Nightbuses return to Hull (for at least 3 months)

Hull City Council are focusing some of their Bus Service Improvement Plan funding on the pre-Christmas period. There are Thursday evening and Sunday daytime park and ride journeys being added to the Priory Park and Ride, along with a £1 fare offer. What is most interesting to me though is the return of Nightbuses to Hull, and not just for December.

From Saturday 2nd December - or technically the early hours of Sunday 3rd December - seven routes will gain a nightbus service until Saturday 24th February as per Hull City Council, or for an initial three months as per Stagecoach. The latter would seem to suggest there is a possibility of them continuing beyond February, but Hull City Council seemingly aren't making any commitments at this stage.

The lucky routes are:

• Stagecoach Service 5: Hull City Centre to Kingswood Retail Park via the Avenues and Orchard Park
• Stagecoach Service 6: Hull City Centre to North Bransholme via Beverley Road and Kingswood
• Stagecoach Service 8: Hull City Centre to Bransholme North Point via Holderness Road, Ings Estate and Spring Cottage
• Stagecoach Service 13: Hull City Centre to Bilton Grange via Greatfield
• East Yorkshire 57: Hull City Centre to Asda Bilton via Longhill
• East Yorkshire 66: Hull City Centre to Hessle via Anlaby Road, Boothferry Road and the Boothferry Estate
• East Yorkshire 104: Hull City Centre to Cottingham via the Avenues

All services will operate from Hull City Centre only, departing at 0010 and 0110. This standardisation does mean the 5 and 104 will be following each other along the Avenues, and so will the 8 and 57 along Holderness Road. Depending on the service, routes will either start at Hull Truck Theatre or at Alfred Gelder Street.

The return of nightbuses is very welcome, and pretty good coverage of Hull - and some adjoining areas of the East Riding of Yorkshire - has been achieved. There are certainly gaps, but it's an excellent start. Hopefully they are well used and can extend beyond February.

One oddity, service 8 doesn't have a full evening service in East Hull - service 11 operating instead - so will be in the unusual situation of having a gap in City Centre departures between 2020 and 0010.

Return of the C4

What I think is the first service enhancement from North Lincolnshire Council's Bus Service Improvement Plan Plus funding begins next Saturday - 2nd December. Hornsby Travel service C4 in the Brigg area recommences for the first time in just over three years.

First a brief history. The C4 was introduced on the 7th July 2018 as a Saturday only service in the Brigg area, linking Kirmington, Humberside Airport, Barnetby and Wrawby to Brigg with four services in each direction, and also Redbourne, Hibaldstow and Scawby to Brigg with two journeys in each direction. Some 'counter flow' services omitted certain intermediate villages. This continued until COVID-19 and after being suspended in March 2020. the route briefly returned in Summer 2020 but omitting Kirmington and Humberside Airport. The C4 was withdrawn at the end of August 2020 however, with no replacement.

The 'new' C4 is an improved version. It still operates between Kirmington, Brigg and Redbourne, but now with an additional extension to Kirton in Lindsey plus additional journeys. Between Kirmington and Brigg the 'new' C4 has five journeys in each direction, every two hours and matching the times of the weekday service 4 over this section of route. Between Brigg and Hibaldstow there are four journeys in each direction, with a 'perfect' two hourly service from Brigg; two in each direction extend to/from Kirton in Lindsey.

Overall this is an excellent reinstatement and enhancement. Kirmington, Humberside Airport, Barnetby, Wrawby, Scawby, Hibaldstow and Redbourne regain Saturday bus services, and Kirton in Lindsey gains a limited but usable Saturday service to Brigg. Brigg is a popular shopping destination for many surrounding villages and has a monthly Farmers Market on a Saturday.

Interestingly the C4 uses the exact same number of vehicles as the service 4 extension from Brigg to Kirmington and the 94 between Brigg and Kirton in Lindsey combined require Monday to Friday - one. It is a shame that the weekday pattern hasn't simply been extended to Saturdays, which would also allow through journeys to Scunthorpe to be made from all the villages served. I guess the reason why not maybe driver related? 

If the weekday pattern isn't to be operated on Saturdays, then personally I would have used the 94 service number rather than C4 - the C4 uses the same route as the 94 between Kirton in Lindsey and Brigg, just extended beyond Brigg to Kirmington. However this is a rather minor point - the good news is the C4's return.

Going by bustimes.org, the limited Monday to Friday Hornsby X4 at 0800 from Scunthorpe to Brigg via Lakeside and Scawby, and at 1745 from Brigg to Lakeside via Scawby, will also operate on Saturdays from 2nd December.

Where might North Lincolnshire's Bus Service Improvement Plan Plus funding be spent?

North Lincolnshire Council (NLC) is publishing Enhanced Bus Partnership (EP) meeting notes on it's website. The 14th September notes have caught my attention, with a long list of ideas for how to spend Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP) Plus funding.

Firstly the attendance list, to explain some of the abbreviations:

Cllr Tim Mitchell(TM) - North Lincolnshire Council (Chair) 

Cllr Carol Ross (CR) - North Lincolnshire Council (Deputy) 

Kate Robinson (KR) - North Lincolnshire Council 

Heather Barratt (HB) - North Lincolnshire Council 

Dave Skepper (DS) - Stagecoach 

Karl Robinson (KRob) - Hornsbys 

Abigail Burridge (AB) - North Lincolnshire Council

Below are the ideas, published in full. The Saturday services in the Brigg area are happening, more in a future blog post. Otherwise the status of the other proposals are unknown. Two things have struck me here. Firstly the operators are focused on their existing services and are concerned about what happens when Bus Service Improvement Plan Plus funding runs out. From their perspective that is understandable. Secondly there are no improvements to local services in Scunthorpe suggested. 

1. Bus Disruption Survey. The proposal is for funding for NLC to undertake an in house disruption survey to identify congestion issues. NLC Highways team would also design the work to be carried out. This would lead to junction improvements and would benefit NLC and Operators. DS asked that the proposal be amended to state that operators and drivers would contribute their time as part of the process. The officers and operators would work together to identify hotspots and then commission the work. 

Board Comments – Fully supported to be included in the Scheme. Upper limit £40,000. 

Action – NLC to amend proposal. 

2. New Saturday Service for South and East of Brigg. To implement a bus service to the villages South & East of Brigg on a Saturday. The service is an extension to the existing Monday to Friday route. 

Board Comments - Proposal could be paid by de minimis. Fully supported to be included in the Scheme. 

3. Devolution of Bus Infrastructure.  North Lincolnshire Council currently maintains 761 bus stops and 205 bus shelters across the authority. The purpose of this project is to support town and parish councils with the devolution/transfer of the following types of assets: bus shelters, poles, flags, timetable cases and timetables. 

Board Comments – Fully supported to be included in the Scheme. Upper limit £10,000. NLC inhouse staff to undertake a full survey of assets before transfer to Parish Councils. 

4. Additional Evening Journeys on Service 350. To extend service 350 by adding additional evening journeys. This could potentially see the current 30 minute headway maintained until 20:30 hours from Hull and around 20:00 hours from Scunthorpe. 

Board Comments - To ask operator to provide more information including timetables and costs. 

Action – NLC to ask operator for further information. Updated proposal to be discussed at EP Traffic Working Group. 

5. NLC - Ferry Ward – Additional Bus Services To extend Service 260 to Immingham incorporating South Killingholme, North Killingholme and East Halton and therefore provide residents in the villages with increased choice in Public Transport. DS expressed concerns that the route was unlikely to become a commercial route and would probably not continue without funding once BSIP+ money has ceased. DS and KRob agreed it was better not to promise passengers a service which could not be continued. DS believed that raising the frequency on existing routes would be better use of the funding. TM believed that the route was socially necessary but acknowledged operator’s comments. 

Board Comments - Happy to be included in Scheme with further discussions to take place. 

6. Section 22 Community Transport in North Lincolnshire – 96 and 97 services. The purpose of this project is to continue to provide Section 22 Community Transport on two registered bus routes in North Lincolnshire which operate Monday-Friday. This will require the continued hire of two 16-seater minibuses to provide the current bus services and the maintenance of two ticket machines in order to take payments. The routes are registered with the Traffic Commissioner and are an open service so any member of public can use the services. Board agreed that the modal for rural transport is never going to be commercially viable. More marketing needed around route 97 running to isolated villages whilst not having impact on commercial services. TM confirmed that North and East of Isle need to connect to 399 to Doncaster and more work around the timetable is needed. KRob worried about what would happen when the services are taken off but happy to progress. 

Board Comments - Happy to be included in Scheme. 

7. Procurement of New Back Office System for DRT. The aim of the project is to apply for a funding for the feasibility study and procurement of a back office system to manage the DRT service in North Lincolnshire. The current software isn’t offering alternative journeys, availability and advance booking and is in need of new software. DS told the Board that other authorities usually tender for the whole service and not a separate service for back office systems with a number of different suppliers available. Some bus operators have commercial agreements with app providers, which can offer a better overall price for DRT tender submissions to local authorities. 

Board Comments – Agreed not to implement the proposal into the Scheme 

Action - Consider further at EP Traffic Working Group. 

8. Extension of 350 service to Hull. 3 x bus services an hour run in and out of Barton Monday to Saturdays, 2 x 350 and 1 x 250 with extra 255 services at Wren Kitchens shift changes running Monday to Friday. The issue is on a Sunday. With the first bus to Hull at 10am this service can be full of passengers having to wait an hour for the 11am service. The next one after that is 2pm. The proposal is to provide an extension to the timetable on a Sunday with an 8:10am Scunthorpe to Hull service to alleviate the pressure of the 10am service. CR showed concerns over why a service would be needed so early. DS told the Board that practical issues are contributing to the oversubscribed routes i.e. £2 fare, busy bank holidays. Colder weather may see a decline in passengers but overall the journeys should bring good value for money. 

Board Comments – Happy to be added to the Scheme with further discussions to take place. 

9. Reduced Fares for Young People. The proposal is to enhance the provision of reduced fares for the youth market (aged 16 - 24) by introducing a “Scunthorpe Card” – Weekly and day travel within the Scunthorpe Town Area and a “NLC plus Card” – Weekly and day travel around the wider area of North Lincolnshire. Operators gave an overview of the current concessions available to Young people in North Lincolnshire. They agreed a Scunthorpe Card would be preferred to the NLC Plus Card. Actual concept was considered a good idea, flip side is it will use up quite a lot of funding. More work was needed on the level of discount or price of ticket and how the operator would claim the difference. Concerns were raised around when funding started to run out. DS spoke about the scheme currently running in Hull. 

