Transport geeks can enjoy a bit of a busman’s holiday next weekend, when heritage London Transport buses take to the roads of south London to provide a ride back into the 1950s and ’60s.

Request stop: there will be a special service next Saturday

Harking back to an era of rickets and rationing, city-wide smogs and a title-winning Spurs team (these buses go back a verrrry long way…), the London Bus Museum is staging a Heritage Open Day on a couple of routes between Lewisham, Bromley and Chislehurst on Saturday, September 14.

Many of a certain age still hanker after the age of the Routemaster, with its open deck and two-person crew, including a cheery conductor to take your fares while the bus was on the move, and its predecessor the RT, and in between the regular 2024 services running on the day, these will be the heritage vehicles serving the 261 and 61 routes between 10am and 5pm.

“People wanting to ride one of these buses can simply ‘put out their hand at any 61 or 261 bus stop’ to be picked up by a heritage bus,” the Bus Museum says.

The RT was the largest standardised bus fleet in the world during the 1950s, while its successor the Routemaster provided sterling service in London until very recently.

The day will also have a charitable cause, with Stagecoach London holding an Open Day at Bromley Garage, where for a small entry fee you can see a range of vintage vehicles on display between 11am and 4pm.

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