'Scene' in Ripley (Derbyshire)

‘trentbarton’ (tb) have a wide range of route branded services and sometimes it is necessary for various reasons to substitute a fleet liveried vehicle.

 

However, it is most unusual for ‘tb’ to substitute one of their own fleet vehicles with a bus from the associated ‘TM Travel’ (TMT) fleet.

 

Here we see TMT’s YN08 JWC on Ripley Market Place this week deputising on service 1A which links Ripley with Aldercar via Heanor and Langley Mill. The more usual rolling stock would be a fleet liveried Optare Solo.

 

YN08 JWC

A MAN 12.240 with Plaxton’s Centro body is seen wearing the basic livery that it carried whilst working in Sheffield on the ‘busy bee’ service which is a free service linking various points in the City centre.

 

In recent times it has been helping out on the ‘tb’ ’skylink’ service linking Nottingham with the East Midlands Airport.

 

 

'Scene' at Nottingham Railway Station

The ‘blockade’ of Nottingham Railway Station during the re-modeling of the trackwork there and other associated building works has been well documented on television and in the press.

 

The massive operation undertaken to keep passengers moving using a multitude of buses has been an undoubted success and congratulations to all concerned are offered.

 

I have visited several times and I have been impressed with the organisation and good humour with which it has all been achieved.

 

My most recent visit took place now that the trains are running again.

 

A lot has been done but there is still much to do. 

 

The station frontage is still wrapped in polythene although the clock tower is now re emerging and there is still a bit of a trek down the side of the building to the temporary ticket office.

At the. start the ticket queue was only partially covered but I am pleased to see that with the arrival of the autumn weather that the level of cover has been improved.

 

 

All the platforms are readily accessible but there is still a lot of the blue shuttering in place whilst presumably building or cleaning work goes on behind it.

A lot of the trackwork re-modeling has taken place on the approaches to the station

 

This view to the East shows some of it. East Midland Trains (EMT) depot is visible through the first arch.

 

The view to the West.

 

 

So what else was on view ??

 

As might be expected Nottingham is EMT country and their fleet was well represented.

156497

 

153376

 

HST power car 43043

 

222 022

 

 

 158770

 

 

 

Visitors were from ‘Cross Country’ in the shape of Class 170’s in 2 and 4 coach formations. I think that of all the modern units these are the most attractive. 

 

170518  

 

 

170113 

 

 

‘Northern Rail’ Class 158790 about to start its return journey back to Leeds.

‘Scene’ in Blackpool

Blackpool means different things to different people. To some it’s the beach To some it’s the illuminations. To some it’s the sea or maybe the Tower but to me it has always meant transport and lots of it.

 

There are old and new trams, the railway, there is the airport, there are enumerable holiday coaches and of course there are the buses. 

 

I have written about both the trams and coaches in recent times so now it is the buses turn to take their bow.

 

The largest operator in the town is ‘Blackpool Transport Services’ which used to be the old ‘Blackpool Corporation Transport’. 

 

For many years they faced competition from ‘Fylde Borough Transport’ which was the old ‘Lytham St Annes Corporation’ operation until it was taken over in 1994.

 

Competition is still evident today. This time it comes from ‘Classic Bus North West’ and it is these two operators who feature. (plus a brief appearance by Stagecoach).

 

Most of Blackpool’s double deck fleet appears at first glance to be fairly uniform. The bodies are a mix of ELC Lolyne, Myllennium Lolyne or Myllennium Lowlander and bear a family resemblance to each other. 

 

The chassis are a mix of Dennis or Transbus Trident 2’s and DAF DB250LF’s. 

 

The Tridents are a further mixture of buses built for Blackpool and others that came from ‘Blackburn Transport’, ‘Blue Triangle’, 'Green Triangle' and the Isle of Man operator ‘Bus Vannin’.

 

Whilst the DAF’s are all from ‘Bus Vannin’.

 

PO51 UMT 

Is an ex ‘Blue Triangle’ Trident.

 

 

 

 

 

PN52 XKJ 

Is an ex ‘Blackburn’ Trident.

 

 

 

 

 

J800 BTS 

Is an ex ‘Bus Vannin’ DAF.

 

 

 

 

E13 BTS

Is an ex 

‘Bus Vannin’ Trident.

 

 

PF06 EZL

Is a bus actually built for Blackpool.

 

 

 

 

 

There is also small number of Northern Counties bodied Leyland Olympians but I didn’t see any of them.

 

The single deck fleet includes

Optare Solo’s

 

YJ08 PFD

Seen in ‘Resort Pass Hopper Bus’ livery.

 

 

PN03 UGH 

is seen in fleet livery.

 

 

BF60 UVP

A Volvo B7RLE with Plaxton Centro body.

 

 

AU06 BOV 

Another Volvo B7RLE this time with Wright Eclipse bodywork. One of a batch of five purchased from ‘Anglian’.

 

 

 

T218 HCW

A rather snatched image of this Optare Excel being the only one I saw. This was new to Blackpool although there are other Excels that came from ‘Go Northern’ and ‘Reading Buses in service.

 

 

 

I only saw ‘Classic Bus’ vehicles operating along the promenade. All that I saw were elderly and all were indeed ‘Classics’.

 

XAU 701Y

A Leyland Olympian with Eastern Coach Works  body is an old friend from its days with ‘Trent Buses’ (for whom it was built) as they were then. 

 

On the previous occasion that I saw it in Blackpool, it was sat at the back of ‘Blackpool Transport’s Rigby Road depot looking rather forlorn. It had joined the Blackpool fleet in 1997 together with 9 others of the type.