Board Comments – Agreed to include in the Scheme but required further discussions. 

The 350 changes suggested would potentially lead to wider changes. A round trip takes approximately three hours, so an extension of the half hourly frequency for approximately two hours extra in the evening will probably require additions or reductions in the morning, and/or some later evening services. Likewise on Sundays an 0810 from Scunthorpe to Hull would probably lead to an additional Hull to Scunthorpe service, and if an extra vehicle is used for that, maybe it would do more than one extra round trip?

243 goes twice a week

Concluding my look at the first batch of Bus Service Improvement Plan Plus funded service enhancements in the East Riding of Yorkshire - there are more due starting in January, including in Beverley and Bridlington - and reference was made in the associated press release to "an additional weekday service 143 between Withernsea and Beverley". Those familiar with the local bus network will know that the 143 operates between North Ferriby and Beverley, and there has been no change to that service. 

However the 243 between Withernsea and Beverley does seem to have gained a Thursday service is addition to it's existing Tuesday service, as per bustimes.org. There was a change to the 243 registered in September, for which I couldn't find details off at the time, so I presume that is when the Thursday service started. The 243 is operated by Holderness Area Rural Transport (HART) and provides passengers from Withernsea, Roos, Burton Pidsea, Sproatley, New Ellerby and Skirlaugh with three hours in Beverley. Sproatley and Skiralugh are also served by the 242 Beverley 'shoppers service' Monday to Saturday.

Old Goole Service 1 gains Evening and Sunday Journeys

One of the Goole Town Services - the 1 to Old Goole - gained a limited Friday and Saturday evening and Sunday daytime service from 5th November, as part of East Riding of Yorkshire Council's Bus Service Improvement Plan Plus funding enhancements. The new journeys appear to be interworked with service 55. The 1 is operated by East Yorkshire Buses.

On Friday and Saturday evenings the 1 has two circular trips from Goole North Street at 1925 and 2130. On Saturdays due to no evening peak Goole Town Service being provided, there is a gap in departures from Goole North Street to Old Goole Cottingham Street between 1600 and 1925, and from Old Goole Cottingham Street between 1525 and 1940. 

On Sundays three circular roundtrips are provided from Goole North Street at 1115, 1315 and 1515.

Service 55 Improved

It's fair to say that bus services from Hull to Brough and destinations east have taken a bit of a battering in the past couple of years. Various attempts at a second hourly service between Hull and Brough have been abandoned, while late evening and Sunday services were withdrawn. All journeys between Elloughton and Goole are now subsidised I believe. 

There was some good news though last week, when on Sunday 5th November a revised timetable was introduced on East Yorkshire service 55 between Hull, Brough, Elloughton, South Cave, Gilberdyke, Howden and Goole. The service operates approximately hourly Monday to Saturday daytimes and early evenings between Hull and Elloughton, with hourly extensions to Gilberdyke off peak, and further extensions to Goole four times a day.

Focusing first on the 'core' Monday to Saturday service and the 1720 from Hull to Elloughton now extends to South Cave. This is a small but notable enhancement, as the last service from Hull to South Cave was previously at 1410. There is no morning peak journey into Hull, but the 1720 provides more options for shopping and/or other leisure related trips.

Now to the headline enhancements, as part of the East Riding of Yorkshire Council's Bus Service Improvement Plan Plus funded improvements - new Friday and Saturday evening and Sunday daytime journeys. For both the evening and Sunday enhancements they operate as two separate services, one at the Hull end of the route and one at the Goole end.

Starting with Friday and Saturday evenings; at the Hull end of the route a 2145 Elloughton to Hull and 2300 Hull to South Cave have been added; last journeys previously 1930 Elloughton to Hull and 2025 Hull to Elloughton. Not a huge volume of extra journeys, but enough to facilitate an evening out. A very welcome improvement. South Cave is in the unusual situation of going from a last bus from Hull at 1410 to a last bus at 2300.

Meanwhile at the other end of the route, there are now Friday and Saturday journeys at 1845 from Gilberdyke to Goole, 2025 and 2225 from Howden to Goole, 2000 and 2200 from Goole to Howden and 2300 from Goole to Gilberdyke. Again here very much facilitating evenings out, and a welcome addition to the network. It is interesting to note that there is no evening peak service between Gilberdyke, Howden and Goole, so there are approximately four hour gaps between the end of the off peak service and the start of the evening service.

Looking at the timetables and it is a shame that the 1720 from Hull to South Cave does not run through to Goole on Fridays and Saturdays - incorporating the 1845 from Gilberdyke to Goole. This would provide a later last bus service from Hull to North Cave, Newport, Gilberdyke, Eastrington and Howden for marginal extra mileage. Alternatively the 1840 Elloughton to Hull could start back at South Cave. Also could the 2300 from Goole extend beyond Gilberdyke, even if just to Newport? It presumably is heading 'dead' back to Elloughton depot.

Moving onto Sundays, there are new journeys at 0930, 1230 and 1530 from Gilberdyke to Hull, returning at 1100, 1400 and 1700. From Gilberdyke to Goole there are departures at 1030, 1230 and 1430, returning at 1145, 1345 and 1545. Overall these journeys provide basic Sunday shopping and leisure links and again are very welcome. Plus once again, it's a shame the first service into Goole and the last return don't serve Newport at least en-route from/to Elloughton depot.

Sunday Services Return between Goole and Selby

Arriva service 401 between Goole and Selby is revised from today - Monday 30th October. The Monday to Friday changes relate to extra school and college journeys, otherwise the Monday to Saturday service remains hourly daytimes.

The big development is a new two hourly Sunday service being introduced, leaving Goole at 0900, 1100, 1300 and 1500, returning from Selby at 0955, 1155, 1355 and 1555. This will be the first Sunday service between Goole and Selby - and the first Sunday bus service for Rawcliffe, East Cowick, West Cowick, Snaith, Carlton and Camblesforth - since the 400/401 tendered service was cut during East Riding of Yorkshire Council budget reductions in Spring 2017. It's good to see it return.

The new Sunday service has 21 minute layover at Goole, so it's a shame that Airmyn village and Goole Hospital haven't been included on the new route, unlike the old Sunday 400 - or maybe an extension to the Fairfield Estate in Goole. Possibly something for the future?

I can't find any mention of this to confirm in either the Arriva announcement or East Riding of Yorkshire Council Press Release, but presumably the new Sunday 401 is being funded by the Council's Bus Service Improvement Plan Plus funding as the date coincides with other new Sunday services.

Goole to Scunthorpe gains a Sunday Service

Goole is not currently served by any local bus services on a Sunday, but from next week - 5th November - it will have four Sunday bus routes, thanks to East Riding of Yorkshire Council's Bus Service Improvement Plan Plus funding. In this post I take a look at one of those routes, the 361 to Scunthorpe.

The 361, a tendered service operated by East Yorkshire, links Goole and various East Riding villages on the south side of the River Ouse and west side of the River Trent with North Lincolnshire, where it diverts inland to operate via the small town of Crowle en-route to Scunthorpe. Associated service 360 operates a shorter route in North Lincolnshire by the banks of the River Trent serving Amcotts instead off Crowle. Monday to Friday there is an approximately two hourly service between the 360 and 361, with the 360 operating most peak journeys and the 361 mostly off-peak. On Saturdays the 361 operates approximately every three hours.

As off the 5th November, Sundays also gain a three hourly daytime service 361, with three departures from Goole at 0935, 1235 and 1535, returning from Scunthorpe at 1100, 1400 and 1700. For various villages - plus Crowle - this opens up the opportunity to visit Scunthorpe or Goole on a Sunday by bus for the first time in years. Passengers can spend either 6 hours 10 minutes or 3 hours 10 minutes in Scunthorpe, or 3 hours 21 minutes in Goole.

By way of historical context, my July 1980 'Lincolnshire' bus company South Humberside timetable book showed two Sunday Scunthorpe to Goole journeys plus various 'shorts' between Scunthorpe and Crowle that appeared linked to steelworks shift times. By 1982 this was three Goole journeys plus Crowle shorts. All these had gone though by the time my 1989 Humberside County Council Scunthorpe to Goole pamphlet was published. The Goole to Swinefleet section did regain a Sunday daytime service for many years in the 2000's and 2010's, interworked with other routes, latterly the Goole to Selby service, but not the bulk of the route between Swinefleet and Scunthorpe.

What is also notable here is that there is a significant benefit to North Lincolnshire. The villages of Gunness, Althorpe, Ealand, Eastoft, Luddington and Garthorpe all gain a Sunday service along with Crowle; some Keadby residents are also within walking distance of the Althorpe Station stops. There is no acknowledgement of funding from North Lincolnshire Council that I can find, so it seems the East Riding maybe paying the full cost. Scunthorpe is an important regional centre for Goole and the Ouse & Trent villages and operating the longer 361 route via Crowle - instead of the quicker 360 via Amcotts - will likely provide more passengers. As such East Riding of Yorkshire Council's decisions can be understood, although somewhat contrasting to the Monday to Saturday 88 from Goole terminating at the county boundary at Rawcliffe Bridge, as opposed to extending to Thorne or Doncaster in South Yorkshire.

The Sunday 361 means a 33% increase in the number of Sunday North Lincolnshire bus routes (the others being the 1A, 4 and 350) and will be the only Sunday bus service in North Lincolnshire to operate west of Scunthorpe.

At the same time there are minor timing changes to the Saturday 361 timetable. Whilst the Sunday service can keep perfect three hour intervals between journeys, Saturdays cannot. What was 0820. 1120, 1430 and 1735 from Goole becomes 0820, 1110, 1430 and 1745, whilst from Scunthorpe the 1015, 1315 and 1620 become 1025, 1310 and 1630 departures. Not perfect before, even less perfect from next month.

747 goes 7 days a week

Starting on Sunday 5th November, the East Yorkshire operated tendered service 747 between Pocklington, Stamford Bridge and York gains services on Sunday daytimes plus Friday and Saturday evenings, thanks to East Riding of Yorkshire Council's Bus Service Improvement Plan Plus funding. 

The 747 currently provides three services into York Monday to Saturday daytimes and four from York, providing commuting links into York, shopping links into Pocklington and York as well as access to Full Sutton Prison during early afternoons, presumably for visitors. The 747's route includes the villages of Bolton, Fangfoss, Full Sutton and Murton on all current journeys, plus Meltonby, Bishop Wilton and Yapham on off peak journeys. 

