A BUS drove through its old route to mark what would have been its 70th anniversary.

The Route 10, an RT Bus which linked Victoria and Abridge and travelled through St Georges Circus, London Bridge, Aldgate, Leytonstone, Wanstead, Woodford Bridge and Chigwell, took its first passengers on Wednesday, May 10, 1947.

Although the route, which ended at the Blue Boar in Abridge, no longer exists, the London Bus Museum, based in Brooklands, Surrey, decided to do something to mark the occasion.

Nick Agnew, a representative of the London Historical Museum, said: “The main challenge was seeing how it could be achieved at Abridge, with modern day traffic, although everyone we spoke to was completely co-operative.

“The event went really well, even the weather played ball, it was a fabulous day out.

The joy for me and so many other people was the memories it brought back of riding the buses when we were younger.”

The bus took its final journey in January 1972.

The event showcased five preserved, roadworthy London Transport buses in Central Area livery.

It commenced at Victoria Bus station, where the buses presented themselves for photographs.

The 3RT was the first post-war RT, different from its predecessors because of the frame. RTs built during the early stages of the war entered service in 1939, with the frame of the bus being made out of timber. The 3RT revolutionised buses with the addition of interchangeable frames.

“A total number of 5,540 completely interchangeable built between 1947 and 1954, lasting in London service until 1979.

The event had a high attendance with people of all era’s taking pictures and admiring the buses. The final destination for the buses was the Blue Boar at Abridge, where buses independently posed for photos.

Nick Agnew said: “The main purpose of the event was just to show residents of all ages how things used to be.

“Huge thanks goes out to the Transport for London, the team at the ‘Blue Boar’, Abridge Village Hall Committee and owners of the preserved buses.”