Trips by Bus and Coach: Your reports

[Ken H]

Day out in Leeds today. Not 10% buses as i had other stuff to do. £5.50 all day ticket.
So drove to Primley Park to get the 7 into town. This was basically the 70 when I was a kid in the 60's so my school bus and bus into town. Far slower now as the estates are 20mph with speed humps. And Potternewton road is narrow if 2 large vehicles need to pass. Got off at the markets to have a mosey round. But a shadow of its former self in the 60's. Back to Corn Exchange for a foray into south Leeds on a 12. Went an odd way round by the station and down Neville St.
Got off and looked at the first depot in Hunslet. The business next door has a wall that was probably part of the old Leeds City Transport tram depot. Needed some stuff from a specilist shop nearby. Then a 13 back into Leeds. That went over Leeds Bridge. Roadworks on Bridge St I think.
Bite to eat and coffee then a 50A to Kirkstall down Burley Rd. Its quite a narrow road and the bus went in every gulley. And rattled at each one. Apart from the noise and discomfort for passengers it must be wearing the underneath bits of the bus out. Come on Leeds city, sort out the bus route roads. The 50 has been going this way since the 1950's
I did want to catch a 91 to chapel allerton as its the old 44 route but there wasnt one for 45 minutes. So i nipped down for a bus along Kirkstall Rd back into town.
Walked through town to have a look then to the Bus Station and a Transdev 36 back to Primley Park. 36 is a very old route number dating back to before 1936. And is Leeds - Ripon. My 1936 West Yorkshire Road Car timetable is on Timetable World.
Nice bus. Leather seats, and 2+1 seating. But it now stops everywhere. Why cant it just stop at main stops on Harrogate and Chapeltown Road? At least as far as Moortown Corner.

Buses were reasonably used but the 36 was a bit empty for a 1630 departure.

Apart from some roads falling to bits giving a rough ride, too many traffic lights changed in front of a bus. Surely its should be possible to give buses priorty at traffic lights?

 

[RELL6L]

So the second day of my trip last week (first day reported in post #300), on Thursday, started again around 6.30, this time at Sandbach, where Foden had their factory and made a few double deck bus chassis in the 1970s. With no people around the central square was quite pleasant. I took the Arriva 38 to Crewe on a Pulsar, this route competes with D&G who also run the 38 but at complementary rather than competitive times. I bought an Arriva North West day ticket meaning I could use all Arriva Merseyside and North West buses.

Crewe bus station is awful and the abandoned Arriva depot, which has been here for countless years now, is very bleak. It does look like some work might be starting in the area soon. I grabbed a bacon roll and coffee here before moving swiftly on. The long journeys on the 84 to Chester are often run with deckers, but my journey was a Pulsar. We carried quite a number to Nantwich and then gradually added more as we passed up the pleasant Cheshire countryside through Tarporley. Last time I did this would have been on an ENL…. some time ago! I got off the bus at Tarvin as I wasn’t headed for Chester this time.

I had about 40 minutes at Tarvin which, although perfectly pleasant, it about 30 minutes too much. From here I took a D&G 82 (divine and godly – or not), on an ex Isle of Man Streetlite, to Northwich. No waiting for time anywhere but the bus was punctual. I had time at Northwich but it was clear that I would have more than expected as my next bus from Warrington’s Own Buses was going to be quite late. Having researched the board the previous day I could see that the bus I wanted ran an 8A to Appleton Thorn at 08.14, an 8 to Warrington at 08.47 before running the 9A to Northwich at 09.22. The 8A had left Warrington on time but completed its journey 15 minutes late, clearly delayed at the swing bridge, the 8 had started 12 minutes late and finished 14 minutes late and the 9A left Warrington 16 minutes late and was 24 minutes late at Stockton Heath – the bridge again. Then the swing bridge in Northwich decided to take 15 minutes out for cleaning and the 9A arrived in Northwich over half an hour late. Slightly outside Warrington’s control but you would think they would have a slightly more robust timetable – there is lots of interworking and very short turnrounds everywhere and the bridge must get raised quite often. I was therefore able to wander leisurely around the town centre and the moorings on the River Weaver.

The bus was an Enviro 200 but not one of the dedicated Cheshire Cat ones. Oddly it arrived as a 9A, not branded as a Cheshire Cat, and we left as a CAT9, which is so branded. The difference is only a route variation at the Northwich end. So on the timetables at Northwich the 9A is high up the list in its numerical position while the CAT9 is right at the bottom! We made up a little time on the journey north as the roads to Comberbatch were closed so we missed the village out, arriving at Warrington 23 minutes late. Not much time here then but just enough to walk briskly into the town centre and back.

From Warrington it was back onto Arriva, starting with a Pulsar on the 329 to St Helens. This route runs at the odd frequency of 40 minutes and interworks with the 360 from Warrington to Wigan, operated from St Helens mainly with Pulsars, which was my steed again. I think these are good buses. Ours was certainly pretty swift with a real go-for-it driver and, even with a couple of pauses, we were 5 minutes early arriving at St Helens. The route competes with Link Network who run five journeys between the peaks on what appears to be an identical route. I saw their bus, a Solo. At St Helens there was congestion in Bickerstaffe Street, outside the bus station, due to parked buses, while the adjacent bus station itself seemed to have plenty of room. My next journey was the Arriva 17 to Widnes. Although I should have arrived at 12.35 I saw the Solo for the 12.25 journey was still queueing to get on the stand so, having been to St Helens only last November, decided to move on in case the whole service was running late. The 17 to Widnes is largely a local route in St Helens, with a few twists and turns in the area oddly named Clock Face, a brief country section and then a local route in Widnes, most of the passengers being within the towns. We were nearly 20 minutes late arriving at Widnes but this was still 10 minutes ahead of my schedule. I explored Widnes a few years ago – at that time many of the buses were Halton Transport – but that went out of business a few years ago with Arriva picking up most of the spoils. I wanted to proceed to Runcorn, the first bus that turned up was a Pulsar on the 79C so I go that.

In Runcorn I alighted at the High Street bus station and explored the town centre which, surprisingly, is not bad. There is a short promenade alongside the Manchester Ship Canal with the River Mersey beyond with the old bridge to the left and the new bridge to the right, with Widnes straight ahead with a prominent church. Parts of the town centre are almost under the old bridge and there is a section of the Bridgwater Canal which comes to an end here. I spent about 40 minutes here then took another 79C on to Runcorn Shopping City. This went via a section of the Runcorn busway (Runcorn being a place that made it own way – the busway – in the bus world). At one point we went into a 5 bay saw-tooth bus station, but with no stands or passengers, just a small van in the corner. As we stopped a driver emerged and we swapped. Compared to Stagecoach and First the change of drivers seemed very slick, two minutes max, the new driver logged into the ticket machine and we were on our way. I am not into shopping and I expect my wife, who is, would not think much of Runcorn shopping city, it has passed its best! I merely walked from the north stop down to the shops, through to the south and back up the escalator to the south stop. Not long to wait here before a gas bus on the X30, which I would have expected to have missed, but this was 10 minutes later having been delayed on its way to and in Warrington. Some of the other buses on the route were much more delayed than ours. This was one of the first (13-reg) batch of MAN Eco City gas buses , first time I have been on one of these and I thought it was quite impressive, seemed to be quiet and powerful with a turn of speed on the main road.

I took the X30 to Frodsham, home of (among others) Gary Barlow of Take That. An upmarket Cheshire town although not quite at the Wilmslow and Alderley Edge level. I am sure I caught a glimpse of the High Street in Rules of The Game, a TV drama shown earlier this year. Having arrived on an earlier bus than expected I saw that the Stagecoach 2 I had intended to take was an E400 which surprised me as I didn’t think Chester ran many deckers, but I now see it is not unusual for this journey to be run by a decker. I had just under an hour at Frodsham before getting the Stagecoach 48, a tendered route recently taken over from Warrington’s Own Buses, back to Northwich. Pleasant countryside and quite a few wiggles and we arrived back at Northwich on time. This gave me 20 minutes to wander around by the river again before getting the Arriva 37. To my surprise this bus was a double decker, an E400 from the batch tarted up with personalised registrations, leather seats and air conditioning for the 1 between Chester and Wrexham, only to be turfed off shortly afterwards by a batch of new buses. This seemed quite a good bus as we made our way to the delights of Winsford and beyond. I had intended to alight at Middlewich and spend half an hour here, following back to Sandbach on the next 37W, but it was clear from BusTimes that this board had petered out by mid afternoon so I left Middlewich for another time and continued to Sandbach soon after 6pm to head home.

My target “A list” of trips for 2022 numbers 15, of which 8 are in an arc from Cheshire through Lancashire and Yorkshire to the east coast. So far I have done 6 trips now, of which 5 are in this arc, so I am pleased with progress, thanks mainly to March’s good weather. Let’s hope it continues, although I have holidays to fit in soon!

As usual some pictures.


Sandbach


Crewe - the old Arriva depot


Tarvin


Northwich


Warrington


From Runcorn Promenade - the new bridge and a church in Widnes


Runcorn - the old bridge


The busway at Runcorn shopping city south


Frodsham


Northwich

 

[TheSel]

Sorry to have been away from this suberb thread for a while - been on a short break, and been busy since I got back.

Some really great reports here, including the usual excellent photography (and an intriguing quiz!) from @RELL6L - and it was nice to learn of the 'Staffordshire Knot' ticket from @asb - something of a 'closed book' to me, that area - so I must get my backside into gear and have a nosey round sometime.


Here's another historic contribution from my archives - looking back exactly 36 years, to Saturday 29 March 1986. Easter weekend.

Together with a mate, I drove up to Penrith, and enjoyed a Cumberland Explorer, but with quite a lot of 'out and back' trips, starting with:


0845 649 Penrith – Patterdale Cumberland 2017 – CBV17S – ECW bodied Bristol VR


Cumberland 2017 at Glencoyne, alongside Ullswater.

... returning on the same vehicle as:


0936 649 Patterdale – Penrith Cumberland 2017 – CBV17S – ECW bodied Bristol VR


Cumberland 2017, pictured at Skelly Neb, on its way back to Penrith.

Somewhat disappointingly, the same VR was then rostered for my next scheduled trip

1100 615 Penrith – Carlisle Cumberland 2017 – CBV17S – ECW bodied Bristol VR

... but on arrival in the Border City we were greeted with the sight of the prototype 'B' Series Leyland National, working the very scenic:

1230 677 Carlisle – Talkin Village Cumberland 801 – GCW461S – Prototype Leyland National 'B' series


Cumberland 801, Great Corby


Cumberland 801 again, this time at Talkin Village.