The new Friday and Saturday evening journeys comprise an 1830 from Pocklington to York, serving all the villages on the off peak route except for Murton. There is then a 2000 from York to Pocklington via the peak time route and also excluding Murton. Finally there is an 'unbalanced' 2245 from York to Pocklington via the off peak route but again excluding Murton. Overall this provides a basic 'evening out in York' service and the 2000 from York may attract those wanting to visit York for the day/afternoon then have a meal or drink before returning home. 

On Sunday daytimes there is a more straight forward timetable of three services in each direction - operating every three hours - all via the Monday to Saturday offpeak route, but excluding Murton. 

This is a fantastic development for the villages served only by the 747, and hopefully their residents take advantage. It's a shame the Monday to Saturday timetable is so messy though. Ignoring the Prison diversion, and the morning peak variation within York City Centre, there are four different variations:

• Via all villages (Monday to Saturday off peak)
• Via all villages except Murton (Friday and Saturday 1830 from Pocklington and 2245 from York, plus Sundays)
• Via all villages except Meltonby, Bishop Wilton and Yapham (Monday to Saturday peak)
• Via all villages except Meltonby, Bishop Wilton, Yapham and Murton (Friday and Saturday 2000 from York)

The omission of Murton on the new journeys is odd. Yes the village comes under the City of York, not the East Riding of Yorkshire, but as I will cover soon, another East Riding enhancement will not be taking the direct route within another authority (the new Sunday Goole to Scunthorpe service operating as a 361 via Crowle in North Lincolnshire rather than a shorter 360 via Amcotts), so omitting a minor diversion via Murton on the 747, which has plenty of layover, seems odd.

To end, some trivia. Meltonby, Bishop Wilton and Yapham will have a better Sunday service than Monday to Thursday. Monday to Thursday the villages have three services to Pocklington and two from York, whereas Sundays will be three in each direction.

New Saturday Service on the 196

From Saturday 11th November, the previously Thursday only service 196 'shopper' bus from Allerthorpe to York will also gain a Saturday service. Saturday journeys will operate at the same time as Thursday services, departing Allerthorpe at 0910, returning from York at 1337. This provides a new Saturday bus for the villages of Allerthorpe, Melbourne, Aughton, Ellerton, East Cottingwith, Storwood and Newton upon Derwent. The 196 also serves Sutton upon Derwent and Elvington, which also enjoy a Saturday service into York every two hours on York Pullman route 36.

Service 196 is operated by East Yorkshire under contract to East Riding of Yorkshire Council. The new Saturday service is linked to the council's Bus Service Improvement Plan Plus funding.

124 and 135 to East Hull Community Transport

To update this post, an anonymous commentor has posted that the tendered 124 and 135 in the East Riding of Yorkshire haven't been cancelled, but have instead passed from East Yorkshire Buses to East Hull Community Transport. The 124 runs from Ruston Parva to Bridlington on Wednesdays and from Boynton to Driffield on Fridays, with one journey in each direction. The 135 operates two circular round trips from Driffield to Sledmere and back every Tuesday and Thursday.

Changed and Cancelled on the Quiet?

As far as I can tell, three tendered bus services in the East Riding of Yorkshire - all operated by East Yorkshire Buses since last year - ceased in early September:

• 5: Beverley Town Service - 3 circular round trips Monday to Saturday, interworked with unaffected service 142
• 124: Driffield to Bridlington - 1 return service from Ruston Parva to Bridlington on Wednesdays, 1 return service from Boynton to Driffield on Fridays
• 135: Driffield to Sledmere - 2 circular round trips Tuesday and Thursday

All three were cancelled by East Yorkshire, see here, here and here although never publically announced by the operator; they just 'disappeared' from it's website. Subsequent internet searches have failed to find mention of any replacement services for the 124 and 135, so I can only assume there was no replacement. Anyone able to definitely confirm please? Assuming these services were cancelled without replacement, various villages north of Driffield are now without a timetabled bus service.

In the case of service 5, it seems that existing town service 526 from Beverley Bus Station to Copandale Road has been extended to cover the service 5 route, still with three circular round trips Monday to Saturday. Again though this was done without any announcement. Likewise the 527 town service from Beverley Bus Station to Morrisons also seems to have been diverted via Armstrong Way (for Flemingate) at the same time without any publicity. This lack of announcement in particular seems very odd as it's actually a useful enhancement.

North Lincolnshire Services 96 and 97 Update

Earlier this year I covered the launch of two new bus services in North Lincolnshire; the 96 from Barton to Brigg and the 97 from Garthorpe to Wroot via Crowle and Epworth. In both cases I suspected the provision could be over ambitious. The Local Democracy Reporting Service recently reported the following after speaking to the North Lincolnshire Council Cabinet Member for Connectivity:

Cllr Mitchell indicated the Brigg to Barton bus route through the low villages had been successful with passenger numbers. However, the piloted Isle of Axholme service, that ran east to west across the Isle, had not had as many passengers yet, 

"We just need to do a bit of tweaking to the route and timetable," he said. But he urged people to use the route to ensure it continued."We have just got to think very carefully how we spend taxpayers' money on this. But also in recognition that some of these routes have huge social and economic value. We can't really put a price on tackling social exclusion."

Saturday Improvements in the Isle of Axholme

The Stagecoach operated Saturday tendered services in the Southern Isle of Axholme are revised from Saturday 7th October.

Presently there is the 291 from Owston Ferry to Doncaster via Epworth and Westwoodside with two daytime journeys each way, and the 399 from Scunthorpe to Westwoodside via Epworth and Owston Ferry with four journeys each way. From next month the 399 will have six journeys each way between Scunthorpe and Westwoodside, with two extended to Doncaster, presumably replacing the 291. Two morning journeys from Scunthorpe to Westwoodside will run 'fast' omitting West Butterwick and Owston Ferry, which is reasonable enough at 0645, and at 0915 when there is a 0900 service as well (the 0900 goes to Doncaster, whereas the 0915 is a 'positioning' service for the 1000 Westwoodside to Scunthorpe).

With the exception of the small village of Low Burnham served by the 291, this is excellent news. There are two more journeys overall between Scunthorpe and Westwoodside, and in terms of 'useful' journeys - as opposed to 'in service positioning journeys' - there will be three useful departures from Scunthorpe back to the Isle of Axholme at 1300, 1620 and 1735, as opposed to two at 1320 and 1735 presently.

In addition there will be greater consistency between the Monday to Friday and Saturday services. Most Monday to Friday services are run by Hornsby on what I think is a part commercial/part council funded basis. Currently the only consistency is the final 399 round trip from Scunthorpe to Westwoodside (run by Stagecoach 6 days a week). From next month the 0645, 0900, 1300, 1620 and 1735 from Scunthorpe will be consistent Monday to Saturday (during college holidays at least), as will the 0728, 1725 and 1845 from Westwoodside and 1245 and 1545 from Doncaster. 

East Yorkshire Bridlington Changes

East Yorkshire are amending their local services in Bridlington from tomorrow - Sunday 3rd September. The changes are to make services "more reliable", which should happen as running times are slightly increased. However it seems little or no extra resource is being added to the network, so out goes clockface timetables largely consistent between weekdays and Saturdays, and in comes harder to remember times and notable differences on a Saturday. I understand that extra resource for clockface timetables and consistency probably can't be justified, but the new timetables aren't very user friendly. 

On service 2 to the south of Bridlington, the 1420 and 1530 circulars from Bridlington Bus Station no longer operate Monday to Friday during school holidays. Most Saturday journeys operate 5 minutes later than Monday to Friday.

For service 3 to the West Hill Estate, the 1515 from Bridlington Bus Station no longer operates Monday to Friday during school holidays. The service remains mostly hourly, but journey times are slightly extended, and vary from journey to journey, and between weekdays and Saturdays.

The 4 and 4A to New Pasture Lane Estate are amended from operating hourly each for a combined half hourly frequency to a combined frequency of between every 20 and 45 minutes Monday to Saturday mornings and early afternoons. School Holiday weekdays are reduced to hourly, as already occurs on schooldays, though clockface half hourly departures return from Bridlington Bus Station on Saturday afternoons.

The 5 and 5A to the north of Bridlington retain some semblance of a clockface timetable from Bridlington Bus Station in the morning and early afternoon at least, running hourly each for a combined half hourly frequency. However the first service of the day at 0800 from Bridlington Bus Station is cancelled, as is the 1200 leaving an hours gap. Following that the 1230 is a 5A Monday to Friday but a 5 on Saturdays, the 1300 a 5 Monday to Friday but a 5A on Saturdays and there is then a 1325 5A Monday to Friday and a 1330 5 on Saturdays. The late afternoon service gains a 100 minute gap Monday to Friday from Bridlington Bus Station, previously just a 60 minute gap schooldays only.

On Service 6 to the North of Bridlington, the 1445 circular from Bridlington Bus Station is withdrawn Monday to Friday, leaving a 130 minute gap. Otherwise an hourly service remains (with two 65 minute gaps on Saturdays), but again with slightly extended journey times, times varying slightly from journey to journey, and between weekdays and Saturdays.

Finally service 14 from Bridlington to Flamborough is also slightly revised with extended running times and slight variations at timing points depending on the day of the week - for example 1430 from Flamborough to Bridlington Monday to Friday, 1433 Saturday and 1431 Sunday.

Improved Weekday Service for the Isle of Axholme

The Hornsby Travel part-subsidised service 399 between Scunthorpe, the Isle of Axholme and Doncaster, operating Monday to Friday, will be revised and improved from next Monday, 4th September.

From Scunthorpe:

• The 0645 'fast' from Scunthorpe to Graizelound is diverted to Westwoodside.
• The 0830 from Scunthorpe to Doncaster will operate at 0900.
• The 0910 from Belton to Westwoodside will operate at 0920.
• A new 1100 'short' from Scunthorpe to Epworth is added.
• The 1230 from Scunthorpe to Westwoodside is amended to become a 1300 from Scunthorpe to Doncaster.
• The 1605 (College Days)/1620 (College Holidays) from Scunthorpe to Graizelound is terminated at Westwoodside.

To Scunthorpe:

• The 0725 from Graizelound to Scunthorpe becomes a 0728 from Westwoodside to Scunthorpe.
• The 0930 from Westwoodside to Scunthorpe will operate at 0938.
• A new 1136 from Epworth to Scunthorpe is added.
• The 1215 from Doncaster to Scunthorpe will operate at 1245, and also incorporates the withdrawn 1335 Westwoodside to Scunthorpe.
• A new 1545 Doncaster to Scunthorpe is added.
• The 1730 Graizelound to Scunthorpe becomes a 1725 Westwoodside to Scunthorpe.

