On the subject of express routes, since Runcorn has the X1 to Liverpool One (soon to be Sapphired), perhaps Widnes could have an hourly express service too, continuing to Warrington, cutting Warrington-Liverpool journey times from around 1h30 to around 1hr, while also creating new links to Liverpool One.
(17/09/2015 09:17)Valandil Wrote: [ -> ]On the subject of express routes, since Runcorn has the X1 to Liverpool One (soon to be Sapphired), perhaps Widnes could have an hourly express service too, continuing to Warrington, cutting Warrington-Liverpool journey times from around 1h30 to around 1hr, while also creating new links to Liverpool One.
I was under the impression a couple of years back that a Widnes - Liverpool was going to be introduced and numbered X1A, I even saw the "plans" for it from Halton council it was in their local bus plan for when the new shopping centre opened, but then it obviously never happened and I dont honestly know why because there was lots of talk about for some time. It is definitely needed as the current routes to Liverpool via Hough Green and Belle Vale take forever.
(17/09/2015 09:46)mr t Wrote: [ -> ]I was under the impression a couple of years back that a Widnes - Liverpool was going to be introduced and numbered X1A, I even saw the "plans" for it from Halton council it was in their local bus plan for when the new shopping centre opened, but then it obviously never happened and I dont honestly know why because there was lots of talk about for some time. It is definitely needed as the current routes to Liverpool via Hough Green and Belle Vale take forever.
There is a few things that bring the viability of a Widnes - Liverpool service into question though , is there enough passengers in Liverpool prepared to travel to Widnes to make it viable standalone service , may be if some service where diverted off the main X1 it may be give better viability. The railway station in Widnes is so far away from the Town centre that the railway is not a reasonable alternative to an express bus service from the Town Centre.
There are some interesting ideas, but I am afraid that unless that nice Mr Osborne is a lot more generous with giving money to councils & PTEs, etc., we are more likely to see further cuts than new or reintroduced services.
Routes with several miles of sparsely populated countryside offer little prospects for intermediate traffic. There also needs to be a significant demand for regular passengers going between the two termini.
One suggestion was for restoration of a Knutsford to Warrington service - but how many people would want such a service daily ? Knutsford is too small to attract many shoppers from Warrington, and probably too small to have enough (bus using) residents wanting to shop regularly in Warrington. And there are several miles with very little residential property.
Likewise, St. Helens to Ormskirk. Several miles of nearly open country between Rainford & Ormskirk. Except on market days, Ormskirk is too small to attract lots of shoppers from other towns. And Ormskirk residents probably consider Liverpool & Southport as more attractive than St. Helens for shopping trips. That just leaves student traffic to/from Edge Hill University as the main source of revenue - currently served by the very limited extensions of 152 from Rainford to Ormskirk.
(18/09/2015 19:53)Bevan Price Wrote: [ -> ]One suggestion was for restoration of a Knutsford to Warrington service - but how many people would want such a service daily ? Knutsford is too small to attract many shoppers from Warrington, and probably too small to have enough (bus using) residents wanting to shop regularly in Warrington. And there are several miles with very little residential property.
What should be noted is Knutsford station has over 500,000 journeys made to and from it every year. There's only 4 stations in the whole country that manage that level of patronage with an hourly frequency off-peak service. With Knutsford having very few regular bus routes I think part of the reason for Knutsford's very high level of rail usage is because people travel indirectly using the train in the absence of a direct bus route.
You mention very few shoppers from Warrington wanting to go to Knutsford. However, what about people from Lymm, who may want more specialist shops than those available in Warrington? What about people wanting Tatton Park one of the most visited tourist attractions in the North West? What about people getting to and from jobs who would use a bus every day opposed to a couple of times a week like shoppers? What about people from the Knutsford area wanting to travel to Scotland/Birmingham/Liverpool etc where a bus to Warrington and a train from Warrington would be more convenient than the current available options? You mention several miles with few residential properties but what about people staying at the Cottons Hotel or Travelodge, or people wanting to get to the Garden Centre or visit someone in the Nursing Home at Bucklow Hill? What about if it's joined on to a direct Macclesfield-Knutsford? There's lot of possibilities.
(19/09/2015 08:48)knutstransport Wrote: [ -> ]What about people wanting Tatton Park one of the most visited tourist attractions in the North West?
I did once try to get to Tatton Park from nearby Warrington, catching the train to Knutsford, having to make at least one change and catching Bakerbus's extension of the 27 (this was before it was discontinued), but by gum it was costly, especially the train section of the route.
Since then I've still had to get to Knutsford by train and walk from there, but have only done so a couple of times, far less frequently than I would ideally like
(19/09/2015 09:13)Valandil Wrote: [ -> ]I did once try to get to Tatton Park from nearby Warrington, catching the train to Knutsford, having to make at least one change and catching Bakerbus's extension of the 27 (this was before it was discontinued), but by gum it was costly, especially the train section of the route.
Since then I've still had to get to Knutsford by train and walk from there, but have only done so a couple of times, far less frequently than I would ideally like
I think off-peak the cheapest option is a Wayfarer ticket for £12.
There was also the H50 Sandbach to Altrincham bus which did a return working on Tuesdays and Fridays and stopped near the Rostherne entrance to Tatton Park.
If anyone wants to visit Tatton Park not using a car to just do a walk around the park from Knutsford I recommend walking alongside The Moor (parallel to the railway line), in to Dog Wood and in to the park proper up towards the Old Hall then returning to the main Knutsford entrance. (Around 4-5 miles total.) That way you get to see more of the park than if you return to the same entrance and using that route you might see both red and fallow deer, as well as occasionally rabbits.
Try getting from Knutsford to Manchester or Stockport by bus it will take you an eternity to get there that's why the train service is so well used , Knutsford on all sides as such is countryside , don't think the countryside around there will generate much traffic for buses .
(19/09/2015 15:38)Dentonian Wrote: [ -> ]Knutsford is a small town of 13,000 and wikipedia seems to back up its reputation by stating it is a "highly affluent" residential area - hardly good bus country!
Knutsford is a place that if you travel to Manchester you take the train and any other place you take the car . As you said from Wikipedia its whats affectionally known as the Cheshire Stockbroker Belt.
(19/09/2015 09:32)wirralbus Wrote: [ -> ]Try getting from Knutsford to Manchester or Stockport by bus it will take you an eternity to get there that's why the train service is so well used , Knutsford on all sides as such is countryside , don't think the countryside around there will generate much traffic for buses .
To get to Liverpool by public transport if you don't fancy the 1 mile walk between Greenbank and Hartford you have to either go via Stockport or Chester. It's not a case of everyone going on the train to Stockport/Manchester even wants to travel in a North East direction!