Where The Buses Go
fbb has slightly adapted the 2016 route map to give the main areas served by Arriva Route 2 and its variants with some simple labels - hopefully reflected in the names of time points for the various route combinations.
Sinfin Avenue ...
... has the flavour of the 1960s, but with an unusual number of bungalows. It effectively makes itself a southern extension to older housing at Allenton.
Maple Road ...
... is newer, possibly 70s/80s.
Parkway ...
... has more of a whiff of "private" development and terminates in a sizeable roundabout.
... whither, in 2016, buses veered southbound along a multi-roundabouted highway continuing as part of Infinity Park Way. Here there is more "private" development, tastefully hidden in little cul de sacs to separate residency from traffic (and from buses!)
You eventually emerge at a mega roundabout that forms a junction with the A50 super road!
If the 2016 map is to be believed, buses that continued to Swadlincote enjoyed the delights of Infinity Park Way etc. rather than the historic village of Chellaston, to which we now repair.
But first, Infinity Park? You guessed; it is another one of these ...
... a collection of huge warehouses serving the rapidly expanding "logistics" industry.
The development, shown barely existing bottom centre of the Google Earth view below ...
... joins two other industrial areas splurging away from the Derby to Birmingham main railway line. It is the southernmost of these older splurges that Derby/Derbyshire served with a reopened branch line to Sinfin Central.
In 1998, the final year of its short and unsuccessful life, the rudimentary service was provided by a taxi, used regularly for a ride to/from Derby by just three passengers.
Back to Chellaston.
Chellaston School ...
... except that it is now called an "Academy" which, obviously, makes it more successful and attractive to the parents!
In 2016 buses ran as far as here before turning back (see map above) to ...
Snelsmoor Lane ...
The historic Rose and Crown, situated near the academy ...
... after many years of up-fettling ...
... is now ...
... a Lidl supermarket. It seems sad that harsh economics has replaced an interesting watering hole with a bland food shop - even if the newcomer is lidl i
on price!
Bearing in mind the lack of obvious "good bus territory" and the super abundance of garage and driveway car space, it may surprise readers' to know that service 2 (etc.) runs every tem minutes from Derby to Chellaston.
To make the service viable, therefore, Arriva needs to suck up as many customers from the Shelton Lock and Chellaston hinterlands as possible.
At the beginning of October 2022 they ditched a complicated timetable (even more complicated than the 2016 map version) in favour of something different.
Tomorrow we contrast and compare.
Next Suinfin Lock blog : Friday 25th Nov
No comments:
Post a Comment