... returning to Carlisle on the same bus:

1332 677 Talkin Village – Carlisle Cumberland 801 – GCW461S – Prototype Leyland National 'B' series

Time now for a couple of City 'Local' services:

1448 661 Town Hall – Harraby East Cumberland 1467 – TRN467V – ECW bodied Atlantean


Cumberland 1467 - Harraby East.

... where we sat back a trip, to await the next journey in the hands of:

1527 61 Harraby East – Railway Station Cumberland 1475 – TRN475V – ECW bodied Atlantean


Cumberland 1475 in an overall advertising livery for 'Medicash', also at Harraby East.

So - that was a pair of Atlanteans, next one of the similarly bodied (ECW highbridge) VRs that shared the City services:

1540 668 Railway Station – Upperby Cumberland 1460 – TRN460V – ECW bodied Bristol VR


Cumberland 1460 at Upperby, again in an overall advertising livery, this time for British Telecom.

... and back into the City as:

1555 668 Upperby – Town Hall Cumberland 1460 – TRN460V – ECW bodied Bristol VR

Next, a more lengthy (and much more scenic!) ride out to the coast on:

1635 693 Carlisle – Bowness on Solway Cumberland 1128 – WCK128V – Duple bodied Leopard


Cumberland 1128 posed by the warning sign at Drumburgh Causeway.

... returning on the same coach as:

1720 693 Bowness – Carlisle Cumberland 1128 – WCK128V – Duple bodied Leopard


Cumberland 1128, with the Solway Firth forming the backdrop


... and finally returning to Penrith, where we'd left the car, on

1820 615 Carlisle – Penrith Cumberland 882 – RHG882X – Leyland National 2 - which it seems I did not photograph.


It was then time for the long drive home, broken by a superb meal at the Hare & Hounds in Levens, which I mention purely as an excuse to show this picture of the 'R send' of a Ribble RE passing said hostelry a few months earlier!



Rear view of Ribble RESL 340 - NCK340K - passing the Hare and Hounds at Levels, a few months earlier (August 1985).


Right - I'd better go before I get told off for going off-topic with that last picture!

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

Thank you to @RELL6L for another interesting trip out and excellent photos. It features a town in which I used to live, and as he alluded to, covers some of the same ground that I did on a trip out last year. There are some places that you've visited that really are pleasant, such as Frodsham where I began in 2021. It's a lovely little place and I meet up with friends in the Bears Paw once a year for old times' sake. Also, glad you found the nice bits of Northwich - it's a curate's egg of a town with nice bits and naff cheek by jowl.

As for the other places... Runcorn isn't as bad as you think (but it's a low bar) but I found it hard to get too bothered by Warrington or St Helens, and that odd 40 min frequency between the two is very strange. Is it any wonder that they have competition on the route! Runcorn town centre isn't too bad like many an old town in a new town (see Stevenage) but Shopping City is a depressing place. And whilst there's some red brick municipal Victoriana in Widnes, I think your view is perhaps more favourable to that town than mine.

I agree with you on some of the vehicles - I quite like a Pulsar and the Arriva gas buses at Runcorn are quite pleasant. Annoyingly, one route that I never did was the Northwich to Frodsham one(s) via Delamere Forest, so a bit envious on that one! Thanks again for super photos.

Of course, I see @TheSel has just blown everything out of the water with another vintage set. I still haven't got my stuff sorted from last Friday but certain my photos won't compare to the both your sets

 

[Ken H]

Day out in Leeds today. Not 10% buses as i had other stuff to do. £5.50 all day ticket.
So drove to Primley Park to get the 7 into town. This was basically the 70 when I was a kid in the 60's so my school bus and bus into town. Far slower now as the estates are 20mph with speed humps. And Potternewton road is narrow if 2 large vehicles need to pass. Got off at the markets to have a mosey round. But a shadow of its former self in the 60's. Back to Corn Exchange for a foray into south Leeds on a 12. Went an odd way round by the station and down Neville St.
Got off and looked at the first depot in Hunslet. The business next door has a wall that was probably part of the old Leeds City Transport tram depot. Needed some stuff from a specilist shop nearby. Then a 13 back into Leeds. That went over Leeds Bridge. Roadworks on Bridge St I think.
Bite to eat and coffee then a 50A to Kirkstall down Burley Rd. Its quite a narrow road and the bus went in every gulley. And rattled at each one. Apart from the noise and discomfort for passengers it must be wearing the underneath bits of the bus out. Come on Leeds city, sort out the bus route roads. The 50 has been going this way since the 1950's
I did want to catch a 91 to chapel allerton as its the old 44 route but there wasnt one for 45 minutes. So i nipped down for a bus along Kirkstall Rd back into town.
Walked through town to have a look then to the Bus Station and a Transdev 36 back to Primley Park. 36 is a very old route number dating back to before 1936. And is Leeds - Ripon. My 1936 West Yorkshire Road Car timetable is on Timetable World.
Nice bus. Leather seats, and 2+1 seating. But it now stops everywhere. Why cant it just stop at main stops on Harrogate and Chapeltown Road? At least as far as Moortown Corner.

Buses were reasonably used but the 36 was a bit empty for a 1630 departure.

Apart from some roads falling to bits giving a rough ride, too many traffic lights changed in front of a bus. Surely its should be possible to give buses priorty at traffic lights?

I have since found out that Call Lane was shut due to roadworks. so not on Bridge end (Where also roadworks) That explains the long way round by the Railway Station on the 12

 

[route101]

Forgot to post my recent outings so playing a bit of a catch up.

This trip was two or 3 weeks ago.

Started at Oxford, such a convenient starting point for me.

853 Oxford to Cheltenham E300

Pleasant run along the A40, with a glimpse of RAF Brize Norton. Would be my first time in Gloucestershire.

97 Cheltenham to Gloucester E400MMC

There was already a line for the 97, so either there was a big gap in service or the service was really popular. The sight of Gloucestershire airport was highlight of route.

33 Gloucester to Hereford. E400

Decided to do the full 33 and back, scenic route via Ross. All new territory to me except for Hereford. With time running out and limited options I took the 33 back to Gloucester.

 

[TheSel]

Good Morning, all. Here's a bit more archive stuff from my 'This Day in History' collection. 30 March 1984 (so 38 years ago today) was a Friday, and I took the day off work to make a long weekend of it. After driving to Chester, and buying a day return on the train to Bangor (hauled by 'Peak' 45 105), I bought a Gwynedd Dayrider for a trip round Anglesey, which featured:

1028 N62 Bangor – Amlwch Crosville DOG131 – A131SMA – ECW bodied Olympian


Crosville DOG131 leaving Moelfre.


1150 N1 Amlwch – Holyhead Crosville ERG270 – YFM270L – ECW bodied Bristol RELL6G (DP)


Crosville ERG270 near Church Bay


1300 N23 Holyhead – RAF Valley Crosville DVG558 – SMS37H – ECW bodied Bristol VR


Crosville DVG558 encounters a tight bend approaching R.A.F. Valley.

... returning on the same bus as:

1335 N23 RAF Valley – Holyhead Crosville DVG558 – SMS37H – ECW bodied Bristol VR


Crosville DVG558 crosses the Holyhead - Bangor railway line at Valley level crossing.

Next, the 'back roads' way to Llangefni, starting out with another ride on:

1448 N46 Holyhead – Gorad Crosville ERG270 – YFM270L – ECW bodied Bristol RELL6G (DP)

... which was a 'kiss and turn' working, meeting up with Llangefni-based sister vehicle ERG274 at Gorad, on which my scheduled 'through' journey continued:

(connecting journey) Gorad – Llangefni Crosville ERG274 – YFM274L – ECW bodied Bristol RELL6G (DP)


Passengers transferring from ERG270 (out of shot) to ERG274 at Gorad.

A few minutes now in Llangefni, before returning to Bangor using the lengthy route via Aberffraw on my third dual purpose RE of the day:

1600 N42 Llangefni – Bangor Crosville ERG278 – YFM278L – ECW bodied Bristol RELL6G (DP)


A busy scene with ERG278 passengers coming and going in Llangefni.


Crosville ERG278 poses for a more tranquil photo stop between Malltraeth and Newborough

... returning to Bangor just in time for a quick trip up to the Maesgeirchen Estate and back on another second- (well, third-, actually) hand Bristol VR:

1745 N78 Bangor – Maesgeirchen Crosville DVG556 – SMS35H – ECW bodied Bristol VR


Crosville DVG556 at the Maesgeirchen terminus


1756 N78 Maesgeirchen – Bangor Crosville DVG556 – SMS35H – ECW bodied Bristol VR


... and then back to Chester along the coast behind 47 563. Not a bad day out!

 

[RELL6L]

Two more fabulous reports from @TheSel from the Lakes and North Wales. Wonderful pictures of great buses. You do wonder why some of these journeys were double deckers - Penrith to Patterdale - Holyhead to Amlwch? I suppose maybe like now they were just filling in between school workings, like the 129 and 130 in East Yorkshire - a Solo would suffice but there aren't any around!

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

Two more fabulous reports from @TheSel from the Lakes and North Wales. Wonderful pictures of great buses. You do wonder why some of these journeys were double deckers - Penrith to Patterdale - Holyhead to Amlwch? I suppose maybe like now they were just filling in between school workings, like the 129 and 130 in East Yorkshire - a Solo would suffice but there aren't any around!

First of all, thanks to @TheSel and good to see some lovely poppy red instead of that terrible leaf green!!

In terms of the Crosville trip, the number of deckers isn't a surprise. During the early 1980s, many elderly deckers were kept on for schools whilst newer single decks were sent packing as they sought to reduce costs. Depots that hadn't seen a decker for years suddenly got them but as you see, they were often trundling about with 3 pensioners and a Yorkshire Terrier during the day. Instead, the real question is what on earth inspired Crosville to allocate brand new Olympians to services like the N62 where they really couldn't be paying for themselves. IIRC, Pwllheli had a number of Olympians too. Also, as I've mentioned before, you had RELHs with high backed DP seats working all sorts of services and yet you know that somewhere, passengers would be sat on a major cross country sliding around on a brown vinyl seated B series National.

Talking of which, nice to see one on a rural route with Ribble and it was the prototype one! Again, some lovely shots and the trip to Bowness on the Leopard would've been quite the thing. Like the crammed in Cumberland fleet name on the side; it was just a few weeks after Ribble had exited the area. There is also another strange observation that I was aware of. Of course, Carlisle city services were busy and they needed to convert to one man operation (as it was called) but fareboxes were pretty rare in the NBC and odd that Carlisle was considered worthy of them. I guess it was to placate the union.

