Bus-Related Outings & Reviews

[R311 WVR]

RE: Bus-Related Outings & Reviews

(24/07/2012 12:56)kuyoyo Wrote:  

(05/07/2012 16:08)kuyoyo Wrote:  July is a very busy month for myself:

7th July: Teesside, for the final day before Arriva's changes
8th July: South Shields Fun Day at Bents Park, including a first-chance Stagecoach on Teesside/Stagecoach in South Shields/Stagecoach in Newcastle Enviro line-up
9th July: First Weekday of Arriva's Teesside changes (and hopefully deckers on the X93)
11th July: A day down to Sheffield
14th July: Unsure, either a day out up on Tyneside or a day photoing outside Middlesbrough Bus Station for the last time prior to its closure on the 16th July
16th July: Middlesbrough, first day after the closure of Middlesbrough Bus Station and the start of the 600
21st July: Sunderland Airshow, including photo opportunities with routes serving places they don't normally (E1/E6 finishing at Seaburn Camp)
25th July: Potentially another day down in Yorkshire (either West or South) using Megabus
28th July: Newcastle and South Shields, first trip to get the Olympic Cover vehicles

(10/07/2012 14:28)kuyoyo Wrote:  

(05/07/2012 16:08)kuyoyo Wrote:  July is a very busy month for myself:

11th July: A day down to Sheffield
14th July: Unsure, either a day out up on Tyneside or a day photoing outside Middlesbrough Bus Station for the last time prior to its closure on the 16th July
16th July: Middlesbrough, first day after the closure of Middlesbrough Bus Station and the start of the 600
21st July: Sunderland Airshow, including photo opportunities with routes serving places they don't normally (E1/E6 finishing at Seaburn Camp)
25th July: Potentially another day down in Yorkshire (either West or South) using Megabus
28th July: Newcastle and South Shields, first trip to get the Olympic Cover vehicles

Some changes to this, mainly of those in bold:
14th July: a combined day to Newcastle (to find some of the Yorkshire vehicles that are coming on-loan for the Olympics period) before returning to Teesside for the late afternoon/evening to spot some surprises out on the road (Stagecoach's Assistant Operation Manager is out driving on a Backshift), also enables some time in Middlesbrough for the last full service day of the Bus Station before the refurbishment work begins
18th July: Middlesbrough again
28th July: Again, trip to Tyneside but mainly aimed at getting the B10BLEs reactive in South Shields (and potentially at Slatyford as well)

Update to this for the rest of the month:
Tomorrow (25th July): Leeds and West Yorkshire
28th July: Middlesbrough again (to get the Enviro400s on the X93, as well as photos around the town)
31st July (Tuesday): Appointment in Middlesbrough at half 3, so will be another day in Middlesbrough (if I haven't done enough of them already)

I'll be in Whitby or the next 10 days Ater today, so hopeully i'll get a ride on the Enviro400 To Scarbrough on the X93! And a photo!

[V671 DVU]

RE: Bus-Related Outings & Reviews
Decided to go out today thinking it'd be warm and it just wasn't... Anyway, this is what I rode:

6 Huyton to Liverpool (2721) - I was really happy to see this bus turn up with a fast driver at the wheel. It was absolutely fantastic, there was some great ZF kickdown applied in parts and the bus just sounded excellent.

1 Liverpool to Birkenhead (61542) - Quite nice. The engine sounded quite good, the bus was solid but was let down by a slow driver.

437 Birkenhead to Liverpool (4410) - Couldn't really judge this as I decided to sit at top deck front for a change!

13 Liverpool to West Derby Road (3013) - I was greeted on this bus by a very friendly driver who wished everyone boarding a good morning and even having a joke with everyone boarding. (Something a passenger appreciated on West Derby Road who said "It's nice to see a smiling face" to which the driver replied "A smile costs nothing", so true!) Anyway, back to the bus! 3013 was quite poor, clearly in safe mode but not too sluggish and quite rattly. When getting off, the driver said "Have a nice day, tarrar". Genuine lovely bloke!

68 West Derby Road to Green Lane depot (2237) - Not too bad. It wasn't too rattly, but the engine was loud and there was quite a nasty vibration in idle.

68 Green Lane depot to West Derby Road (2219) - Same as the other day, not too bad, not too good!

18 West Derby Road to Belmont Road (2964) - Another bus I couldn't judge very well due to me having to sit in the buggy bay due to no available seats, but I could just about hear kickdown and the driver certainly got it shifting.

27 Belmont Road to Liverpool (2671) - Was hoping for something which wasn't a Pulsar...but never mind. When I first boarded the bus, a certain passenger on there absolutely rank of cannabis making the entire bus stink. 2671 was in safe mode, but the driver some how managed to get it up to some good speed on Scotty Road.

