The blog in question can be found (here). First bus extended its route 15 from the Eastney terminus to the western ferry slip and a new service 149 was provided from the town "loop" at Hayling to the eastern slip.
The experiment failed and, after a few months, the 149 disappeared and First shrank back to the Eastney Loop at Fort Cumberland, as operated today.
On Hayling Island, despite the optimism of Stagecoach's route diagram ...
... it is a tidy stretch from the nearest bus stop at the end of Staunton Avenue (South Hayling) to the ferry.
But Portsmouth City Council has offered First Bus a bag of gold sovs to reinstate the link from Eastney to the Ferry. There will be no link on the Hayling side.
It ought to be a usefully nippy link from Hayling to Portsmouth but, even if you like a walk, take a bike or get someone to ferry you, the through route is slow and expensive (see timetable below, for example). Even in the days of the 149 it was almost as quick, and far more frequent, to take the 30/31 to Havant and a connection on to Pompey. It was certainly cheaper!
But we welcome service 25 which starts this coming weekend.
It does run all the way to the ferry ...
... but at an easily forgettable every 45 minutes.
It therefore does not really connect with ferry sailings ...
... which are every hour! Arrive on bus at 1203 and wait 57 minutes for the ferry at 1300!
You have to wonder why Portmouth City are wasting their money!
Who Is Refreshing?
Shhh - UNO Who! (GROAN)!
News of yet another bus company changing its livery - just a bit - for reasons that are unclear. Uno (with bar over the "o" - but why?) ...
... has fettled up some buses like this.
The change has, no doubt, been greeted with a rampant outbreak of apathy from Uno's customers who probably won't notice the difference.
Customers and bus watchers have noticed the difference, however, between the dowdy but distinguished East Yorkshire paint job of old ...
... and Ray Stenning's swirly multi-coloured magnificence of today.
So great has been the slavering of excitement and the desire that this has created (???) that the new livery has won the "New Livery Of The Year" award.
Thinks: was Ray a judge? Actually it is the (Virtual) "Buses Festival" award.
The validity of this much coveted award (??) is called in question by one of the runners up. Yes, folks, it was the almost universally derided new look from Uncle Brian!
More From The Twitterati
Modern rail travel at its best!
It is an L N E R Azuma a-zooming through the Scottish countryside. Doesn't it just make you want to throw caution to the wind (you can't because the windows don't open) and fling off you unnecessary gangster gear and go for a ride? You can't do that either unless you download an "exempted" badge from the Government web site. No evidence of any reason for exemption is required!
HST is NOT dead!
Here at Plymouth ...
... there are two CrossCountry full length sets, future currently uncertain. 43153 is one of the noses of a shortened set for Great Western, dubbed "Castles". There are likely to be around for some time; indeed GWR is busily collecting more bits to join together to make extra "Castles" sets.
HST is NOT dead!
Here at Plymouth ...
Misplaced Heritage
Spotted in Slough on its way to Burnham on route 11 (no longer a number in use) is this First bus single deck in an appropriate (NOT) heritage livery.
Originally a York Park and Ride bus ...
... then in standard First livery ...
... but latterly done up in memory of Rider York.
Rider York was the consequence of an expansionist policy by Yorkshire Rider, the privatised operating arm of West Yorkshire PTE. Rider York was a rebranded privatised York City and District which in turn used to be York West Yorkshire in National Bus Days.
Pay attention at the back.
Yorkshire Rider was later sold to Badgerline which soon became First Bus which runs some of the buses in Slough.
Clear as mud!
Thrice Thanks For Three Tanks (1C)
So, fbb has decided to adapt a water tower kit to span the two tracks that enter his rebuilt carriage shed. The Airfix/Dapol kit is not wide enough so ...
... here goes.
Build a new longer "chassis"; girder work to support the tank and its "water". Then assemble the "legs".
The bracing involves eight glued joints on each, all of which are a loose fit; so the whole caboodle wiggles in every possible direction. Eventually, using both hands, both feet and the four paws of Mr Tubbles, something "about right" was achieved. But note that fbb got the central "ring" the wrong way round on one set.
But which one?
Some extra "iron" brackets were added to strengthen the structure, weakened by the removal of two sets of bracing.
The brackets will get some typical Victorian embellishment as soon as el chubbo can find some suitable bellishes; something like this would do ...
... if the size where right. But fbb doesn't need 120, just 4. Mr Micawber's philosophy will apply!
The ladder needed a bodge as did the conduit box for the water outbound and possibly inbound; the latter was placed bang in the centre underneath the tank on the original.
Tomorrow, and AT LAST, fbb can reveal the full extend of Martijn Gilbert's excitement.
... here goes.
But which one?
Some extra "iron" brackets were added to strengthen the structure, weakened by the removal of two sets of bracing.
The ladder needed a bodge as did the conduit box for the water outbound and possibly inbound; the latter was placed bang in the centre underneath the tank on the original.
And below is how the instructions told fbb to make it.
Just the painting to do now!
fbb has got a few bits left which may well come in useful for another future bodge.
Next Lincolnshire blog : Tuesday 25th August
The 11 still goes to Burnholme. However, if the bus was spotted in Slough it was a bit off course as Burnholme is a suburb or York.
ReplyDeleteAnd the suburb in Slough is “Burnham”, and Slough do not have any heritage liveries!
ReplyDeleteThe bus appears to have been photographed in Bishopthorpe Road, York
ReplyDeleteAnd in fact it's on the 11 in York right now
ReplyDeletehttps://bustimes.org/vehicles/198456