The highbridge deckers were a bit of an oddity and I did wonder if they were diverted from elsewhere in the NBC, especially the VRs

 

[Redmike]

Two more fabulous reports from @TheSel from the Lakes and North Wales. Wonderful pictures of great buses. You do wonder why some of these journeys were double deckers - Penrith to Patterdale - Holyhead to Amlwch? I suppose maybe like now they were just filling in between school workings, like the 129 and 130 in East Yorkshire - a Solo would suffice but there aren't any around!

There are actually double deckers in the summer timetable running between Penrith and Patterdale - open top though and of course geared for the tourist market.

 

[Adtrainsam]

Before I start, this is my first report, so please do forgive me if it's a bit different or not up to scratch to the main posts so far!

The start of the Easter break gave me a chance to get out, explore (and report back) on the bus network in Essex. With a new management at First Essex and large set of service changes in Chelmsford coming up, I focused on services radiating out from Chelmsford (as it was easier for me as well). First dominate the scene in much of Essex, and definitely so in Chelmsford, so it was a no-brainer to grab the All Essex Day Ticket on their App.

I started off by catching my local route into town, 67164, a pleasant 5 year-old E200 MMC, which was initially used on their Airport X10 service. Since then, it has been repainted in the new "Essex Bus" 3-tone Green Livery, and finds itself on the local 40 service most days. The short journey was uneventful, carrying 8 passengers into town. On arrival into Chelmsford Bus Station, I jumped on an another E200 MMC, one of the shorter versions bought for the 57 service 5 years ago. As we were heading out of town, the bus was quiet and carried 4 passengers on the 25 minute journey to Galleywood. We meandered through the estates round Great Baddow, including some tight turns where parked cars were in the way, before a final stretch past some countryside brought us into Galleywood.

From there, I went to the main road and waited for the Essex County Council (ECC) supported service 13 which runs between Chelmsford and Wickford on a 2-hoiurly frequency. A 9 year-old E200, 44550, duly showed up - 8 minutes late. I was the only passenger on the bus for the entire journey. The bus was in a decent condition internally, with on brand cove panels and the leather seats were comfortable, however, it was extremely rattly; worse than a streetlite! The route itself is very rural and takes in the villages of West & South Hanningfield, using some single track country lanes and passing expensive country houses. The route becomes more residential as we entered Wickford, with more challenging 'bus vs parked cars' scenario. We passed through the town and I alighted at the Tesco store, just north of the town centre.

My next bus would be the 94 service which is another ECC route. It's a handy connection across Mid Essex and runs between Basildon and South Woodham Ferrers. The mini E200, 44910, an ex First Bath vehicle appeared on time. The seats were extremely worn inside and should've been refreshed a few years ago; however at 13 years of age, a refurb is becoming increasingly unlikely. The bus was, however, rather nippy as we carried 8 others into South Woodham, where I alighted at the Rail station, as it continues and performs a circular loop round the town.

I crossed the road and waited for my next bus, the 36, which would take me back into Chelmsford. A Wright B7RLE Eclipse arrived 4 minutes late, already with a good load, as we carried 27 into Chelmsford. This bus, 66813, was in good condition and superbly driven. It was smooth, warm and very comfortable; indeed one of the best buses I travelled on that day. We made good progress towards Chelmsford, until we hit infamous Baddow Road traffic. It took 10 minutes to travel down this section of the road, so it's no wonder First have decided to pull most services from it later this month. I then spent an hour or two with a friend before recommencing my adventures.

I found myself at a very busy Chelmsford Bus Station, which, despite it's modern look and age, is clearly too small to even support a Saturday service, with many buses being delayed as layover buses were blocking other buses from turning, as is the horse-shoe style of the bus station. My plan was to take the 36 to Danbury, then wait a short while before catching the 31B service to Maldon. We were in the hands of an ex Ipswich Volvo B7RLE, also repainted into Essex Bus green livery. However, I spotted a problem as we approached Great Baddow; by using the tracker on bustimes.org, it would appear that the 31B service was not tracking. I assumed this was due to the driver shortage, and further to my suspicions, the same journey last week was also cancelled. To prevent being stranded in Danbury or further, I aborted my trip on the 36 at Baddow Road and caught a 45 back towards the city centre. Further drama ensured, where the previous 31B was not cancelled, just running 15 minutes late.

After a fast paced walk to the Army & Navy, an ex P&R E200MMC turned up for the 31B, already with 26 others onboard. The bus was devoid of any P&R logo and was clean and comfortable inside. Compared to the other E200 MMCs First Essex have, the ex P&R have 6 cylinders compared to the average 4, which are ideal for long distance routes such as this. Despite the capabilities of the bus, it was a rather slow ride, with the driver not making much effort to make up time. We passed through some countryside and the villages of Danbury and Woodham Mortimer, before arriving in the quaint market town of Maldon, 17 minutes late.

To finish off the day, a journey on the ECC route 73 was a must, which takes in some stunning scenery and single track, narrow roads round Nounsley and also round Heybridge Basin. This is the secondary route to Chelmsford compared to the 31 group of services, taking longer, and running less frequently as it involves doubling back to serve the Heybridge Basin area. The route seems like it is overtimed, with the bus crawling at 25 on straight 50mph sections of road, even then arriving early at many points. We carried 7 passengers on the ex-London E200, which looked and felt its age.

A quick transfer at Springfield Sainsbury's to the 40 route, on the same bus that I had started with completed a rather successful and interesting day on the Essex Bus network. It'll be interesting what lies ahead for First Essex and the surrounding bus scene!

 

[TheSel]

Before I start, this is my first report, so please do forgive me if it's a bit different or not up to scratch to the main posts so far!

The start of the Easter break gave me a chance to get out, explore (and report back) on the bus network in Essex. With a new management at First Essex and large set of service changes in Chelmsford coming up, I focused on services radiating out from Chelmsford (as it was easier for me as well). First dominate the scene in much of Essex, and definitely so in Chelmsford, so it was a no-brainer to grab the All Essex Day Ticket on their App.

I started off by catching my local route into town, 67164, a pleasant 5 year-old E200 MMC, which was initially used on their Airport X10 service. Since then, it has been repainted in the new "Essex Bus" 3-tone Green Livery, and finds itself on the local 40 service most days. The short journey was uneventful, carrying 8 passengers into town. On arrival into Chelmsford Bus Station, I jumped on an another E200 MMC, one of the shorter versions bought for the 57 service 5 years ago. As we were heading out of town, the bus was quiet and carried 4 passengers on the 25 minute journey to Galleywood. We meandered through the estates round Great Baddow, including some tight turns where parked cars were in the way, before a final stretch past some countryside brought us into Galleywood.

From there, I went to the main road and waited for the Essex County Council (ECC) supported service 13 which runs between Chelmsford and Wickford on a 2-hoiurly frequency. A 9 year-old E200, 44550, duly showed up - 8 minutes late. I was the only passenger on the bus for the entire journey. The bus was in a decent condition internally, with on brand cove panels and the leather seats were comfortable, however, it was extremely rattly; worse than a streetlite! The route itself is very rural and takes in the villages of West & South Hanningfield, using some single track country lanes and passing expensive country houses. The route becomes more residential as we entered Wickford, with more challenging 'bus vs parked cars' scenario. We passed through the town and I alighted at the Tesco store, just north of the town centre.

My next bus would be the 94 service which is another ECC route. It's a handy connection across Mid Essex and runs between Basildon and South Woodham Ferrers. The mini E200, 44910, an ex First Bath vehicle appeared on time. The seats were extremely worn inside and should've been refreshed a few years ago; however at 13 years of age, a refurb is becoming increasingly unlikely. The bus was, however, rather nippy as we carried 8 others into South Woodham, where I alighted at the Rail station, as it continues and performs a circular loop round the town.

I crossed the road and waited for my next bus, the 36, which would take me back into Chelmsford. A Wright B7RLE Eclipse arrived 4 minutes late, already with a good load, as we carried 27 into Chelmsford. This bus, 66813, was in good condition and superbly driven. It was smooth, warm and very comfortable; indeed one of the best buses I travelled on that day. We made good progress towards Chelmsford, until we hit infamous Baddow Road traffic. It took 10 minutes to travel down this section of the road, so it's no wonder First have decided to pull most services from it later this month. I then spent an hour or two with a friend before recommencing my adventures.

I found myself at a very busy Chelmsford Bus Station, which, despite it's modern look and age, is clearly too small to even support a Saturday service, with many buses being delayed as layover buses were blocking other buses from turning, as is the horse-shoe style of the bus station. My plan was to take the 36 to Danbury, then wait a short while before catching the 31B service to Maldon. We were in the hands of an ex Ipswich Volvo B7RLE, also repainted into Essex Bus green livery. However, I spotted a problem as we approached Great Baddow; by using the tracker on bustimes.org, it would appear that the 31B service was not tracking. I assumed this was due to the driver shortage, and further to my suspicions, the same journey last week was also cancelled. To prevent being stranded in Danbury or further, I aborted my trip on the 36 at Baddow Road and caught a 45 back towards the city centre. Further drama ensured, where the previous 31B was not cancelled, just running 15 minutes late.

After a fast paced walk to the Army & Navy, an ex P&R E200MMC turned up for the 31B, already with 26 others onboard. The bus was devoid of any P&R logo and was clean and comfortable inside. Compared to the other E200 MMCs First Essex have, the ex P&R have 6 cylinders compared to the average 4, which are ideal for long distance routes such as this. Despite the capabilities of the bus, it was a rather slow ride, with the driver not making much effort to make up time. We passed through some countryside and the villages of Danbury and Woodham Mortimer, before arriving in the quaint market town of Maldon, 17 minutes late.

To finish off the day, a journey on the ECC route 73 was a must, which takes in some stunning scenery and single track, narrow roads round Nounsley and also round Heybridge Basin. This is the secondary route to Chelmsford compared to the 31 group of services, taking longer, and running less frequently as it involves doubling back to serve the Heybridge Basin area. The route seems like it is overtimed, with the bus crawling at 25 on straight 50mph sections of road, even then arriving early at many points. We carried 7 passengers on the ex-London E200, which looked and felt its age.

A quick transfer at Springfield Sainsbury's to the 40 route, on the same bus that I had started with completed a rather successful and interesting day on the Essex Bus network. It'll be interesting what lies ahead for First Essex and the surrounding bus scene!

Many thanks for posting this, and welcome to this particular thread.

Essex is an area I've not really covered for very many years - indeed, other than a couple of very brief work-related visits, the last time I was there to do any 'spotting' was in the summer of 1989!


Colchester 86 - MEV86V - an ECW bodied Leyland Atlantean in Colchester in June 1989. Note the painted 'window' on Headgate!

Keep posting - it's always good to know what's still possible on days out by bus.

 

[RELL6L]

Before I start, this is my first report, so please do forgive me if it's a bit different or not up to scratch to the main posts so far!

