24 Hours from Charing Cross - How far can you get by bus from London in a day?
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- čas přidán 26. 09. 2021
- Just how far can you get from central London by local bus in 24 hours? Join me as, for some reason, I leave Charing Cross at 3am to find out. #bus24
Wonderful! Ever since 2013 when I (a visitor from the US) was caught in travel chaos after the St Jude's Day storm and made my way from Cambridge by finding local buses to get to Harwich for the Netherlands ferry, I have dreamed of having a vacation entirely spent roaming around England on local buses. A national treasure you folks are lucky to have. Maybe someday!
National treasure at always inconsistent running times lol
Nice idea - hope you can do it!
@@mrvice8079 well they're a national treasure compared to America's buses
Just using my bus pass, I have just rolled your inspirational route into my own. Starting on Friday evening on the East Sussex coast the aim was Gretna some 400+ miles. Some deviations from your route along the way. By taking the Greenline 757 which runs through the night to Luton Airport from London. The first bus to Milton Keynes leaves at 05.30. Getting to MK earlier I improvised and made up more time.
Preston was my overnight and after a delightful journey through The Lakes. A change in Carlisle and you can still use the bus pass as far as Gretna. All in roughly 48 hours.
Thanks for the video, it brings much of it back.
You can travel by local bus from Reston VA to New York City with local train from Martin Airport to Aberdeen MD. But it will take you 2 days to do it.
I didn't know you could use your pass on the 757. You USED to be able to do it, but it was stopped. Has it again been introduced??
@@user-gt2ud2gw9e I did and with others passengers that night without question. There were restrictions for parts of the journey and am not totally clear of the current situation.
@@nielspemberton59 wow! that's some distance all right
Excellent - as ever. I can't help but feel that these videos will be even more interesting as they age. The video captures so much that we will take for granted - the people, their clothes, their cars, the advertisements. And such interesting commentary.
As a child we were always aware of the bell codes to the driver. One ring indicated someone needed to get off, two bells (only rung by the conductor) time to set off and finally the magic three bells, the bus is full, foot to floor full speed ahead. The sheer speed with the bus full, every square inch taken by standing passengers as it (seemingly) roared down the road even passing other buses.
Yes those days are long gone but still remembered by my sisters and I.
Thank you for your excellent videos.
Ps I live in states now, have never taken a bus ride very few train rides but thousands of miles driving my car.
Epic ! A really erudite and entertaining tour of a fair slice of England's heartland. Witty and informed commentary throughout. Michael Portillo has some serious competition.
The night buses in London are often surprisingly busy, usually with people who have to work very unsocial hours and who keep society ticking over. They are the ones who get paid the least, of course. A great video - very enjoyable and informative!
Thank you! And yes, far too many people think that London’s night buses are just a way to get people home from nightclubs. Nothing could be further from the truth!
The UK version of The Office put Slough on the map as much as the American version put Scranton on the map. The fact both versions are still talked about/referenced to this day speaks volumes. Ricky Gervais is a genius
Dear Leader, will you be sanctioning a Pyongyang Office series. No need to worry about copyright from those western imperial dogs.
I know you went to school in Switzerland but I never knew you liked the office. As an aside is there any way of you leaving power without nuclear war how about very steadily liberalising and open up North Korea ps well done on all those holes in one xxx
@@johnstevenson1709 🤣😅🤣😂😂🤣
Most of these towns are familiar to me, an American, because at one time or another Top Gear drove through them. It reminded me a bit of a TG challenge too! Nice to see a different perspective - I really enjoyed this.
Well that was an unexpected treat! A totally random selection on the part of CZcams, but one I thoroughly enjoyed from beginning to end, thank you! 😊
Thank you, glad you enjoyed!
This is dedication taken to a whole new level! I’ve traveled on trains almost non stop for as long as 6 hours, with the longest continual journey (which was Edinburgh to Merseyside with a extra helping of rail replacement bus, which was 10 hours), but this is simply a hugely interesting journey. I think this is a challenge I might attempt in the future as well.
