Not Country Lion, for one.
The company has a number of contracts to transport Barclaycard workers, plus some Northampton town services which, as it now appears, they run without subsidy. Currently their service 11 runs to Links View and Parklands Estates.
Back in the celebrated "good old days", Northampton Corporation Transport ran a service 14 as a circular from Town Centre to Kenmuir Avenue.
The process began of filling in empty land between Manfield Hospital and Eastern Avenue.
Manfield Hospital has gone, leaving just an ornamental gateway leading to new housing.
Corporation buses then turned left to serve the growing Parklands Estate.
The service 14 circular was cut in half and journeys via Barrack Road were diverted to Links View Estate.
This was, historically, Corporation route 13.
From distant and unreliable memory, service 13 ran every 30 minutes in its early days.
Over the years services to Links View have been progressively reduced until the present and parlous situation evolved. Country Lion run commercial journeys between the peaks Monday to Friday only (click on the timetable to enlarge it).
Peak time and Saturday journeys to Links View are provided by diverting route 60 on its way Northbound to Brixworth and Guilsborough.
This is a tendered service run by Centrebus.
The council's timetable pages does include a service 60 table on the same page as the 11, but-elsewhere the two operators live an independent, uncoordinated and, presumably, largely empty-bus existence.
It is a sure-fire recipe for steady and terminal decline.
Parklands, however, still has a "proper" service of two buses an hour on the lengthy Stagecoach 10/X10. This starts as a Northampton local route to Hunsbury, runs cross town to Parklands and continues via Moulton to Kettering.
Undeterred by a 90 minute running time (so far), X10s then continue another hour to Market Harborough.
It is not at all clear why Country Lion toddles round Parklands sporadically when Stagecoach is providing a bus every 30 minutes; maybe in a desperate attempt to pinch a little revenue to help oil the wheels of an ailing service to Links View?
So it comes as no surprise to read this entry on the Traffic Commissioners registrations pages.
Correspondent Alan also reports that Country Lion have also cancelled:-
Service 6
Dallington Green - Centre - Stimpson Avenue - Weston Favell - Thorplands.
Ironically, for a while, Dalington Green was the other end of the 13 Links View service.
Note the posh varnished and non-standard bus stop sign. Alas another casualty of "progress".
Service 90
Milton Keynes - Potterspury on Sundays.
Service 108
Brackmills Works service. Competed with Stagecoach 1
Clearly someone at Country Lion is having a clear-out of stuff that doesn't earn them enough money (any money?). Is the company in trouble or is it a sensible piece of good housekeeping?
But, as might be expected, the biggest protests come from Links View who will be left with a few odd (very odd) tendered peak hour trips Monday to Friday and some bits on Saturday. To add to the consternation, Northamptonshire County wish to withdraw ALL bus subsidies.
The outcome could be no buses at all to serve the sweet little turning circle on Fulford Road.
More tomorrow; when we hope to have a report of a Public Meeting held on the estate yesterday afternoon.
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ADVENT CALENDAR - 8
The third possible reason for celebrating Jesus' Birthday on December 25th is probably the least likely.
God sent the angel Gabriel to a town in Galilee named Nazareth.
He had a message for a young woman promised in marriage to a man named Joseph, who was a descendant of King David.The angel came to Mary and said, “Peace be with you! The Lord is with you and has greatly blessed you!”
Mary said to the angel, “I am a virgin. How, then, can this be?”
The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and God's power will rest upon you. For this reason the holy child will be called the Son of God.
Note, in passing, that most artistic representations of this terrifying encounter are utterly wrong. Nowhere in any Biblical account do angels on earth have wings! Bright light and Persil-washed clothes can be a feature but no avian appendages.
There is an unjustifiable tradition that Jesus was conceived on the same day that he died. He died, says the tale, on 25th March; and exactly nine months later ...
Child in the manger, infant of Mary,
Outcast and Stranger, Lord of us all,
Child Who inherits all our transgressions,
All our demerits upon Him fall.
Once the most holy Child of salvation
Gently and lowly lived here below.
Now as our glorious mighty Redeemer,
See Him victorious over each foe.
Prophets foretold Him, Infant of wonder;
Angels behold Him on His throne.
Worthy our Savior of all our praises;
Happy forever are His own.
... but Calendar changes make the link extremely hard to justify. We just have to accept that our celebration is on a specific date chosen by "important people" and, as a celebration rather than a true birthday, there is no need for accuracy. Even our Queen has an "official" birthday!
Immaculate Conception? Virgin Birth? No human father?
Irrational? Impossible? Laughable?
In human terms, yes. But once the idea of an omnipotent God enters the thought processes, it all becomes thoroughly possible.
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Next Links View blog : Saturday 9th December
I've just noticed...Stagecoach Midlands do like very long Bus Routes. X10 a case in point. Not very "x". Just take a look at the "X"18 service from Coventry to Evesham... They've got loads which appear to be three or four routes stuck together.
ReplyDeleteTo answer fbb's question, it would appear to be "good housekeeping" at Country Lion as their most recent accounts are very healthy albeit that profits are down compared with the previous year.
ReplyDeleteThe whole of service 60 is to be diverted in similar fashion to the peak journeys. However the 60 is a tender from Northamptonshire County Council who are consulting on cancelling all tendered bus services from 1st April, so it might be very short lived!
ReplyDeleteSensible housekeeping, if true. But while we're awaiting that report from that Public Meeting, let's be honest, the primary cause of Links View being marginal at best for public transport is poor urban planning. Completing the "missing link" across to Parklands could have helped provide access to a diverted bus route. However, there's still potential for a "between the houses" route, that could serve more roads in Links View, before dog-legging via Morrisons, the Cricket Ground and the Hospital to the town centre, if someone has money to spare, and is willing to operate a "proper" convenient timetable. Alternatively, there might be potential to divert either routes 2 or 8 at least up to the junction of Hazeldene Road and Kenmuir Avenue (and back again), but no doubt, if anything does actually happen, it'll be even more of a compromise!
ReplyDelete