Last little travelogue for a bit as you're probably getting bored. Work had meant that I was in the East for a change and so was able to pinch a half day to experience First Eastern Counties. Unlike the First Opcos in the West and South West that have rightly garnered a lot of attention for the good work that they've done in improving services, FEC seems to have had much less coverage yet from what I have heard, sounds like there's been a bit of work going on there in recent months.
Unfortunately, best-laid plans and all that meant I was delayed, and this was compounded by a late-running first bus so my plans had to be amended on the hoof so a bit more of an exploration wasn't really possible. However, I was still able to get about as I purchased my day ticket for the XL. I was keen to travel the Eastern end of the route having only done the Peterborough end previously, and not experiencing the new fleet that arrived last year. Well, I was generally very impressed. The external presentation and marketing is superb - they really stand out. However, it was the interior that I was keen to see and they are very well specified for the route. The leather seats are perhaps the most comfortable bus seats I've ever experienced. I had an upstairs table seat on the outbound but USB ports are available throughout with wireless phone charging on the seat backs, along with bus stop pushes and even coat hooks. The flooring is mock wood, there are roof skylights, the colour scheme is distinctive without being tacky, and with the air chillers, it was a very comfortable and impressive beast. We started off on the A47 and I was on a fast version that omitted Dereham on the way to Norwich. The only downside was there was some telltale ADL squeaking from the front bulkhead which is something I've noticed is quite common on ADL products. The uprated performance of these vehicles couldn't get us back on schedule so my plan to visit Bungay was abandoned, and I bailed out at Cringleford Bus Interchange which is really 3 bus shelters just off the A47/A11.
I decamped onto the Turquoise 13 to Wymondham, a gorgeous little town just outside of Norwich. It arrived on time, operated by a non-route branded B9 that had been an early transfer from Leeds. Have to say it was rather disappointing. The 2012 era standard First Bus ads inside had no local relevance. Moreover, the seats looked really tired with one headrest that had been slashed and then comically stitched up. Think these Olympics vehicles are now at midlife and the eLeather etc hasn't worn well. Into Wymondham on an uneventful journey, and wandered past the various pubs that are now shops, nurseries etc, and to catch the Green 15 back on the longer route via Hethersett. It was to be my only single decker, a Wright Streetlite that had been diverted from my local subsidiary and sent to Norwich in exchange for some Streetdecks. We left Wymondham and my nemesis (that bloody emergency door handle) interrupted the entire time. At one point, we encountered a Konectbus Citaro being driven rather aggressively on a narrow suburban road; it looked internally not bad but the exterior presentation of an all blue, fleetnameless machine, isn't exactly great. We made our way around and I noticed a reasonable amount of bus priority into the city, which was good. Also, this Streetlite had branding externally and internally - FEC are pretty good at it tbh.
We arrived in St Stephens Street in Norwich city centre, not far from the bus station, which is where most city services congregate though the Bungay route also runs from here. Confession time...last time I was in Norwich, the old bus station was still in use; it's been that long! I only had a little time to observe but it was interesting to see the number of older deckers in use on city services. I saw two 51 plate Tridents (one very smartly painted, one looking atrocious and very scabby) and plenty of others of a 2002 vintage running around in Barbie colours though some have been repainted indicating that they'll be staying a little longer. I wandered round to the bus station which is now a much smaller affair after the redevelopment of the adjoining depot. Oddly, the bus station is served by the Park and Ride services of Konectbus; routes that are clearly the smartest part of their operation. I caught the X2 to Lowestoft operated by an e400 that had been cascaded from the XL last year. These e400s and some B9s have been treated to a new Coastlink yellow and blue scheme and the new image looks great in the flesh. Very impressive. The interior of the vehicles was a little disappointing; the good seats are still there but they don't look they've even had a clean let alone a refurb. However, they are very comfortable, the internal branding is superb (more Stenning touches) and we followed a similar X1 out south of the city before it headed off east. The X2 is a tremendous run and is quite quick to get down to Beccles, crossing into Suffolk as you traverse the river. Beccles has a history in printing and many references to it as you pass through the town. Incidentally, I was wondering if Beccles had always had such a good service to Norwich and Lowestoft (every 15 mins) - in the good old days and for many years, it was hourly at best with a few shorts between there and Lowestoft whereas now, it's every 15 minutes during the day. Part of the enhancement may be at the expense of local routes in Lowestoft as we made our way through the southern 'burbs but it's still impressive. The traffic through the town was slightly tricky which is a reflection of roadworks and bridges.