437 Liverpool to Birkenhead (4419) - Average. No kickdown, fairly average engine and a few rattles.

410 Birkenhead to Liscard (2461) - Excellent. The ZF kickdown off the line was fantastic, and it certainly got shifting on the faster parts of the route. It was let down by a few rattles, but no where near as many as other Mylleniums.

410 Liscard to Birkenhead (2411) - I was in a rush to get back into Liverpool to catch my 8, so boarded this bus I rode a couple of days back. Same as then!

407 Birkenhead to Liverpool (4097) - Not bad at all. Rattles were to a minimum, and the engine sounded nice. Shame we couldn't get shifting through the tunnel thanks to some idiotic driver in front of us who was crawling along...

8 Liverpool to Huyton (7664) - Dreadful. This bus gets worse every time I ride it... It's still a very fast bus off the line, but the rattles were un-bearable as were the eardrum bursting brakes.

[R311 WVR]

RE: Bus-Related Outings & Reviews
Middlesbrough tommorow Via the X93 - Hopefully get an Enviro 400 - What would be the best Day saver To get bearing. In mind i would like to ride some buses in Mbrough? Cos i know therez a few in the North East?

[kuyoyo]

RE: Bus-Related Outings & Reviews

(27/07/2012 21:55)Marshall Capital SLF Wrote:  Middlesbrough tommorow Via the X93 - Hopefully get an Enviro 400 - What would be the best Day saver To get bearing. In mind i would like to ride some buses in Mbrough? Cos i know therez a few in the North East?

Explorer North East - £9 Adult or £8 for Children (under 13).

For Enviro400, your best bet from what I've so far worked out are the following working:
From Whitby: 0915, 1215
From Middlesbrough: 1030, 1330, 1820

There are two more that are Enviro400-worked but as yet, we've not worked out those working.

[M113 YKC]

RE: Bus-Related Outings & Reviews
I've rode on a few buses today as I had to go out for a non-bus-related purporse; below are the reviews (not in order):

53 (ANW) - Litherland, Bridge Road > Bootle Strand Shopping Centre
Plaxton Pointer 2 T323 PNB (2323)
This bus was OK. It was a bit rattly, however it sounded fantastic! It didn't hold its' gears very well, resulting in it being a bit sluggish when going off the line, however the driver was quite fast!

55 (ANW) - Bootle Strand Shopping Centre > Netherton, Chapel Lane
Pulsar 2 MX59 FGC (3022)
This bus was fantastic! The driver was very fast and this bus' kickdown sounded absolutely fantastic! The bus featured a few rattles on-board, though, which was a shame. Still, this journey was fantastic!

59 (ANW) - Netherton, Glovers Lane > Litherland, Church Road
DAF/ALX400 T304 FGN (4064)
This was a very smooth ride. The bus didn't rattle much - if not, it didn't at all! It was a bit slow, however it sounded nice and it was warm and comfortable on-board! This one is definitely one of the best examples of this type that I've rode on so far.

[M113 YKC]

RE: Bus-Related Outings & Reviews

(28/07/2012 14:22)27701 Wrote:  I've rode on a few buses today as I had to go out for a non-bus-related purporse; below are the reviews (not in order):

53 (ANW) - Litherland, Bridge Road > Bootle Strand Shopping Centre
Plaxton Pointer 2 T323 PNB (2323)
This bus was OK. It was a bit rattly, however it sounded fantastic! It didn't hold its' gears very well, resulting in it being a bit sluggish when going off the line, however the driver was quite fast!

55 (ANW) - Bootle Strand Shopping Centre > Netherton, Chapel Lane
Pulsar 2 MX59 FGC (3022)
This bus was fantastic! The driver was very fast and this bus' kickdown sounded absolutely fantastic! The bus featured a few rattles on-board, though, which was a shame. Still, this journey was fantastic!

59 (ANW) - Netherton, Glovers Lane > Litherland, Church Road
DAF/ALX400 T304 FGN (4064)
This was a very smooth ride. The bus didn't rattle much - if not, it didn't at all! It was a bit slow, however it sounded nice and it was warm and comfortable on-board! This one is definitely one of the best examples of this type that I've rode on so far.

As I had a Day Saver and nothing to do inside the house (laptop broke = life over), I decided to venture out again this evening. Here's what I rode on:

52 (ANW) - Netherton, Glovers Lane > Queen Square Bus Station
Pulsar 2 MX59 FFY (3019)
I was disappointed to see this bus on my journey, however, on the other hand, I was happy to see a fast driver at the wheel. I've never liked this bus much, however it was excellent today with a great driver at the wheel! It rattled a lot and it sounded strange, but nice. If I'm honest, it didn't feel very fast off the line. The interior was cluttered with litter. Overall, this was a good journey.

