X46 and X46 Improved

On Monday 8th April, East Yorkshire Buses took over a number of North Yorkshire Council tendered services, which have been operated from Pocklington depot. In preparation for this, on Sunday 7th April, services X46 and X47 between Hull, Beverley, Market Weighton, Pocklington and York were revised, in part to transfer almost all Pocklington depot workings on the two routes to Hull depot, freeing up Pocklington drivers for the new tenders.

It is pleasing to report that the revision to the X46 and X47 was mostly positive. Combined, the two routes remain half hourly Monday to Saturday daytimes, hourly Sunday daytimes.

Monday to Friday the 0555 Pocklington to York X47 now starts in Beverley at 0517, providing an earlier first service from Beverley, Bishop Burton, Market Weighton, Shiptonthorpe and Hayton to York - previous first arrival 0701, now 0637. On Saturday mornings a new 0630 X46 from Pocklington to York is added, but the first service at 0615 from Hull now runs later at 0635.

There is a new Monday to Friday School Holiday only 0850 X46 from Beverley to Hull, however the 0902 X46 from Pocklington to Hull is truncated to start in Beverley Monday to Friday (still starts in Pocklington on Saturdays).

The Monday to Friday 1311 X47 from York to Market Weighton is extended to Hull, and the 1708 X47 from Pocklington to York now starts in Hull at 1545, filling an hour's gaps in the timetable.

In the evening, the Monday to Friday 1815/Saturday 1810 X47 from York to Pocklington is extended to Hull, keeping the twice hourly daytime departures from York to Hull going until 1944 (1947 Sat). There is then a new Monday to Saturday 2010 X46 from Pocklington to York, filling a gap between the 1944/1947 X46 and 2110 X47. That 2110 X47 from York is then extended beyond Pocklington to Hull Monday to Saturday, which Monday to Thursdays means an 86 minutes later last departure from York to Market Weighton, Beverley and Hull; a later 2210 operates Friday and Saturday.

Finally on Sundays there is a new 0705 X46 from Hull to York, an hour earlier than the previous first service. This returns as a 0905 X46 from York to Hull, 80 minutes earlier than the previous first 'full route' journey, but incorporating the 0914 Pocklington to Hull and resulting in a later first arrival from Pocklington into Hull off 1113 rather than 1036.

Evening and Sunday buses returned to Bilton, Hedon Inmans Estate, Paull, Preston, Sproatley and Victoria Dock

Sunday daytime and Friday and Saturday evening bus services returned to the villages of Paull, Preston, Sproatley and Bilton, plus the Victoria Dock estate in Hull and the Inmans Estate in Hedon, on Sunday 7th April. Tendered by East Riding of Yorkshire Council using Bus Service Improvement Plan Plus funding, the extended services are operated by East Yorkshire Buses.

On Friday and Saturday evenings there is a new 2315 service 79 from Hull to Hedon via Victoria Dock and Paull, last service previously 1815. On arrival in Hedon, the service continues back to Hull as a 277 via Preston, Sproatley and Bilton. Using either the 1805 service 79 from Hedon or the 1850 service 277 from Hedon, passengers can now have an evening out in Hull by bus twice a week. The 2315 from Hull is also a 15 minute later last service from Hull to Hedon than provided by service 75.

Sundays see the 79 and 277 each gain three journeys operating every three hours in the daytime, and interworked with each other in Hedon so that a 79 from Hull to Hedon returns to Hull as a 277, and vice versa. This arguably gives an effective every 90 minutes frequency from Hull.

Monday to Saturday evening and Sunday daytime services were provided on these routes (the Paull service numbered 78) until Saturday 1st April 2017, when East Riding of Yorkshire Council cuts to bus subsidies led to their withdrawal.

Welcome Back to the Brough Town Service

The Brough and Elloughton Town Service returned on Monday 8th April, operated by East Yorkshire Buses as service 558 under contract to East Riding of Yorkshire Council (ERYC) and funded with Bus Service Improvement Plan Plus funding.