Interesting fact - the scheduled bus from London to Warsaw takes exactly 24 hours, but it starts at Victoria (Green Line station to be exact. Before watching I must wonder if he can do better. Oh and BTW, if you wander, the bus to Warsaw is a truely afwful expirience. Even worse uf you speak Polish.
@@mancubwwa What operator? i used Sindbad and it was a decent experience (in 2019)
Hi Kieran, I am subscribed to you.
@@Monty13Transport hi
Well, if you're travelling across England by local bus, you're looking at a 6 or 7 o'clock start, and an 8 or 9 finish (although on occasion I've finished at 10).
During that time you're on about 12 bus routes, and generally you're doing the whole length of each route.
So of-course, you get breaks which you need for both food and toilet.
The all major important factor that separates this form of travel is that nothing comes anywhere close to the experience, socially and scenically.
Whether it be your car, bicycle, train, express coach, aeroplane - nothing absolutely nothing.
So, I would'nt exactly call it dedication,. It's adventure, big time !!! Rather like mountaineering compared to going for a walk.
How did I miss this before?! I found your channel this evening for your train trip from London. I absolutely love your content, dry wit and thoughtful commentary. Keep going mate! I'm just disappointed that I've run out of your content to watch! Thank you so much!
Thank you!
I wanted to say thank you for making this video and sharing your experience. It was a really enjoyable watch. The narration was informative without being over excitable. The maps and text added to the scenery and helped with following the journey. The music complimented it well. Altogether very professional. It also showed bus travel in a refreshingly good light. I was amazed how far you got. I won’t be trying to beat it but I do hope we get to hear of another of your adventures.
A very nice watch, thank you. It reminded me that about 50 years ago a friend and I brought, or persuaded our parents to buy, Green Rover tickets (as opposed to Red Rover tickets for cities). We had a day of travel but had to get home before the last bus and with paper only time tables I expect we just set off! As we both had only recently become teenagers it was quite an adventure. I remember a fair amount of walking as we ended up on busses that went from town to village and stopped so we had to walk to the next village and get buses to the next town then next village walk again etc
As somebody born in Slough, I can confidently say that there was never a roundabout under the Brunel bus station. The large roundabout was nearby, and at the junction of Wellington Street and William Street, and had a sunken centre for pedestrians with underpasses. That too has gone.
I am old enough I can recall the area before the developments of the late 1960s wiped out the area around Slough station. Opposite was the Royal Hotel, used by Queen Victoria on her way to Windsor Castle before the branch line to Windsor was built. A live cattle market used to be held close to the railway station until the middle of the 1960s, and the roads around the station, including on the site of the old bus station, used to have some rather grand Edwardian villas. The Licensed Victuallers private school, in another rather grand building, very close to the station survived into the 1980s to be demolished and replaced by a giant, hideous Tesco. But this sort of architectural vandalism was common. Sir William Herschel's home, Observatory House, on Windsor Road was demolished in the 1950s to be replaced by a nasty office block (since refurbished). He is buried, nearby, in Saint Laurence Church.
I also used to work in Slough Trading Estate, just a few hundred metres from Crossbow House used in the opening sequence of the Office which was then the base for Crane Packing, a company which specialised in mechanical seals, not packaging as people might think. It is still based in the Trading Estate, albeit as John Crane and part of the Smiths Group. Their new building is also called Crossbow House. Every single landmark in the opening sequence of The Office has now been redeveloped with the sole exception of the sign to Slough Trading Estate.
I'm also wondering if Thunderbirds is more famous than The Office, as that was filmed at Gerry Anderson's studio in Slough Trading Estate, just down from where they (still) make Mars Bars. I also went to school just a few hundred metres from the Trading Estate, and at a time where Slough Estates still had the remnants of its internal rail system running down the sides of and across the roads in front of factory bays. The little steam tank engines were, by that time (in the middle of the 1960s), reduced to a weekly function dragging rail oil tank trains to the estate's power station.