The start of the Easter break gave me a chance to get out, explore (and report back) on the bus network in Essex. With a new management at First Essex and large set of service changes in Chelmsford coming up, I focused on services radiating out from Chelmsford (as it was easier for me as well). First dominate the scene in much of Essex, and definitely so in Chelmsford, so it was a no-brainer to grab the All Essex Day Ticket on their App.

I started off by catching my local route into town, 67164, a pleasant 5 year-old E200 MMC, which was initially used on their Airport X10 service. Since then, it has been repainted in the new "Essex Bus" 3-tone Green Livery, and finds itself on the local 40 service most days. The short journey was uneventful, carrying 8 passengers into town. On arrival into Chelmsford Bus Station, I jumped on an another E200 MMC, one of the shorter versions bought for the 57 service 5 years ago. As we were heading out of town, the bus was quiet and carried 4 passengers on the 25 minute journey to Galleywood. We meandered through the estates round Great Baddow, including some tight turns where parked cars were in the way, before a final stretch past some countryside brought us into Galleywood.

From there, I went to the main road and waited for the Essex County Council (ECC) supported service 13 which runs between Chelmsford and Wickford on a 2-hoiurly frequency. A 9 year-old E200, 44550, duly showed up - 8 minutes late. I was the only passenger on the bus for the entire journey. The bus was in a decent condition internally, with on brand cove panels and the leather seats were comfortable, however, it was extremely rattly; worse than a streetlite! The route itself is very rural and takes in the villages of West & South Hanningfield, using some single track country lanes and passing expensive country houses. The route becomes more residential as we entered Wickford, with more challenging 'bus vs parked cars' scenario. We passed through the town and I alighted at the Tesco store, just north of the town centre.

My next bus would be the 94 service which is another ECC route. It's a handy connection across Mid Essex and runs between Basildon and South Woodham Ferrers. The mini E200, 44910, an ex First Bath vehicle appeared on time. The seats were extremely worn inside and should've been refreshed a few years ago; however at 13 years of age, a refurb is becoming increasingly unlikely. The bus was, however, rather nippy as we carried 8 others into South Woodham, where I alighted at the Rail station, as it continues and performs a circular loop round the town.

I crossed the road and waited for my next bus, the 36, which would take me back into Chelmsford. A Wright B7RLE Eclipse arrived 4 minutes late, already with a good load, as we carried 27 into Chelmsford. This bus, 66813, was in good condition and superbly driven. It was smooth, warm and very comfortable; indeed one of the best buses I travelled on that day. We made good progress towards Chelmsford, until we hit infamous Baddow Road traffic. It took 10 minutes to travel down this section of the road, so it's no wonder First have decided to pull most services from it later this month. I then spent an hour or two with a friend before recommencing my adventures.

I found myself at a very busy Chelmsford Bus Station, which, despite it's modern look and age, is clearly too small to even support a Saturday service, with many buses being delayed as layover buses were blocking other buses from turning, as is the horse-shoe style of the bus station. My plan was to take the 36 to Danbury, then wait a short while before catching the 31B service to Maldon. We were in the hands of an ex Ipswich Volvo B7RLE, also repainted into Essex Bus green livery. However, I spotted a problem as we approached Great Baddow; by using the tracker on bustimes.org, it would appear that the 31B service was not tracking. I assumed this was due to the driver shortage, and further to my suspicions, the same journey last week was also cancelled. To prevent being stranded in Danbury or further, I aborted my trip on the 36 at Baddow Road and caught a 45 back towards the city centre. Further drama ensured, where the previous 31B was not cancelled, just running 15 minutes late.

After a fast paced walk to the Army & Navy, an ex P&R E200MMC turned up for the 31B, already with 26 others onboard. The bus was devoid of any P&R logo and was clean and comfortable inside. Compared to the other E200 MMCs First Essex have, the ex P&R have 6 cylinders compared to the average 4, which are ideal for long distance routes such as this. Despite the capabilities of the bus, it was a rather slow ride, with the driver not making much effort to make up time. We passed through some countryside and the villages of Danbury and Woodham Mortimer, before arriving in the quaint market town of Maldon, 17 minutes late.

To finish off the day, a journey on the ECC route 73 was a must, which takes in some stunning scenery and single track, narrow roads round Nounsley and also round Heybridge Basin. This is the secondary route to Chelmsford compared to the 31 group of services, taking longer, and running less frequently as it involves doubling back to serve the Heybridge Basin area. The route seems like it is overtimed, with the bus crawling at 25 on straight 50mph sections of road, even then arriving early at many points. We carried 7 passengers on the ex-London E200, which looked and felt its age.

A quick transfer at Springfield Sainsbury's to the 40 route, on the same bus that I had started with completed a rather successful and interesting day on the Essex Bus network. It'll be interesting what lies ahead for First Essex and the surrounding bus scene!

A good report, thank you and welcome.

I agree with what you say on the 73, this is a scenic route from Chelmsford to Maldon. I took it to Heybridge Basin and walked to Maldon along the estuary, this is very attractive. Maldon generally is a pleasant town. Another time worth going on further to Burnham on Crouch which is lovely. If you can work it - its not easy - you can do a circuit of the Dengie peninsula using the D1 and DaRT4 and also visiting Bradwell. Otherwise from Burnham on Cruch its back the same way or take a train out to South Woodham Ferrers or Wickford.

You refer to changes First are making later this month. Are these public somewhere? Nothing I can see on First or Essex websites. I did learn from the Essex website that First lost the Chelmsford park and ride services to Vectare in early March, something which had escaped my attention.

 

[Adtrainsam]

Many thanks for posting this, and welcome to this particular thread.

Keep posting - it's always good to know what's still possible on days out by bus.

A good report, thank you and welcome.

I agree with what you say on the 73, this is a scenic route from Chelmsford to Maldon. I took it to Heybridge Basin and walked to Maldon along the estuary, this is very attractive. Maldon generally is a pleasant town. Another time worth going on further to Burnham on Crouch which is lovely. If you can work it - its not easy - you can do a circuit of the Dengie peninsula using the D1 and DaRT4 and also visiting Bradwell. Otherwise from Burnham on Cruch its back the same way or take a train out to South Woodham Ferrers or Wickford.

You refer to changes First are making later this month. Are these public somewhere? Nothing I can see on First or Essex websites. I did learn from the Essex website that First lost the Chelmsford park and ride services to Vectare in early March, something which had escaped my attention.

Thank you both for your kind comments!

In regards to the service changes, https://bustimes.org/licences/PF0000599 shows a lot of new routes and re-numbering such as a C1-12 group of services for Chelmsford under a brand called 'Chelmsford Shuttles'. It's surprising the details aren't out yet with under 2 weeks until the changes commence. I spoke with some of the drivers on Saturday and they said they had been told nothing with 'we're all in the same boat', 'it's usual for this company' answers. A new network map for Chelmsford has been produced however isn't online yet

 

[route101]

A coach trip this time and an international one!

Last weekend I went to France and decided to take the coach back, for a few reasons, it was cheap and I find it interesting the process of crossing the border.

Flixbus 700 from Paris Bercy to London Victoria VDL Bova

I arrived in good time at Paris Bercy coach station as I wasn't sure exactly where the service would depart. The weather was great over the weekend, sunny and around 20c, so I sat in the park and had a spot of lunch.

Paris Bercy coach station is located under a road next to the River Siene. Most of the buses were Flixbus and a new one to me Bla Bla Bus in a red livery. I think until recently there was not many Intercity bus services but now Flixbus are well established.

My bus was already at its stand and we were allowed to board about 25 minutes ahead of departure, that almost never happens now! I had reserved row 10 seats A and B, I thought on a journey of this length it would be worth booking the seat next to me. The coach started to fill up, a right mix of people but few French and British. A guy asked me if its ok if he sat next to me, I showed him my ticket, I did pay extra for the seat next to me. I thought that would happen as the seats are not marked as reserved.

At 12pm we departed and made our way North out of Paris, I was wondering what way we would go. Up the A16 via Amiens or out on the A1. We went on the A1 and A26. We stopped at the services on the A1 only an hour after we left Paris.

We progressed along the A1, I noticed most of the cars were Dutch or Belgian, no surprise. The weather turned cloudier as we headed north on the very quiet A26 towards Calais. I was wondering if it would be the tunnel or the boat. The timetable said boat but with P&O off the cards I wasn't surprised when we pulled up at the Eurotunnel terminal.

There was a small wait at Passport control to leave France, we all had to get off the bus and go through passport control. Again I was stamped out of France. Next up was the UK control, no problems and our bags were scanned. A few passengers must of got extra questioning as we waited nearly an hour for them at passport control.Was surprised to see what I thought was latin american guys make it back to the bus, with face tattoos and no luggage, kinda of suspicious to me.

Then onto the shuttle, feels strange on a train while on a bus! Straight off at Folkestone and onto the M20. Then we came into London via the A20 and Lewisham before arriving at Victoria just after 7pm. 45 minutes ahead of the timetable, but they of been slack and the fact we didn't take the ferry. I had a bit of a wait and looked to book the next National Express home but was sold out, so took my booked National Express at 10pm.

I am thinking of trying the UK Flixbus at some point. Not quite as established here.

 

[RELL6L]

Thank you both for your kind comments!

In regards to the service changes, https://bustimes.org/licences/PF0000599 shows a lot of new routes and re-numbering such as a C1-12 group of services for Chelmsford under a brand called 'Chelmsford Shuttles'. It's surprising the details aren't out yet with under 2 weeks until the changes commence. I spoke with some of the drivers on Saturday and they said they had been told nothing with 'we're all in the same boat', 'it's usual for this company' answers. A new network map for Chelmsford has been produced however isn't online yet

View attachment 112493

I will be very interested to see what First have come up with in Chelmsford. There has been much discussion in this forum about the Essex network. If they are changing it this soon as fundamentally they should be plastering the town (and internet) with publicity!

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

Hi all

Been rather busy with work and other stuff so not had chance to post my latest report even though it’s nearly two weeks ago. I won’t be able to compete with the exquisite pics of @RELL6L or the nostalgia of @TheSel l but I hope you enjoy all the same. I elected to visit Derbyshire; a place that I’d not really explored for 20 years or so. I had been working and socialising the night before (not heavy) so it was a bit of a late start to the day, driving up the M1 and turning off at Markham Vale and heading into the small town of Staveley. Situated in the old Derbyshire coalfield, the town itself was the home of a major iron works that use to make fittings for the water industry until closure in 2006; a safe enough place to leave my car. I had time before my first journey for a quick wander. It’s a pleasant enough place but suffering a decline with the usual closed pubs now reopening as nurseries or awaiting a new use. Whilst the town is well served by Stagecoach, my first bus was to be a TM Travel machine and it was a former Metrobus Scania Omnidekka that hoved into view on a tendered service to Bolsover. Synonymous with former MP Dennis Skinner, it was a former red wall seat and a place I’d never been to. Having purchased my Derbyshire Wayfarer, I went upstairs where I had the entire top deck to myself. In fact, we carried only one other passenger. A bit of nostalgia as the driver was still proudly displaying his PSV badge – a late issue, I guess. It was a short but pleasant hop to Bolsover, home to a large castle but as per Staveley, showing the signs of decline as the mines have disappeared to be replaced by warehouse jobs in the large sheds near Markham Vale, clearly visible as we traversed the M1 and climbed into the hill top town.



