Aylesbury to Oxford and Abingdon

16th February 2023 

The county boundaries and bus routes combine in such a way in this part of the world to make it less than straightforward for a tour on this nature. Today, I had to leave the county town of Buckinghamshire to travel through Berkshire and on to Oxfordshire to visit Oxford, before continuing back into Berkshire to that county's county town of Abingdon.

 In January 2023 the government introduced a £2 cap on single bus fares in England.  I therefore decided to take advantage of this to make an early start at a time when my bus pass was not valid on the 0830 to High Wycombe.  There was a fair sprinkling of people travelling to work at this time in the morning  - and a few coming home, such as those we picked up at Stoke Mandeville hospital after their night shift.

The Red Line bus was a former London vehicle, with two doors although the middle one wasn't in use. The windows were filthy, which with it being a dull day made for a less than scenic ride. We passed through Princes Risborough without stopping but did pick up a few more people on the way into High Wycombe.

Cornmarket or "Pepper Pot" in High Wycombe

High Wycombe has a new, edge of centre shopping precinct, which has moved the centre of gravity of the town and left the old one somewhat run down. It did, nevertheless, contain a handy branch of Gregg's that supplied me with breakfast. 

 At one time the old A40, the main route to South Wales, would have passed through the old centre of town and it is still possible to imagine it doing so despite pedestrianisation.

First's X74 on to Slough was a more modern and comfortable vehicle - a Volvo hybrid. The route was mainly along main roads (including the A40) but also included an unexpected strtech of the M40 that allowed us to bypass Beaconsfield.  

Problems: Closed Roads

Buses are usually a safe, reliable and straightforward means of travel, but sometimes things go wrong and today was just one of those days. The bus station in Slough had burned down shortly before my visit, with buses transferred to stops on the dual carriageway outside.  I was actually waiting on the wrong side of the road for my next bus, something that I realised just in time.

The bus I wanted was First's service 8 to Windsor, which crossed the Thames on the outskirts of town and entered Berkshire.

BERKSHIRE County Town: Abingdon

Berkshire is one of the home counties and was recognised as the Royal County of Berkshire by the Queen in 1957. None of that stopped it losing its county council in 1974 or having large parts of the north of the county, including the county town, being administered by Oxfordshire!

 I was surprised when the service 8 bus dropped me off in a completely different part of the town to the one I'd expected. The information at the bus stop confirmed that my expectations were correct, but as I wanted to see a bit of the town anyway and had plenty of time for the next bus I wasn't too bothered.

I noticed a crowd gathering at the top of the High Street outside the castle, so joined it to see what was going on.  It was the "changing of the guard", whereby the "guard" come out of the castle, march around the town and go back in again.

The Changing of the Guard (and note the guard guarding the Guard!)

One of the numerous roads closed to facilitate this ceremony included the town's main bus stops thus explaining why I had been dropped elsewhere.  I realised that this might also disrupt the next bus - the 703 on to Bracknell - so set off on an expedition to find an alternative stop on a road that wouldn't be affected by the closures (Google Maps and the Catch that Bus" app were invaluable here).

I tracked down the 703 in time, but by then the roads had reopened and the 703 assumed its proper route, making my expedition unnecessary. On the way to Bracknell we called in at Legoland - a theme park surrounded by a sea of car parks - although a handful of visitors did alight and board here.

Wrong Route

A welcome lunch stop in Bracknell

Bracknell's bus station is pretty basic - just rows of shelters - and the travel office had been closed down. It did, however, still boast a traditional bus station cafe, where I had lunch consisting of a cheese toastie, mag of tea and a Bakewell Tart.  Luxury!

From Bracknell I'd planned to catch a Reading Buses service 4 to that town. I was a bit puzzled when an "X4" to Reading turned up, particularly as I'd already seen one leave during my lunch in the cafe. But none of the other passengers seemed bothered, so I got on, taking the view that an X4 was probably just a faster version of a 4, so what did it matter.

About ten minutes out of Bracknell, the driver stopped the bus and announced to the passengers that he was on the wrong route and should have been doing a "4" all along.  Far from being just a minor variant, the two routes left Bracknell in completely different directions, so we had to return to the bus station and start again. By the time we'd done that we were half an hour late and stayed that way all the way to Reading.

Late Running

I had planned to spend some time in Reading and had a number of options for onward travel, so the delay didn't overly bother me.  However, my chosen bus on to Oxford was also half an hour late, although I don't know why, meaning that I would now be arriving in Abingdon after dark.

The Thames Travel X39 on to Oxford was another double-decker (as were four out of the six buses used today), the better to enjoy the views over the rolling countryside en-route. Soon after leaving the town centre we crossed the River Thames, which is the traditional boundary, and although I hadn't yet got to Berkshire's county town I was now in Oxfordshire.

OXFORDSHIRE  County Town: Oxford

Oxfordshire is a largely rural county, with Oxford and Banbury being the only towns of any size. In the 1974 re-organisation, Berkshire's county council was abolished and parts of the county were transferred to Oxfordshire's administration, leading to the strange situation where Berkshire's county town, Abingdon, is now administered by Oxfordshire County Council.

Despite open roads and few stops for passengers, our driver was unable to make up much of the 30 minutes delay. We were still late at Wallingford, where there was a change of driver, and still late into Oxford, where it was now rush hour and the streets were noticeably busy with both traffic and pedestrians.

Almost a breakdown

The bus to Abingdon that almost broke down.

 I know Oxford reasonably well so had decided not to spend the night here, but push on to Abingdon. I hadn't done my planning very well though, so after I'd alighted from the X39 at the Carfax, instead of walking round the corner for a bus onto Abingdon, I wandered half way across the city centre to the terminus. At least here my next bus was waiting, already at the stop ten minutes before departure time.

When it was time to go however, the driver was unable to build up sufficient air in the system needed to operate the gears and brakes. It took several attempts but the driver obviously knew the vehicle and kept trying with a series of lengthy pauses between goes before he finally managed to get us away.

Strangely, this didn't mean we were late, as the timetable allowed a lot of running time to cope with Oxford's traffic, which today wasn't needed.  Nevertheless it was dark by the time we arrived in Abingdon, where fortunately my hotel was just a short walk from the stop.

Hertford to Aylesbury                                                                         Abingdon to Worcester