Overall there is an extra journey to/from Doncaster, an extra journey between Scunthorpe and Epworth each way, simplification from removing the Graizelound extension and at certain times, a move towards an even interval frequency.

To cover Graizelound, a new 499 from Misterton to Scunthorpe is added on college days, operating from Misterton via Graizelound and Low Burnham to Epworth and then acting as a duplicate on the 399 to/from Scunthorpe. There is no replacement to Graizelound during college holidays, and I suspect Graizelound may have only been served by the 399 during college holidays to avoid too much variation to the timetable.

There are no changes to Stagecoach journeys for now, but redacted decision records on North Lincolnshire Council's website indicate that amendments maybe coming, and also to service 291.

Stagecoach September Changes in Hull

Stagecoach are amending most, but not all, of their Hull services from next Sunday - 3rd September. Not for the first time, no commentary or explanation has been provided, not even for the enhancements. So apologies if I miss anything, it's a case of doing lots of timetable comparisons to work out what has changed. Overall there appears to be more good than bad.

Services 1 and 2 from Paragon Interchange to the Boothferry Estate appear largely unchanged, except for some additional early morning journeys from the City Centre; on service 1 at 0656 Monday to Friday and at 0541, 0611 and 0641 Saturday (first service currently 0711) and on service 2 at 0715, 0745 and 0815 on Sundays (first service currently 0845). All these journeys seem to be 'positioning moves' for current early morning services back into Hull City Centre. 

Service 3 from Paragon Interchange to Orchard Park is one of the big winners, doubling from every 20 minutes Monday to Friday daytimes to every 10 minutes, and also increasing on Saturdays from every 20 to every 15 minutes. A very welcome enhancement from the current provision. 

On the other hand service 4 from Paragon Interchange to Orchard Park doesn't come out of these changes well. The new Stagecoach Hull map shows it is re-routed away from Cranbrook Avenue to it's more traditional route, using Beverley Road as far north as Greenwood Avenue - so one positive is an increased service for the section of Beverley Road between Cottingham Road and Greenwood Avenue. Otherwise the every 20 minute frequency Monday to Saturday daytime is reduced to half hourly, putting the route in the unusual situation (away from tourist areas) of having the same frequency 7 days a week. 

Monday to Friday the first service from Orchard Park moves from 0545 to 0610, but on Saturdays moves from 0700 to 0610. The final 2330 departure from Paragon Interchange is moved earlier to 2255, but with 2330 departures on services 5, 6 and 8 - which between them cover about 99% of the service 4 route - this is perhaps a good move rather than the negative it appears to be at first sight.

Also of note is that the Monday to Saturday peaktime hourly Mizzen Road extensions move from service 5 to service 4, retaining an 'A' suffix. Unlike the 5A, were the route operates 'over and above' the standard frequency, the 4A is a simple extension from Orchard Park of the main service. In the evening peak Mizzen Road gains 'counterflow' services back into Hull City Centre. I know the Hull Royal Infirmary link would be lost, but could the 4A operate all day, replacing the 1C at an improved hourly or half hourly frequency? It might give the 4 a bit more purpose.

The change of the 4 away from Cranbrook Avenue might sound negative, but it's not as service 5 from Paragon Interchange to Orchard Park and Kingswood via Cranbrook Avenue gains a major frequency uplift from the current service. Monday to Friday daytimes see the current every 20 minute service from Paragon Interchange to Kingswood supplemented by Interchange to Orchard Park shorts every 20 minutes, for a combined 10 minute frequency on this section, and doubling the Stagecoach service along Princes and Newland Avenue. On Saturday daytimes a different approach is taken, with the every 20 minute frequency from Paragon Interchange to Kingswood increased to every 15 minutes across the whole route - it makes sense that Kingswood with it's Retail and Leisure Parks can justify a slightly higher Saturday frequency, although it does mean 2 buses an hour less for Cranbrook Avenue when taking the 4's re-route into account. Monday to Saturday evenings increase from hourly to half hourly, and the last bus from Kingswood will be at 2332 rather than 2247 currently.

Service 7 from Paragon Interchange to North Point sees the Monday to Friday 1400 and 1430 from North Point withdrawn, leaving a 90 minute gap, but gains a Monday to Friday 1520 from the Interchange, partly filling a 90 minute gap. It is worth remembering the 7 is essentially a 'part-route' service 8, so there are no 90 minute gaps when allowing for both routes. On Saturday mornings departures from North Point will start at 0600 rather than 0900 - first journey opportunity currently the 0745 service 8.

Turning to circular service 8, and firstly the clockwise timetable. Monday to Friday the 1400 and 1530 from Paragon Interchange to Wilberforce College become full circulars and now depart at 1405 and 1535, in line with the standard pattern. Anti-clockwise the Monday to Friday 0852 from Wilberforce College to Paragon Interchange is now a 0835 circular from Paragon Interchange, whilst the Monday to Friday 1430 and 1600 Paragon Interchange to Wilberforce College 'shorts' are withdrawn, with the 1405 circular from Paragon Interchange moved to 1435. The gaps at 1405 and 1605 are somewhat covered by service 83, now operating year round rather than just college days; the 83 has 1400 and 1600 departures from Paragon Interchange which follow a similar route to Sutton Park. In addition new service 111 (more below) has a 1400 departure college days and a 1555 departure Monday to Friday from the Interchange.

On service 10 from Paragon Interchange to North Bransholme, and on some journeys Wawne, the Monday to Friday evening peak frequency from North Bransholme into Hull City Centre is reduced from every 20 minutes to half hourly, but three extra 'shorts' from North Point are added to give a 15 minute frequency from 1640 to 1810. In the opposite direction early evening services are better spread out from the Interchange; the present 1737, 1757. 1817, 1842 and 1942 Monday to Friday become 1737, 1807, 1837, 1912 and 1942. On Saturdays there are new journeys from North Bransholme at 0505 and 0535, current first service 0605, but the 0732 from Wawne will start at North Bransholme (0702 and 0802 from Wawne remain). A 1912 from Paragon Interchange is also added on Saturdays, keeping the half hourly frequency going an hour longer.

For service 14 to Greatfield, the 2330 final departure from Paragon Interchange moves to 2251 Monday to Friday but not Saturday.

I don't normally cover college routes, but here is an exception as it is linked with service 11 and seems to have one journey which runs year round. New service 111 is to commence from Beverley to Paragon Interchange via Wilberforce College. From Beverley it operates via Woodmansey and Dunswell to Kingswood Retail Park, then as per service 11 to Paragon Interchange except for taking the service 8 diversion via Wilberforce College in East Hull. There are two morning departures from Beverley at 0740 and 0900 college days only, which operate 'over and above the half hourly service 11, likewise with the 1400 from Paragon Interchange. The oddball journey is the 1555 from Paragon Interchange which operates Monday to Friday and replaces the 1550 service 11 - is there really going to be demand for a one-way service 111 during college holidays between Kingswood and Beverley? Anyway, it's good to see the 111 as it does provide some extra journey opportunities for the general public. For the record, previous Beverley to Wilberforce College service 81 will serve Wawne instead.

There are also minor changes to routes 12, 16 and 33. The 3B and 15 also have new timetables, but I can't see any change at all.

Swapping Danby for Helmsley

I'm almost too late with this, since the service finishes for the year on Monday, but East Yorkshire's peak Summer Sunday and Bank Holiday ME1 'Moors Explorer' service from Hessle, Anlaby, Willerby, Hull, Cottingham and Beverley to Malton, Pickering and the North Yorkshire Moors has been revised for 2023. Firstly it now serves Flamingo Land theme park between Malton and Pickering, whilst secondly the service now terminates in Helmsley rather than Danby.

Acklams Coaches end final bus services

As expected, Acklams Coaches have exited the local bus service market. They gave up their Beverley and Driffield area work last October, and ceased operating their final services on Friday 14th July - the tendered 131 and 504 in Bridlington. The 131 is a workers service from Bridlington to the Carnaby Industrial Estate, whilst the 504 is an off peak service from Bempton, Buckton and North Bridlington into Bridlington Town Centre; both services operate Monday to Friday only.

From Monday 17th July, East Yorkshire took over both services, with the timetable looking to be unchanged on each route. 

Acklams Coaches continue with their extensive coaching operation, as well as school and college contracts and a Hull City football service. 

Summer Saturday X90

From Saturday 24th June to 2nd September inclusive, Stagecoach are operating a new X90 Saturday Only service from Lea (just south of Gainsborough) to Cleethorpes, via Gainsborough, Hemswell Cliff, Glentham, Middle Rasen, Market Rasen, Nettleton and Cabourne. The service leaves Lea at 0840, arriving in Cleethorpes at 1005, before departing from Cleethorpes at 1445 and getting back to Lea for 1615.

The X90 is funded by the North Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire Community Rail Partnership (NNLCRP) and is intended to act as a partial replacement for the withdrawal of the Saturday Cleethorpes to Sheffield Northern Rail service via Brigg, Kirton Lindsey and Gainsborough back in May. This service had three journeys in each direction, so was relatively useful for Saturday leisure travel, but was replaced by a much less useful single daily Monday to Friday service. The X90 is therefore a welcome mitigation, albeit the restoration of the Saturday train service would be much better! It should be noted the X90 is timed to connect from/to Sheffield to Lincoln rail services at Gainsborough Lea Road Station.

I'm sure I've read that NNLCRP can't fund a service which overlaps entirely with a rail service, hence why it can't serve Brigg. That's a big shame because Brigg would benefit far more than Market Rasen from the X90. Market Rasen already has public transport access to Cleethorpes on a Saturday via a limited through rail service, including a 0857 departure, supplemented by the ability to connect via bus or train at Grimsby. Brigg on the other hand has no eastbound timetabled public transport on a Saturday, so trips to Cleethorpes either require the use of a demand responsive bus service to Barnetby Station, or catching a bus in the wrong direction to Scunthorpe for a connection there.

Additionally, I'm also surprised the service doesn't operate an hour or two later in each direction - it's an early arrival and departure in and out of Cleethorpes for a Saturday daytrip.

Brigg Town Service May 2023 Revision

The Hornsby operated Brigg Town Services, provided under contract to North Lincolnshire Council, were amended from 15th May. The routes operate on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.

