Bus-Related Outings & Reviews

[M113 YKC]

RE: Bus-Related Outings & Reviews
I went out yesterday on a long-overdue, bus-related outing, armed with an All-Zone Saveaway! Here's how it went:

52 (ANW) - Netherton, Glovers Lane > Bootle Strand Shopping Centre
Pulsar 2 MX59 JJO (3027)
Unfortunately, the ride-quality of this bus had seemed to have decreased since my last ride on it - although it sounded great, as usual. The first driver was a bit slow off the line, however he reached some satisfying speeds! The second driver was fast, although I only managed to sample his driving for a few minutes.

55 (ANW) - Bootle Strand Shopping Centre > Queen Square Bus Station
DAF/ALX400 S274 JUA (4094)
This was a surprise! Double-deckers aren't usually allocated onto this service. The bus' interior was tidy and in a nice condition and its' exterior seemed to be in the same condition. Operational-wise, though, it wasn't very good. It was very sluggish off the line and its' engine didn't sound normal, either. Up Hunter Street in Liverpool, it felt like it was going to stop (it was in gear one all the way up there, too)! In addition to the slow issue, the bus rattled a lot - violently, at times.

London Midland - Liverpool Lime Street > Liverpool South Parkway
350115
I'm not mad on trains, however London Midland, as a company, have always impressed me! This train was fantastic; on-board, it was quiet, comfortable and in a great condition.

Speke Hall Shuttle - Liverpool South Parkway Interchange (Bus Station) > Speke Hall (Carpark)
Solo SR MX12 KXK (719)
As expected, this new bus appeared. Externally, it was something different; internally, it looked very smart! The seats on the back row were strange - not comfortable to sit on. The bus was fast off the line (especially with the decent driver at the wheel!) and it sounded OK, although I'm not a fan of Solos. There was an annoying rattle, which came from above the front doors, oddly... Overall, it was something different and, in my opinion, that's all it was.

Speke Hall Shuttle - Speke Hall (Carpark) > Liverpool South Parkway Interchange (Bus Station)
Solo SR MX12 KXK (719)
This journey was generally the same as above.

501 (ANW) - Liverpool South Parkway Interchange (Bus Station) > Liverpool John Lennon Airport (Bus Station)
Commander CX06 BJZ (2597)
This was a surprise and something irresistible to ride on, although, on-board, it wasn't "irresistible"... It rattled violently at the back, where I sat. It also sounded quite strange. Despite those issues, though, the regular, friendly driver was fast and so was the bus.

82A (ANW) - Liverpool John Lennon Airport (Bus Station) > Aigburth, Otterspool Road
Cadet DK55 FXS (2529)
My original plan was to try and ride on the Commander on the 500 - CX06 BHU (2584) - however that left before my 501 had reached the airport, sadly! This bus, which was a "P&P'd" example, was great and the driver was quite fast. The ride-quality seemed to be good. The refurbished moquette among the green interior seemed to appeal to me, surprisingly!

68 (ANW) - Aigburth, Aigburth Vale > West Derby, Green Lane
Plaxton Pointer 2 X229 ANC (2229)
I hated this bus - worst bus that I've rode on in my life! It sounded quite nice, but it was very loud! The seat which I chose at the back was very uncomfortable. Other seats in my view seemed to be in a bad condition, despite the bus having had its' "P&P" treatment, and they clanged and rattled all the way, which gave me a headache! Also, the bus constantly jolted forward when the driver, who was fast, accelerated before the bus had stopped. I'd have waited for the next bus, but I'd already been waiting for a while for this one and I like to try bad buses again to see if they've improved (in this case, not one bit!).

18 (ANW) - West Derby, West Derby Road > Queen Square Bus Station
Commander CX06 BHE (2576)
I was surprised to see this bus as it usually avoids me! It wasn't much of a ride as it was busy on-board. I couldn't sample the first driver's driving because I only had him for one stop, however the second driver was alright - bit rough on the brakes, but quite a good driver. On London Road in Liverpool, the bus rattled a lot. Still, it seemed to sound nice.

53A (ANW) - Queen Square Bus Station > Seaforth, Bridge Road
ALX200 X268 OBN (2268)
This was a surprise and was a blast from the past because it was displaying "NETHERTON 53A" - presumably because it didn't have anything for Aintree on its' destination unit. It rattled badly for the majority of the journey, however the driver was fast and the bus sounded great!

