Hillsbus Dural depot visit and tour –Saturday 10 October 09

[HCVA]

To conclude the Big Bumper Bus Enthusiasts week, the HCVA has been given the go-ahead for a depot visit and tour of the Hillbus Dural operations on Saturday 10 October 2009.

We intend to focus on the former Glenorie Bus Co buses still in GBC livery, as well as some of the new NSW Government Growth buses

Start time will be 10am with a projected finish time around 6pm (Daylight saving starts on the previous weekend). A lunch stop will be made at Castle Hill.

An itinerary/timetable for the day is currently being fine-tuned. We will visit bucolic semi rural areas like Annangrove, Kenthurst, Galston, Dural and Glenorie; as well as suburbia parts of Pennant Hills, West Pennant Hills Valley, Castle Hill and Glenhaven.

The proceedings will be similar to our weekend visit to CDC’s Hunter Valley operations in September 2007

Cost will be $10 for HCVA members, & $15 for non-members.

You are invited to come along, put some faces to the names you see on here, plus catch up with old mates.

All depot visitors must be aware of the conditions of OH&S standards (high visibility clothing, covered footwear, looking out for moving vehicles and not entering workshop areas) when inside the depot

Please do not fill this post with irrelevant messages about whether you are or are not coming

For any further enquiries, please contact info@hcva.org.au

[shovelyjoe]

Do we need to book a place for this tour like the Custom Coaches tour or do we just come along and pay on the day?

[Busnerd]

I believe you just turn up for this one.

[kitkat271]

Excellent tour idea and thanks to whoever is/are organising it. There's a lot of old Glenorie routes which are so different from what that depots' mainstay is now.

[Bradley]

Is there we are meet or transport arrangements before starts Hillbus Dural Depot before 10am??

Cheers

Bradley.

[Industry]

Is there going to be a bus at 9am from Railway Square as mentioned at the HCVA Meeting for this tour.

[Tim]

m/o 7366 would be nice for transport

[Set Down Only]

is it still $15 for the depot visit only?

[HCVA]

Arrangements for Saturday:

Bus 1:
8:45 -Tempe Bus Depot (Route 422 terminus)
9:00 -Pitt St, Central between Railway Square & Rawson Square (Route 610 stop)
9:10 -Clarence St, Wynyard north of Margaret St (Route 610 stop)

Bus 2:
9:15 Parramatta Interchange -Darcy St (The Loop stop)


10:00 -Tour starts @ Hillsbus Dural depot (282 New Line Rd Dural)

Lunch will be in Castle Hill between 13:00 & 13:40

A drop will be made at Pennant Hills Station around 18:00 for those not wishing to join the group for dinner

A post tour dinner get together will happen at the end of the tour at The Ranch Hotel, Epping & Herring Rds Eastwood

Bus 1 & bus 2 will return to the city and Parramatta after dinner


Everyone must have a reflective vest & covered footwear to enter the depot, and be aware of OH&S regulations



Cost will be $10 for HCVA members, & $15 for non-members.

[blind bus spotter]

Hi HcvA. I would like to attend as i havent attend tours for a while due to sporting cormittments and i only discovered that I had a weekend off yesterday but I am not sure if I would be allowed inside the depot due to OHs reasons because of my lack of vision I have but I would still like to travel out there just to see what buses they have in there fleet. .

[ed K]

I'm sure you will be welcome, and i think someone could help you around the yard.

[Mr Bean]

Thanks to all those involved in organising and running the tour. It ran exactly as described in the post at the top of this thread. We got through lots of buses such that I think we covered all the major varieties of bus throughout the course of the day.

Only thing was, I realised upon returning home that I didn't pay any money. Is there an HCVA accountant tearing his hair out tonight because $10 is unaccounted for? Perhaps there is an honesty box somewhere in Sydney where I can quietly and anonymously deposit my contribution.

[The Inspector]

Yes it was a great day out (altho rather cold) and a very interesting selection of buses to ride & photograph.

Thanks to those who organised the event and to the drivers aswell.

The only downside was the dissapearance of a attendies personal belonging, a resin model of an Adelaide AEC Swift in its box went missing from TV.5973 Volgren/ Volvo B10M (which was one of the buses used to transport attendies to the depot) sometime between the starting of the tour and the end.

