Photo of the Week - Week 21:
Withdrawn WV45 is seen operating the 0740 service ex Glencullen displaying Route 118 on the 24th April 2012.
There's been a few issues with the site over the past few weeks, which are somewhat resolved now and normal service should resume. The last update seemed to disappear from the site after its upload, so if you missed the feature on AV443 and AV444, it can be found here. To make up for lack of updates, this week I upload something a bit special.
Glencullen will always be associated with route 44B, however it has been home of a few route numbers over the years, namely routes 46A, 116, 117 and 118 at different times. And all the numbers refer to just one morning departure from Glencullen that disappeared from the timetables a few years back but only stopped operating last year.
The departure was the 0740 ex Glencullen. It was introduced on the 22nd January 2001. This was the date that the 44B got a strange timetable with no less than 6 different termini and many different routes. This timetable was compiled after a meeting with Glencullen/Barnaculia residents, trying to get most out of the limited number of duties that would be assigned to the service. The success of the Stillorgan QBC saw peak hour only services spring up all over the south city. And Glencullen was not left out.
The 0740 was noted as "To Hawkins Street via Kilternan and Route 63". It was minibus operated upon introduction and would usually display 46A, which always made an unusual sighting. This minibus would then take up on Townsend Street as a Route 3 service to Belfield (though this may have been a work "as directed"), again an incredibly unusual allocation. By early 2004, the minibuses were withdrawn in Donnybrook, replaced by the WV midibus class which operated the service until its ultimate withdrawal. More recently the service displayed one of route numbers 116/117/118. This was due to these routes have the D'olier Street terminal point, whereas the 46A was extended cross city to Mountjoy Square initially and then onto Phoenix Park. The route was most like the 117, especially from Kilternan, however this number would soon dissapear from the scrolls. The 118 does serve Kilternan but the routing from there to the N11 QBC was very different, however in the final days of service Route number 118 was almost always used.
The exact routing of the service was as follows: From Glencullen (Ballybrack Terminus), then follow Route 44B to Glencullen Crossroads (at Johnnie Foxes). The 44B turns left at this junction, whereas the 0740 service continued straight on a(as shown in photo above) and headed towards Kilternan on the Ballybetagh Road (R116). The Ballybetagh Road provides the wide junction where the 63 terminates currently, so upon arrival in Kilternan the bus turned left and then immediately stopped at the Blue Church terminus of Route 63. It then followed Route 63 down the Glenamuck Road (not serving Ballyogan). It continued straight onto the Cabinteely Hill Road into Cornelscourt Village, where it turned left onto the Bray Road and then onto the N11. It then followed the N11 into the city to terminate at Hawkins Street.
On the 12th April 2009, the 44B was given a much simpler timetable with services operating between two consistent termini (Dundrum Luas Interchange - Glencullen (Ballybrack)). The 0740 disappeared from the timetable, however it continued to operate, albeit only during schoolterms. Though not interworked with the 44 boards, in the service's latter days the WV used would generally be parked up in Hawkins Street or Townsend Street and would be brought back to the garage by the driver of 1/44 upon completion of this early morning workout. This allowed for some unusual sightings of WVs parked up on either Hawkins Street or Townsend Street prior to the days when Route 44 became a typical WV route. The 0740 service was finally withdrawn in June 2012.
Donnybrook's WV48 is seen on the 0740 ex Glencullen service displaying Route 118 on Leeson Street on the 7th October 2011.