‘Scene’ around Manchester Piccadilly Railway Station

One of the busiest stations in the Northwest with a wide range of operators and rolling stock on display

 

142052

 

The much derided diesel engined ‘Pacer’. Seen in the livery of ‘Northern Rail’ (NR) and dating from the mid nineteen eighties, the 4 wheeled ‘Pacer’s rough riding has become legendary. However as I have said before. On welded track they are OK. On old track they are poor riders. Maybe they will be gone before long.

 

323225

Electric inner suburban units operated by ‘NR’. Built by Hunslet Barclay (HB) in the early 1990’s for use around both Manchester and Birmingham. They were the last vehicles built by ‘HB’ before the company went out of business.

 

150111

Once more a ‘NR’ unit this time a diesel engined Class 150/1dating from the mid eighties. Built by British Rail Engineering Ltd. (BREL) at York. The first of the so called ‘modern’ DMU’s, production ran to 137 units.

 

150214

When production of the Class 150/1’s at York ceased, production of the Class 150/2 started. 85 of these units were built. The main improvement being the provision of corridor connections.

 

350 403

 

A Siemens of Germany product known as the ‘Desiro’. similar to other Class 350‘s operated by ‘London Midland’ 

 

These electric units have just entered service with ‘First TransPennine Express’. The 10 units delivered are used primarily on services from Manchester to Edinburgh and Glasgow.

 

This image was taken at Manchester Airport by friend Jim Riley and is used with his permission.

 

390 156

The ‘Pendolino’ or tilting train. These high speed electric trains were built by Alstom using FIAT’s tilting train technology between 2003 and 2004 for use on the West Coast Main Line. 

 

53 units were built in the original tranche with a further 4 trains and an additional 62 coaches following between 2009 and 2012.

 

220023

Branded as ‘Voyagers’ when first introduced by ‘Virgin Trains‘ (VT) in 2000/2001. These 4 coach diesel powered units were built in Belgium by Bombardier Transportation. 

 

34 sets were completed for use by ‘VT’ which were transferred to ‘CrossCountry’ when ‘VT’ lost the franchise in 2007.

 

319363

These dual voltage electric loco’s were built in the late 1980’s by ‘BREL’ at York  for what was then the new North/South line from Bedford to Brighton.

 

At privatisation they were operated as part of the ‘Thameslink’ franchise and there they stayed until March 2015 when the first of a batch of 20 units that were surplus to requirements with the introduction of newer units transferred to ‘Northern Rail’ for use around Manchester and Liverpool.

 

Seen at Manchester Airport.

 

175 002

A diesel engined unit operated by ‘Arriva Trains Wales’. Built in 1999 to 2000 by Alstom in Birmingham and known as ‘Coradia’s. There were 27 sets built and all are owned by Angel Trains, a rolling stock leasing company.

 

185 130 and 131

Diesel engined units built by Siemens of Germany. 51 3 car sets were delivered in 2006-7 for the exclusive use by ‘First TransPennine Express’. Known as ‘Coradia’s.

 

 

'Scene' on the road from Nottingham to Bingham ‘Scene’ on the road from Nottingham to Bingham

It has be well known for some time that ‘trentbarton’ (tb) were planning to revise the services that cross Trent Bridge and go on to serve West Bridgford, Radcliffe and eventually to Bingham.

 

Indeed buses have been operating without branding in recent weeks other than stickers advising that work was in progress.

 

A quick trip into Nottingham showed the new regime to be up and running. 

 

Broadly speaking the main route from Nottingham to Bingham via West Bridgford is run direct in virtually a straight line taking about 45 minutes for the journey depending on traffic and other conditions.

 

Not surprisingly, it is marketed as ‘rushcliffe mainline’ (Rushcliffe being the borough where the buses largely operate). 

 

It appears to be run mainly by Optare Tempo’s including at least one that previously worked on ‘tb’s ‘black cat’ service from Derby to Mansfield.

 

FD54 YJA

 

An Optare Tempo that had worked on the earlier services to Bingham in ‘Xprss’ and ‘greens’ days.

 

YJ07 FSD

An Optare Tempo that had worked on ‘tb’ black cat’ services.

 

Branding fore and aft.

 

FJ58 KKU

A Volvo B7RLE/Wright, a fleet liveried bus that was helping out.

 

 

To the North of the ‘mainline’ runs service ‘rushcliffe villager V1’ which covers a much more circuitous route on its way to Bingham whilst to the South of the ‘mainline’, ‘rushcliffe villager V2’ does something similar.

 

Operated by Optare Solo’s (at least while I was there) suitably branded.

 

YD63 VDP

 

An Optare Solo on V1.

 

 

YD63 VDL 

 

An Optare Solo on V2.

 

Again front and back branding.