Service 91 to the Springbank and Churchill Avenue areas of the town was split out into service 91 for Springbank and service 92 for Churchill Avenue, the opposite way round to the pre-July 2018 timetable. The Aldi and Lidl extensions were withdrawn at the same time. Timetable wise there is now a two hour gap late morning, but there are afternoon improvements; the last service to Springbank is now at 1430 rather than 1330 Sat/1410 Tue+Thu, whilst the last Churchill Avenue service is at 1445 rather than 1330.

Elsewhere what was the 92 to Howsham and Cadney was renumbered back to the 93 as it was until July 2018. The 1345 'short' to Brigg Garden Centre was retimed to 1400.

Bus Service Improvement Plan in North East Lincolnshire

A bit late with this, but back on Sunday 7th May, Stagecoach introduced changes to most services in North East Lincolnshire, linked to the area's successful Bus Service Improvement Plan bid. As I've already posted the 250 lost out, but local services had more mixed fortunes. There are some further changes from Sunday 3rd September, which I also cover below.

Service 3 between Laceby Road Morrisons, Nunsthorpe, Grimsby and Cleethorpes saw some minor Sunday evening improvements in May, and from September gains a new 0500 from Morrisons Monday to Friday (first bus currently 0530) whilst the last service from Morrisons daily will be at 2315 rather than 2245. Service 4 from Laceby Road Morrisons to Laceby Acres, Grimsby and Cleethorpes saw some minor evening improvements in May, whilst September sees some further changes; most last evening buses will be half an hour earlier, except for Grimsby to Morrisons which will be half an hour later.

The 'core' of service 5 between Grimsby and Immingham has remained but with changes 'around the edges'. In May the first 3 services to Immingham Monday to Saturday mornings were cut back to start from Grimsby rather than Cleethorpes. On Sundays the extensions to/from Cleethorpes Pier were withdrawn in favour of a daytime extension to Tesco Extra at Hewitt's Circus, operating via the service 50 route along Ladysmith Road; a somewhat oddball extension but I presume driven by operational reasons to allow interworking with service 10, which in turn maintains an indirect through service to Cleethorpes Town Centre. September's changes add some extra early morning journeys between Grimsby and Immingham, including the first service from Immingham Monday to Friday now operating 20 minutes earlier at 0535 rather than 0555.

Service 6 from Wybers Wood to Grimsby was extended in May to Cleethorpes Town Centre via Ladysmith Road and Clee Road, replacing service 7 along the former and the 250 along the latter. This provides new Monday to Saturday links from Wybers Wood and the Willows Estate to Cleethorpes (and maintains a direct Sunday daytime service), as well as giving Ladysmith Road a direct Cleethorpes service plus a new Sunday service (along with the 5), whilst Clee Road goes from an hourly to half hourly service Monday to Saturday daytimes and also gains a new Sunday daytime service. Overall lots of positives here.

In contrast service 7 was very substantially reduced. The route had operated half hourly Monday to Saturday daytimes from the Grange Estate to North Sea Lane via Bargate, Grimsby Town Centre, Ladysmith Road, Curzon Avenue and Hewitt's Circus Tesco Extra; peak time services started at/extended to Laceby Village. Since May however, the 7 has been reduced to an off peak hourly service from Grimsby Town Centre to the Curzon Avenue area only.

Looking in more detail and Laceby Village received no replacement services, leaving it with the 53 and 250; the first service from the village into Grimsby is now the 0754 53 rather than a 0622 service 7.

For the Grange Estate off peak service 12 from Bradley Park to New Waltham via the Grange Estate, Littlefield Lane, Grimsby and Cleethorpes was doubled from hourly to half hourly between Bradley Park and Grimsby Town Centre as a partial replacement. Great news for Bradley Park and Littlefield Lane, whilst half hourly does seem a fair service for the Grange Estate. There are however two problems; firstly the 12 serves some roads in the Grange Estate in one direction only, meaning a walk or trip via Bradley Park, and secondly the limited operating hours - 0911 to 1411 into Grimsby from the Grange Estate, and 0917 to 1417 from Grimsby Town Centre. 

Ideally the 12 would operate for longer each day solving at least one of those problems. Assuming any extra journeys are deemed unviable though and the only service which could easily be diverted is the 250 providing a 60-90 minute frequency during the peaks and late afternoon. Short of cutting Bradley Park off the route, no easy answer to the one-way routing in the Grange Estate unfortunately. 

Whilst on the subject of the 12, the May change saw the 0705 from Waltham to Grimsby withdrawn and the 1740 return cut back to terminate at New Waltham. The 1400 from New Waltham to Grimsby Monday to Saturday became a Saturday only 1410 departure. 

Returning back to the 7, and I doubt the service is missed too much along Bargate between the Grange Estate and Grimsby Town Centre, which is already very well served with buses. Elsewhere Ladysmith Road gained the 6 as a replacement - unless passengers were heading to the Colleges or Tesco Extra, the 6 is probably more useful with it's direct Cleethorpes link. Meanwhile in Humberston, the 9 and 10 were extended from North Sea Lane to Hewitt's Circus, providing for a more frequent local link every 15 minutes, albeit less attractive for journeys into Grimsby.

The remnants of the 7 now leave Grimsby via Hainton Avenue rather than Ladysmith Road, providing an off peak replacement for the 250. It then operates via Weelsby Road before providing a one-way loop via Windsor Road, Curzon Avenue, Warwick Road, Brian Avenue, Middlethorpe Road, Taylors Avenue and Humberston Road. Departures leave Grimsby hourly between 0857 and 1357 Monday to Friday and from 0857 to 1657 on Saturdays. A basic shopping link from Windsor Road, Curzon Avenue, Warwick Road, Brian Avenue, Middlethorpe Road and Taylors Avenue into Grimsby, with the peak time service not replaced, and no indirect through service to Cleethorpes Town Centre as used to be provided by service 7 interworking with the 9 or 10 at North Sea Lane. It should be noted the 4 and 12 do also operate in the broader area.

Things do get slightly better from the September Changes. The Windsor Road to Middlethorpe Road section will be served in both directions, with most of Humberston Road (that has no stops on the section concerned) omitted. A new loop is also added via Belvoir Road and the Humberston Road side entrance to Hewitt's Circus Tesco Extra; Belvoir Road is also served by the 12 so hopefully the 7 won't abstract from the 12 here. Timetable wise, there are two extra late afternoon services Monday to Friday, last departure from Grimsby Town Centre to be 1640 rather than 1357.

Turning next to service 8, which previously operated between Grimsby Town Centre, Grimsby Hospital, New Waltham, Humberston and North Sea Lane, where it then interworked with the 9 or 10 to Cleethorpes (and beyond). Since May that interworking has stopped with the 8 extended to Cleethorpes Town Centre via the more direct service 17 route avoiding the Thrunscoe Estate. Also the 8 has been diverted via Westward Ho and Chelmsford Avenue to better serve Franklin College.

Whilst these changes might sound good news, I'm not convinced. Taking the Franklin College diversion, most students could walk quite easily to Nuns Corner and the diversion could be omitted, helping to keep journey times low. The diversion could be more use if there was a stop nearer to where it skirts the Grange Estate, but one hasn't been provided according to bustimes.org.

Along with the 9/10 there are now six buses per hour Monday to Saturday daytimes between Humberston Church Avenue Roundabout, North Sea Lane and Cleethorpes Town Centre, which feels a bit like over-bussing. Personally I would have kept the 8 terminating at North Sea Lane, interworked with either the 9 or 10 for Cleethorpes Town Centre. The other service out of the 9 and 10 could have run to Hewitt's Circus Tesco, reducing another perhaps over generous frequency. 

Focusing on service 9 and 10 between Waltham, Grimsby Hospital, Grimsby, Cleethorpes and North Sea Lane and the main change in May was the already alluded to extension beyond North Sea Lane to Hewitt's Circus Tesco Extra. Timetable wise extra Monday to Friday early morning journeys were added, partially replacing the early morning service 5 Cleethorpes extensions mentioned earlier. Daily evening services were withdrawn between Cleethorpes Town Centre and North Sea Lane, leaving the Thrunscoe Estate without an evening service, but this section of route, extended to Tesco, will be reinstated in September.

Finally, one longer distance change from May that isn't worth a separate post, the 1440 and 1540 service 51 journeys from Grimsby to Louth were merged into a single 1515 journey Monday to Friday; Saturday times were not affected, so there is still a 1440/1540 from Grimsby.

Overall there have been some welcome improvements from the Bus Service Improvement Plan, and September's changes make things slightly better, but it's certainly not been all good news.

250 - 'Down' but not 'Out'

Back on Tuesday May 9th, Stagecoach service 250 got a new, reduced, route and timetable as part of changes linked to North East Lincolnshire's Bus Service Improvement Plan. Unfortunately the 250 seems to have 'drawn the short straw', and from a route and timetable perspective, it's the opposite of improvement.

The 250 was truncated from operating between Hull, Barton, Grimsby, Clee Road and Cleethorpes to instead just operate between Hull, Barton and Grimsby. It's probably no coincidence that this change occurred at the same time service 6 was extended from Grimsby to Cleethorpes via Clee Road every half hour Monday to Saturday daytimes, compared to the 250's hourly service. The service 6 enhancement, in isolation at least, is positive, increasing frequency and adding new Monday to Saturday daytime links from Wybers Wood and the Willows Estate in Grimsby to Cleethorpes. However the 250 may well have been 'one bus too many' down Clee Road, so it's been cut back in favour of more local links within North East Lincolnshire.

The ideal option would be to find another route to Cleethorpes instead, but that hasn't been taken. The service 12 (and previous X1 from Hull to New Waltham) route from Grimsby to Cleethorpes via Wellington Street, Queen Mary Avenue and Brereton Avenue could benefit from the 250 with it's longer operating day. However the 250 as well as the 12 maybe too much, and if the 250 replaced the 12 here, the remnants of the 12 would potentially suffer, with Bradley Park and the Grange Estate no longer linked to Cleethorpes, and parts of Cleethorpes and New Waltham no longer linked to Grimsby. Grimsby Road doesn't need any more buses, so the options for an alternative direct Grimsby to Cleethorpes route are difficult. 

For the record the 6 doesn't serve Hainton Avenue like the 250 did, but Ladysmith Road. Former Ladysmith Road service 7 now serves Hainton Avenue instead on a reduced hourly off peak only frequency; Hainton Avenue does also retain the two hourly 53. I will cover the local changes within North East Lincolnshire in more detail in a future post.