 

Now with its front painted in traditional ‘National Bus Company’ red and white, while the rest of it wears this rather garish advert for ‘Hot Ice’.

 

 

 

 

 

 

BNK 324A

You cannot get more ‘Classic’ than this 50 year old Park Royal bodied Routemaster.

 

The unlikely registration number hides the fact that it is really RM 1568 and was originally 568 CLT in 'London Transport' service.

 

While many much younger buses sit in museums around the country. It is a credit to its original constructors and to the engineers who keep it in daily service now.

Long may it continue !!

 

 

 

 

 

P269 PSX

A Volvo Olympian 56 with Alexander Royale bodywork that was new to ‘Lothian Buses’ in 1997.

 

F69 FYE

You do not see many 6 wheel Metrobuses. This one was built for The China Motor Bus Company as its ML81. 

 

It was repatriated and worked for the ‘Big Bus Tours’ in London coming to Blackpool this year (2013).

 

 

MX55 KPL

Almost mundane following what has gone before is this Alexander ALX 400 bodied Dennis Trident working for Stagecoach Merseyside and South Lancashire out of Preston depot.

 

 

Finally a bit of humour are these 3 ‘buses’ included in Blackpool’s illuminations. If you go, they are up at the North end of the promenade.

 

I suspect they are based on the ‘Routemaster’.

 

 

 

 

 

‘yourbus’ expand again

When I did my last piece that included ‘yourbus’ (See ‘Scene’ in Matlock 17th  October). I said that they were quietly building a network in this part of central Derbyshire.

 

Today (28th. of October 2013), two more pieces were fitted into the jigsaw.

 

Route 113 has been taken over from ‘Glovers of Ashbourne’.

 

The Plaxton Primo’s that Glovers mainly have employed have given way to ‘yourbus’ Wright ‘StreetLites’.

 

 

Here MX62 GXE about to load in Belper for the 12-25 departure.

 

 

 

 

The other route that ‘yourbus’ is operating is the 114 that runs from Derby to Ashbourne via Hulland Ward. It was operated by ‘Arriva’ as the 109.

Here we see MX62 GOA about to leave Ashbourne on the 2-00 p.m. departure.

 

The sun has almost obliterated the destination but it is still readable. In case there is any doubt, I show the repeater by the door.

 

 

I was a little surprised that ‘yourbus’ are operating just one service on what is normally ‘trentbarton’s ‘Swift’ Derby- Ashbourne service.

 

I presume since the bus arrives on the ‘swift’ and it departs on the 114 (both at 06-35) that it is a positioning movement.

 

 

Considering ‘yourbus’ rapid acquisition of routes over the past few months It is interesting to speculate where they are going to turn up next !!  

 

‘Scene’ at the East Midlands Airport

I have been a regular viewer at the EMA for many years and passing on my way elsewhere, I had to call for an hour or so. 

 

I have discovered that the East Midlands Airpark which lies to the side of the runway and is located just out of Castle Donnington village has a mound that allows good views over the wire fence that otherwise restricts photography.

 

Opening at the Airpark is restricted in winter time but the advantage it gives is well worth the small fee charged. 

 

There is also the Airpark’s collection to view. 

 

EI-JIV

Lockheed L382G Hercules operated by ‘Air Contractors’. Although Irish registered, it is based at the EMA and is reputedly the only civil registered L-100 Hercules in Europe.

 

G-LSAI

Boeing 757-21B of Jet2.com having just landed. Previously with ‘China Southern Airlines’ as B 2803.

 

OK-TSA

Boeing 737-8S3 of ‘Jet2.com’ leased from ‘Travel Service’ (TS) in the Czech Republic for the summer of 2013. 

From new in 2001 it has been with ‘Pegasus Airlines’ in Turkey as TC-APH followed by a spell in storage before going to TS in April 2013.

 

EI-EFC

 

Boeing 737-8AS captured just after take off. ‘Ryanair’ has, at the last count over 300 of this type in service.

 

G-COBO

Aerospatiale 72-212A of ‘Aurigny.com’ on finals. It has been with Aurigny since its delivery in 2009.

 

G-ZBAF

Airbus A321-231 of ‘Monarch Airlines’ again on finals. Now 7 years old it had 6 years with ‘Royal Jordanian Airlines’ as JY-AYG before moving to ‘Cyprus Airway’ as 5B-DCO prior to joining Monarch in April this year.

G-TURF

Reims Cessna F406 Caravan 2 of ‘Atlantic Reconnaissance Ltd’. working for the ‘UK Coastguard’. Previously on the Dutch register as PH-FWF. 

 

 

G-BMPC

Piper PA-28-181 Cherokee Archer takes to the skies.

 

The registration on this Boeing 757 freighter parked outside the ‘DHL’ cargo facility is obscured by its tailplane. However most of these that I have seen before have been German registered.

 

G-GDFH

Boeing 737-3Y5 of ‘Jet2.com’ having just landed. Previously with ‘Air Malta’ as 9H-ABT and ‘Norwegian Air Shuttle’ as

LN-KKC.

 

G-FDZB

Boeing 737-8K5 (WL) of ‘Thomson Airways' carrying ‘Thomsonfly.com’ titles. Now 6 years old it was new to Thomson but has been sub leased to ‘Sunwing Airlines’ a number of times.

 

G-NIKO

Airbus 321-111 of’ Thomas Cook Airlines’ was previously with ‘Airtours International Airways’ and ‘My Travel’.