It was a short affair as I hopped onto a Stagecoach e300 and made our way towards Chesterfield. This afforded a short trip via “New” Arkwright. Once home to a colliery and accompanying village, issues with methane gas saw the whole village demolished and relocated in the 1980s with the old place vacated so the land was open casted. It’s a slightly laborious route going via the main hospital and into Chesterfield. I like the town, curved spire and everything. It’s still got a vibrancy (though diminished) and it’s pleasant enough on the eye. I had a brisk walk to the stops near the coach station where I was surprised to find the travel office still open though with an absence of leaflets. My second blast from the past – a third one was an unspecified (!) trip where clearly a missing interlock meant the driver could speed along with the entrance door open; can’t recall the last time I saw that happen!

Hulleys now have a reasonable presence on local tendered routes but I was going for their long established route to Bakewell. I didn’t know what to expect but it was a Wright Streetlite that had originated in Shetland. And it was an excellent machine – no telltale rattling of the emergency door handle, spirited ride but not choppy, and high backed seats that were comfortable. People have a real downer on them but this was an excellent machine. Interesting bit of driver care as we approached a stop where a passenger with a dog was waiting. We already had a dog on board so the driver enquired of the owners if their dog was ok with others, and then asked the same of the prospective travellers – never seen that before. All ok in the canine world and we were soon in proper Peak District countryside, passing a TM Travel machine at Baslow. One thing that has to be said – TM Travel looks very much the poor relation of the Wellglade Group and the advances of the Stockley era seem to have stalled.




We arrived into beautiful Bakewell which was buzzing with people enjoying the spring sunshine. I went off to grab some lunch on the go (a particular pastry naturally) before electing to choose the Hulleys 172 to Matlock in place of the twice as quick 6.1 of TrentBarton. It took longer and perhaps impacted future travelling but it was worth it. An ex Southern Vectis short Dart appeared before a reasonable load took off for a beautiful ride the back way to Darley Dale and Matlock. I might have wished to stay longer but I could see the 6.1 following us into Matlock. We gained some advantage via temporary traffic lights so I could spend two mins in Matlock to check out the still awful bus station; that hadn’t changed since 2003 (or probably 1983). We had a driver change too indicating that TrentBarton still maintain a small base in the town though many services have been ceded to Stagecoach and others over the years.



I was now on a Stenning inspired and highly marketed Optare Versa extolling the virtues of the Sixes, of which the 6.1 is the Bakewell and Matlock to Derby variation. It was a nice machine, expertly driven by our lady driver as we headed to Middleton and a double run through the village, and then the pretty town of Wirksworth that once boasted a Trent outstation. We soon passed the large mill on the outskirts of Belper where I elected to break my journey. The first time I ever visited the home of Tracy Shaw and Swarfega, the buses still entered the bus station from the narrow rear entrance but now it’s permanently closed with all vehicles entering through the main doors. Belper depot/bus station is an art deco survivor and, it has to be said, it is beautifully and smartly maintained by TB. As well as it being clean, tidy and smartly painted, there is more excellent BI designed marketing with posters/notices and free standing timetable stands. A real credit to them. I had chance to sneak around to snap the old entrance, still with the old style Trent fleetname and the old maintenance bay sublet to a tyre firm as it has been for years. That frittered a short time before my next Versa arrived to take me to Derby.



This was my first use of Derby bus station (yes, really) though I’ve visited the city in recent years. The place isn’t as bad as I’d heard but naturally, it’s a bit small. I had chance to compare the marketing of TrentBarton with the rather poor and pale Arriva though, in truth, it’s not the worst Arriva operation I’ve seen. I was keen to sample Arriva Derby so I wandered from the bus station to a nearby street to catch the X38 to Burton as DW tickets allow a trip over the border. Bang on time, an Arriva Pulsar came and after a driver change, we headed for a thrash on the A38 on one of the truly joint services that persists. To be honest, TB must wonder why they bother when Arriva have no interest in branding or promotion in any substantial way. Still, the hardy Pulsar (one vehicle type that is also rather underrated) got into its stride and made decent time until it was caught in typical Burton gluepot congestion as we passed the former East Staffs bus depot, long since vacated by Stevensons.



Sadly, I missed the chance of a short hop to Tutbury on the excellent Midland Classic but instead, it was back on TrentBarton and their Villager V1 service back to Derby. Rather than the direct X38, this is a more rambling affair as my Volvo Eclipse left Burton and then proceeded to take a circuitous route out of the town via Stretton and then the pretty village of Rolleston on Dove. Next stop was Tutbury though the beauty of the castle from a distance is overshadowed by the large and expanded Nescafe coffee factory in neighbouring Hatton; still, Tutbury is a quaint and attractive village and as the sun began to set, it was bathed in an orange glow. It was a busy journey back as we served numerous other villages before returning to Derby.




Back in the bus station, it was only a short wait for my bus north, the Comet (no service number) to Chesterfield. This was a rather rattly machine but like my preceding Villager, it had the trademark Stenning marketing and attention to detail. It’s very impressive but the rattling was rather intrusive. About half way into the journey, the aircon suddenly crackled into life; I’m used to it not working on any UK bus so that was a surprise. By this point, darkness had enveloped the day and it was a swift route into Chesterfield. I was now ready to get my bus back to Staveley and then it happened; after a day without any cancellations from driver shortages, this was when it got me! My bus (for Worksop) was cancelled, and the next Staveley bus wasn’t showing either. I was getting ready for a long wait in Chessie but then the second bus (for Sheffield) appeared with it being a standard Stagecoach e200. Not exciting but I was just glad to have a bus to return me back to my car. One thing I noticed were the number of internal adverts for Stagecoach – there were 11 which is something I’d normally be positive about. However, they do have a feel of the old Arriva ones – corporate, shiny but not really communicating anything… I really do wonder about Stagecoach in the future.

All in all, the DW ticket (with its rail availability) is a little pricey but it’s valid on most bus services and it was a cracking day out; hope you enjoyed my record of a great day in a county of contrasts.

 

[RELL6L]

Hi all

Been rather busy with work and other stuff so not had chance to post my latest report even though it’s nearly two weeks ago. I won’t be able to compete with the exquisite pics of @RELL6L or the nostalgia of @TheSel l but I hope you enjoy all the same. I elected to visit Derbyshire; a place that I’d not really explored for 20 years or so. I had been working and socialising the night before (not heavy) so it was a bit of a late start to the day, driving up the M1 and turning off at Markham Vale and heading into the small town of Staveley. Situated in the old Derbyshire coalfield, the town itself was the home of a major iron works that use to make fittings for the water industry until closure in 2006; a safe enough place to leave my car. I had time before my first journey for a quick wander. It’s a pleasant enough place but suffering a decline with the usual closed pubs now reopening as nurseries or awaiting a new use. Whilst the town is well served by Stagecoach, my first bus was to be a TM Travel machine and it was a former Metrobus Scania Omnidekka that hoved into view on a tendered service to Bolsover. Synonymous with former MP Dennis Skinner, it was a former red wall seat and a place I’d never been to. Having purchased my Derbyshire Wayfarer, I went upstairs where I had the entire top deck to myself. In fact, we carried only one other passenger. A bit of nostalgia as the driver was still proudly displaying his PSV badge – a late issue, I guess. It was a short but pleasant hop to Bolsover, home to a large castle but as per Staveley, showing the signs of decline as the mines have disappeared to be replaced by warehouse jobs in the large sheds near Markham Vale, clearly visible as we traversed the M1 and climbed into the hill top town.

It was a short affair as I hopped onto a Stagecoach e300 and made our way towards Chesterfield. This afforded a short trip via “New” Arkwright. Once home to a colliery and accompanying village, issues with methane gas saw the whole village demolished and relocated in the 1980s with the old place vacated so the land was open casted. It’s a slightly laborious route going via the main hospital and into Chesterfield. I like the town, curved spire and everything. It’s still got a vibrancy (though diminished) and it’s pleasant enough on the eye. I had a brisk walk to the stops near the coach station where I was surprised to find the travel office still open though with an absence of leaflets. My second blast from the past – a third one was an unspecified (!) trip where clearly a missing interlock meant the driver could speed along with the entrance door open; can’t recall the last time I saw that happen!

Hulleys now have a reasonable presence on local tendered routes but I was going for their long established route to Bakewell. I didn’t know what to expect but it was a Wright Streetlite that had originated in Shetland. And it was an excellent machine – no telltale rattling of the emergency door handle, spirited ride but not choppy, and high backed seats that were comfortable. People have a real downer on them but this was an excellent machine. Interesting bit of driver care as we approached a stop where a passenger with a dog was waiting. We already had a dog on board so the driver enquired of the owners if their dog was ok with others, and then asked the same of the prospective travellers – never seen that before. All ok in the canine world and we were soon in proper Peak District countryside, passing a TM Travel machine at Baslow. One thing that has to be said – TM Travel looks very much the poor relation of the Wellglade Group and the advances of the Stockley era seem to have stalled.

We arrived into beautiful Bakewell which was buzzing with people enjoying the spring sunshine. I went off to grab some lunch on the go (a particular pastry naturally) before electing to choose the Hulleys 172 to Matlock in place of the twice as quick 6.1 of TrentBarton. It took longer and perhaps impacted future travelling but it was worth it. An ex Southern Vectis short Dart appeared before a reasonable load took off for a beautiful ride the back way to Darley Dale and Matlock. I might have wished to stay longer but I could see the 6.1 following us into Matlock. We gained some advantage via temporary traffic lights so I could spend two mins in Matlock to check out the still awful bus station; that hadn’t changed since 2003 (or probably 1983). We had a driver change too indicating that TrentBarton still maintain a small base in the town though many services have been ceded to Stagecoach and others over the years.

