Stagecoach North Scotland (Bluebird and Highland)

[Highland050261]

I had forgotten these were the former 900 vehicles, in which case yes I can confirm they were a long way from being factory fresh at the end of their 900 duties goodness knows what reliability must be like both mechanically and in terms of onboard systems etc

Yes, they're getting on. I have got some photos.

Stagecoach West Scotland
54131 YX63NGE

Stagecoach 54131 YX63NGE

Stagecoach West Scotland 54131 YX63NGE Volvo B13RT Plaxton Panther 2

flic.kr

from 04/01/2020

Stagecoach Highlands
54131 X99HSO ( YX63NGE )

Stagecoach 54131 X99HSO

Stagecoach Highlands 54131 X99HSO ( YX63NGE ) Volvo B13RT Plaxton Panther 2

flic.kr

from 06/03/2024

Photos show 54131 from various Stagecoach subsidiaries.

 

[Caleb2010]

Do you have any more information on this?

I’ve just had a look on the Scottish notices and proceedings and the only mention in the last couple of months is the cancellation of them registration for the 8 in Inverness and the registration for the once a year Sunday 36 for the whisky festival.

They may have submitted their applications earlier than mid February though, I didn’t check too far back!

It will be interesting to see what this network wide service revision will result in.

 

[Jordan Adam]

The internal consultation with local authorities and stakeholders was launched last month with the changes proposed for the 20th of May. The only significant proposed changes in Moray are the M96 moving to Highlands and the 32 being rerouted to serve College of Roseisle. The bulk of the changes affect Aberdeenshire and Buchan.

Given the changes are for the 20th of May i'd expect registrations to start appearing soon, although i doubt there will be anything on the Stagecoach website for quite a while yet.

 

[Caleb2010]

Ah right - thanks for that!

Maybe Highland will update things soon!

 

[computerSaysNo]

The internal consultation with local authorities and stakeholders was launched last month with the changes proposed for the 20th of May. The only significant proposed changes in Moray are the M96 moving to Highlands and the 32 being rerouted to serve College of Roseisle. The bulk of the changes affect Aberdeenshire and Buchan.

Given the changes are for the 20th of May i'd expect registrations to start appearing soon, although i doubt there will be anything on the Stagecoach website for quite a while yet.

Ah right, thanks. Does that include the 10 in Aberdeenshire or is the whole 10 classed as Moray?

 

[Highland050261]

The internal consultation with local authorities and stakeholders was launched last month with the changes proposed for the 20th of May. The only significant proposed changes in Moray are the M96 moving to Highlands and the 32 being rerouted to serve College of Roseisle. The bulk of the changes affect Aberdeenshire and Buchan.

Given the changes are for the 20th of May i'd expect registrations to start appearing soon, although i doubt there will be anything on the Stagecoach website for quite a while yet.

The M96 should be replaced with Citylink Registrations.

 

[GusB]

I had a couple of unplanned bus journeys this afternoon and got to experience the delights of one of the Levante coaches (53735) on the Elgin town service. What an absolute bucket! The engine did not sound at all well - no wonder they don't want to let it run out of town.

 

[Bowie]

I had a couple of unplanned bus journeys this afternoon and got to experience the delights of one of the Levante coaches (53735) on the Elgin town service. What an absolute bucket! The engine did not sound at all well - no wonder they don't want to let it run out of town.

At this point all 3 should be withdrawn along with 53702 OU10 GYJ, i suspect its also on its last legs since last time i saw it it had its back panel (Where the license plate sits) removed

 

[Highland050261]

At this point all 3 should be withdrawn along with 53702 OU10 GYJ, i suspect its also on its last legs since last time i saw it it had its back panel (Where the license plate sits) removed

53702 has been repaired sounds great now believe stole some parts from 53715.

I had a couple of unplanned bus journeys this afternoon and got to experience the delights of one of the Levante coaches (53735) on the Elgin town service. What an absolute bucket! The engine did not sound at all well - no wonder they don't want to let it run out of town.

All 3 of them sound terrible and are known for breaking down I was surprised to find out 53738 at West Scotland has been put back on the road.