Returning to the 250 and Hull to Cleethorpes was a four hour round trip using four vehicles for an hourly frequency Monday to Saturday daytimes (with some longer gaps between services at peak times). Hull to Grimsby is around a 3 hour 15 minute round trip, meaning an hourly frequency would require long layovers or a shorter route - the former is unproductive, the latter would potentially mean less passengers; the Hull to Grimsby link has got stronger over recent years by being less direct and serving more places en-route. The solution - introduce two 90 minute gaps into the service during the daytime so only three vehicles are needed. Efficient, only means a reduction of one round trip per day, but it does mean the clockface hourly off peak service has gone, as has the consistent thrice hourly Barton to Hull provision.

I sometimes see the 250 in Barton and on Saturday mornings earlier this year the 0950 from Cleethorpes to Hull (1015 from Grimsby) would often arrive into Barton (on Falkland Way) with standees. If anything more capacity was needed, not less. Of course one high demand journey a week - with the support of the government funded bus fare cap - can't be used to determine the full six day a week frequency, but it does seem at odds with the cutback timetable, especially as there is now a 90 minute gap from Grimsby between 0915 and 1045.

The new timetable also undermines the off peak co-ordination between the 53 and 250 from Grimsby to Laceby. Previously the 250 left Grimsby at 15 minutes past the hour, and the 53 at 40 minutes past the hour, every other hour. Now the morning/lunchtime service is 0915, 1040, 1045, 1145, 1240, 1245 and 1415. There is better co-ordination between the 53 and 250 from Laceby into Grimsby in the afternoon now, but in that direction at that time off day, demand is probably quite low.

I forget where, but back in April/May when the changes were first announced I recall reading some concern as well about the impact on students at Hessle High School, returning to the South Bank at the end of the day. The previous 1455 from Hull Interchange was well timed for the 1450/1455 school finish, but now it's the 1510 350 for Barton or the 1555 250 for Barrow and beyond - the former an irritation, the latter a much bigger inconvenience. Would North East Lincolnshire Council have considered school flows from the East Riding of Yorkshire to North Lincolnshire - probably not. Stagecoach should have, so hopefully the affected students are only travelling to Barton. 

One other feature of the change is that the 0715 from Hull no longer serves Wren Kitchens in Barton. In one sense an odd change, considering the very short diversion was used by commuters, but at the same time only a short walk from Falkland Way to the Wren Kitchens gatehouse.

Amid all this negativity, you may think Stagecoach are loosing interest in the 250. Thankfully they do appear committed to the route; the previous 2014 vehicles with Humber Flyer livery have been replaced with newer 2019 vehicles in new 'two fifty' livery. Vehicle replacement and/or withdrawal of the Humber Flyer branding would have been an ideal time to revert to fleet livery, so the fact this hasn't happened indicates to me that the 250 might be 'down', but it's not 'out'.

New Isle of Axholme Local Service 97

The second new route launched by North Lincolnshire Council on Tuesday 2nd May was service 97 in the Isle of Axholme, specifically operating between Garthorpe, Luddington, Eastoft, Crowle, Ealand, Belton, Epworth, Sandtoft and Wroot. Like the 96, it is operated 'in-house' by the council under a Section 22 Community Transport license with funding from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund.

In detail the 97 operates Monday to Friday daytimes only with three journeys from Wroot to Garthorpe at 0830, 1100 and 1350, two journeys from Garthorpe to Wroot at 0945 and 1240 plus a Garthorpe to Epworth 'short' at 1505, returning from Epworth to Garthorpe at 1600. The 97 returns a timetabled bus service to Sandtoft and Wroot for the first time since early September 2020, and restores the link between Crowle and Epworth for the first time in I think 10 years. It also nicely supplements the 399 between Belton and Epworth. 

Disappointingly the first 97 of the day from Garthorpe at 0945 is just 11 minutes before the East Yorkshire operated 361 also provides a journey from Garthorpe to Crowle, whilst similarly there is a 1149 97 from Crowle to Garthorpe followed by a 1204 361. Do Garthorpe, Luddington and Eastoft need links to Epworth, because for Crowle the 361 already provides a service? Could the time be better spent elsewhere, such as restoring a Wroot to Blaxton service for Doncaster connections, or perhaps reinstating a service to Lockwood Bank in Epworth? 

The 97 is a welcome addition to the bus network, reinstating a number of lost links on a substantially better basis than before - the previous 58 and 358 local services in the Isle of Axholme operated between 1 and 3 days a week mornings and early afternoons only. A bit like the 96 though, is it over ambitious? 

New Service 96 between Barton and Brigg

On Tuesday 2nd May, two new 'pilot' services were launched in North Lincolnshire, operated directly by North Lincolnshire Council - a service 96 between Barton and Brigg, and a service 97 between Garthorpe, Crowle, Epworth and Wroot.

The routes will use funding from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund and operate under a Section 22 Community Transport license. Somewhat surprisingly to me, the accompanying decision report refers to "where the market cannot sustain traditional 57 seater busses" - there are plenty of buses operated by commercial bus operators with less than 57 seats! It also states the "two main bus operators" in North Lincolnshire have "no concerns" - I'd have thought both Stagecoach and Hornsby would have been very interested in two new tendered routes, and both have small vehicles in their fleet. In addition the 96 at least could be ideal for both East Yorkshire and PC Coaches, and again both have small vehicles in their fleet. Maybe it's the pilot status of the routes that is off putting, with four weekly updates to be provided to the relevant cabinet member to "determine continuation" - i.e. the routes could be withdrawn at short notice?

Moving onto the specifics of the routes and I will cover the 97 separately - so what is route 96? It's the return of the 450 between Barton Interchange and Brigg Cary Lane via the Low Villages. The 450 ended in August 2020, since when Horkstow, Saxby, Bonby, Worlaby and Elsham have been without a scheduled bus service. The 450 had provided four services per day Monday to Saturday immediately prior to it's withdrawal whereas the 96 will provide four full route services per day Monday to Friday plus a South Ferriby to Brigg 'short' in each direction at peak times (South Ferriby is where the bus starts and ends it's 'in-service' day). Overall the timetable appears designed for one driver all day and provides options for travellers to visit both Barton and Brigg for shopping and leisure purposes. It's not well designed for onward connections to/from Scunthorpe at Brigg but a day out in Hull via Barton is more viable due to the frequency of the Barton to Hull bus service.

The 96 is a very welcome addition to the bus network and I hope it's a success. However my concern is that it could be an over ambitious offering. The harsh reality is that passenger numbers between Barton and Brigg have historically been minimal outside of school times (I've had some experience of travelling myself on this route in the noughties); an evening peak service from Brigg wasn't provided for the final few years of the 450 so that element of the service really is 'starting from scratch'. The South Ferriby (Blacksmiths) to Barton section of the route has the 350 as a half hourly alternative, the Wrawby to Brigg section has the 4 as another option. 

If North Lincolnshire Council had decided to provide the 96 Tuesday/Thursday/Saturday and the 97 Monday/Wednesday/Friday I would feel more confident of success. I know that is a lot more restrictive for accessing medical appointments, and would effectively 'kill-off' the attempt at a South Ferriby to Brigg commuting service, but it would provide a service better aligned with likely demand. My fear is that passenger numbers per journey are very low and the whole 'pilot' gets pulled. Consolidate most of those passengers - those who are travelling for discretionary purposes or who can delay their trip for a day - onto fewer journeys. 

Stagecoach Hull April 2023 Changes

Back on 30th April, Stagecoach made changes to most of their services in Hull, and sadly mostly negative amendments, especially on Saturdays. Apologies if I've missed anything major - no explanation was provided (at least not online) about what changed, so it's been a case of comparing timetables and maps. Any corrections/omissions, please post a comment.

As part of the changes, there was one renumbering - service 4b between Hull Paragon Interchange and Bilton Grange became the 15. This is far more logical now that the 4 no longer operates cross-city and the 15 number fits in far better with other East Hull service numbers.

Kingswood and parts of Bransholme saw their service restructured and reduced, with the 7 no longer operating between Bransholme North Point Shopping Centre and Kingswood Leisure Park, severing the links from Sutton Park to Kingswood and (other than the limited 255) from Bodmin Road to Beverley Road. Service 7 now operates just between Hull Paragon Interchange and North Point. The section from North Point to Kingswood Retail Park was transferred to service 11 in place of it's previous routing between the two shopping centre's, which has reduced journey times from East Hull to Kingswood as it's a far more direct routing.

As a partial replacement for service 11 in Kingswood, service 6 was amended to serve Kingsbury Way. Rather than routing via Pioneer Way in both directions between Kingswood and North Bransholme, the 6 was revised to operate a clockwise loop along Pioneer Way to North Bransholme before routing back to Kingswood via Kingsbury Way. This has shortened journey times from Kingsbury Way to Hull City Centre; an inbound off peak journey to the Interchange now takes 47 minutes rather than 63 minutes.

Service 11 was not replaced along Tiverton Road in Bransholme nor along Richmond Way, Barnes Way and Runnymede Avenue in Kingswood; these are all now unserved. The link from the residential areas of Kingswood to North Point was also lost. It should be noted Tiverton Road passengers only have a fairly short walk to Bodmin Road or Bude Road for the 10 or 11, and the unserved parts of Kingswood have a lot of larger, more expensive homes, whose occupants may not be natural bus passengers - even still these changes are clearly unwelcome.

Service 16 from Paragon Interchange to Morrisons in East Hull was also re-routed in a change that feels overwhelmingly positive. Between Newbridge Road and Morrisons the 16 no longer operates direct via Holderness Road but instead serves Southcoates Lane, Bilsdale Grove, Exeter Grove, Preston Road, Marfleet Lane and Maybury Road. This maybe a longer route, but Bilsdale Grove, Exeter Grove and Marfleet Lane were previously unserved, Southcoates Lane and Preston Road had no Morrisons link and Maybury Road no Hull City Centre service. In terms of the timetable there is a new Monday to Saturday 0843 from Morrisons (first 'shopper' service into Hull previously 0943) and a two hour afternoon gap in the hourly frequency is plugged on Saturdays along with a new late afternoon 'short' from the Siemens Factory to Paragon Interchange Monday to Friday. On the negative side, the morning peak service is withdrawn on Saturdays as is the last service between Morrisons and Siemens Monday to Friday.

