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  • It is 1992 and KD 109 is "Proud Bean Irish". The bus is seen parked on Cathal Brugha Street , between operating services on the 51A. This route was one of a number of oddities within the Dublin Bus network. Every other route in the 51 series served the area around Clondalkin in one way or another. The 51A connected the City Centre with Beaumont Hospital via Ballybough, Drumcondra and Grace Park Road. It was one of the few routes operated by Clontarf Garage to travel down O'Connell Street on its outbound workings. In its latter years it terminated on Abbey Street. Also towards the end the route was operated by Harristown and Clontarf garages. It was removed from the network in April 2009. This meant that Clonliffe Road, parts of Griffith Avenue, and Grace Park Road lost their bus services. However towards the end the 51A operated on an infrequent basis, mainly running in the peaks. The 27B continues to serve Beaumont Hospital to/from the City Centre.
    KD 109 was delivered new to Dublin around 1981/1982 and spent all of its working life in Clontarf Garage. 15/08/1992

    Throwback Thursday (188) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

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    • A trip back twenty-one years this week to 1998. KD 128 is seen on Middle Abbey Street at the terminus of route 25. This route, like a lot of lot of Dublin bus routes, can trace its origins back to the era of the tram. The tram route connected Lucan village with the city centre at Bachelor's Walk, going via Chapelizod. With the demise of the tram in the middle of the Twentieth Century the bus took over. The route was subsequently extended to the Dodsboro to the west of Lucan village. The 25 route has decreased in importance over the years. In 1996 the 25A, which served the newer housing developments in Lucan, became a CitySwift route with a high frequency of services provided. One of the new single-deckers bought for this conversion can be seen behind KD 128. Today the 25, along with the 25A and 25B, terminate on the southside in Merrion Square.
      KD 128 was delivered new to Dublin around 1981/1982. This bus withdrawn by mid-1999 and the last KD was withdrawn in 2000.
      Neither Chapters Music Store, nor the book store that was across the road, are still on Abbey Street. Rather a combined shop is on Parnell Street. In front of the bus is a Telecom Eireann van, a year before the company was privatised. 22/08/1998

      Throwback Thursday (189) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

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      • it is a trip back twenty-five years this week to 1994. KD 172 is seen at Blackrock Station with a 114. The destination displays are slightly confusing as it is showing Sandyford Industrial Estate as the main destination, and "Via Airport" below it. The "via" routing is definitely wrong, and the main destination is partially accurate but should probably be in the "via" part.
        The 114 was introduced in 1987 as a DART Feeder service and ran from Blackrock to Kilcross via Sandyford Industrial Estate. A number of other Feeder services were introduced over the years such as the 113 and 115, but the 114 is the only one to survive. In 2006 the route was extended to Ticknock Hill. In January 2019 it was transferred to Go-Ahead Ireland as part of it winning the tender to operate some of the orbital/peripheral routes in the city.
        The terminus in Blackrock is also currently home to the 17 and the 46E. The latter is the only Dublin Bus route to operate from here (the 17 also being operated by Go-Ahead Ireland), and only has two departures a day, Monday to Friday.
        KD 172 was delivered new around 1981/82 to Donnybrook Garage and remained there all its life, being withdrawn from service in the latter-half of the 1990s.
        27/08/1994

        Throwback Thursday (190) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

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        • Originally posted by Csalem View Post
          it is a trip back twenty-five years this week to 1994. KD 172 is seen at Blackrock Station with a 114. The destination displays are slightly confusing as it is showing Sandyford Industrial Estate as the main destination, and "Via Airport" below it. The "via" routing is definitely wrong, and the main destination is partially accurate but should probably be in the "via" part.
          The 114 was introduced in 1987 as a DART Feeder service and ran from Blackrock to Kilcross via Sandyford Industrial Estate. A number of other Feeder services were introduced over the years such as the 113 and 115, but the 114 is the only one to survive. In 2006 the route was extended to Ticknock Hill. In January 2019 it was transferred to Go-Ahead Ireland as part of it winning the tender to operate some of the orbital/peripheral routes in the city.
          The terminus in Blackrock is also currently home to the 17 and the 46E. The latter is the only Dublin Bus route to operate from here (the 17 also being operated by Go-Ahead Ireland), and only has two departures a day, Monday to Friday.
          KD 172 was delivered new around 1981/82 to Donnybrook Garage and remained there all its life, being withdrawn from service in the latter-half of the 1990s.
          27/08/1994

          Throwback Thursday (190) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr
          I went on the 17 once from Sundrive.....I lost a part of my life it took that long....also never made it to a job interview...probably just as well