The Brough Town Service had last operated just over six years previously as service 158, finishing on Saturday 31st March 2018. It was axed as part of ERYC's significant cuts to bus subsidies at the time. According to ERYC's 2016 'Review of Bus Services in the East Riding', the 158 carried an average 4 passengers per journey at a subsidy of £4.34 per passenger journey. Annual passengers were 19618.

When the 158 finished in March 2018, it was operating approximately every 40 minutes Monday to Saturday daytimes - I don't have the final timetable to hand, but in September 2014 the first journey was at 0810 Mon-Fri/0935 Sat, with the last journey at 1655. 

The final route of the 158 was from Elloughton Bus Depot via Beech Road and Hunter Road to Brough Crossroads then via Welton Road (serving Morrisons) to Myrtle Way in East Brough. From here the 158 retraced it's route to Brough Crossroads before operating a loop via Skillings Lane, Saltgrounds Road, Station Road and Welton Road back to Brough Crossroads. It was then back to Elloughton via Hunter Road and Beech Road before a final brief loop from Elloughton Bus Depot to Stockbridge Park just west of the depot. Three journeys Monday to Friday also included a trip from Elloughton to Welton and Melton, a legacy from when these villages only had a two hourly service between Hull and Brough.

The new 558 operates hourly Monday to Saturday, with a first departure at 0940 and a last at 1340. This service is much more focused on key shopping times - maybe for the best with the low average usage of the old 158. 

Once again, Elloughton Bus Depot is the starting point and once again the service operates via otherwise unserved Beech Road and Hunter Road to Brough Crossroads and then along Welton Road past Morrisons. Myrtle Way is once again served, now joined by nearby Loxley Way, and the new Aldi south of the railway line. Initially the 558 served these destinations in one order on every journey, but since 13th May, the 558 alternates between Loxley Way/Myrtle Way first and Aldi first, so as to permit two way journeys between Loxley Way/Myrtle Way and Aldi. The 558 then retraces it's way to Elloughton.

The 558 does a good job of linking the residential areas it serves with Aldi, Morrisons and what little town centre there is in Brough around the Crossroads. A shame though that the Skillings Lane area isn't served this time around - say a large Brough Crossroads-Loxley Way-Myrtle Way-Aldi-Skillings Lane-Crossroads loop, served in alternate directions every hour? 

Three journeys - the 0940, 1040 and 1140 also run from Elloughton to South Cave and back - I presume to provide a link from South Cave to Aldi, as the 55 provides an hourly service from South Cave to Elloughton, Brough Crossroads and Morrisons. 

Sunday Town Services for Bridlington

Bridlington regained Sunday town services on 7th April, operated by East Yorkshire Buses and funded by East Riding of Yorkshire Council's Bus Service Improvement Plan Plus funding allocation. These are the first dedicated Sunday town services (excluding Park and Ride) in Bridlington since the end of March 2017.

New route 512 operates every two hours daytimes in the north of the town on a large clockwise circular route from Bridlington Bus Station via Bempton Lane and The Crayke back to the Bus Station - covering areas served by what were, until the end of August, the 5 and 6 town services Monday to Saturday.

Service 513 to West Hill and New Pasture Lane - introduced on Friday and Saturday evenings back in February - also gained a two hourly Sunday daytime service on 7th April. The 513 covers areas which were, until the end of August, served by the 3, 4 and 4A town services Monday to Saturday daytimes.

Overall the majority of Bridlington gained a basic Sunday service with the 512 and 513 and most other areas of the town have a Sunday service via 'out of town' routes. Hopefully the 512 and 513 were well used over the Summer.

(The September recast of the Bridlington Town Monday to Saturday network will be covered at a later date).

Flamborough Evening Cutbacks

For the record, as I'm very late posting this, but this year the Summer evening service on East Yorkshire route 14 from Bridlington to Flamborough has operated Friday and Saturday only until last weekend (31st August), rather than daily until the end of October half term. 

The daytime service is hourly year round, with the various 65 minute gaps at certain times of the day removed on 7th April, in favour of a clockface hourly service.