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Celebrations at Thornton Heath Garage

Thornton Heath garage and a 109 RoutemasterThere was cause for celebration on Friday (April 8) as staff at Arriva London’s Thornton Heath garage commemorated 60 years as a motor bus garage and continuous operation of route 109.

MD Bob Scowen presents a commemorative clockTo mark the occasion staff held a party for a number of friends and former employees as well as a snooker tournament. There was also a commemorative clock and large staff photograph which now take pride of place in the garage.

The first of the four Routemasters leaves Thornton HeathTo give locals a trip down memory lane on Saturday (April 9), four Routemaster buses from the Arriva Heritage Fleet operated special journeys on route 109 between Croydon and Brixton. Instead of collecting fares, they asked travellers to donate to The Friends of Mayday Hospital Charity.  £685.33 was raised on the day, and Arriva will be topping that up to make a total of £1,000.

Within 500 metres of Arriva’s Thornton Heath Garage, the hospital is well served by Route 109 run by Arriva London.

The Friends of Mayday Hospital charity first started 55 years ago, just as the then new hospital buildings where being completed. A subscription to the charity at the time was 2/6 in today’s money 12.5p

The aim of the charity was, and is to this day, to raise funds to provide equipment and comforts for patients and staff in the hospital.

Its first purchase in 1956 was a cloak for the Matron, to keep her warm at night as she moved from building to building. Today the Friends raise an average of £100,000 a year, and have recently bought essential items such as six wheel chairs and a mobile ultrasound machine for the intensive care unit.
 

Published: Thu 14 Apr 2011Modified: Thu 14 Apr 2011

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