Lugg Hole : Lugg Valley : Lugg Minster (1)

May the God of infinity and eternity who manifest his godliness on earth approx 2000 years ago; may He bless you even if you ignore Him!

Not Well Known?

The River Lugg is, perhaps, not the best known of English water courses. It rises in Llangynllo in Powys (Wales) and flows via Presteigne and Leominster to Hereford. 

One of several possibilities for the origin of the name Leominster is that it was a corruption of Minster (church) on the Lugg, later gentrified by allowing the name to slide into something more acceptable, viz a distinguished name like Leo of Leofric fame..

So pin back you Lugg Holes and we will explore a bus company that also takes its name from the river.

The company has ben around for many years as indicated by old coach and bus pictures on-line.

The livery back then was white or cream with an orange and green stripe ...

... which, for its day, looked quite smart. The modern version is all over cream ...

... but with flashes echoing the stripes of old. The buses still look smart, but that drop shadow lettering is a bit dated by today's standards.

As its name doesn't immediately suggest, the company's operating area is centred on the historic town of Leominster ...

... pronounced "Lemster"! The town has a somewhat basic bus station ...

... where many Lugg Valley routes will lurk.

The company's current web site shows a vast array of services ...

... all colour coded and many with brand names.

Timetables pick up the colour of the headings, even those for schools route 802. There are route maps as well, seemingly derived from Traveline information. Here is the 802 again.

Here a "Shopper" service 507 timetable as an example of colour coding.

All very nice ... BUT!

Summats up in the valley of the Lugg!

Effectively Lugg Valley Travel has ceased to exist, despite its excellent current web site!

From The Traffic Commissioner

The public service vehicle operator’s licence, reference PD0001646, held by Lugg Valley Travel Ltd, is revoked under sections 17(1)(a) [loss of good repute], 17(1)(b) [transport manager no longer of good repute], 17(1)(a) [no longer professionally competent], 17(3)(aa) [breaches of the general undertakings], 17(3)(b) [breaches of the licence conditions], 17(3)(c) [prohibitions] and 17(3)(e)[material changes] of the Public Passenger Vehicles Act 1981 (the “Act”). Revocation takes effect at 2359 hours on 31 December 2025.

Transport manager Mr Ian Davies has lost his good repute as a transport manager and is disqualified as a transport manager for four years from 2359 hours on 31 December 2025 until 30 December 2029 under Schedule 3 paragraph 7B(2) of the Act. His two rehabilitation measures are detailed later in this written decision.

Lugg Valley Travel Ltd is disqualified from holding or obtaining any type of operator’s licence in any traffic area for four years from 2359 hours on 31 December 2025 until 30 December 2029. This order is made under section 28 of the Transport Act 1985.

The sole director of Lugg Valley Travel Ltd, Mr Nigel David Yeomans, is disqualified from holding or obtaining any type of operator’s licence in any traffic area and is further disqualified from being a director of a company that holds or applies to obtain any type of operator’s licence in any traffic area. These orders of disqualification are made under section 28 of the Transport Act 1985 and start at 2359 hours on 31 December 2025 and end on 30 December 2029, a four year order.

But the demise may have come sooner in practice. Problems had existed for most of 2025.

fbb will try to ferret out the current situation in tomorrow's blog. It's complicated!

Meanwhile ...

... with nothing to do except write blogs, cook dinners, prepare fellowship meetings, eat too much and generally get stressed ...

... your aged blogger cum modeller discovered another freebie card kit from Metcalf. He had forgotten it, but it rose oil-like from the coal measures beneath the model railway.

It has got a tiled floor ...

What might it be?

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  Y earning for  Y eshua

Quirky Question : What were they expecting soon which still hasn't happened even after nearly 2000 years? Answer obvious!

Historically, there was a big debate trying to answer a key theological question. "How many angels can stand on the head of a pin?

Recently, your author spotted this video on YouTube.

Many Christians see Cremation as wrong as there will be nothing but dust to reconstite into a heavenly new body..

A similarity similar problem was faced by the early Christian Church along the lines of how sad it would be for those who had died before Christ returned. They would miss out on heaven!