 

‘Scene’ Coaching in London recently part 2

It is now some time since I was in the Capital but such is the volume of bus traffic and such is the quality of the vehicles appearing that it would be a shame to leave these out.

 

One of my local operators here in the East Midlands is ‘Little’s of Ilkeston’ and it is with one of their coaches that we start.

 

PB09 LTL

A Scania K340EB4 with Irizar PB coachwork.

 

KX56 OVF

A Volvo B7R with Plaxton Profile bodywork working for London operator ‘Corbel’.

 

BN63 NYU

A Chinese built King Long XMQ6129Y working for ‘Excalibur Coaches’ who are another London based operator.

 

This coach appeared on the King Long stand at the Bus & Coach Live 2013 show at the NEC.

 

B2 EBT

A Volvo B12M with Plaxton Paragon bodywork with a cherished registration that identifies it as a member of the

‘Eddie Brown Travel’ fleet.

 

BL14 LSX

A Sunsundegui bodied Volvo working for’ Terravision’ on route A50 which takes in both Stansted Airport and London Victoria.

 

I have only seen one other of this body type which is called the SC7 and that was at the NEC last year and I commented then on its very close similarity to the Caetano Levante.

 

TUI 1646

A Dennis Javelin with Caetano Algarve 2 bodywork. Formerly registered N786 SJU.

 

Working for ‘Britannia Holidays’ who operate from the Hitchin in Hertfordshire.

 

9 HDX

This Volvo B12B/JonkheereSHV combination has to be one of the most elegant vehicles on the road.

 

Working for ‘The Travellers Choice’ who are based at Carnforth in Lancashire. 

 

An operator with a history going back over 140 years !

 

WAF CO 444

A SETRA S 415HD working for German operator ‘Engel Touristik’.

 

GB04 EBL

 

A Scania K114B4 with Irizar Century bodywork in the fleet of ‘Lucketts Travel’ of Fareham in Hampshire.

 

FDY 383

A Volvo B12B with a Volvo built body that was new to ‘Rambler Coaches Ltd.’ of Hastings in 2008 as CR08 RAM. 

 

It was reregistered to its current mark in early 2015.

 

YJ11 AMV

A Mercedes-Benz 0816D fitted with Sitcar ‘Beluga’ bodywork working for ‘Alba Coaches’.

 

I have commented before that I think the name ‘Beluga’ which is a species of whale is an unfortunate choice for what is quite a dainty coach.

 

'Scene' on a 'Day Out with Dennis' to Southwell

This set of images is to illustrate an article written for a magazine called ‘All Things Local’.

 

This community magazine is produced and distributed from a base in Kilburn, Derbyshire and covers large areas of the towns of Ripley and Belper.

 

IF YOU ARE TRAVELLING FROM BELPER, 

 

your first bus of the day will be ‘trentbarton’s (tb) ’the sixes’ from Belper to Derby.

 

A Swedish built Scania Chassis carrying a Wright body produced in Ballymena in Northern Ireland.

 

Onward from Derby into Nottingham it is a ‘tb’ ‘red arrow’. Largely these days in the hands of a coach chassis again produced by

Scania but bodied in Spain by a company called Irizar.

 

This is likely to change soon because ‘tb’ have a batch of new coaches on order which will replace most of them.

 

IF YOU ARE TRAVELLING FROM RIPLEY,

your first bus of the day will be ‘tb)’ ‘rapidone’.

 

An Optare Versa which is produced in Yorkshire

 

From Nottingham to Southwell the bus is provided by ‘Nottingham City Transport’. Normally double deck buses are used but single decks are also used from time to time.

Both types are Scania products with the double deck body coming from East Lancashire Coachbuilders who are no longer in existence and the single deck being built in Poland.

 

Should you decide to return via Mansfield and Ripley then the bus from Southwell to Mansfield would be provided by ‘Stagecoach’ and would probably be a double deck Dennis Trident chassis which at one time was built at Guildford in England but more recently in Scotland bodied by Alexander’s of Falkirk.

The bus from Mansfield to Ripley is another Optare product called the Solo again from Yorkshire.

Should you be going back to Belper, another ‘the sixes' from outside the old Hippodrome will take you there.

‘Scene’ in Chesterfield today 7th. September 2015.

DH13 HOL

 

A Volvo which according to one source is a B11R whilst another says its a B12M. 

 

Whatever the truth of it, it is definitely a Jonkheere body and it is owned by ‘Hollinshead’ of Biddulph, Staffordshire.

 

SIL 6435

A Neoplan Tourliner of ‘Skills’ of Nottingham.

Wearing one of ‘Skills’ cherished registrations.

 

YN06 UGY

 

An Optare Solo of ‘Stagecoach Yorkshire’ (SY).