53 (ANW) - Seaforth, Bridge Road > Crosby, Islington
Pulsar 2 MX59 FFT (3015)
This was a great ride! The bus sounded fantastic and the driver was fast. It rattled quite a bit, but the rattles were easy to ignore!

53A (ANW) - Crosby, Islington > Netherton, Glovers Lane
Plaxton Pointer 2 X233 ANC (2233)
It was either this bus or PeoplesBus' Tempo, V1 BUS (0701), and I chose this...! The driver was very fast, however the bus was quite slow and it rattled a lot.

(I went home for about an hour.)

57C (Cumfybus) - Netherton, Glovers Lane > Bootle Bus Station (Vermont Way)
Solo M710SE MX08 DHL
This was another surprise - it's unusual to see a bus as small as this one on this service (and the 58C/144/145). The friendly driver was very fast! The bus sounded alright, however it rattled a bit, which was strange because there wasn't much on-board to rattle! Also, its' gearbox didn't seem to knock into gear five!

52 (ANW) - Bootle Strand Shopping Centre > Queen Square Bus Station
Pulsar CX58 EXK (2918)
As I said with 2229, I like to give bad buses another chance - and, like with 2229, some buses don't improve! This was dreadful. It felt like it was going to fall apart and it was very slow - it took a while for it to get off gear two at times, which made the driver kick down at one point! Also, after gear three, braking sounded odd. It's hard for me to believe that this was my favourite bus at one point...

17 (SM&SL) - Queen Square Bus Station > Liverpool, Lord Street
Liberator R875 LHG (21075)
This was OK. It sounded nice, but a window beside where I sat rattled badly, which was annoying.

52A (PeoplesBus) - Liverpool, Sir Thomas Street > Bootle Strand Shopping Centre
Alexander RH L971 MSC (0806)
Now, this was a MASSIVE surprise! It was very fast and it sounded fantastic - a blast from the past (it sounded like Birkenhead's legendary Palatine 2s and like Stagecoach's old Olympians on the X2)! It rattled a bit and was generally uncomfortable, but I didn't care! I actually seen this bus earlier in the day (whilst on my 57C) on a special wedding service.

52 (ANW) - Bootle Strand Shopping Centre > Liverpool, Hatton Garden(!)
This was another surprise because I'd had this bus earlier in the day on the 53...! It was generally the same as what it was like on that journey.

14 (ANW) - Queen Square Bus Station > Liverpool, Everton Road
Pulsar 2 MX61 AWF (3076)
As I had some time to kill, I decided to board this. It seemed to be a good bus - nice-sounding and only a few minor rattles - however the friendly driver's constant foot-on, foot off" action ruined the journey.

19 (ANW) - Liverpool, Everton Road > Queen Square Bus Station
MAN/Enviro300 PO59 HYG (24139)
This was a good ride. The friendly driver was quite fast and the bus didn't rattle much.

407 (ANW) - Liverpool, Sir Thomas Street > Birkenhead Bus Station
Enviro400 CX58 GBF (4416)
This was an OK journey. The bus was fast, it didn't rattle much and it sounded great, but the family on-board, which featured a SCREAMING baby (all the way throughout the tunnel, too - the driver had even noticed!), ruined the ride, to a certain extent.

472 (ANW) - Birkenhead Bus Station > Liverpool, Whitechapel
DAF/ALX400 S276 JUA (4096)
This wasn't very good. Its' downstairs interior was a mix of the old standard moquette and the new standard moquette. Also, its' engine squeaked all the way - very annoying!

52 (ANW) - Liverpool, Sir Thomas Street > Netherton, Glovers Lane
Pulsar CX58 FZE (2923)
This bus sounded fantastic, however it rattled more than it did when I last rode on it (just like 3027 did, strangely...). Both drivers were great at the wheel.

(Just when you thought it was over...! Boredom too over, so I went back out to see if Cumfybus had any hybrid Solos on the 157/158. Sadly not!)

52 (ANW) - Netherton, Glovers Lane > Bootle, Stanley Road
Pulsar 2 MX09 LYG (2945)
This was excellent! It rattled a bit, but the driver was fast - plenty of kickdown, which sounded great!

259 (HTL Buses) - Bootle Bus Station > Netherton, Glovers Lane
Solo M710SE YJ11 EKN (74)
This wasn't very good. It rattled quite a lot and, well, I'm not a fan of Solos! The driver was quite fast, though.

Photos that I took yesterday can be seen here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/michael2770...716178530/