Paul wrote his take on their concerns in a letter to Thessalonica.

Our friends, we want you to know the truth about those who have died, so that you will not be sad, as are those who have no hope. We believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will take back with Jesus those who have died believing in him.

What we are teaching you now is the Lord's teaching: we who are alive on the day the Lord comes will not go ahead of those who have died. There will be the shout of command, the archangel's voice, the sound of God's trumpet, and the Lord himself will come down from heaven. Those who have died believing in Christ will rise to life first; then we who are living at that time will be gathered up along with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will always be with the Lord. 

There are some ludicrous pictures of the events at the end of time; all feeble and rather pointless attempts to visualise something that is, literally, out of this world and into God's infinity and eternity.

What will Jesus look like when he returns?

Why would he be wearing a priest's uniform? And why would all the Christians be in their Sunday best?

The Gospels say Jesus will come "like. a thief in the night," so surely no time to dress in their best.

All the blokes are wearing ties. You author only wears a tie when he takes funerals; does that mean he won't get to heaven?

Will Christ's return be like a Faraday cage without the cage, a display of huge unbelievable status and power?

One way of thinking through the "who gets there first problem" is to realise there is no 'first'. Gos is infinite remember?

To the pea brained, like your blogger, it is like a round of heavenly Monopoly. 

But replace the word "jail" with "to meet God". There's scary.

The crunch question is how will God judge us when we get there and what will happen then?

A thought best not ignored, eh?

Tomorrow is most definitely Z - The End ... or might it be the beginning?

Heavy? Or is it heavy?

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  Next Log blugg : Fri 2nd Jan 

Delayed Variety 2

The Case of the Confusing Carrots

The fbbs have enjoyed three traditional Christmas dinners this year, all victualled by Mrs fbb and all main courses prepared and curated by the old fat bloke. Mrs fbb does the puds! Matchstick cut carrots were essential and well as being a traditional veg.

The second of three feasts was on Sunday 21st December with Mr and Mrs fbb junior plus 50% of the two grandsons. So it was that the victualling department provided a bag of carrots ...

... to be matchstickificated half for 21st and half for 25th. Thus it was that fbb prepared to put the orange delights under the knife on the afternoon of 24th inst!

But the remaining half bag was gorn - dematerialised at Seaton and atomically re-assembled somewhere in the outer reaches of the galaxy.

Fortunately the fbb's corner shop (Tesco) was still open and the crisis was averted. The errant carrots have never appeared!

Although Mr Tubbles is a good colour match for matchstick carrots ...

... he is a passionate carnivore and proud of it!

Grid Grumbles!

We (those who watch the news feeds closely with a air dose of cynicism about "net zero") were not surprised to read the above. Most of the article was forbidden to fbb unless he paid the source a fat fee - which he didn't and doesn't as a matter of principle and financial prudence.

But on the same day this appeared!

Told you so, quoth the old man, as he danced in glee round the living room, dining room, office and craft benches at fbb mansions. 

The he read the rest of the news item!

Nigeria?

We all know that what happens in Lagos will soon follow the trend in London; but fbb will have to be patent until the crash comes.

Dubious Directions

Do the good folk (good?) who organise pedestrian flow at busy railway stations ever try out their directions. An interested party posted this daftness on-line.

Note the "Way Out" arrow guiding passengers to the "No Exit" stairs.

Steve Is Ready And Willing

Like Charles Dickens' Barkis, Steve Rotheraam is ready - poised to take over Merseyrail ...

... and increase frequencies, apparently. Currently the northern lines work on a 15 minute headway as shown in the part timetable.

Ditto on the Wirral with a full cycle illustrated.

If moving to every 10 is a serious policy, Steve will probably need extra trains. Has he got some more?

Or is it just journalistic speculation?

After all, Steve hasn't got any bus routes yet!

A Big Bulky Bridge

In a bit of a recap on the Great Central line through Nottingham, readers will remember that trains had to cross a cavernous gulf over the top of Nottingham Midland station. The viaduct was huge ...

... long and very noisy!