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          • Although route 25 only last appeared two weeks ago, I think it is worthy of inclusion again, only because there is so much happening in this shot. As a quick reminder, the route connects Dublin city centre with Dodsboro going via Lucan Village. In 1985, the city centre terminus was on Middle Abbey Street, as seen here.
            And as can be seen here, it was a very busy street at that time. On the left can be glimpsed Arnotts department store. It holds the distinction of being Dublin's oldest and largest department store, having been founded in 1843. Beside it is the Adelphi cinema. It opened around 1938/39 and closed in November 1995. It had been taken over by Arnotts and is now the exit from the multi-storey car park. Across the road, beside the bus, is the Cameo Cinema. On this date it was showing "Porky's Revenge" and "Revenge of the Nerds". Beside the cinema is PAB Travel which still trades to this day.
            Final item to note is the CIE bus stop, once ubiquitous around the city, but repainted and redesigned over the years since. One CIE stop managed to remain looking pretty much like this until 2018 before it was removed.
            D 787 was delivered new in 1976 and withdrawn in 1994. 04/09/1985

            Throwback Thursday (191) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

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            • A trip back to 2011 this week to see AV 120 on the 16A to Nutgrove. It is seen passing through Drumcondra on Dublin's northside as it heads south. AV 120 was delivered new to Dublin Bus in 2000. It was part of an order to operate Airlink services between Dublin City Centre and Dublin Airport. AV 116 to AV 128 were delivered in the special Airlink livery, while AV 129 and AV 130 were delivered in standard Dublin Bus livery. However all of them were delivered as dual-door buses. These were the last dual-door buses delivered until 2012 when the GT class started to arrive. Since then, every double-decker bus delivered to Dublin Bus has been dual-door. The arrival of the GT class in 2012 also heralded the beginning of the end for the AV class. AV 120 itself was withdrawn in 2013, having joined the regular fleet around 2009 when new VG-class buses arrived for the Airlink. And now in September 2019 the last of the 448-strong AV class is about to be withdrawn. The extremely similar AX-class will continue for a while, but the AV holds the distinction of being the first class of low-floor double-decker bus in the Dublin Bus fleet.
              The 16A used to run from Nutgrove on the southside to Dublin Airport on the northside. It was merged with the 16 (Ballinteer to Santry) in 2012 under Network Direct, with the route going from Ballinteer to Dublin Airport.
              Drumcondra, 11/09/2011

              Throwback Thursday (192) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

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              • It is September 1996 and RH 93 is in a bit of a whirl. The bus is seen on Clare Street operating a service on route 7. Although, the destination on the bus is wrong as it is operating inbound from Loughlinstown, and not outbound to it. Also the route did not go "via Custom House Quay". The route connects the city centre with Loughlinstown going via Blackrock, Dun Laoghaire and Sallynoggin. It can trace its roots back to the 19th century tram network. In 2016 Dublin Bus did a revision to the route and services to Cherrywood became route 7 and Loughlinstown became 7a.
                RH 93 was delivered new to Dublin Bus in 1991 and was withdrawn in 2003. It then moved to the UK where it remained in service until at least 2017.
                The bus is in an all-over ad for Whirlpool appliances. Prior to this the bus was in another all-over ad for JVC.
                Clare Street 21/09/1996

                Throwback Thursday (193) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

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                • A trip to 2012 this week to see VT 35 on the 116. This is one of the routes that only operates in the peaks, Monday to Friday. Currently the route runs from Whitechurch to Parnell Square, going via Dundrum, Sandyford and Stillorgan. Interestingly, the return journey starts on Leeson Street in the afternoon as it is aimed at returning school children home.
                  The route was introduced in May 1999 and over the years it has had a number of variations. For example, back in its early days it separate departures started in Whitechurch, Ballinteer, Clonskea and Sandyford. Three of these operated to Parnell Square (East or West), while two continued onto the northside to Dublin City University. There were five return workings from the city centre, two of which were in the morning after 9am. But by 2012 it was down to the two departures a day as mentioned before.
                  VT 35 was part of the second batch of Enviro 500s delivered to Dublin in 2007. 50 members of the class came that year following an initial delivery of 20 in 2005. VT 35 was originally allocated to Broadstone garage . but when the 145 was extended to Heuston Station in 2010, VT 21 to VT 35 moved to Donnybrook to join VT 1 to VT 20 there. Dublin is one of the few cities in the world where the Enviro 500 operates.
                  Westmoreland Street, 26/09/2012

