Offering residents of Putney & Roehampton a free lift between 9.30am and 3.30pm

Christmas Day is the one day of the year that no buses run in London, but once again, this year a free bus service will run on route 430 between Roehampton and Putney Bridge. It will be staffed by volunteers using a 1950s vintage RT bus. This service is the brainchild of Richard Shirley who owns the bus: "My friends and I will be providing a free vintage bus service on route 430 between Roehampton and Putney Bridge. We're doing this for fun, goodwill, and to promote our vintage bus hire".

The service will run hourly, leaving Roehampton Danebury Avenue from 09:30 until 15:30, and Putney Bridge Station from 10:00 until 16:00. In the morning the buses leaving Roehampton at 09:30, 10:30 and 11:30 will continue all the way to South Kensington, returning from South Kensington at 10:40, 11:40 and 12:40. Buses will stop at any route 430 bus stop.

Richard invites Putney and Roehamoton residents to hop on: "So do come out and visit a pub, church, friends and family, enjoy a walk by the river or in Richmond Park, or just bring the children for a ride. It’s Christmas Day and the journey’s on us!"




Why Putney?
" You might wonder why I chose Putney: I grew up in Fulham, where my father was a Church of England Priest and my mother a primary school teacher, so we were very involved in our local community, and had a sense of public service. I often return to Fulham to watch Fulham FC at Craven Cottage. I now live near Kingston Hill, so Putney is one of my local centres, and I'm there regularly. I wanted to find a route that connected people with a local centre where at least some of the pubs are open on Christmas Day, and there are plenty of churches. The route needed to be long enough to be some use, but short enough to run at a reasonable frequency with one vehicle. I have had an affection and affinity for the Putney and Roehampton area ever since making childhood trips by bus from Fulham to Putney Heath or Richmond Park."

December 11, 2019