 

[Jordan Adam]

I had a couple of unplanned bus journeys this afternoon and got to experience the delights of one of the Levante coaches (53735) on the Elgin town service. What an absolute bucket! The engine did not sound at all well - no wonder they don't want to let it run out of town.

53735 has been rough ever since it arrived but its luxury compared to the other two. The only reason Bluebird took them on is because they're already Euro 6 compliant.

The running joke is that they deliberately send Levantes on the 10 duty that outstations overnight at Inverness as they know it won't be a Levante that returns from Inverness the following morning as it'll have been booked for something.

 

[Red Onion]

Slightly away from the current conversation…I was casting my mind back to some old services, mostly from the early 2000s. One that sprung to mind was the old 415, supported by Aberdeenshire Council, which ran evening services between Aberdeen and Alford via Westhill and Dunecht. There is a part of me thinks that a couple of those services extended out to Lumsden, does anyone recall if this was the case?

 

[Bowie]

53702 has been repaired sounds great now believe stole some parts from 53715.

All 3 of them sound terrible and are known for breaking down I was surprised to find out 53738 at West Scotland has been put back on the road.

Oh brilliant thats good that OU10 GYJ’s been fixed, its a good looking bus in its beachball livery

53735 has been rough ever since it arrived but its luxury compared to the other two. The only reason Bluebird took them on is because they're already Euro 6 compliant.

The running joke is that they deliberately send Levantes on the 10 duty that outstations overnight at Inverness as they know it won't be a Levante that returns from Inverness the following morning as it'll have been booked for something.

Is there actually a reason the 8:11pm number 10 bus stays the night at Inverness? I’ve noticed that’s been happening since last year. I also noticed that the bus that stays overnight on Saturday stays until Monday too

 

[Jordan Adam]

Is there actually a reason the 8:11pm number 10 bus stays the night at Inverness? I’ve noticed that’s been happening since last year. I also noticed that the bus that stays overnight on Saturday stays until Monday too

It works the 5:30 from Inverness the following morning, having the vehicle stay overnight at Inverness saves the extra mileage and driver resources of having an extra journey from Inverness to Elgin and back.

Slightly away from the current conversation…I was casting my mind back to some old services, mostly from the early 2000s. One that sprung to mind was the old 415, supported by Aberdeenshire Council, which ran evening services between Aberdeen and Alford via Westhill and Dunecht. There is a part of me thinks that a couple of those services extended out to Lumsden, does anyone recall if this was the case?

Latterly the 415 was just an evening variation of the 215 which bypassed Hillside Road and Hiltop Turning Circle in Westhill, essentially following the present day 5 route albeit omitting Kingswells Park & Ride. All 415s continued to Alford. When the Westhill corridor was revised in 2008 the 415 became the X15. The only services from Aberdeen in recent decades which extended beyond Alford were the 402 (Aberdeen - Elgin via Alford) and when the 219 (Alford-Strathdon) was merged in to and renumbered to X20. Its interesting you raise this point though as the draft proposed Bluebird timetables do have the 231 reintroduced to some extent with a service from Huntly to Alford in the morning that becomes a 220 to Aberdeen and an X20 from Aberdeen in the afternoon that becomes a 231 at Alford - at least from the consultation timetables the connection is actually advertised as a through service.

 

[Highland050261]

I had a couple of unplanned bus journeys this afternoon and got to experience the delights of one of the Levante coaches (53735) on the Elgin town service. What an absolute bucket! The engine did not sound at all well - no wonder they don't want to let it run out of town.

Don't know 54267 sounds bad as well.

 

[Caleb2010]

Had a trip
On the 36A Dufftown to Granton and Aviemore yesterday 21416 one way and 21411 the other, what a difference in two vehicles from the same batch.

21416 rattled and banged like a 10 year old enviro, by contrast 21411 was as smooth as silk with no annoying creaks and bangs.

Speaking to the driver on the outgoing route, Highland were happy to get shot of the enviros bluebird took as they were in a bad state!