I hope whoever decided to help themselves to this model enjoys what someone else has paid for.

[Dave C]

Try TV 5937.

[Windy]

It certainly was an awesome day covering one of the most diverse fleets in Sydney. A huge thanks goes out to the drivers, AGA81, Stoney!, Mr Bean, Stormmm, and Dave C, and to the organisers. All the vehicles I rode were masterfully driven, save from a few hiccups in one bus which had some gearbox issues, and one bus with some warning chime issues There was a nice range of scenery from the semi-rural to suburban, including a few bucolic termini which I had not explored before. I don't think I've ridden so many B10Ms in a day, either... all of them different, either by bodywork, age, or gearbox. It was a great day, and caps a fairly intense bus-oriented week for me.

[Simes]

From lunch on was great and from what others tell me, before lunch was great as well. Thanks to those who drove us around, thanks to the organisers and to CDC for letting it happen. It was a very interesting day
Special mention to AGA81 for providing extra sound track on the Merc 1418 so it sounded like an auto

[shovelyjoe]

It was a great tour, thanks to HCVA, CDC, the drivers and everyone else involved in organizing and making the tour possible.

Only thing was, I realised upon returning home that I didn't pay any money. Is there an HCVA accountant tearing his hair out tonight because $10 is unaccounted for? Perhaps there is an honesty box somewhere in Sydney where I can quietly and anonymously deposit my contribution.

Well, since you are a HCVA member, I would just give the money at the next HCVA members meeting.

[Bradley]

Hi.

It's was an excellent Hillbus Tours and I have a great times.

I like to thanks to everyone from Hillbus (CDC) drivers and others for organised this tours. This is my first tours in Sydney. And hopely, I may come to Mk2 Leopard 20th Anniversary Tour on Sunday, 25th October?

Thanks

Cheers

Bradley.

[Dave C]

Thanks to all for the great day, was my first tour as a driver and it was good to drive a variety of buses.

[kitkat271]

It was indeed a great tour, very interesting indeed to be on tour past my own place. Fantastic to ride in some of the older Volvos and Isuzus which I remember riding to school excursions and school sports in years past (way too many years past). With the advent of the Scanias there's precious little of the Glenorie B10Ms which us locals get to ride now - at least those of us who needs to be at work during the week - and it was such a good B10M fest that I too lost count of the number of Volvo B10M's we rode in - the only version we missed was probably the Volgren orphan.

[blind bus spotter]

hi. i would like to extend my real thanks to the hcva and cdc groups for running this tour. I got to ride and listen to so many b10m's it wasnt funny and as the for the 1418 lol thats all I will say. BTW i am getting slack only 3 recordings or day

[Stormmm]

Thank you to all who showed up and made this event a truly remarkable day .. even though I had only met a few of you on the odd occasion, it was welcoming to meet and greet so many others who I had only seen post here.

As many of you would have found out, Friday was technically my last day with Hillsbus Dural, however, the depot manager allowed me this one last chance to drive a few vehicles that I hadn't been behind the wheel of for quite a while.

Favourites of the day: 14.5m Scania (so many to choose from) 9316 and m/o 800 (B10M with a G7 gearbox).

Having never been on a tour before, it was an experience I am not likely to forget in a hurry.

Now, if I can just remember who wanted a PM with my email addy so they could send me some photos (it's ok - at my age, CRAFT is just natural) ..

[Emm Kay Vee]

Stormmm I'd like to publicly thank you for all the information and help you've provided people, such as myself, during your time at Dural. A real shame to see you move on but I wish you all the best!

[Stormmm]

Thank you, Emm Kay Vee for your thoughts.

Was not an easy decision to make re the move, but I reckon this could be the best move I have ever made. Time will tell, of course. Doubt I will ever forget my time at Dural, so many good memories.

So, it's onwards and upwards.

Will drop in from time to time to review the happenings but doubt I will post much (not that I ever did anyway). At least I might be able to get Greyhounds fleet list up to date .. LOL

[The Inspector]

At least I might be able to get Greyhounds fleet list up to date .. LOL

Ooh, dont steel the thunder from a certain greyhound fan down in Vic