Eastern Counties VAH 281X and OEX 793W - 2 Jan 1994

Sunday 2 January 1994 – Eastern Counties Omnibus Company buses parked at Hurdle Drove Farm used as its ‘Mildenhall’ outstation parking at this time (It may have been defined as ‘West Row’ outstation). Eastern Coachworks bodied Bristol VR VR281 (VAH 281X) new in September 1981 and Willowbrook bodied Leyland Leopard LL793 (OEX 793W). The latter was new in October 1980 as a National liveried coach which passed to Ambassador Travel in the ECOC split but returned to ECOC in its later years. A third vehicle on site was LL789 (UVO 121S), a Duple Dominant bodied Leyland Leopard that had been new as Trent Motor Traction 121 in November 1977 and was later transferred to Barton Buses, a Trent subsidiary, as their 1121. If my memory of the exact location is correct Hurdle Drove Farm is at Grid Reference TL 66873 77740). Today the farm is better kept than it was back then. To be honest it was a dump! Mud, puddles and was strewn with general clutter.