 

Since ‘Stagecoach’ group have removed route branding from their buses, they look a little bit ‘bare’.

 

However, I like the new appearance because I thought that some of the branding was a bit artificial.

 

FJ09 BXE

 

A Volvo B7RLE with Wright Eclipse Urban bodywork.

 

Working for ‘trentbarton’ (tb) on its ‘red arrow’ service to Derby.

 

‘tb’ have a batch of Plaxton bodied Volvo coaches on order for this service and the route North of Derby currently seems to be being run with anything available. 

 

Today I travelled up on an Optare Solo albeit fleet liveried whereas a fortnight ago I saw a blue ‘royal’ branded bus on the service.

 

AE56 MDN

A Dennis Dart SLF wit MCV Evolution bodywork.

 

Working for ’Hulley’s of Baslow’ and about to return there and then on to Bakewell.

 

It was new to a company called ‘Cavalier’.

 

‘Scene’ at Manchester International Airport (MIA).

There was a time when taking photographs from the top of the car parks was easy. That unfortunately is no longer the case.

 

However it is still possible, just.

 

An overview of the line up at Terminal 3 

 

From front to back we have a ‘Thomson’ Boeing 737-800. A ‘Virgin Atlantic’ Boeing 747 -400. A ‘Thomson’ Boeing 787. Then another ‘Thomson’ 737 and finally a ‘Thomson’ Boeing 767.

 

G-VGAL

 

A Boeing 747-443 of ‘Virgin Atlantic’ (VA). it first flew on 05/04/2001 and was new to ‘VA’.

 

G-OBYE

A Boeing 767-304 new to ‘Britannia Airways’ the forerunner of ‘Thomson’ dating from 23/02/1998.

 

Since then it has had spells with ‘Garuda Indonesia’, as G-OBYE and ‘Thomson’ group company ‘Arkefly’ in Holland as PH-OYE.

 

G-KKEV

A De Havilland Canada DHC-8-400 of ‘Flybe’ which was new to the airline in 2008.

 

Initially registered as C-FOUU whilst on test it should have become G-ECOD which was not taken up so acquiring the registration it carries today.

 

EI-REJ

An ATR 72 built as OH-KRA in 1989 for ‘Kar-Air’ a regional operator in Finland.

 

It moved to ‘Aero Airlines’ of Estonia as ES-KRA in 2005.

 

It gained its current registration in 2006 and went on to work for ‘Aer Arran’ and ‘Euromanx’ before coming to ‘Air Contractors’ who are primarily a freight operator in 2009.

 

It has since moved to ‘ASL Airlines Ireland’.

 

G-LSAB

A Boeing 757-27B dating from 1988 making it 27 years old!

 

Not surprisingly, it has been around the block (maybe the world as well) a few times.

 

New to ‘Air Holland’ as PH-AHF. Then with ‘Sterling Airways’ as OY-SHF followed by ‘El Al’ as 4X-EBF. Back to PH-AHF with both ‘Air Holland’ and ‘Martinair’ before going to Turkey with ‘Air Anatolia’ as  TC-ANN. 

 

Further registered as TC-FLC with ‘Fly Airlines’ also in Turkey before finally coming to ‘Jet2 in July 2005.

 

EI-EVD

 

A Boeing  737-8AS new to ‘Ryanair’ in January 2012.

 

N919FD

 

A Boeing 757-23ASF. Seen in the livery of freight carrier ‘Federal Express’ (FE).

 

Originally G-IEAB with ‘Inter European’ then with ‘Air Aruba’ with the same registration. Re registered as G-LCRC for use by both ‘Airtours’ and ‘My Travel’ before being stored by ‘FlyJet’ as G-FJEA.

 

To ‘FE’ in January 2008.

 

G-GDFJ

 

A Boeing 737-804 of Jet2. New to ‘Britannia AB’ (BAB) as SE-DZI. ‘BAB’ was the Swedish arm of the UK’s 

‘Britannia Airways’ and like its UK partner, it became ‘Thomson Airways’ in 2006.

 

It joined Jet2 in 2012.

 

G-ZBAO

 

An Airbus A321-200 of ‘Monarch Airlines’. New to the airline in May 2014.

 

G-JZHA

 

A Boeing 737 8K5 working for ‘Jet2 holidays’.

 

Built for ‘Hapag Lloyd’ of Germany in 2001 as D-AHFY. It moved to ‘TUIfly’ also in Germany with the same registration in 2007. 

 

‘TUIfly’ being the German part of the ‘TUI’ group who amongst others owns ‘Thomsonfly’ in the UK.

 

It came to ‘Jet2’ in January 2015.

 

A6-EDK

One of the reasons I had gone to Manchester was to see the arrival of the ‘Emirates’ Airbus A-380. Here it is and it was on time to the minute.