BCSV Tour: Farewell Ventura/Grenda Volvo B12BLEs
Schedule
Sat Aug 31 2024 at 09:30 am to 05:00 pm
UTC+10:00Location
Dandenong Railway Station | Dandenong, VI
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The next stalwarts in the Ventura fleet nearing retirement are the fleet of 29 Volvo B12BLEs, originally delivered to Grenda Corporation between 2003 and early 2005 featuring a mix of CR221L (x 9) and CR228L (x 20) Volgren bodies.The Bus and Coach Society of Victoria is planning a farewell tour to these workhorses on Saturday 31 August 2024.
This will be our first tour under new owners Keppel Infrastructure Trust (KIT) with thanks to the ongoing support of CEO Andrew Cornwall.
Three currently continue to toil away on route service at Dandenong Depot (206, 207 & 208) while many others have been cascaded down to rail and tram replacement duty, sold off to Port Stephens Coaches and Buslines Group in NSW or scrapped.
Other examples were common in Melbourne with Reservoir Bus Company (now Dysons), Sita (now Transit Systems) and Eastrans/Westrans (now CDC Victoria). Many of these continue to operate on route service, particularly in the western suburbs.
The Ventura/Grenda B12BLEs spent the majority of their careers operating from the Grenda's Dandenong and Moorabbin Transit depots. The day will focus on retracing a wide assortment of routes they were common on, with numerous photostops planned across the day.
DEPARTURE POINT
Our Farewell Ventura & Grenda Volvo B12BLE tour will be held on Saturday 31 August 2024.
The day will commence from Dandenong Station (V/Line bus bay) at 9:30am and aim to return around 5pm.
CONNECTIONS
- 8:42am East Pakenham train from Flinders St, arriving Dandenong at 9:26am (earlier from City Loop stations)
- 8:18am Route 828 bus from Hampton (8:47am from Cheltenham) arriving Dandenong at 9:25am
- 8:23am Route 901 bus from Ringwood, arriving Dandenong at 9:14am
- 8:38am Route 901 bus from Frankston, arriving Dandenong at 9:18am
- 6:10am train from Bairnsdale/Traralgon, arriving Dandenong at 9:20am
We will review these connections should rail replacement buses be in operation on the Pakenham/Cranbourne Lines on this day.
LUNCH
A 1 hour lunch stop (own expense) will be made at Southland, with the food court conveniently located directly above the bus interchange on Level 3.
For those only wanting a half-day out, you may join or leave us at Southland (on the Frankston Line) - time to TBC.
FARE
Fare will be $5 for members and $15 for guests (guests under 18 $10). New members can join on the day for the discounted fare.
Annual BCSV Membership for 2024/2025 is $60 for adults ($45 for students under 25 & pensioners) & includes 7 editions of the 60-page Australian Bus Panorama magazine each year.
Details - https://bcsv.org.au/membership/
RSVP
We would appreciate those planning to attend send an email to [email protected] to allow more detailed planning for the day. Facebook RSVPs are not sufficient.
TOUR ETIQUETTE
Attendees are requested to review our tour etiquette policy ahead of the day -https://bcsv.org.au/events-overview/tour-etiquette/
As this tour unfortunately does not include depot visits, hi-vis vests or clothing will not be required.
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Where is it happening?
Dandenong Railway Station, Dandenong Station, Foster St, Dandenong VIC 3175, Australia,Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, DandenongEvent Location & Nearby Stays:
