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| I worked from Eastleigh
on a number of occasions. The atmosphere was
more relaxed than Southampton and the local
routes were quite short, in one case too short.
I should have known better, having lived in
Eastleigh until I was nearly eight. The 123
from the bus station, at that time between
Southampton Road and Market Street near the
site of the current Swan Shopping Centre,
ran via the train station to Campbell Road.
I got on the bus, rang the bell and took out
my ticket machine. The driver missed out the
station as was apparently normal on this journey
and went straight to Campbell Road where everyone
got off. Without paying. |
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| A
conductor at Eastleigh got himself promoted
to inspector. Due to take up his new appointment
on the Monday, he spent the Sunday riding
on buses in his new uniform. On Monday morning
we all gathered in the rest room in front
of a poster reading "For One Day Only,
Eastleigh Hants & Dorset Social Club Is
Proud To Present: 'H' The Great, Buses Will
Run On Time". When 'H' came in his faced
dropped and he looked horrified but one of
the drivers assured him the poster was because
he was one of the lads made good. He accepted
this and went to work happy! |
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| Another time, a driver
and I were sent to Eastleigh in a hurry, taking
a bus with us rather than catching a service
bus, to save time. When we reached the bus
station we were given a school run to do.
Already late, we set off and picked up about
a hundred children who we took to Colden Common.
Empty, we headed back to Eastleigh but screeched
to a halt at a railway bridge which was too
low for our bus. The Eastleigh depot only
had the old fashioned, low height buses with
the upstairs gangway on one side. Our type
of bus was forbidden on these routes. The
only reason we had gone through the arch on
the way out was because of the weight of the
children! |
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