                  Throwback Thursday (194) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

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                  • A trip back thirty-six years this week to a very different Dublin Airport, with a slightly unusual bus route.
                    KD 314 is seen on the departures road (at what would become Terminal 1 around thirty years in the future) at Dublin Airport. In the background is the car park and an office block. Today in 2019 that view is slightly different as a multi-storey car park has been built on some of that carpark, while the rest of it is the bus and coach area. The 41B of today passes through there, while no bus routes use the departure road. Also behind the office block today is the large Aer Lingus hangar which was built around 1990. That office building was also the Aer Lingus headquarters in 1983 but they subsequently relocated in the 2000s.
                    The 41B is an unusual route in some respects. It runs between Dublin City Centre and Rolestown, a small village near the Dublin / Meath border on the road between Swords and Ashbourne. Currently it has about 5 departures during the week in both directions, 4 on a Saturday and 3 on a Sunday. This is a frequency it has broadly maintained since the 1950s. And the departure times have been broadly similar too. However, currently only two buses during the week go via the Airport, whereas a few mored did back in 1983.
                    KD 314 was delivered new to Summerhill Garage in 1983 and remained in service until October 2000.
                    Finally the ad on the side mentions "Paddy & red". This of course refers to Paddy's Whiskey and red lemonade. 01/10/1983

                    Throwback Thursday (195) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

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                    • It is a trip back to 2012 to see RV 604 in its final days with Dublin Bus. The bus had been delivered exactly 13 years previously in October 1999. It was withdrawn in November 2012, a month after this photograph was taken and a month before the final Olympian was withdrawn. The bus went on to have a second career in Scotland, and was observed in service around Perth (Scotland) in 2018.
                      The bus is seen here on route 150. The destination is displaying "Willington", although the more usual display was "Rossmore". The 150 commenced in 1994 under the City Imp brand and replaced route 50. City Imp saw mini-buses replacing more usual buses on routes, but operating to a higher frequency. Over time these routes became more popular and larger buses were placed on them until they all became part of the standard Dublin bus network with double-decker buses operating them.
                      Willington was the terminus of the 50 before the 150 came along and was extended to Rossmore. The current 150 terminus on Orwell Road in Rossmore is not far from Willington Roundabout.
                      Fleet Street was a city centre terminus for many different bus routes over the years. However, with the coming of the Luas Cross City around 2016, terminating buses had to be moved and only through routes stop here now to drop passengers off. The 150 terminus did not move too far, only going to Hawkins Street around the corner. 10/10/2012

                      Throwback Thursday (196) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

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                      • Originally posted by Csalem View Post
                        It is a trip back to 2012 to see RV 604 in its final days with Dublin Bus. The bus had been delivered exactly 13 years previously in October 1999. It was withdrawn in November 2012, a month after this photograph was taken and a month before the final Olympian was withdrawn. The bus went on to have a second career in Scotland, and was observed in service around Perth (Scotland) in 2018.
                        The bus is seen here on route 150. The destination is displaying "Willington", although the more usual display was "Rossmore". The 150 commenced in 1994 under the City Imp brand and replaced route 50. City Imp saw mini-buses replacing more usual buses on routes, but operating to a higher frequency. Over time these routes became more popular and larger buses were placed on them until they all became part of the standard Dublin bus network with double-decker buses operating them.
                        Willington was the terminus of the 50 before the 150 came along and was extended to Rossmore. The current 150 terminus on Orwell Road in Rossmore is not far from Willington Roundabout.
                        Fleet Street was a city centre terminus for many different bus routes over the years. However, with the coming of the Luas Cross City around 2016, terminating buses had to be moved and only through routes stop here now to drop passengers off. The 150 terminus did not move too far, only going to Hawkins Street around the corner. 10/10/2012

                        Throwback Thursday (196) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr
                        Brilliant post - I well remember when the 150 first came on the scene and loved the City Imp buses. My dad used to call them a bunch of bananas if three of them came at once lol. To be honest I think the 150 service is a lot worse today than 25 years ago.
                        UP THE DUBS!!!

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                        • It is 1998 and D 635 is going on tour. Dublin Bus started the open-tour in 1988. The original tour fleet was made up of Leyland Atlanteans which were approaching the end of their service life. This pattern has continued to this day. The Atlanteans were later joined by Vanhools like D635 here and then these started to be replaced by Olympians from around 2000 on. Next came the ALX 400s in the form of the AV and AX classes and most recently the Enviro 400 EVs. Currently in 2019 the Dublin Bus tour fleet is entirely composed of low-floor, accessible buses.
                          The tour has always been a commercial operation by Dublin Bus and in 2017 it rebranded the city tour as DoDublin, with an all-over green livery. When it started in 1988 it was the only hop-on, hop-off tour in Dublin, but in 2019 there is stiff competition from The Big Bus Company and City Sightseeing, along with a number of niche tours.
                          D 635 had a varied career. It was delivered new to Dublin in 1975 and operated out of Clontarf and Summerhill garages. Around 1998 it joined the tour fleet. Normally that would be the end of a bus's career but by 2002 it had been converted for tree-lopper duties. In this role it toured the network, cutting down branches that could cause damage to buses. It finally retired from Dublin Bus in 2003, and passed into private hands.
                          St. Stephen's Green 15/10/1998