Mind you, he also said the Volvo Evora’s wouldn’t last as long as the enviros.

 

[Bowie]

Had a trip
On the 36A Dufftown to Granton and Aviemore yesterday 21416 one way and 21411 the other, what a difference in two vehicles from the same batch.

21416 rattled and banged like a 10 year old enviro, by contrast 21411 was as smooth as silk with no annoying creaks and bangs.

Speaking to the driver on the outgoing route, Highland were happy to get shot of the enviros bluebird took as they were in a bad state!

Mind you, he also said the Volvo Evora’s wouldn’t last as long as the enviros.

While we’re on the subject of rattles 26127 X25 HCB also rattles like ****

 

[Highland050261]

I would say these 2 are are the worse sounding buses Engine wise.

Stagecoach Bluebird
53735 BF63ZRT
Volvo B9R Caetano Levante

Stagecoach 53735 BF63ZRT

Stagecoach Bluebird 53735 BF63ZRT Volvo B9R Caetano Levante

flic.kr

Stagecoach Highlands
54267 YY65VXJ
Volvo B11RT Plaxton Elite i

Stagecoach 54267 YY65VXJ

Stagecoach Highlands 54267 YY65VXJ Volvo B11RT Plaxton Elite i

flic.kr

 

[Caleb2010]

No doubt other companies have the odd vehicle that is worse than others of the batch, trouble is, you only ever hear about these odd vehicles.

There’s always a ‘dog’ of the batch isn’t there!

 

[Highland050261]

No doubt other companies have the odd vehicle that is worse than others of the batch, trouble is, you only ever hear about these odd vehicles.

There’s always a ‘dog’ of the batch isn’t there!

Seems to be a common thing on the interdeckers. Here is 54263 before it was fixed.

Stagecoach Highlands
54263 YY65VXE
Volvo B11RT Plaxton Elite i

Stagecoach 54263 YY65VXE

Stagecoach Highlands 54263 YY65VXE Volvo B11RT Plaxton Elite i

flic.kr

 

[Bowie]

I would say these 2 are are the worse sounding buses Engine wise.

Stagecoach Bluebird
53735 BF63ZRT
Volvo B9R Caetano Levante

Stagecoach 53735 BF63ZRT

Stagecoach Bluebird 53735 BF63ZRT Volvo B9R Caetano Levante

flic.kr

Stagecoach Highlands
54267 YY65VXJ
Volvo B11RT Plaxton Elite i

Stagecoach 54267 YY65VXJ

Stagecoach Highlands 54267 YY65VXJ Volvo B11RT Plaxton Elite i

flic.kr

Literally just saw these on flicker haha, but yeah those Caetanos definitely need replacing in my opinion

I see that someone added 22781 to Bluebird’s fleet list because it was sighted at Tullos, same with 54210 SF62 CZN. Pretty sure 22781 was meant to be transferring to England??

 

[Highland050261]

Literally just saw these on flicker haha, but yeah those Caetanos definitely need replacing in my opinion

I see that someone added 22781 to Bluebird’s fleet list because it was sighted at Tullos, same with 54210 SF62 CZN. Pretty sure 22781 was meant to be transferring to England??

54210 been sorted. It is in Aberdeen for accident repair.

22781 was meant to go to Merseyside but I'm unsure about where it will go now. It's been in Inverness for last month being repaired and has since returned to Aberdeen.

 

[Bowie]

54210 been sorted it is in Aberdeen for accident repair.

22781 was ment to go to Merseyside but unsure on where it will go now as it's been in Inverness for last month being repaired since returned to Aberdeen.

Maybe the plans changed and Aberdeen will keep it as a spare bus, time will tell

 

[Highland050261]

I have an interesting topic. The attached image is from the newest fleet card that lists reserve fleet buses.

If we start from the top
21394 Being Used at Skye Depot
27808 - Unknown
28644 in Storage at Inverness
47811 in Storage at Tain
47813 in Storage at Inverness
53706 in Storage at Wick
53708 Being used at Thurso Depot
53716 in Storage at Wick
54121 in Storage at Wick
28643 in Storage at Inverness
28645 recently moved to East Scotland
48906 Undergoing Major repair at Orkney

All buses marked as in Storage are in various states of disrepair and at some point and have been used as parts donors apart from 28643/4. The future is unknown for them.

