Route 52 (Borehamwood to Victoria) is a long-standing route, now shortened to run only to Willesden, but previously running via Kingsbury and Burnt Oak on its way north.  The 52^A was introduced (Monday to Saturday) in 1955, allowing the 52 to be shortened outside the peaks to run only to Mill Hill on those days.  Its southern end turned south at Burnt Oak to finish at Colindale Trolleybus Depot.  At the same time, a peak hour Express was introduced between the same points, as part of the experiment in that year.

As part of the penultimate stage of trolleybus replacement, in January 1962, the 52^A was extended to Willesden over part of former trolleybus route 666 (Edgware to Hammersmith) and renumbered 292.  A little curious, as the 666 was also replaced in its entirety by the 266 - which ran every day, unlike the 292.  Despite now reaching Willesden, that garage's RTLs were withdrawn from the route and Edgware RTs had sole charge.  The Colindale terminus moved from the now-closed trolleybus depot to Annesley Avenue, almost adjacent.

RT2688 working EW1 to Borehamwood; the bus was based at Edgware from 1968 to 1973.  RT2688 will work the 292 again on 29 August.

Photo Dave Fisher collection

Saturday working was withdrawn five months later in favour of new route 292^A, which headed north from Burnt Oak to Edgware, extended a year later to Stanmore and Watford via the 142.  Meanwhile, the 52 had continued to reach Borehamwood on Sundays; this came to an end in 1966 with the introduction of the 292^A as far as Burnt Oak on that day.

Meanwhile, the 292 Express service came to an end in 1965, when the whole route was shortened to terminate at Colindale.  The withdrawal of the 292^A north of Edgware in 1970 left the two routes bifurcating at Burnt Oak for only a short distance each way, the Monday to Friday 292 south to Colindale and the weekend 292^A north to Edgware.

RT4772 shows the unmistakable signs of neglect that RTs so often had in the 1970s.  This view in Borehamwood Rossington Avenue was taken on 30 Jun 73, two weeks before RTs finally left Edgware.  Note the 292 canopy blind from the weekday operation.

Photo © John Parkin

In July 1973, the routes were combined as a daily 292 and converted to one-man DMS operation, bringing an end to Edgware's RTs.  The Colindale section survived as the Monday to Friday peak journeys, at other times the route ran to Edgware.  School journeys were extended from Colindale to Grahame Park (a development on the old Hendon Aerodrome).  The DMSs were replaced by Metrobuses in 1980.

After running the gamut of the tendering process, 1993 saw the route's withdrawal from the roads south of Hale Lane and its diversion via Edgware Station to Colindale Asda, in which form the route runs today, operated by Transdev London Sovereign from their half of Edgware garage.