I was now on a Stenning inspired and highly marketed Optare Versa extolling the virtues of the Sixes, of which the 6.1 is the Bakewell and Matlock to Derby variation. It was a nice machine, expertly driven by our lady driver as we headed to Middleton and a double run through the village, and then the pretty town of Wirksworth that once boasted a Trent outstation. We soon passed the large mill on the outskirts of Belper where I elected to break my journey. The first time I ever visited the home of Tracy Shaw and Swarfega, the buses still entered the bus station from the narrow rear entrance but now it’s permanently closed with all vehicles entering through the main doors. Belper depot/bus station is an art deco survivor and, it has to be said, it is beautifully and smartly maintained by TB. As well as it being clean, tidy and smartly painted, there is more excellent BI designed marketing with posters/notices and free standing timetable stands. A real credit to them. I had chance to sneak around to snap the old entrance, still with the old style Trent fleetname and the old maintenance bay sublet to a tyre firm as it has been for years. That frittered a short time before my next Versa arrived to take me to Derby.

This was my first use of Derby bus station (yes, really) though I’ve visited the city in recent years. The place isn’t as bad as I’d heard but naturally, it’s a bit small. I had chance to compare the marketing of TrentBarton with the rather poor and pale Arriva though, in truth, it’s not the worst Arriva operation I’ve seen. I was keen to sample Arriva Derby so I wandered from the bus station to a nearby street to catch the X38 to Burton as DW tickets allow a trip over the border. Bang on time, an Arriva Pulsar came and after a driver change, we headed for a thrash on the A38 on one of the truly joint services that persists. To be honest, TB must wonder why they bother when Arriva have no interest in branding or promotion in any substantial way. Still, the hardy Pulsar (one vehicle type that is also rather underrated) got into its stride and made decent time until it was caught in typical Burton gluepot congestion as we passed the former East Staffs bus depot, long since vacated by Stevensons.

Sadly, I missed the chance of a short hop to Tutbury on the excellent Midland Classic but instead, it was back on TrentBarton and their Villager V1 service back to Derby. Rather than the direct X38, this is a more rambling affair as my Volvo Eclipse left Burton and then proceeded to take a circuitous route out of the town via Stretton and then the pretty village of Rolleston on Dove. Next stop was Tutbury though the beauty of the castle from a distance is overshadowed by the large and expanded Nescafe coffee factory in neighbouring Hatton; still, Tutbury is a quaint and attractive village and as the sun began to set, it was bathed in an orange glow. It was a busy journey back as we served numerous other villages before returning to Derby.

Back in the bus station, it was only a short wait for my bus north, the Comet (no service number) to Chesterfield. This was a rather rattly machine but like my preceding Villager, it had the trademark Stenning marketing and attention to detail. It’s very impressive but the rattling was rather intrusive. About half way into the journey, the aircon suddenly crackled into life; I’m used to it not working on any UK bus so that was a surprise. By this point, darkness had enveloped the day and it was a swift route into Chesterfield. I was now ready to get my bus back to Staveley and then it happened; after a day without any cancellations from driver shortages, this was when it got me! My bus (for Worksop) was cancelled, and the next Staveley bus wasn’t showing either. I was getting ready for a long wait in Chessie but then the second bus (for Sheffield) appeared with it being a standard Stagecoach e200. Not exciting but I was just glad to have a bus to return me back to my car. One thing I noticed were the number of internal adverts for Stagecoach – there were 11 which is something I’d normally be positive about. However, they do have a feel of the old Arriva ones – corporate, shiny but not really communicating anything… I really do wonder about Stagecoach in the future.

All in all, the DW ticket (with its rail availability) is a little pricey but it’s valid on most bus services and it was a cracking day out; hope you enjoyed my record of a great day in a county of contrasts.

Excellent, thank you for posting. I knew you had been out - thought you weren't going to post! Very interesting and great pictures. That was a good week for trips.

I have been to all the places you stopped at but not used all the routes. The 172 is on my list to do, I think it is very scenic.
Agree on Belper bus station / depot, wonderful relic and well maintained. Wirksworth is worth stopping at too another time. I love Bakewell - pudding or tart? I thought Bolsover and Staveley were OK, Staveley only at the far end of the main street, by the church. Bolsover was a must to pay homage to the famous 'beast' - Dennis Skinner - no longer an MP of course as the seat has turned blue.
By some standards the Derbyshire Wayfarer ticket is expensive but I think it is good value as you can use everything including some journeys out of the county, and including the railway as far as New Mills - gives a lot of scope.

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

By some standards the Derbyshire Wayfarer ticket is expensive but I think it is good value as you can use everything including some journeys out of the county, and including the railway as far as New Mills - gives a lot of scope.

TBH, it's only expensive if you don't use the rail element and even then, it's not that expensive for a full county's travel. Also, it is pretty sensible in allowing cross county trips which is especially useful in places like the Burton/Swadlincote area. Just a shame that I didn't start my day till 1030 to get a bit more value from the ticket!!

And to answer your question..... TART, obviously

 

[RELL6L]

TBH, it's only expensive if you don't use the rail element and even then, it's not that expensive for a full county's travel. Also, it is pretty sensible in allowing cross county trips which is especially useful in places like the Burton/Swadlincote area. Just a shame that I didn't start my day till 1030 to get a bit more value from the ticket!!

And to answer your question..... TART, obviously

Agree on the Derbyshire ticket, it is very good, rail is a bonus.

Wrong answer on Bakewell, my company used to own the Old Original Bakewell Pudding Shop!

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

Agree on the Derbyshire ticket, it is very good, rail is a bonus.

Wrong answer on Bakewell, my company used to own the Old Original Bakewell Pudding Shop!

Tart is inherently funnier than pudding though

Obviously, the Peak District is delightful and I will do some more of that but I also fancy a bit more exploration of the less scenic eastern part. Also, I had hoped to the Burton on the V3 or the Derby to Swad route but timings were against me

 

[TheSel]

Many Thanks, @TheGrandWazoo for that excellent report on your recent day out. As a former resident of Sheffield for 20-odd years, I have enjoyed many such tickets over the years, and even though services are now somewhat more sparse than they once were, it really is a very attractive area to visit, for all manner of things. Chesterfield's 'twisted spire', Bakewell's Market, Buxton and the Monsal Trail, and so many more. Just one point about the price of the ticket - whilst £13.40 may seem on the dear side, for anyone over 60 the ticket only half that at £6.70, so for those (like me) who don't yet qualify for an English National Concessionary Travel Scheme (ENCTS) pass, it's remarkably good value.

I know I've been a bit quiet recently, but here's a brief bit of 'This Day in History' nostalgia from my archives. The date is Friday 8 April 1988, so 34 years ago today, and I've stayed overnight in a small but tidy-enough Guest House about fifteen minutes walk from the centre of Bedford, for a United Counties day. The weather that day started gloomy, and stayed that way. Possibly the sun had gone on its holidays elsewhere? Certainly @RELL6L's camera would not have been taken out of its case!

I started out with a couple of hours on town service 101, which in those days was crew operated with ex London Transport Routemasters.

101 Bedford - Kempston UCOC 706 - 647DYE - Routemaster


United Counties 706 - former London Transport RM1647 - at Kempston

... where I 'sat back' a trip, before continuing this morning's Routemaster-fest on

101 Kempston - Woodside UCOC 707 - CUV122C - Routemaster


United Counties 707 - former London Transport RM2122 - at Woodside (Bedford, not Birkenhead, obviously!)

continuing with a couple more RMs:

101 Woodside - Church Lane UCOC 707 - CUV122C - Routemaster

101 Church Lane - Bedford Town Centre UCOC 703 - WLT682 - Routemaster

... then, as a change from Routemasters,

108 Bedford - Oakley (and return) UCOC 936 - SNV936W - ECW bodied Bristol VR


United Counties 935 - SNV936W - at Oakley terminus

It was now time to head a bit further into the countryside, with a trip on:

178 Bedford - Gamlingay UCOC 782 - CBD782K - ECW bodied Bristol VR


United Counties 782 - CBD782K - pauses at Potton, en route to Gamlingay.

I returned on the same vehicle as far as Sandy:

178 Gamlingay - Sandy UCOC 782 - CBD782K - ECW bodied Bristol VR,

... connecting with a more modern (but still second-hand) VR in the shape of:

183 Sandy - Biggleswade UCOC 972 - KRU846W - ECW bodied Bristol VR

... and then a rural run out to Wrestlingworth and back on:

174 Biggleswade - Wrestlingworth (return) UCOC 818 - SRP818N - ECW bodied Bristol VR


United Counties 818 pauses for a photo stop at Dunton on the return journey to Biddleswade.

I then decided it was time for Hitchin' a ride (!)

183 Biggleswade - Hitchin UCOC 582 - ARP582V - Leyland National 2


United Counties 582 loads in Biggleswade, prior to its journey to Hitchin.

From Hitchin, it was on to Luton, transport being provided by similar:

99 Hitchin - Luton Luton & District 588 - SVV588W - Leyland National 2

... and then, before the light faded completely, a couple of local trips, starting with:

8 Luton - Limbury Meads (return) Luton & District 774 - ANV774J - ECW bodied Bristol VR




Luton & District 774 - ANV774J - waits time at Limbury Meads terminus. This, of course, was one of the Mk I Bristol VRs that United Counties had converted to Mk III specification in the early 1980s.

... then, by means of comparison:

9 Luton - Runfold (return) Luton & District 756 - UBD756H - ECW bodied Bristol VR


Luton & District 756 - UBD756H - sets down it final passenger at Runfold.

This, of course, was one of the Mk I Bristol VRs that United Counties did not have converted to Mk III specification in the early 1980s!

... before concluding the day with a trip out to Luton Airport on:

12 Luton - Luton Airport Luton & District 837 - LBD837P - ECW bodied Bristol VR

... and a return from here directly back to Bedford on

X2 Luton Airport - Bedford UCOC 235 - EBD235T - Duple bodied Leyland Leopard


Hopefully this has stirred some memories?

=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+




Here's another archive trip - again from 'this date in history'. Back to 10 April 1987 - a bright and breezy Friday, and I was enjoying a three day trip to Lincolnshire. 'Today', after a short ride from my overnight stay into the City Centre on a Lincoln City Transport East Lancs bodied Olympian (43 - KTL43Y), it was time to try some of Lincolnshire Road Car's more rural offerings.

631 Lincoln - Sleaford Lincolnshire RC 2808 - GTL351N - Leyland National, rather disappointingly in an overall advertising livery.


Lincolnshire Road Car 2808 at Dunston.

634 Sleaford - Newton - Sleaford (circular) Lincolnshire RC 1042 - LTL661P - ECW bodied Bristol LH6L, in a mostly yellow 'Country Courier' livery.


Lincolnshire Road Car 1042 at Newton.

609 Sleaford - Grantham Lincolnshire RC 1925 - RFE66R - ECW bodied Bristol VR


Lincolnshire Road Car 1025 collects a healthy load at Sleaford Railway Station.

602 Grantham - Long Bennington (and return) Lincolnshire RC 1928 - STL89R - ECW bodied Bristol VR


Lincolnshire Road Car 1028 at Long Bennington.