I had time at Lowestoft to have a walk and a toilet stop at Costa, and soak up a bit of England's most easterly town. It seems very much on its uppers with lots of empty shops on the main drag. The rail station really does have a period feel to it and it didn't seem a bad town but clearly there's a level of deprivation. I made my way back to the bus station and perhaps this is where First need to be a little imaginative (or maybe they have a plan). The travel centre is long closed, with 2012/3 general advertising vinyls - you can see on this photo (not mine)
https://englandscoast.com/en/listing/lowestoft-bus-station - perhaps replace those vinyls with ones extolling the virtues of the excellent Coastlink services, the Coastal Clipper routes or even the remaining town routes that are now Coastal Reds? Or even have the travel office as a waiting room, with leaflets available? Or a local network map (as First South West do at their locations)? Also, each stand had timetables but the double sided sticky tape wasn't really working so again, a bit more care would work wonders. Lowestoft bus station needn't be quite so unloved. I elected to catch the 1A, recently rebranded as the Coastal Clipper. This was a B9, and another earlier cascade from the XL, via the Coastlink routes, to now operate the stopper services along the coast from Martham to Southwold. This was a short Lowestoft to Yarmouth run and follows the old rail line that was removed in 1970. The seating on these vehicles had fared much better and it was an excellent machine as we weaved our way. I like coastal communities and it was fun to see the differing industrial and leisure developments, often side by side. We arrived via Gorleston and more elderly Barbie deckers were spotted as we made our way through in Market Gates bus station in Lowestoft. Not much you can say about it and I wasn't hanging around as various Phil Mitchell types got redder in the sunshine whilst quaffing cheap beer at the adjoining 'spoons. I had chance to see various Streetlites newly painted in Coastal Reds livery (i.e. same design as Ipswich and South Wales) and also a couple of similarly repainted 06 plate Geminis; again, these had the original seating and you do wonder why FEC don't sort that kind of thing out. The liveries look great; the interior less so. I got the X1 back to Norwich and have to say, the views on the first half of the route as we follow the river Yar are really quite something. They also have the rail line with various elderly carriages stored there including a First era Caledonian Sleeper! After Acle, the route becomes less interesting but the e400, another XL cascade, was performing mightily. Despite it being rush hour, we made our way into Norwich without a hitch, arriving virtually on time. Again not long to wait and get the XL A out. Another of the stunning Scania e400city vehicles and this one didn't squeak!! This service does go via Dereham, which is the corridor where it seems that FEC are trying to make life harder for Konectbus. We purred along and it was sad to leave these excellent machines.
All in all, FEC seem to be heading in the right direction. Marketing is generally good, service patterns are excellent, and the new image is being rolled out in Lowestoft and Great Yarmouth - very little First and possibly saw as much Barbie as Urban! The XL is a great service and the vehicles top notch, aside from a squeak or two. However, they still need to cull some rather superannuated fleet from Norwich and that might be part of the plan with funding made available to Norfolk CC to improve transport with a contribution from First under partnership for new and refurbed fleet - kill the Tridents and B7s with new stuff and smarten up the B9s? We shall see if they continue to exert pressure on Go Ahead (Konectbus) too! Hope this wasn't too dull and an interesting review of an operation that is quieting upping its game quite significantly.