The trams are a lot quieter on their sleek construct!

Cutting The Cost Of Signalling?

The idea is to save money by employing the under sevens to work the signals. Smaller people need a smaller signal box and smaller levers; so its a bonus all round. A least fbb thinks so. The article did not specify the purpose of the new-build!

Does it really take ten men and or women to build and install the "quirky" buildings?

O.K. It is a "bug house" - maybe where the under sevens can sort out Notwork Rails's computer systems?

Noah Vale - No Avail

This National Bus Company lookalike is owned by Weavaway of Newbury. But Weavaway is a much respected coach operator with no public stage carriage routes for it to operated.

Their normal livery is a very smart dark blue as on this Tesco contract.

Buses magazine speculates that the red one is for schools and or rail replacement.

Does anyone know the funny side of the Noah Vale/No Avail jocularity?

Tomorrow we go to Hertefordshire

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 Mr  X  e X cels

A biblical clue : what does a male tea leaf do in the pot?

Answer - He brews!

Chortle, chortle? Groan?

Quirky Answer : All these Biblical "heroes" are examples of Men of Faith as listed in Hebrews Chapter 11

Abel 

Enoch 

Noah

Abraham 

Isaac

Jacob

Joseph

Moses

Joshua

Rahab 

Gideon

Barak

Samson

Jephthah

David

Samuel

A group of Christians converted from Judaism found themselves isolated from Christian influence and teaching. As time progressed they began to seek solace in the old-style ritualistic religious practices of the Jerusalem Temple, sacrifices and loads of rules and regulations. They were straying from the "rule" of Faith, Repentance and Forgiveness.

We have no idea who wrote the Book of Hebrews or even who the "Hebrews" were.

But the writer seeks to emphasise and reinforce the absolute supremacy of Jesus the Messiah as not just the best route to God but the only route to God. Ultimately that route will not lead you correctly unless it is supported, not by intellect, not by doing good things, but by a deep Faith in God.

Or, as Hebrews Chapter 11 puts it ...

We will never learn to swim until we take our feel off the bottom!

Hebrews is not an easy read - it does hurt the brain and most of us need a bit of help from those who have more experience. But the effort is rewarding now and on into eternity.

Which brings us to the Letter Y.

And you are right, these last letters involve a good dose of contrivance!

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  Next Hereford blog : Thurs 1st Jan 

Delayed Variety 1

Hapless Hydrogen Hiatus

Answer from fbb! It isn't "green"; it isn't available; it doesn’t work so well and it IS very expensive!  Apart from that it is a spiffingly good idea!

And in the UK?

And in Liverpool?

Enthusiasm for the fuel of the future has failed!

Alstom About to Abandon?

So It's Electric, Then?

And Going Well in Scotland?

The "milestone" is that they have actually started building them!

In Scotland?

Of course NOT!

Erm, Fiona! Yes, you! 

How late is the new big Calmac Ferry, built in Scotland, now running?

Nnew CalMac ferries are delayed again, with the MV Glen Rosa (built in Scotland) facing up to a six-month further setback for corrosion fixes, potentially arriving April-June 2026, while the first Turkish-built ferry, MV Isle of Islay, has also faced repeated delays due to supply issues and labour shortages, with its delivery pushed back from late 2024 to possibly late 2025 (note "possibly"). These delays are impacting lifeline services, causing frustration for islanders and criticism of the Scottish government. 

But Not in Plymouth!

Yep! That's about right!

And, Talking Of Ferries!

Debts down?

Passengers down; turnover down; number of crossings down and, Tada!, debts down for £195 million to only £32.4 million!

And some company has just bought Red Funnel!

WHY?

Back to Sanity

fbb has a modelling project in progress, just started as a mini relaxation before Christmas and due to continue after the fbbs' Fellowship meetings this coming weekend.

One of them is using this:-

Metcalfe is the brand leader for card models and they are, frankly, exquisite and excellent value. But they do not sit well with fbb's all plastic buildings many of which have come on from the cold of the back yard railway to be toasty warm in the attic room. There us more texture (i.e. brick, stone, timber planking) on plastic. Metcalf walls, roof etc are just flat print.

