Interconnect 51 Reduction

From tomorrow, Monday 31st October, the hourly Monday to Saturday Grimsby to Tetney journeys on Stagecoach Interconnect service 51 will no longer operate, with the main Grimsby to Louth journeys unaffected. As a result the frequency between Grimsby and Holton Le Clay reduces from half hourly to hourly, and Tetney's only conventional bus service will be provided by limited service 50.

Stagecoach 9 Changes

Stagecoach are revising Monday to Saturday service 9 in East Hull from tomorrow, Monday 31st October, following cuts to subsidised bus service funding by Hull City Council. Aside from some minor retimings, the West Hull and Cottingham part of the service is unchanged.

The current 9k variation becomes a service 9a, following it's current route in East Hull between Hull Paragon Interchange and Leads Road before routing via Robson Way, Howdale Road, Kestrel Avenue and Noddle Hill Way to North Point Shopping Centre, as opposed to the current 9k which routes via Dorchester Road to North Point before operating a clockwise loop via Noddle Hill Way, Kestrel Avenue, Howdale Road and Robson Way back to North Point. The 9a will opeate hourly off peak, as the 9k did, and combine with service 9 to provide a half hourly service over common sections of route in Garden Village and an almost half hourly service on Leads Road. Daytime service 9 will also cease to serve Dorchester Road and instead operate direct via Midmere Avenue from Leads Road to North Point.

The current 0750 service 9 from Castle Hill Hospital in Cottingham to North Point becomes a 0750 from Castle Hill to Paragon Interchange and a 0845 service 9a from Paragon Interchange to North Point, replacing the withdrawn 0915 9k from Paragon Interchange. The weekday only 0845 service 9 from James Reckitt Avenue to Paragon Interchange will also operate on Saturdays and extends to Castle Hill, replacing the 0915 from Paragon Interchange to Castle Hill. The Saturday only service 9 from Paragon Interchange to Noddle Hill at 1615 will operate as a 9a to North Point, providing a later last service for Howdale Road and Kestrel Avenue. There are minor retimings to other journeys as well, including the peak time journeys to Noddle Hill which have not been rerouted.

East Hull Changes

Halloween (Monday 31st October) sees some major changes to certain services in East Hull, with a selection of good and bad news.

EYMS had won Hull City Council tendered service 16 from Stagecoach. The route links Hull Paragon Interchange with the Marina, Victoria Dock, Newbridge Road, the Preston Road Estate and Marfleet Village, operating every hour Monday to Saturday daytimes, but with a reduction to two hourly after the morning peak planned with the start of EYMS's new contract.

Now Stagecoach have registered a revised service 16 commercially. The 'new' 16 will continue to operate hourly Monday to Saturday daytimes, and will now serve the new Siemens factory. The revised route will however cease to serve Hull Marina, the Humber View part of Victoria Dock and Marfleet Village. In the Preston Road Estate a clockwise circular will be provided via Preston Road, Holmpton Grove, St John's Grove, Exeter Grove and Southcoates Lane. These changes enable an hourly service to provide with one vehicle, unlike the previous timetable that was an 85 minute round trip.

To continue providing a service to Hull Marina and the Humber View area of Victoria Dock, Hull City Council are subsidising the diversion of EYMS operated journeys on service 78 between Hull and Hedon on Monday to Saturdays only to serve these areas. Stagecoach Monday to Saturday evening and EYMS Sunday daytime services on route 78 will omit Hull Marina and only serve part of Victoria Dock, as at present. These changes provide Hull Marina and Humber View with a roughly two hourly daytime service, which they would have received off peak had the originally planned cuts to service 16 taken place.

In addition EYMS are also starting services to the Siemens factory, with Monday to Saturday journeys on service 78 as well as infrequent Monday to Saturday service 79 and infrequent weekday service 80 all serving the site. Again Stagecoach Monday to Saturday evening and EYMS Sunday daytime services on route 78 will omit this new section of route.

Due to the changes to services 78 and 79, most times on these routes have changed by up to 10 minutes, as have those on associated service 277 between Hull and Hedon via Bilton.

I don't know what the net impact on Hull City Council's budget is, but good news for access to the Siemens factory and good news for the part of Victoria Dock that retains the 16, Newbridge Road and the Preston Road Estate which avoid a planned off peak frequency reduction to the 16. Bad news for Hull Marina and Humber View, though frequency cuts would have happened if the 16 was still serving these areas, bad news for Hedon and Paull to Hull City Centre travellers who will have slightly longer journey times (but if it helps improve the viability of the 78 maybe a good thing?), and very bad news for Marfleet Village whose residents will now have to walk to Hedon Road to access bus services.