18 (ANW) - Queen Square Bus Station > West Derby, Muirhead Avenue
Pulsar 2 MX59 JKZ (3032)
I was waiting for something new (something that I haven't rode properly, if at all) to show up and this is exactly what I wanted! This was in the famous "slow mode", however it featured the "sensitive kickdown" issue. The driver was very fast and I didn't notice many rattles on-board.

13 (ANW) - West Derby, West Derby Road > Queen Square Bus Station
Pulsar CX58 EWP (2901)
This bus wasn't very good or nice to be on. Internally, it was a shed! It featured poorly-painted and defaced seat-backs and worn-out moquette. Very rattly! It was also in the "slow mode", however the driver seemed to know how to get it going (faster than 3032, and that kicked down a lot)! It didn't sound very healthy, though...

48 (ANW) - Liverpool, Sir Thomas Street > Bootle Strand Shopping Centre
Pulsar 2 MX10 BZS (3033)
I couldn't resist a ride on my old favourite bus - and that's exactly what it is... It rattled like hell for the majority of the journey! I liked the way that it sounded different and was fast off the line, however the rattles let it down dramatically! The driver was quite fast, which made the journey slightly more bearable!

300 (ANW) - Bootle Strand Shopping Centre > Old Roan, Ormskirk Road
Commander CX07 CPK (2624)
I couldn't resist a ride on this - something which I barely get to ride on! The slow, miserable driver let it down. The bus sounded fantastic, though, as it always does! From the outside, you'd guess that the bus vibrated when idle, however I didn't notice such on-board. Very odd!

[W179 SCU]

RE: Bus-Related Outings & Reviews
Great week I have had in the Lakes visiting Keswick, Ambleside, Grasmere, Kendal and Windermere. I was ill the first 3 days, so I couldn't go to Barrow, Carlisle, Penrith, Workington or Whitehaven like planned. Will do next time though!

[kuyoyo]

RE: Bus-Related Outings & Reviews
Rare thing for me tomorrow, for the first time in about a year, I'n having a Saturday at home (owing mainly due to the fact I'm near-enough skint). This next week is as followed:

Monday: Stockton and Middlesbrough (Hopefully will include a trip to Tees Valley Coach Travel's depot)
Wednesday: Same as Monday
Friday: Middlesbrough mainly (due to an appointment there at half 9-11)
Saturday: Middlesbrough and Stockton, hopefully the first day of the new B9TL on the X9/X10
Sunday: A first-time trip on the Moorsbus into the North Yorkshire Moors National Park

[St Helens Rider]

RE: Bus-Related Outings & Reviews
Had a study tour round Blackpool, Flyde Coast and Wyre with the Omnibus Society North West & Yorkshire Branch.

I've only managed to record movements in Blackpool but here's how the day went:

1035 - 17 - Blackpool Town Centre - St Annes Square - Blackpool Transport 218
1126 - 7 - St Annes Square - Starr Gate - Blackpool Transport 220
1140 - Tram - Starr Gate - Fleetwood - Blackpool Transport Flexity 009

Break for lunch

1330 - Ferry - Fleetwood Ferry - Knott End Ferry
1400 - 2C - Knott End - Poulton-Le-Fylde - Blackpool Transport 241
1505 - 16 - Poulton Centre - Mereside Tesco - Blackpool Transport 244
1601 - 3 - Mereside Tesco - Blackpool Town Centre - Blackpool Transport 267

Most were quite decent vehicles apart from 244 which was making some strange noises on the left hand side of the vehicle round the wheel arches and was also having some door problems as they didn't appear to be functioning normally. A generally good day apart from a spot of rain when we were in Poulton.

[kuyoyo]

RE: Bus-Related Outings & Reviews

(03/08/2012 18:53)kuyoyo Wrote:  Rare thing for me tomorrow, for the first time in about a year, I'n having a Saturday at home (owing mainly due to the fact I'm near-enough skint). This next week is as followed:

Monday: Stockton and Middlesbrough (Hopefully will include a trip to Tees Valley Coach Travel's depot)
Wednesday: Same as Monday
Friday: Middlesbrough mainly (due to an appointment there at half 9-11)
Saturday: Middlesbrough and Stockton, hopefully the first day of the new B9TL on the X9/X10
Sunday: A first-time trip on the Moorsbus into the North Yorkshire Moors National Park

Change of Plans next weekend
Saturday: Tyneside, to photo Stagecoach loans in South Sheilds and hopefully photo and ride the new B9TLs on the X9/X10
Sunday: Moorsbus day cancelled