Readers who remember (readers who probably don't care?) will recognise Peterville Castle.

It has been moved from its dominant position atop the Peterville Tunnel and is due to form a small cameo at the far end of the layout, beyond the recently installed9 loco shed and carriage works. But somehow whitewashed walls did not fit with the stonework of the castle.

So what should fbb do?

Jackpot idea!

One wall (the rear wall) of the minuscule cottage was all stone with no windows and doors. It was also grey stone.

Ergo - photocopy the plain stone wall and plonk it on the whitewashed bit, cutting holes for door and windows.

The doors and windows are another layer of card which fits exactly behind the walls.

More exciting news when it happens. There is also a free "lock up" chip shop to repurpose as a souvenir emporium for castle visitors.

Livery Delivery

Goodbye Motorway Maintenance

As part of a complex corporate juggling exercise, Stagecoach withdrew from its share of Scottish Citylink and, at the same time, handed over its prestigious express route from Plymouth to Bristol to the Scottish operator. This was when Stagecoach was bidding for National Express, a deal which never happened.

Under one of the daftest livery policies, The Falcom acquired the awful yellow ...

... replacing the distinguished and quality original.

Now we have an all-over mix of various blues and no mention of Stagecoach,

And they have kept the "Falcon" logo!

So What's This?

It looks like a good old faithful National Bus company DP motor in "local coach" floppy red and white, complete with "N" logos.

But surely the bus is much, much later than the NBC era?

More tomorrow?

Oh Yes It Is : Oh No It Isn't

West Yorkshire PTE (boss ex Corrie actress Tracy Brabin) ...

... has had several goes at rapid transit. First trams, then trolleybuses along the Leeds Road! And lately back to trams, this time to Bradford. Actually the first two were begat before she stepped easily from acting to acting as Mayor.

But HM Government does not like it!

Presumably H M Government needs to like it as Trace will be taking the collecting box to Downing Street for the pennies to build it!

Not so fast, Tracy; this is "politics" and it takes time, lots of tedious frustrating time. Get real!

More variety tomorrow!

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 W ords of  W isdom

Quirky Answer : According to the Bible, the Tongue.

Explanation, please!

Did you know that Divinely begatted Jesus had humanly begatted brothers and sisters. Mark and Matthew (Gospel writers) both refer to them. Jesus is back in Nazareth and the people are very uneasy about him. They do not understand how this country bumpkin can teach and preach. Additionally they don't think he has any right to do the job of the professional Rabbi.

Jesus left that place and went back to his hometown, followed by his disciples. On the Sabbath he began to teach in the synagogue. Many people were there; and when they heard him, they were all amazed. “Where did he get all this?” they asked. “What wisdom is this that has been given him? How does he perform miracles? 

Isn't he the carpenter, the son of Mary, and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas, and Simon? Aren't his sisters living here?”

And so they rejected him.

One of the brothers (James) became a leader of the early Christians; and he wrote one of the most practical letters of them all. One of the8 things he warned people about was the dangers of misuse of their tongues.

This is part of what he wrote.

Just think how large a forest can be set on fire by a tiny flame!  And the tongue is like a fire. It is a world of wrong, occupying its place in our bodies and spreading evil through our whole being.  We humans are able to tame and have tamed all other creatures but no one has ever been able to tame the tongue. We use it to give thanks to our Lord and Father and also to curse other people. Words of thanksgiving and cursing pour out from the same mouth. My friends, this should not happen!

He is right, you know! 

And he insists we need God's help to control the little beastie.

He is right, you know!

Just a small example of the Words of Wisdom available to us in God's Book. There are plenty more where that came from.

Quirky Question : In which book of the Bible will you find ALL these people? And what links them together (apart from being in that book)!

Abel 

Enoch 

Noah

Abraham 

Isaac

Jacob

Joseph

Moses

Joshua

Rahab 

Gideon

Barak

Samson

Jephthah

David

Samuel

Answer tomorrow!

A biblical clue : what does a male tea leaf do in the pot?

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  Next Variety blog : Weds 31st Dec