                          Throwback Thursday (197) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

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                          • It is 2008 and RV 429 is parked on Marlborough Street between duties on the 29A. Since November 2012 this route has run from the city centre to Baldoyle via Raheny and Donaghmede. Prior to that it terminated at Newgrove, or Newgrove Cross. Newrgove Cross was what was shown initially on the bus scrolls, and refers to a place near Donaghmede Roundabout, When the bus destinations shifted from scrolls to dot-matrix displays and then LED dispplays, Newgrove Cross got shortened to just Newgrove.
                            Unlike most other bus routes in Dublin, the 29A does not trace its existence back to the trams but instead the railways. It was operated by the Great Northern Railway (Ireland) and was only absorbed into the rest of the city network when the railway ceased to exist in 1958 and was taken over by CIE. The most interesting part of the route is the diversion it takes around All Saint's Road in Raheny.
                            RV 429 was delivered new to Clontarf Garage in 1998. It was sold to Ensignbus in the UK in 2009. It was still in operation with Imperial Coaches in Slough in 2018.
                            This part of Marlborough Street was used for many years as a lay-over for buses but since December 2017 it has been the Marlborough tram stop on the Luas Green Line. 23/10/2008

                            Throwback Thursday (198) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

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                            • This week we are going back a mere two years to 2017 (which is also twenty-one months after Throwback Thursday started). WV 52 is seen at the terminus of the 44B in Glencullen. This is one of the more remote terminus on the Dublin Bus network and the 44B is one of the more infrequent routes. It runs between here and Dundrum, passing the famous Johnnie Fox's Pub on the way. The route dates back to the 1930s when it used to run to the City Centre and was more frequent at the weekends as it brought walkers to the Dublin Mountains. In 2009 it was cut back to Dundrum, and only had a service in the morning peak and the afternoons. There was a Saturday only service to Ranelagh but it too was dropped in 2012.
                              The route is one of the most scenic in Dublin, as it climbs up out of Dundrum to Glencullen, providing great views over the city and has been known to the bus engine under some strain.
                              WV 52 was delivered to Dublin Bus in 2001 and was the last member of the WV Class, and therefore the last single-decker delivered to Dublin Bus until the WS Class arrived in 2017. Due to the nature of the route, only single-deck buses can be used. Three WVs were kept in service for the 44B while the rest of the Dublin Bus fleet was double-decker. WV 50 was the first to go in early 2017 and WV 51 and WV 52 were replaced by two Wright Streetlites (WS 1 and WS 2) which were purchased specifically to operate the 44B. The first one went into service on the 1st December 2017 and the WVs were then withdrawn from service. WV 52 was the only one to receive an LED destination. 31/10/2017

                              Throwback Thursday (199) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

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                              • So we have made it to the two hundredth Throwback Thursday and although there are over 50 years between these buses, the photograph was only taken in 2016.SG 30 is seen in Dalkey at the 8 terminus alongside RA 30. The 8 bus route could trace its origins back to the Dublin tram network and for most of its existence connected Dalkey with the City Centre, going via Dun Laoghaire and Blackrock. With the introduction of DART rail services in the mid-1980s, passengers numbers began to drop as the route paralleled the railway line. Dublin Bus cancelled the route in 2001, giving passengers one day's notice, but a successful challenge in the European courts saw the route return in 2005. However it was rerouted slightly, being taken out fo Dun Laoghaire and serving Mounttown Road instead. However it was a short-term return and in 2016 Dublin Bus along with the NTA reorganised the routes around Dun Laoghaire. The 8 was finally withdrawn this time, replaced in part by an extended 111.
                                SG 30 is seen with the final departure back to Dublin from Dalkey. This bus was delivered new to Dublin Bus in 2014 and is one of over 650 of the type delivered to the city between 2014 and 2019. The buses were built by Wrights in Ballymena, a company which had some difficulty in 2019, but was later taken over.
                                Preserved RA 30 shadowed the last 8 from Dublin to mark the end of an era. This bus was delivered new to Donnybrook in 1959 before transferring to Clontarf in 1976. It was withdrawn in early 1982 and entered preservation.
                                On a final note it is no coincidence that SG 30 was out for the last trip with RA 30. RA 30 used to be regular on the 8 when it was in Donnybrook.
                                Dalkey, 11/11/2016

                                Throwback Thursday (200) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

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