605 Grantham - Woolsthorpe (and return as far as Grantham, Kitty Briggs Lane) Lincolnshire RC 1067 - DTL543T - ECW bodied Bristol LH6L


Lincolnshire Road Car 1067 at Denton. (No, not the one with a token rail service!)

By prior arrangement, I alighted at Kitty Briggs Lane and walked the hundred yards or so to the school, to sample a ride on a second hand VR on the School Bus.

609 Kitty Briggs School - Railway Station Lincolnshire RC 1991 - PAT934M - ECW bodied Bristol VR


Lincolnshire Road Car 1991 (new to East Yorkshire) - passes Grantham Railway Station.

Next, another deeply rural double deck working:

608 Grantham - South Witham (and return) Lincolnshire RC 1955 - LVL810V - ECW bodied Bristol VR


Lincolnshire Road Car 1955 at Gunby.

... before returning to Lincoln on one of the VRs already sampled that day:

601 Grantham - Lincoln Lincolnshire RC 1925 - RFE66R - ECW bodied Bristol VR


Ah, as Mary Hopkin once sang - those were the days!

 

[RELL6L]

Two great reports and sets of pictures from @TheSel - thank you!

 

[route101]

Decided to head West again and sample the delights of Bristol and Somerset.

Bristol to Weston X5 Gemini

Started the day with the X5 to Weston Super Mare. A 57 plate Gemini was our steed, which seemed to be oldest in the First fleet in Bristol from what I seen. The highlight for me on this route was the Avon gorge and a fast run on the M5. Upon arrival in Weston the bus stances had reopened since my visit.

20 Weston to Burnham on Sea Gemini

Aim was to head south rather than to Wells like my previous visit. I was expecting a streetlite but I got another Gemini. The route featured some twisty roads and tight corners. Passed a few busy caravan and holiday parks that are gearing up for summer.

21A Burnham to Taunton Eclipse

Short break in Burnham, I took the next 21A to Taunton. I couldn't see any route difference compared to the 20. This route was quite bland but least I was heading south. The bus was 05 plate with a red interior which got me wondering if it was originally delivered to First.

I could of made my way to Bath via Wells but I will save that for another day.

Made my way to Bristol on a GWR castle set.

Decided to try out a few Bristol city routes.

M1 City Centre to Cribbs Causeway and 73 Cribbs Causeway to Bristol Temple Meads. The M1 featured a nice run on the M32 and a bus only turn off. The 73 was packed as we neared the City centre.

 

[43055]

Hi all

Been rather busy with work and other stuff so not had chance to post my latest report even though it’s nearly two weeks ago. I won’t be able to compete with the exquisite pics of @RELL6L or the nostalgia of @TheSel l but I hope you enjoy all the same. I elected to visit Derbyshire; a place that I’d not really explored for 20 years or so. I had been working and socialising the night before (not heavy) so it was a bit of a late start to the day, driving up the M1 and turning off at Markham Vale and heading into the small town of Staveley. Situated in the old Derbyshire coalfield, the town itself was the home of a major iron works that use to make fittings for the water industry until closure in 2006; a safe enough place to leave my car. I had time before my first journey for a quick wander. It’s a pleasant enough place but suffering a decline with the usual closed pubs now reopening as nurseries or awaiting a new use. Whilst the town is well served by Stagecoach, my first bus was to be a TM Travel machine and it was a former Metrobus Scania Omnidekka that hoved into view on a tendered service to Bolsover. Synonymous with former MP Dennis Skinner, it was a former red wall seat and a place I’d never been to. Having purchased my Derbyshire Wayfarer, I went upstairs where I had the entire top deck to myself. In fact, we carried only one other passenger. A bit of nostalgia as the driver was still proudly displaying his PSV badge – a late issue, I guess. It was a short but pleasant hop to Bolsover, home to a large castle but as per Staveley, showing the signs of decline as the mines have disappeared to be replaced by warehouse jobs in the large sheds near Markham Vale, clearly visible as we traversed the M1 and climbed into the hill top town.

View attachment 112629

It was a short affair as I hopped onto a Stagecoach e300 and made our way towards Chesterfield. This afforded a short trip via “New” Arkwright. Once home to a colliery and accompanying village, issues with methane gas saw the whole village demolished and relocated in the 1980s with the old place vacated so the land was open casted. It’s a slightly laborious route going via the main hospital and into Chesterfield. I like the town, curved spire and everything. It’s still got a vibrancy (though diminished) and it’s pleasant enough on the eye. I had a brisk walk to the stops near the coach station where I was surprised to find the travel office still open though with an absence of leaflets. My second blast from the past – a third one was an unspecified (!) trip where clearly a missing interlock meant the driver could speed along with the entrance door open; can’t recall the last time I saw that happen!

Hulleys now have a reasonable presence on local tendered routes but I was going for their long established route to Bakewell. I didn’t know what to expect but it was a Wright Streetlite that had originated in Shetland. And it was an excellent machine – no telltale rattling of the emergency door handle, spirited ride but not choppy, and high backed seats that were comfortable. People have a real downer on them but this was an excellent machine. Interesting bit of driver care as we approached a stop where a passenger with a dog was waiting. We already had a dog on board so the driver enquired of the owners if their dog was ok with others, and then asked the same of the prospective travellers – never seen that before. All ok in the canine world and we were soon in proper Peak District countryside, passing a TM Travel machine at Baslow. One thing that has to be said – TM Travel looks very much the poor relation of the Wellglade Group and the advances of the Stockley era seem to have stalled.

View attachment 112630

View attachment 112631
We arrived into beautiful Bakewell which was buzzing with people enjoying the spring sunshine. I went off to grab some lunch on the go (a particular pastry naturally) before electing to choose the Hulleys 172 to Matlock in place of the twice as quick 6.1 of TrentBarton. It took longer and perhaps impacted future travelling but it was worth it. An ex Southern Vectis short Dart appeared before a reasonable load took off for a beautiful ride the back way to Darley Dale and Matlock. I might have wished to stay longer but I could see the 6.1 following us into Matlock. We gained some advantage via temporary traffic lights so I could spend two mins in Matlock to check out the still awful bus station; that hadn’t changed since 2003 (or probably 1983). We had a driver change too indicating that TrentBarton still maintain a small base in the town though many services have been ceded to Stagecoach and others over the years.

View attachment 112632

I was now on a Stenning inspired and highly marketed Optare Versa extolling the virtues of the Sixes, of which the 6.1 is the Bakewell and Matlock to Derby variation. It was a nice machine, expertly driven by our lady driver as we headed to Middleton and a double run through the village, and then the pretty town of Wirksworth that once boasted a Trent outstation. We soon passed the large mill on the outskirts of Belper where I elected to break my journey. The first time I ever visited the home of Tracy Shaw and Swarfega, the buses still entered the bus station from the narrow rear entrance but now it’s permanently closed with all vehicles entering through the main doors. Belper depot/bus station is an art deco survivor and, it has to be said, it is beautifully and smartly maintained by TB. As well as it being clean, tidy and smartly painted, there is more excellent BI designed marketing with posters/notices and free standing timetable stands. A real credit to them. I had chance to sneak around to snap the old entrance, still with the old style Trent fleetname and the old maintenance bay sublet to a tyre firm as it has been for years. That frittered a short time before my next Versa arrived to take me to Derby.
View attachment 112633
View attachment 112634

This was my first use of Derby bus station (yes, really) though I’ve visited the city in recent years. The place isn’t as bad as I’d heard but naturally, it’s a bit small. I had chance to compare the marketing of TrentBarton with the rather poor and pale Arriva though, in truth, it’s not the worst Arriva operation I’ve seen. I was keen to sample Arriva Derby so I wandered from the bus station to a nearby street to catch the X38 to Burton as DW tickets allow a trip over the border. Bang on time, an Arriva Pulsar came and after a driver change, we headed for a thrash on the A38 on one of the truly joint services that persists. To be honest, TB must wonder why they bother when Arriva have no interest in branding or promotion in any substantial way. Still, the hardy Pulsar (one vehicle type that is also rather underrated) got into its stride and made decent time until it was caught in typical Burton gluepot congestion as we passed the former East Staffs bus depot, long since vacated by Stevensons.

View attachment 112635

Sadly, I missed the chance of a short hop to Tutbury on the excellent Midland Classic but instead, it was back on TrentBarton and their Villager V1 service back to Derby. Rather than the direct X38, this is a more rambling affair as my Volvo Eclipse left Burton and then proceeded to take a circuitous route out of the town via Stretton and then the pretty village of Rolleston on Dove. Next stop was Tutbury though the beauty of the castle from a distance is overshadowed by the large and expanded Nescafe coffee factory in neighbouring Hatton; still, Tutbury is a quaint and attractive village and as the sun began to set, it was bathed in an orange glow. It was a busy journey back as we served numerous other villages before returning to Derby.

View attachment 112637

View attachment 112636
Back in the bus station, it was only a short wait for my bus north, the Comet (no service number) to Chesterfield. This was a rather rattly machine but like my preceding Villager, it had the trademark Stenning marketing and attention to detail. It’s very impressive but the rattling was rather intrusive. About half way into the journey, the aircon suddenly crackled into life; I’m used to it not working on any UK bus so that was a surprise. By this point, darkness had enveloped the day and it was a swift route into Chesterfield. I was now ready to get my bus back to Staveley and then it happened; after a day without any cancellations from driver shortages, this was when it got me! My bus (for Worksop) was cancelled, and the next Staveley bus wasn’t showing either. I was getting ready for a long wait in Chessie but then the second bus (for Sheffield) appeared with it being a standard Stagecoach e200. Not exciting but I was just glad to have a bus to return me back to my car. One thing I noticed were the number of internal adverts for Stagecoach – there were 11 which is something I’d normally be positive about. However, they do have a feel of the old Arriva ones – corporate, shiny but not really communicating anything… I really do wonder about Stagecoach in the future.

All in all, the DW ticket (with its rail availability) is a little pricey but it’s valid on most bus services and it was a cracking day out; hope you enjoyed my record of a great day in a county of contrasts.

Thanks for posting and glad you enjoyed your day out in Derbyshire. Could of bumped into each other on the villager (The V1 was dropped a few years back when the V3 become a standalone route)! I agree a bit out the branding on the X38. Before they got repainted 2 of the Pulsars were branded for the X38 but it seems like arriva are slowly removing all the route branding from Derby. I wouldn't be surprised if the 38 will be de-sapphired at some point given there is only 4 sapphire branded E400's left for a pvr of around 7.

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

Ah, as Mary Hopkin once sang - those were the days!

Thanks for that @TheSel - I am seemingly one of the few people who never got excited about Routemasters though I can appreciate your trip to experience them.