The Priory Park 'Park and Ride' service 20 was amended in Hull City Centre; inbound services route via Paragon Interchange whilst rather than serving Lowgate and the Fruit Market, the 20 is diverted to The Deep instead. Monday to Friday peak and late afternoon journeys were reduced from every 20 minutes to half hourly, but not on Saturdays leading to the peculiar situation of Saturdays having a better peak time service. First service from Priory Park changed from 0630 to 0700 Monday to Saturday, with the last service Monday to Friday brought forward from 1900 from Hull Truck Theatre to 1820 from Paragon Interchange.

Another rerouting was the Monday to Friday morning peak 8X variant via Clough Road and Stockholm Road in Sutton Fields Industrial Estate being withdrawn and replaced by 'standard' service 8's. Instead service 7 gained new variant 7X via Clough Road, Holwell Road and Sutton Road during the Monday to Friday morning peak. As part of these changes, Monday to Friday the 7/7X now starts at 0520 rather than 0720 from Paragon Interchange and at 0530 rather than 0700 from North Point. Service 8 does have it's North Point to Paragon Interchange via Sutton Park 'shorts' at 0540, 0610, 0640 and 0710 withdrawn.

On the negative side, the 7 now finishes earlier; from North Point at 1530 Mon-Fri/1630 Sat rather than 1830, whilst from Paragon Interchange the final 1820 departure Monday to Saturday is withdrawn (alternative service 8 at 1805 or 255 at 1830 Monday to Friday).

Service 8, which for most of the day is a circular between Paragon Interchange, Sutton Park, North Point, Salthouse Road and Paragon Interchange also has some Monday to Friday cuts which make some sense on Wilberforce College days, but also appear to apply during college holidays. In the morning the 0835 'anti-clockwise' service 8 from Paragon Interchange now starts at Wilberforce College on Salthouse Road at 0852, whilst in the afternoon the 1400 and 1530 'clockwise' journeys from Paragon Interchange now terminate at Wilberforce College. In all three instances service 85 provides a similar timed college day alternative to the withdrawn section. The 1435 and 1605 'anti-clockwise' departures (now 1430/1600) from Paragon Interchange now terminate at Wilberforce College; service 83 on college days provides an alternative as far as Sutton Park.

Service 10 between Hull Paragon Interchange and North Bransholme, Service 12 from Paragon Interchange to North Point and Service 15 from the Interchange to Bilton Grange were all reduced from every 20 minutes to half hourly on Saturday daytimes (Wawne extentions on service 10 remain hourly). Similar reductions during the Saturday morning peak also impacted routes 1 and 2 between Paragon Interchange and the Boothferry Estate, routes 3 and 4 between Paragon Interchange and Orchard Park, route 5 from the Interchange to Kingswood, route 13 from Paragon Interchange to Bilton Grange and route 14 from Greatfield to Paragon Interchange. Service 1 also saw frequency reduced from every 20 minutes to half hourly on Saturdays post 1700.

First services on Saturdays were moved later on many routes, though it is worth noting that very early Saturday morning journeys on many services were only introduced in the past few years:

• Service 1 from Boothferry Estate: From 0533 to 0626
• Service 1 from Paragon Interchange: From 0511 to 0711
• Service 2 from Boothferry Estate: From 0510 to 0610
• Service 2 from Paragon Interchange: From 0508 to 0631
• Service 3 from Orchard Park: From 0425 to 0610
• Service 3 from Paragon Interchange: From 0525 to 0635
• Service 4 from Orchard Park: From 0547 to 0700
• Service 4 from Paragon Interchange: From 0700 to 0725
• Service 5 from Kingswood: From 0516 to 0600
• Service 5 from Paragon Interchange: From 0505 to 0715
• Service 7 from North Point: From 0700 to 0900
• Service 7 from Paragon Interchange: From 0720 to 0920
• Service 8 from North Point via Salthouse Road: From 0450 to 0607
• Service 8 from North Point via Sutton Park: From 0540 to 0745
• Service 8 from Paragon Interchange to North Point via Sutton Park: From 0535 to 0805
• Service 10 from North Bransholme: From 0425 to 0605
• Service 10 from Paragon Interchange: From 0512 to 0717
• Service 11 from Paragon Interchange: From 0505 to 0720
• Service 12 from North Point: From 0550 to 0620
• Service 12 from Paragon Interchange: From 0611 to 0711
• Service 13 from Bilton Grange: From 0440 to 0611
• Service 13 from Paragon Interchange: From 0506 to 0700
• Service 14 from Greatfield: From 0550 to 0625
• Service 15 from Paragon Interchange: From 0620 to 0723

In positive news, some minor enhancements were made to Monday to Saturday evening services. Service 3 gained a new 1905 journey from Paragon Interchange, in between the existing 1835 and 1935 services. From Kingswood on service 5 the last departure is now at 2247 rather than 2157. On service 11 a new 2250 service is added from Paragon Interchange to Kingswood, slotting in between existing 2150 and 2330 departures, whilst from Kingswood post-1800 departures increase from 1800, 1830, 1920, 1950, 2050, 2150 and 2310 to 1812, 1843, 1913, 1935, 2035, 2135, 2235 and 2330.

One other notable change is to service 4 on Sundays, with departures from Paragon Interchange now between 0802 and 1802 rather than 0842 to 1842.

Hornsby April 2023 Changes

During April Hornsby Travel have made some minor amendments to their network. 

From Monday 3rd April the evening peak X4 from Brigg to Scunthorpe at 1745 Monday to Friday was truncated 'short' at Lakeside Retail Park - there is a 1740 service 4 from Brigg to Scunthorpe. On the 'flip side', the 1750 service 12 'short' from Ashfield to Ashby at 1750 is extended to Scunthorpe Bus Station Monday to Friday only "due to customer requests". There were also some very minor retimings to service 6 between Scunthorpe and Ashby and service 399 between Scunthorpe, the Isle of Axholme and Doncaster.

Then from Monday 17th April new service X399 was introduced between Scunthorpe Bus Station and Doncaster Frenchgate Interchange, stopping only at Scunthorpe Tesco Extra. There is one journey each way Monday to Friday at 0630 from Scunthorpe, returning from Doncaster at 1740 with a journey time of 40 minutes in the morning and 45 minutes in the evening. 

A fast Scunthorpe to Doncaster service might seem like an opportunity with the current state of Transpennine Express rail services between the two locations and maybe that has played a part in Hornsby's thinking with the X399. However during college terms times the X399 is probably intended to primarily function as a positioning journey for service 'JLC 3' between Doncaster Frenchgate Interchange and the Scunthorpe Colleges. There is a little bit of effort by not just running direct between the Ashby depot and Doncaster, and certainly a bigger commitment is being made to the X399 by running it during college holidays - I can't regard the X399 with one journey each way as a significant attempt to offer a rail alternative though. Let's hope some people find the X399 useful however.

Thornes 'hand over' Service 1 after 71 Years

East Yorkshire took over operation of the tendered Thornes operated journeys on service 1 between Holme on Spalding Moor, Bubwith, North Duffield, Hemingbrough and Selby last Monday - 17th April (Arriva operate on service 1 on college days as well, but to a different route). Thornes had been providing a Monday 0930 Holme to Selby journey followed by a 1020 Selby to Hemingbrough 'short' and a 1300 Selby to Holme; the same provision was also offered on a Friday except the Holme services were truncated to operate between Bubwith and Selby only.

With the new timetable East Yorkshire will be offering a Monday and Friday 0930 from Holme to Selby and 1300 return, providing a new Friday link from Holme to Selby. I say will, as due to temporary restrictions at Bubwith Bridge, East Yorkshire services are currently operating between North Duffield and Selby only. The 1020 Selby to Hemingbrough 'short' has ended, presumably a depot positioning service for Thornes that is no longer required.

Whilst on one hand this is just routine retendering, it does end 71 years of Thornes operation on service 1 - a detailed history has been written up by Bus and Coach Buyer.

Hull to York now every half hour

In contrast to my previous, rather downbeat, post about East Yorkshire services within Hull and the immediately adjoining areas of the East Riding, one long distance 'corridor' from Hull operated by East Yorkshire saw a very significant increase from Sunday 2nd April (or more accurately the timetable changed on the 2nd, but the 3rd saw the big increase). That 'corridor' is the one to York via Beverley, Market Weighton and Pocklington which has been increased from hourly to half hourly Monday to Saturday daytimes. A welcome but 'bold' move in the current climate, although it should be noted the increase in frequency is only on the Hull to Market Weighton section.

Prior to these changes the X46 operated hourly between Hull and York Monday to Saturday daytimes, diverting to serve the three towns of Beverley, Market Weighton and Pocklington en-route, but otherwise operating directly between the two cities. Service X47 provided a limited evening service, with later journeys operating Friday and Saturdays only and unlike the X46, the X47 additionally served Hull University, Cottingham, Barmby Moor and Wilberfoss. Then on Sunday daytimes the X46 and X47 each operated two hourly for an approximately hourly service combined.

Monday to Saturday daytimes the X46 remains hourly, but is now joined by an hourly X47, albeit no longer serving Hull University and Cottingham; serving Barmby Moor and Wilberfoss villages is the only differentiator between the two routes now. Towards York the X46 is 7 minutes quicker, but due to layover in Pocklington there is no difference in journey times in the opposite direction; presumably East Yorkshire want even interval departures from York and on the Pocklington to Hull section. Evenings and Sundays remains largely as previously, but with the X47 following it's new route omitting Cottingham and some minor retimings.

Looking in more detail and I mentioned earlier the frequency increase was only between Hull and Market Weighton - that's because the new Monday to Saturday daytime X47 replaces the 46 between Market Weighton and York. The 46 had operated hourly between Market Weighton and York via the X47 route other than within York were it served the University of York and Heworth before terminating in York City Centre on Station Road rather than at the Station itself. In many respects the X47 is an improvement, with it's links to Beverley and Hull plus it's more direct route in York and serving York Station - however it means the loss of links to the University. The University link has been around a number of years so it's a minor disappointment in a largely positive set of changes. This should be the norm and not noteworthy, but credit to East Yorkshire in their service change announcement for referring University customers to a connecting First service - route 67 from Hull Road in York. Likewise they have also signposted their Heworth passengers to First and Yorkshire Coastliner for travel into York City Centre. 