My mother, born into a poor working class family just a short distance from Slough Station in 1931, now lives in a little village just outside Aylesbury, so you have sort of traced part of her journey of 90 years in just a couple of hours.
The recommendation to build a huge airport at near Wing could well have been a factor in the local MP, one Robert Maxwell, losing his seat to the Conservatives in the 1970 general election. which effectively ended his burgeoning political career. It may be that there were two close shaves with disaster avoided at that point. John Betjamen, who wished friendly bombs to fall on Slough, was an influential member of the Wing Airport Resistance Association.
I've become really inspired by your journey. I've done loads of bus journeys since watching your video. Some of my longest ones are Bournemouth - Blandford - Yeovil , Bournemouth - Salisbury - Warminster - Bath , Bournemouth - Salisbury - Swindon & A planned future one im doing next week which is Bournemouth - Salisbury - Swindon - Oxford - London
I also really enjoyed watching this video. Great production!
As the blue bins were out on London Road in Derby, I guess you made your trip on a Friday!
Well done - and thanks for a lovely film
Impressive detective work - yes it was a Friday!
Really enjoyed this and your train trip! Thanks for sharing and i'm looking forward to your future adventures!
Thank you. Your 24 hour train journey popped up recommended by CZcams, followed by this. I enjoyed both.
Hope you do some more !!
Beautiful scenery. That's the England we love. Many thanks for the video.
Brilliant, loved the journey and the chance to see some local towns etc. The ending was funny.
what a fascinating clip !! Thanks !
I love these challenges and an happy that it generated so much interest. I will be exploring your channel more!
Thanks excellent video tickled my wanderlust.
that was truly amazing. thank you for the journey
Fantastic video, well researched and thought out. Look forward to more videos in future 👍🙂
Fascinating and educational! Congratulations 👏
Late night beer watching. I enjoyed it. And your train one. Thanks.
royalty free farty blues soundtracking a bloke filming his journey through rural East Midlands out of the bus window - THIS is the kind of stuff I live for, absolutely quality CZcams. Love those "ah i cant wait to binge watch all of this channel" moments
Love the description - thank you!
Great fun - interesting concept, great commentary and scenery. Thanks.
What a great way to actually *see* more of our lovely country. Really enjoyed that, thank you.
Thank you very much!
Love the fact how you use classical music most of the time - I will definitely watch another one of your videos AND subscribe! Keep up the good work!
Thank you!
A truly superb video. Came up at random but thoroughly enjoyable from start to finish. Many thanks for your efforts
Thank you!
Meditative, informative, drily humorous, historical! Please do more of these:)
I'm glad I found your channel, I remember following your journey live on Twitter but never quite made it through the whole thing and was wondering exactly where you ended up. It sure was an interesting journey.
Laughed like a drain for the first time in years at 6:26 and your imaginative description of Slough! Thank you for the brilliant video.
I don't know why CZcams offered this to me to view yesterday, but I'm very glad it did. I loved the music you chose, the photography, and the way you kept the pace going throughout. Many thanks for producing this excellent and fascinating film.
Thank you!
Finally, I made time to watch this and it was time well spent! Also makes me proud that you come to Manchester and Bolton - where I live now - and visited so many places from Buxton to Morecambe in the NW I also know well.
This whole trip and timetabling remind me of the journeys I made around Hungary by train, more than 2000km long with a single one-way ticket.
I viewed this one after enjoying your 24 hours from St Pancras video and was equally impressed. Please make some more.
As someone who grew up in Yorkshire and moved to Lancashire a year ago, I must say there’s a stark difference in the quality and amount of public transport (especially buses). I’d love to see how this would work heading north east, right of Manchester, as from my experience there are many more buses and routes connecting cities and large towns.
Most excellent, really enjoyed that. I want to go from the furthest point in Scotland down to lands end by bus avoiding national express or mega bus.
Great idea for a vid. You pretty quickly ruled my idea of a Eurolines out of bounds. Some patience must have been required on this trip. Hope to see more videos like this in future.