I would like to know where 27808 is though.

 

[Bowie]

I have an interesting topic this image is from the newest fleet card that list reserve fleet buses.

If we start from the top
21394 Being Used at Skye Depot
27808 - Unknown
28644 in Storage at Inverness
47811 in Storage at Tain
47813 in Storage at Inverness
53706 in Storage at Wick
53708 Being used at Thurso Depot
53716 in Storage at Wick
54121 in Storage at Wick
28643 in Storage at Inverness
28645 recently moved to East Scotland
48906 Undergoing Major repair at Orkney

all buses marked as in Storage are in various states of disrepair and at some point and have been used as parts donner apart from 28643/4 future unknown for them.

I would like to know where 27808 is though.

That list is probably why some old/withdrawn buses were added back to the Highlands Fleet list (27808, 47813, 53706, 53716 and 54121). In the case of 27808 SV62 BYR I’m pretty sure thats in Orkney it was tracking on the X1 last year at certain points.

It’d be nice if some of these buses were fixed and used as spares if say an Evora or Yutong is off the road

 

[Highland050261]

That list is probably why some old/withdrawn buses were added back to the Highlands Fleet list (27808, 47813, 53706, 53716 and 54121). In the case of 27808 SV62 BYR I’m pretty sure thats in Orkney it was tracking on the X1 last year at certain points.

It’d be nice if some of these buses were fixed and used as spares if say an Evora or Yutong is off the road

Indeed it was on the X1. It was seen in Thurso last year but I'm starting to think it went back.

Highland will never use older buses anymore. That's why they're using Fm41 when 28643 is sitting there. Most of the stored buses will be scrapped,for example 47811/13 and 53715 that's now stored at Inverness.

 

[Bowie]

Indeed it was on the X1 it was seen in Thurso last year but starting to think it went back.

Highland's will never use older buses anymore that's why there using Fm41 when 28643 is sitting there most of the stored buses will be scrapped for example 47811/13 and 53715 that's now stored at Inverness.

Yeah passed 53715 on an M90 to Edinburgh the other week, about time its getting scrapped tbh


Definitely need to scrap the 2 Optare Solos as well as they’re in a sorry state

 

[Highland050261]

Yeah passed 53715 on an M90 to Edinburgh the other week, about time its getting scrapped tbh


Definitely need to scrap the 2 Optare Solos as well as they’re in a sorry state

53715 been heavily harvested now.


Stagecoach Bluebird
53715 YN60ACO
Volvo B9R Plaxton Elite

Stagecoach 53715 YN60ACO

Stagecoach Bluebird 53715 YN60ACO Volvo B9R Plaxton Elite

flic.kr

Stagecoach 53715 YN60ACO

Stagecoach Bluebird 53715 YN60ACO Volvo B9R Plaxton Elite

flic.kr

 

[Jordan Adam]

53715 is withdrawn, 53703 officially replaced it at Elgin.

Maybe the plans changed and Aberdeen will keep it as a spare bus, time will tell

Highly unlikely, aside from the fact they don't need any additional vehicles at present keep in mind the vehicle requirement at Bluebird is being reduced from next month.

 

[Highland050261]

53715 is withdrawn, 53703 officially replaced it at Elgin.

Highly unlikely, aside from the fact they don't need any additional vehicles at present keep in mind the vehicle requirement at Bluebird is being reduced from next month.

Seen 53703 today.

Stagecoach Bluebird
53703 OU10GYK
Volvo B9R Plaxton Elite

Stagecoach 53703 OU10GYK

Stagecoach Bluebird 53703 OU10GYK Volvo B9R Plaxton Elite

flic.kr

Is there any update on 53702 ?

 

[Bowie]

Silly question I know, but does anyone know what’s happening with Highlands bunch of YX63/X99 plate Panthers and YX64 plate Elites?