The 46 hasn't been entirely axed however - five trips a day had extended to/from Holme on Spalding Moor and the 46 survives as a Market Weighton to Holme on Spalding Moor local service, reduced to four services each way and timed to connect with the X46 or X47 at Market Weighton. Considering there is also the 18 between Holme on Spalding Moor and York (albeit currently impacted by the Bubwith Bridge closure), this seems a fair service. However taking the 46 in isolation, there seems to be a lot of spare time in the schedule - 0732 to 0930, 1002 to 1130, 1202 to 1420 and 1437 to 1735 - and nothing obvious to interwork with other than schools services. Could the 46 vehicle and driver be more heavily utilised? Maybe not between Market Weighton and Holme on Spalding Moor, but perhaps extend the 18 to Market Weighton and add a second vehicle (from the 46) to the service? A Monday to Saturday Market Weighton-Holme-Selby service, or perhaps reinstate an all-day Monday to Saturday Market Weighton to Driffeld service?

Talking of Market Weighton to Driffeld, and the last remnant of the 45 between Bridlington, Nafferton, Driffield, Market Weighton, Pocklington and York was 'killed off' as part of these changes - the 1635 from Bridlington and 1905 return from York Monday to Saturday. The X46/X47 replace between Market Weighton and York, there is a 1640(Mon-Fri)/1625(Sat) service 121 from Bridlington to Driffield and on Friday and Saturdays only a 2032 121 from Driffield to Nafferton. Service 145 between Driffield and Market Weighton gains an additional 1650 departure Monday to Friday. 

Between Hull and Beverley, the new Monday to Saturday daytime X47 restores a fourth service per hour, with the four routes involved - 23, 121, X46 and X47 timed to operate every 15 minutes combined. Hull to Beverley frequency has fluctuated between three and five services per hour in recent years, so maybe four per hour is about right?

What has struck me though is that now half the services - X46/X47 operate through open countryside between Hull and Beverley via the A1079 - whilst 'only' half operate through the villages of Dunswell and Woodmansey were there is very little open countryside. There is very little time benefit to the A1079 route, only 3 minutes compared to the 23 off peak. I get that East Yorkshire want the X46/X47 to be as similar as possible, but personally I would swap the X46/X47 with the 23, to send the X46/X47 via Dunswell (and Flemingate), with the 23 covering Victoria Road in Beverley and the A1079 (it could still serve Flemingate).

Whilst focusing on the southern end of the X47, the re-routing away from Cottingham removes the only evening and Sunday service into Beverley, as well as the ability for a Sunday dayout in York. This is another minor disappointment, but I do understand the rationale. Routing via Cottingham added an extra 5 minutes on Sunday daytimes compared to the A1079 (potentially more Monday to Saturday daytimes), and retaining just on evenings and Sundays would mean a third route variant between Hull and York.

Finally then to the Beverley to Market Weighton section, and this is where the 'bold' move has really been made by East Yorkshire - almost 20 minutes, or just over 10 miles, of open countryside other than one intermediate village at Bishop Burton. In the context of the wider Hull to York route it's a small section, but still significant. East Yorkshire will need to grow the traffic from Hull and Beverley to Market Weighton, Pocklington and York for this enhancement to work; as the pre 2nd-April arrangements show us there are alternative ways to supplement the X46 on the more densely populated sections between Hull and Beverley and from Market Weighton to York. 

Whilst you can maybe tell I have some skepticism that this is 'too bold' an increase, especially in the current environment, good luck to East Yorkshire. I hope my skepticism is misplaced and it is a success. 

Even Intervals Eroded

On Sunday 2nd April, East Yorkshire revised timetables on a number of routes "to improve timekeeping". In some instances this has meant that 'clockface timetables' or 'even intervals' have disappeared for parts of the day. It's not unusual to see that happening at peak times or even late afternoons, but this is starting creep into morning and early afternoon timetables on some routes.

What has struck me on reviewing the new timetables is how on Saturday's, but not weekdays, services in the Hull area have been particularly affected by this. 

Take the 54 between Hull Paragon Interchange and Willerby, generally half hourly but with 35 minute gaps from Paragon Interchange between 1015 and 1050, then between 1150 and 1225 followed by 1255 to 1330; similar gaps also exist in the opposite direction. The 56/57 combined from Paragon Interchange to Asda Bilton are every 15 minutes from 0815 to 1145, then 1205, 1220, 1235, 1250, 1310, every 15 minutes to 1425, 1445 then every 15 minutes to 1830. Service 66 between Hull and Hessle comes off particularly badly - every 20 minutes, but 25 minute gaps from Paragon Interchange between 0910 and 0935, 0955 and 1020, 1120 and 1145, 1245 and 1310, 1410 and 1435 and 1615 to 1640

Elsewhere there are 35 minute gaps in half hourly services 63, 104, 105 and 154 between Hull and Cottingham and 65 minute gaps in hourly services 152 (Hull to Anlaby) and 153 (Hull to Swanland).

I do have some understanding of the situation being faced by East Yorkshire - rising costs, passenger numbers not recovered post-COVID, driver shortages. Adding extra resource just to maintain the 'status quo' is not an easy proposition. We must also remember that some of these services share parts of their routes with other services; Anlaby Road for example maybe hit by the gaps in the 56, 63, 66, 152, 153 and 154 but collectively there are still plenty of services between those routes and also the 55, 350 and Stagecoach services. 

However these new timetables aren't going to help get passengers back on the buses, or attract new ones. Not only are 'non-clockface' timetables a 'harder sell', there are now notable differences between Monday to Friday and Saturday daytime timetables on many routes. Take for example Setting Dyke mid-morning into Hull on route 63; it was 0950/1020/1050/1120 Monday to Saturday, 1021/1121 Sunday. Now it's 0944/1014/1044/1114 Monday to Friday, 0936/1007/1037/1107 Saturday and 1019/1119 Sunday. 

These changes combined with various frequency reductions over the past three years from both East Yorkshire and Stagecoach and local services within Hull and the immediately adjoining areas of the East Riding have taken a 'battering'. Reducing all day bus lanes back to peak times only isn't going to help though, if anything it will make things worse...

Improved service between Hornsea and Bridlington

East Yorkshire introduced some small but welcome improvements to daily service 130 between Hornsea and Bridlington last Monday (3rd April).

Firstly a new 0815 from Bridlington to Hornsea (arriving 0920) has been introduced at weekends and on weekdays during school holidays. Whilst this is probably just a positioning journey being run 'in-service', it does make morning or full day trips into Hornsea possible - previous first arrival into Hornsea was at 1150.  

Secondly the weekend 1230 from Hornsea and 1345 from Bridlington - now retimed to 1445 - are no longer 'dated' services operating between July and September only, so are presumably now year round journeys. The 1230 is useful for those returning from morning trips into Hornsea, or looking to make afternoon trips to Bridlington. Meanwhile the 1445 gives the option of spending 4 hours 10 minutes in Bridlington rather than 6 hours 40 minutes, which was the previous requirement from October to June. 

Lets hope these extra journeys are a success.

Beverley Locals B1/B2 to be withdrawn

After operation on Saturday 1st April, East Yorkshire's Beverley Town Services B1 and B2 will cease, bringing an end to commercially operated town services in Beverley. 

The B1 and B2 were launched in September 2021, incorporating East Yorkshire's previous 520 and 521 town services, plus part of the former Acklams Coaches tendered 522 town service. The B1 operates from Molescroft to Beverley Town Centre, then performs a clockwise loop via the Swinemoor Estate (including the East Riding Community Hospital), Minster Way, Morrisons and Normandy Avenue back to Beverley Town Centre; the B2 operates the same route in reverse. Both routes operate hourly Monday to Saturday daytimes, reducing to two hourly Monday to Friday peaks. A Friday and Saturday evening service was provided until September 2022.

East Yorkshire say "regrettably the services have not delivered the growth needed to sustain the current level of service provided". I will give East Yorkshire some credit here for making a significant effort to relaunch their Beverley Town Services in 2021 and for giving new links a 'go', such as from Swinemoor to Morrisons. However it is disappointing that they don't consider any aspect of the B1/B2 to be 'salvageable'. 

Thanks to East Riding of Yorkshire Council stepping in with three new tendered services - the 525, 526 and 527 - very few parts of Beverley will be left unserved, other than Minster Way which is largely surrounded by fields. The 525, 526 and 527 will be operated by East Yorkshire, and will operate Monday to Saturday from Monday 3rd April. Together the three routes appear to require one vehicle. 

Looking in detail and most of the Molescroft to Beverley section of the B1/B2 is also served by the hourly Monday to Saturday daytime 23 between Molescroft, Beverley and Hull (and to a lesser extent by the 142). Perhaps two buses an hour was one too many? Parts of Molescroft are also served by the 121. Focusing on roads served only by the B1/B2 - St Leonard's Road (B2 only) is left unserved, whilst the 526 provides a basic replacement for Copandale Road and Scrubwood Lane. The 526 will operate Beverley Bus Station-Copandale Road-Scrubwood Lane-Beverley Bus Station with three departures at 1000, 1200 and 1400 and a total round trip time of 10 minutes.

It's unfortunate the 23 hasn't been routed via Copandale Road and Scrubwood Lane, or if that wasn't an option, the 142 could have been given this short diversion. If either of these happened then the 526 wouldn't be needed and the time could be spent enhancing services elsewhere in Beverley. 

The Swinemoor Estate - including the East Riding Community Hospital - retains an hourly service between 0930 and 1530 (plus a 1600 journey) on new circular service 525, which covers the B1 route from Beverley Bus Station to Swinemoor. the Hospital and Holme Church Lane before returning to the Bus Station via Flemingate. 

I appreciate East Riding of Yorkshire Council have needed to act quickly here so maybe this is one for the future, but the other tendered town service to Swinemoor - service 5 - leaves Beverley Bus Station at 1020, 1120 and 1320. This is poor co-ordination with the 525. Could the 5 and 525 be worked by the same vehicle to improve co-ordination and provide half hourly departures, at least in some hours - with the 142 interworked with the 526 or 527 instead of the 5?

Anyone needing to access the Lidl store to the south east of Beverley will need to use the 23 instead of the B1/B2.

Finally to Normandy Avenue and Morrisons which will be covered by the new 527 operating from Beverley Bus Station via Lincoln Way (also served by the 25) to Morrisons and then back to the Bus Station via Normandy Avenue. Departures from the Bus Station are at 1100, 1300 and 1500. Like the 526, a basic shoppers services, but certainly better than no service at all. 

There aren't any easy alternative options here. Maybe the X46 and/or X47 could operate via Lincoln Way and the 25 switch to Normandy Avenue, but the X46/X47 are meant to be direct interurban services between Hull, Beverley, Market Weighton, Pocklington and York so diverting via Lincoln Way wouldn't be ideal. 

Overall, thanks to East Riding of Yorkshire Council, the B1/B2 withdrawal isn't a disaster for bus services in Beverley. It's still not good news though.