Congratulations on an epic odyssey. I enjoyed the soundtrack, it worked well with narration and scenery. A fun video.
Thank you for answering one of humanities great unanswered questions in such a witty and informative fashion.
Thank you! Glad humanity can now rest easy.
An absolutely fantastic video Jo, thank you. I loved the sights and sounds of urban, suburban and rural England, and your minimalist but insightful commentary. I was particularly taken with the apt music you chose for each stage of the journey. I watched the video sat on my balcony in a sweaty hot night in Bangkok, but you brought back many fond memories of a wet windswept country that I left 17 yrs ago. Thank you !
What a great video! And good choice of music if you ask me. Hope to see more videos like this in the future!
I remember reading through the twitter thread, I didn't realise there was an entire video to go along with it! Wonderful.
This is a wonderful video. I really enjoyed it. Superb.
I really enjoyed this video. I have often wondered what it would be like to travel a long distance by ordinary buses and you have provided the answer. The objective of seeing how far one can get in 24 hours is a delightfully pointless enterprise and such a thoroughly English thing to do. Your commentary was excellent and your delivery was just right and I enjoyed much of the musical accompaniment. I hope you found a comfortable hotel where you were able to have a well deserved good night's sleep. Many thanks.
Thank you! Had a Premier Inn booked in the assumption I’d get to Morecambe. To be honest, I was so knackered, anywhere would have done…
What a brilliant film and love the perfect musical choices. The historical snippets add the colour. Fascinating glimpse into how some of our finest architectural heritage has been sorely impacted by the infernal combustion engine and the growth of its never ending needs. Where next ?
Another work of art from you.
Great video! Really enjoyed it :)
Thank you so much for making sure there were proper *subtitles* on your videos
Great work!
I was just talking to my pensioner friend about whether he could travel to Grimsby on public transport buses at zero coast and then this video pops up, spoooooooky :) Great vid BTW
Grimsby should be doable!
A really interesting video, Only just shown up in my recommended.
Enjoyed seeing the route you planned out, I’ve planned some similar trips seeing how far I can get only using buses, and even planned John o Groats to Lands End only using buses (of course, no coaches), although I’m yet to really do any of them.
This might have given me the inspiration to finally give a few a go
Very much enjoyed the views of city, town, village and country - some new to me and some not. 🙂♥️
I used to drive the 192. Everything you said is accurate every day of the week 😂
Well done. I enjoyed the journey with you.
Great story thanks for your time and sacrifice
Thank you for showing Derby and Derbyshire/Peak District areas like Matlock Bath, I live here and it's nice to see from a different point of view 😊
amazing video, weird to see the bus i have used so many times on one of your videos. and the fact you went past my house on one of the clips in Buxton. love it mate
Also thank you for a great shoutout for local busses and how much they add to the quality of life of all denizens.
Thanks loved this , watched your train journey blog last night , but living in Wigan, I knew some of the places you pass through Xx
Love your unique concept of travel
Good stuff, lovely fim, those trips will be memorable. Back in the 1980's used to do trips like this from the Reading area into Wales to visit family. Trips like Reading- Oxford - Worcecter- Hereford - Hay- Brecon - Methyr -Pontypridd- Bridgend etc. Back then all thise services were all run by the National Bus Company and a day ticket cost £2.97.
Amazing! Thanks for sharing! It's amazing which long journeys you can take by ordinary buses. I'm sure around my way they still run buses from Fareham to winchester and havant to brighton and maybe more. Lookforward to any more of your future videos. Thank You 👍
The 700 no longer goes directly to Brighton from Havant. Hasn't done so for a few years.
This is wonderful
Well planned and edited video. I've driven a few of those routes also. Have subscribed.
Awesome effort
i am not sure what impressed me most about this trip, the huge amount of research or the actual trip itself either way I enjoyed it 😃
Nicely filmed Matey.
Great video.👍
36 minutes well spent.
Such a lovely video
Most folk in Belper get irate if you say they live in the North, however the hills that surround the town are the start of the Pennines ! They also do fabulous eggs Benedict in the bus station café which is certainly not a Northern thing 🤣fabulous film I enjoyed it a lot.