Grimsby Service 11 withdrawn

Today (Saturday 29th October), Stagecoach service 11 in Grimsby operated for the last time. The route was introduced in May linking Grimsby Town Centre, Grimsby Hospital and the Matthew Telford Park residential area, operating Monday to Saturday morning and early afternoons. It had been funded by North East Lincolnshire Council but had not been used sufficiently.

Matthew Telford Park is not being left totally without bus services though. In addition to a Phone 'n' Ride demand responsive service, Stagecoach operated Lincolnshire County Council tendered service 25 from Ludford and Binbrook to Grimsby is being diverted via Matthew Telford Park from Monday 31st October. This will provide one weekday peak service and one Tuesday/Friday/Saturday daytime service to and from Grimsby Town Centre, which while not much is better than nothing and will be an option for some commuters, unlike service 11.

1D and 1E become 21 and 51

After operation on Saturday 29th October, EYMS services 1D and 1E operated under contract to Hull City Council will be replaced by new services 21 and 51, starting on Monday 31st October and also operated under contract to Hull City Council. EYMS say the change has been made to help services keep to time, and at the request of Hull City Council. To operate the revised services using the current two vehicles, cutbacks have been made, though there are some improvements as well.

Currently the 1D and 1E offer a combined hourly Monday to Saturday daytime frequency between Mizzen Road/Compass Road in North Hull, Beverley Road, Bridlington Avenue, Hull City Centre, Hull Royal Infirmary, Hessle Road Asda, Askew Avenue and Sibelius Road in West Hull. In West Hull journeys alternate between serving Boulevard, Selby Street and St Georges Road (service 1E) or Hawthorn Avenue and North Road (service 1D).

New service 21 will replace the North Hull parts of services 1D and 1E, but extending at the northern end of the route to Kingswood Retail Park, a link previously provided by service 1C. The frequency will be reduced to every 90 minutes off peak, with hourly peak time journeys not extending to Kingswood.

Service 51 will replace the 1E in West Hull, also operating every 90 minutes Monday to Saturday daytimes (every 80 minutes late afternoon). Service 1D via Hawthorn Avenue and North Road is not being replaced, leaving these roads without a bus service. As a result whilst the sections of route served by both the 1D and 1E see a reduction in frequency, those areas served only by the two hourly 1E gain a frequency increase.

EYMS 50 Revised

Following the award of a new tender by Hull City Council, EYMS Monday to Saturday service 50 in Hull will be revised from Monday 31st October. It will continue to operate between Holderness Road Morrisons, Broadway Drive, Jalland Lodge (Bilton Grange), James Reckitt Avenue, Laburnum Avenue, Holderness Road and Hull Paragon Interchange, but Gillshill Road and Lambwath Road will no longer be served. The Lambwath Road diversion was introduced after Stagecoach service 53 was withdrawn, but this was later replaced with service 9k.

The timetable will also be revised, with one less journey on Saturdays. The current 0910 from Holderness Road/Mount Pleasant to Morrisons, and 1045, 1230, 1415 (Sat Only) and 1640 from Hull Interchange to Morrisons are replaced by departures from Hull Interchange at 0900, 1030, 1200 and 1330. From Morrisons departures at 0950, 1135, 1320, 1505 (Sat Only) and 1725 become 0940, 1110, 1240 and 1410. This is a more memorable timetable but with a shorter operating period.

Extra Uni Nightbuses

From the first full week of October, EYMS will add extra journeys to it's 107 nightbus service between the University of Hull, Cottingham and The Lawns student accommodation. The service operates during university terms on Wednesday and Saturday nights (Thursday and Sunday morning). The timetable now has departures from the University at 0145, 0215, 0245, 0315 (Sat only), 0345 (New, Sat only) and 0415 (New, Sat only).

A Cancellation and a Registration.

Two interesting VOSA registrations from EYMS that appeared on Friday:

PB0000328/488 - EAST YORKSHIRE MOTOR SERVICES LTD, 252 ANLABY ROAD, HULL, HU3 2RS

Cancellation Accepted: Operating between Hull Interchange and Fairfax Avenue given service number 23 effective from 28-Nov-2016.

PB0000328/504 - EAST YORKSHIRE MOTOR SERVICES LTD, 252 ANLABY ROAD, HULL, HU3 2RS           

Registration Accepted

• Starting Point: Pocklington
• Finish Point: Monks Cross
• Via: Wilberfoss, Dunnington
• Service Number: MX1
• Service Type: Normal Stopping
• Effective Date: 26-NOV-2016
• Other Details: New Service

Health Warning: VOSA registration summaries don't always show the 'full' story of what is happening.

The 23 was started earlier this year to reintroduce a bus service for Chanterlands Avenue North and Fairfax Avenue in Hull. Monks Cross is a large retail park in North East York, which means the Saturday start date of the service makes sense. It will be interesting to see if the MX1 operates on any other days of the week, and if it is just a temporary Christmas service or an attempt to start a new permanent service.