Places for Bus Storage

Was wondering if anyone would know any places that are good for Bus storage near Barnet, asking for a Friend who owns an N Reg Bluebird. It's currently stored at Ipswich, however he wants it a little closer to home. He doesn't mind travelling, but not so far this time!

Would the London bus museum, or Epping and Ongar take it? I think he's tried round the normal bus garages in the area but they won't take it.

klambert said:

Was wondering if anyone would know any places that are good for Bus storage near Barnet, asking for a Friend who owns an N Reg Bluebird. It's currently stored at Ipswich, however he wants it a little closer to home. He doesn't mind travelling, but not so far this time!

Would the London bus museum, or Epping and Ongar take it? I think he's tried round the normal bus garages in the area but they won't take it.

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I'm pretty sure the two places mentioned wouldn't take it. He needs to get a copy of the monthly magazine 'Bus and Coach Preservation' and scour the small ads and, if necessary, take an ad himself.

klambert said:

Was wondering if anyone would know any places that are good for Bus storage near Barnet, asking for a Friend who owns an N Reg Bluebird. It's currently stored at Ipswich, however he wants it a little closer to home. He doesn't mind travelling, but not so far this time!

Would the London bus museum, or Epping and Ongar take it? I think he's tried round the normal bus garages in the area but they won't take it.

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A lot will depend on how much he's prepared to pay for storage. It's not going to be cheap.

Thanks for that all, I'm not sure in regards to price, I think at the moment it's a case of finding places regardless of price and then weighing options up.

Unfortuately, buying a bus for preservation tends to be the easy bit...

Don't think the London Bus Museum has a lot of space for other peoples' vehicles as well, and in general, most bus operators don't have much unused space especially in London and the south east where land is at a premium (although with the ongoing cuts to TFL services, anything is possible) - then there's issues over insurance and all the rest of it that may make operators reluctant to let odd spaces out to individuals (London Transport did do this in the 70s and 80s though.)

A small independent operator is possibly more likely to want to do this than one of the big operators.

Classic bus website small ads page may be worth placing an ad on.

May also be worth looking in to the current / impending low emission zone restrictions in Greater London. I'm not fully up to date with how they do / might affect buses, but have a feeling that a 1990s vehicle may be in the awkward position of not meeting current standards but not getting 'historic vehicle' exemption either, and it might be easier if bus stays outside the GLA area...

I own a semi-preserved double deck bus. I say semi because it is maintained to Class 6 MOT standards and regularly fired up and driven.

Try doing business with local PCV operators - for me they have been very accommodating in terms of offering a storage space and allowing me to use their power and water resources. In fact when I had to move it, the first one I called were happy to offer a space.

Try ringing around again - there must be a service, private hire or coach operator somewhere with the room to spare. Also try finding out if there are any local preservation groups who can help. You may wish to spread the net a little further, especially if you don't plan on regularly being with the bus. That said, London to Ipswich is dedication - as I don't have a car my catchment is places within 400m of a TfL bus stop in the quadrant of London I live in! The bus however is LEZ compliant for now.

Outdoor storage is relatively easy to come across. If undercover storage is compulsory, you may also wish to ring around some farms, industrial estates or places like Big Yellow Self Storage.

Stagecoach Plymouth depot apparently have a lot of space, although it’s very far from your desired location! Would be worth asking if you’re interested

TheWalrus said:

Stagecoach Plymouth depot apparently have a lot of space, although it’s very far from your desired location! Would be worth asking if you’re interested

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Quite near to some very salty air, though, so perhaps not ideal from more than a distance point of view! I do realise that preserved buses are kept in the area, but even so...