Excellent!
I've done York, but of-course the big thing to remember is I only can do such distances on Saturdays.
Also, things have become progressively more difficult since the pandemic.
With regard to Manchester, in fact you used to be able to make Keswick in one day (on Saturdays).
But that also has now become more difficult.
You can't rely on travel-line - you have to have your own expertise and that can mean trying with different options online long before you leave home.
And personal experience is king above anything else, especially with regard to changing points, different streets, stops, even different parts of town.
London has night buses, so in a 24-hour period, you want the overnight part to be across London. You could easily extend your journey by starting from somewhere on the other side of London, such as Orpington.
Indeed you could - can certainly do further in 24 hours than this, but I liked the idea of starting somewhere distinctive!
We are also fortunate around East Midlands Airport as the Blue (One I normally use for work to the nearby East Mids Gateway) and Yellow, operate 24 / 7.
CZcams recommended your train video this morning, which I watched straight away and have just finished this one. Enjoyed them both and can't help wondering what's next on your list?
Glad you enjoyed! A few ideas bouncing around at the moment, but not got a final plan yet. Hopefully something not too far in the future!
As the bus is going out of Belper on it's way to Buxton, you pass Belper Mill. During the 19th Century an American was so impressed by Belper Mill he built a replica in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, USA. Hence Belper has since been twinned with Pawtucket.
What a nice video!
Thank you!
Bravo! 🎉
Another belting Video! You've also gone past my local cafe
Thank you!
Great job
Absolutely brilliant! Great to finally be able to fully enjoy your very first offering. I've found the sound not as clear as later episodes & my hearing's not what it once was. I finally got
myself some earphones. Sorted! Btw there must be many contenders for the best view at the back of a bus station? The view at Gunwharf Quays, Portsmouth Harbour is one of my favourites. Possibly not technically a bus station though?
Glad you enjoyed it - and yes, the sound on this one is rubbish, I’m afraid, as my first foray into video making. Hopefully it has improved since!
I don’t think I’ve ever used Portsmouth’s bus station - only ever been there by train (and the view from Harbour station is certainly excellent) - must rectify that!
Next time I get to the UK I am going to have a go at this, then do your euro train trip.
Thank you, Brilliant!
So fun!
Bloody impressive!
It would be interesting to try this where I live in Brisbane and ask the question of how far you can go in a single day using only buses and none of the other transport modes.
Plugging some long routes into the official journey planner and selecting only "bus" didn't work but by splitting the journey up into multiple separate trips, I have a theoretical routing starting at the "Griffith Street at Coolongatta East" stop (the most southerly stop serviced by Translink without crossing into NSW which makes things slightly more annoying) to Noosa Heads Bus Station (one of the most northerly stops I can find). As-the-crow-flies distance is 202.90km and it would involve starting at 6am at the Griffith Street stop, catching buses 700, 738, 710, 727, 722, 729, 565, 555, 330, 680, 660, 649, 615 and 620 to arrive at Noosa Heads at 7pm.
Amazing that you could (in theory) do a journey of 202.9km in just 13 hours using buses including several points where the buses barely exist and the train is the intended way to get there. (the section on the 727/722/729 in particular would take 17 minutes on a single train but takes over an hour and a half on the 3 buses)
Less talk more video that's not a bus, this is a bus
Absolutely awesome video that I’ve been planning to watch for a while after seeing your twitter thread! Just a little disappointing that your voice is only coming out of my left headphone, so I’ll probably change the iphone output to mono audio for now!
Great videos from such a small channel. Really informative and even passed my home city of derby, keep them coming
A lovely tour including some places very familiar to me. Your commentary has a Sir John Betjeman feel to it - great to listen to. Good luck for your futher adventures!
Any comparison to Betjeman is high praise in my book! Thank you.
I've just watched both videos and thoroughly enjoyed them. What a total contrast, in nearly every way. Have you any plans for further marathon journeys?