However, the Lincolnshire one is much more my kind of thing. For a start, a lovely couple of Bristol LHs in which I'm sure you enjoyed the luxurious nature of brown vinyl and a Leyland 0401 engine amidships. Also, all those obscure country routes - doubtless largely consigned to history. The period 1986-88 was so interesting in the post de-reg/post privatisation stage and a lot of NBC era liveries with fleetnames added to leaf green/poppy red.

21A Burnham to Taunton Eclipse

Short break in Burnham, I took the next 21A to Taunton. I couldn't see any route difference compared to the 20. This route was quite bland but least I was heading south. The bus was 05 plate with a red interior which got me wondering if it was originally delivered to First.

Glad you had a good time. To answer your question, it wouldn't have been an Eclipse; it would be a refurbished ex Reading Wright Solar. Nice machines but I'm not a fan of the red moquette against the dark blue laminates (but it's just my view).

Thanks for posting and glad you enjoyed your day out in Derbyshire. Could of bumped into each other on the villager (The V1 was dropped a few years back when the V3 become a standalone route)!

Yeah, old habits die hard. I did notice the displays at Derby Bus Stn were listed as Vil rather than V1. Seems odd that the V3 retains that prefix now it's not a Villager

 

[TheSel]

More from the archives. in 1986, today's date (12 April) fell on a Saturday. I had an early start, and drove from Southport to Wrexham for a Crosville Wanderbus ticket, starting out on:

0830 D2 Wrexham - Oswestry DOG191 - B191ALG - ECW bodied Leyland Olympian

... before a short trip out to Morda (the bus was headed for Bryn), on:

1000 D76 Oswestry - Morda SRG180 - EFM180H - ECW bodied Bristol RE


Crosville SRG180 - EFM180H - at Morda

... where I alighted and made my way, almost immediately, back to Oswestry on:

1015 D79 Morda - Oswestry, Bellan House ERG281 - YFM281L - ECW bodied Bristol RE (dp)



Crosville ERG281 - YFM281L - at Bellan House School, Oswestry

... where I intercepted:

1017 D71 Oswestry, Bellan House - Welshpool DVL378 - FTU378T - ECW bodied Bristol VR

for the scenic (especially on a 'decker) trip to Welshpool. Then, to fill in time, I stayed on the bus to cover one of the Weslhpool 'Local' services:

1110 D83 Welshpool - Erw Wen (Bryn Siriol) (and return) local service. DVL378 again


Crosville DVL378 - FTU378T - at Welshpool, Gungrog Hill

Time now for the 'main purpose' of today's trip, which was ultimately to cover the Saturdays only D80 from Llanidloes to Trefeglwys. To do this entailed a long 'out and back', initially in some degree of comfort on:

1155 D75 Welshpool - Newtown ERG283 - YFM283L - ECW bodied Bristol RE (dp)


Crosville ERG283 - YFM283L - at Berriew

However, my initial expectation - that this splendid machine would work through to Llanidloes, and therefore also do the Trefeglwys turn - was sadly dispelled on arrival at Newtown, when a 'kiss and turn' exchange took place with the Llanidloes-based bus working the D75 in the other direction. So, I was now "treated" (?) to:

D75 Newton - Llanidloes SNL679 - ODM679V - Leyland National B series.

... continuing as the:

1330 D80 Llanidloes - Trefeglwys (and return) SNL679 again


Crosville SNL679 - ODM679V - at Van Post Office, on its return from Trefeglwys

As I said earlier, this day was always going to include a long 'out and back', and so, after refreshments in a local cafe, I was back on this 'B' series Leyland National, working:

1505 D75 Llanidloes - Newtown SNL679 again

Time, now, for some more mellow sounds from the Gardner engine installed in:

1600 S22 Newtown - Caersws DVG573 - NCK983K - ECW bodied Bristol VR (ex Ribble)


Crosville DVG573 - NCK983K (formerly Ribble 1983) - at Caersws

... where, after about ten minutes, I was collected by:

1624 D75 Caersws - Shrewsbury DVL401 - JMB401T - ECW bodied Bristol VR

... for the lengthy journey back north, all the way to Shrewsbury.


Crosville DVL401 - JMB401T - at Ford Village, between Welshpool and Shreswbury

... before 'cheating' somewhat on this being a day out by bus by catching the train back to Wrexham, in the hands of a Class 101 Metro-Cammell set:

1820 SHREWSBURY - WREXHAM GENERAL M51201 - Class 101 Met Cam unit

... and thence home.

An entertaining day out, but I do wish that the 'kiss and turn' and Newtown hadn't happened, which would have led to my visiting Trefeglwys on an RE - something I never did manage to achieve.

Hope you've enjoyed the nostalgia.

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

More from the archives. in 1986, today's date (12 April) fell on a Saturday. I had an early start, and drove from Southport to Wrexham for a Crosville Wanderbus ticket, starting out on:

0830 D2 Wrexham - Oswestry DOG191 - B191ALG - ECW bodied Leyland Olympian

... before a short trip out to Morda (the bus was headed for Bryn), on:

1000 D76 Oswestry - Morda SRG180 - EFM180H - ECW bodied Bristol RE

View attachment 112883
Crosville SRG180 - EFM180H - at Morda

... where I alighted and made my way, almost immediately, back to Oswestry on:

1015 D79 Morda - Oswestry, Bellan House ERG281 - YFM281L - ECW bodied Bristol RE (dp)


View attachment 112884
Crosville ERG281 - YFM281L - at Bellan House School, Oswestry

... where I intercepted:

1017 D71 Oswestry, Bellan House - Welshpool DVL378 - FTU378T - ECW bodied Bristol VR

for the scenic (especially on a 'decker) trip to Welshpool. Then, to fill in time, I stayed on the bus to cover one of the Weslhpool 'Local' services:

1110 D83 Welshpool - Erw Wen (Bryn Siriol) (and return) local service. DVL378 again

View attachment 112886
Crosville DVL378 - FTU378T - at Welshpool, Gungrog Hill

Time now for the 'main purpose' of today's trip, which was ultimately to cover the Saturdays only D80 from Llanidloes to Trefeglwys. To do this entailed a long 'out and back', initially in some degree of comfort on:

1155 D75 Welshpool - Newtown ERG283 - YFM283L - ECW bodied Bristol RE (dp)

View attachment 112887
Crosville ERG283 - YFM283L - at Berriew

However, my initial expectation - that this splendid machine would work through to Llanidloes, and therefore also do the Trefeglwys turn - was sadly dispelled on arrival at Newtown, when a 'kiss and turn' exchange took place with the Llanidloes-based bus working the D75 in the other direction. So, I was now "treated" (?) to:

D75 Newton - Llanidloes SNL679 - ODM679V - Leyland National B series.

... continuing as the:

1330 D80 Llanidloes - Trefeglwys (and return) SNL679 again

View attachment 112888
Crosville SNL679 - ODM679V - at Van Post Office, on its return from Trefeglwys

As I said earlier, this day was always going to include a long 'out and back', and so, after refreshments in a local cafe, I was back on this 'B' series Leyland National, working:

1505 D75 Llanidloes - Newtown SNL679 again

Time, now, for some more mellow sounds from the Gardner engine installed in:

1600 S22 Newtown - Caersws DVG573 - NCK983K - ECW bodied Bristol VR (ex Ribble)

View attachment 112889
Crosville DVG573 - NCK983K (formerly Ribble 1983) - at Caersws

... where, after about ten minutes, I was collected by:

1624 D75 Caersws - Shrewsbury DVL401 - JMB401T - ECW bodied Bristol VR

... for the lengthy journey back north, all the way to Shrewsbury.

View attachment 112890
Crosville DVL401 - JMB401T - at Ford Village, between Welshpool and Shreswbury

... before 'cheating' somewhat on this being a day out by bus by catching the train back to Wrexham, in the hands of a Class 101 Metro-Cammell set:

1820 SHREWSBURY - WREXHAM GENERAL M51201 - Class 101 Met Cam unit

... and thence home.

An entertaining day out, but I do wish that the 'kiss and turn' and Newtown hadn't happened, which would have led to my visiting Trefeglwys on an RE - something I never did manage to achieve.

Hope you've enjoyed the nostalgia.

Back to Crosville country. Quite the trip to travel on a now lost (and obscure) route from Llanidloes but thank you for sharing.

The B series National was apparently the only one allocated new to Oswestry depot and spent its entire life there. I guess it wasn't worked that hard on a selection of rural routes. Interesting that the two native VRs were both Leyland engined.

Checking out a couple of the locations. Gungrog Hill still gets a bus service and the scene is still very recognisable with the house behind almost unchanged. Sadly, whilst also recognisable, Van post office has long since disappeared and is now a private residence.

 

[RELL6L]

Another great report from @TheSel from Crosville territory. All those REs and VRs round rural Mid Wales!

From my most recent trips I see the Sunday Times reckons Ilkley is the best place to live in the UK, with Trawden the best in the North West! Other regional winners include Tynemouth, Slaithwaite, Uppingham, Norwich, Chalke Valley, Llandeilo, Isle of Bute.

 

[route101]

Last Saturday and another outing. Decided that I would finally ride the Greenline 724 route. But I wanted to make a day of it and explore new areas.

I thought Colchester would be a good place to start using the Arriva network and working my way West. On closer inspection the Arriva routes from Colchester are mostly town routes and the connection to Braintree/Chelmsford is by First which I can do another time with a First day ticket. Today I was using the Herts and Essex day ticket.

I took the train from London Liverpool St to Braintree, changing at Chelmsford to sample the new Class 745s. The Braintree branch was new bit of line so good to tick that off. At Braintree it was only a short walk to the bus station.

Arriva Bus 133 Braintree to Stansted Airport 09 plate E200

The 133 was a pleasant run out on minor roads to the west of Braintree, we picked up a few airport workers. This route is not marketed as an airport route. I took a short break at Stansted Airport, there was a few national express routes from here.

Arriva bus 510 (I think) Stansted Airport to Harlow E200MMC

This route ran via Bishops Stortford and what I believe is the old A11. Harlow looked like a new town and new place for me. The window on the bus was a bit loose next to my seat.

Arriva bus 724 Harlow to Heathrow E200MMC

Wanted to do the 724 for a long time, Greenline only in name now. I considered getting off on the way but decided to do the whole hog! First section was a fast jaunt on the A414 to Hertford and after that was on slower roads. Did see one very rude passenger who got on at Hertford and forced another passenger out of the emergency exit seat, she didn't want to sit anywhere else. The bus was busy until Watford and after Uxbridge it was just me another passenger. I think my day ticket was not valid to the airport though. I took the bus to Hounslow and tube back to Heathrow where I took the National Express back home.