takeover 2 Maudslay Marathon/Gurney Nutting FC37F and a solitary Albion chassis for which Eastern Counties ordered an ECW body and was delivered in June 1953, of these buses and coaches the 4 Bedford OB/OW's and the 2 Albion PH114 lasted only a year, the Austin K4/VT and Austin CXB two years later. The solitary AEC Regal III and the two Maudslay Marathon left in 1957, the other Dennis Lancet/Gurney Nutting left in 1958, below you will see one of the two Albion FT39N's with Thurgood bodies N972 KBJ 830.