Glad you enjoyed them! There’s a few plans bobbing around for when annual leave allows, but not finalised yet.
What a brilliant adventure and well presented video. Only just popped up as a suggestion after watching a Geoff Marshall #PurpleTrain vid! I think you could have bashed the full 24hrs by starting south of London, say Biggin Hill at 0035 on the 246 to Bromley South; then N3 to Trafalgar Square - I make that 363.75km
Definitely not the furthest you can get in 24 hours by bus, but I felt it needed a symbolic starting point!
Dude that's commitment. I am almost tempted to see how far I could go by bus here in the Netherlands.
Maybe a small tip for your #train24, I listen with headphones and your narrative is more quiet than the music, so I got to adjust the volume quite a bit during the video. Can you even that out in your editprog?
Looking forward to your train experience!
Thanks for the feedback - will do my best in the next one!
Interesting challenge would be how far east from London you would get on buses, including the night ferry from Harwich to Hoek van Holland. It must be possible to cross the Netherlands and go well into Germany....
Of course the Matlock to Buxton bit covers a much missed missing rail link to Manchester.
An epic journey!
I might have guessed you'd end up on a 40. A newer one too. It's usually older Scanias on that route and I don't think they've repainted those. Surprised there's one that late.
That’s the last 40 - and very helpful that it extends to Morecambe for a few extra miles!
03:05 Trafalgar Square
Bus N9 to heathrow Airport
04:39 Heathrow T5
Bus 7 to Slough
05:31 Slough Bus Station
Bus X74 to High Wycombe
06:30 High Wycombe Bus Station
Bus 300 to Aylesbury
07:45 Aylesbury Bus Station
Bus 100 to Milton Keynes
08:56 The Point, Milton Keynes
Buss X6 to Northampton
10:27 Northampton Bus Station
Bus X7 to Leicester
12:40 Leicester Gravel Street
Bus Skylink to Derby
14:45 Derby Bus Station
Bus TransPeak2 to Buxton
17:05 Buxton Market Place
Bus 199 to Stepping Hill, The Crown
18:19 Stepping Hill, The Crown
Bus 192 to Manchester Piccadilly Gardens
19:20 Manchester, Shudehill Interchange
Bus 8 to Bolton
20:50 Bolton Interchange
Bus 125 to Preston
23:15 Preston Bus Station
Bus 40 to Morecambe
00:20 Morecambe Bus Station
Absolutely brilliant! I thoroughly enjoyed that. I did once go from Eltham in London to Brecon in one day by bus. Also Weymouth to Eltham. One memorable Boxing Day I actually managed Eltham to Colchester by bus! It is possible to cover considerable distances by bus, it's just that few ever consider that as an option.
Brecon, you mad? :D I've got family there, and been looking for ways to get over there (From pretty much East Mids Airport), bulk of the trip being on train, but no matter what route you use, you are likely facing 2 - 3 hrs on a local bus.
Trains and the bus are expensive, thats the issue public transport faces in the UK
Not just expensive post COVID the buses in s York's are very unreliable of one or two buses just never turn up and the next driver will say something like no staff or some off sick.
I tried Chatham to Colchester by bus via bluewater X80 goes on the Dartford crossing
David how'd you do the Weymouth to Eltham one? I can work your trip out but unfortunately only as far as Winchester. Would love to hear your route!
Really enjoyed this. Sadly busses across the moors are pretty infrequent, I live around that area haha
Just watched this having watched the rail video, really enjoyed both of them, I'm guessing you have other ideas for these trips but have you considered an out and back bus journey? Round trip to the furthest point without retracing any of the route? With the London night busses it would be interesting to see how far out it is possible to get.
Not a bad idea at all!
3 in the morning. Something I would never do. I like how Trafalgar Square is busier at 3am than where I live at midday
wow I never thought that buses (not coaches) could go on motorways too - Ive been to Milton Keynes area and forgot theres so many roundabouts
nice commentary
Im not certain if its deliberate or not but your voice seems to be only on the left channel
thanks for the upload