What Could Be Coming to the North Lincolnshire Bus Network in 2024

Last week, North Lincolnshire Council published the North Lincolnshire Enhanced Bus Partnership Plan and Scheme on their website, along with a fairly vague press release about the improvements to come. The associated decision report contains the most detail however:

2.4 A number of measures have been identified as part of the delivery of the Enhanced Partnership Plan and Scheme: 

• Additional bus services 

• Review ongoing maintenance, repair and servicing of bus infrastructure 

• Section 22 Community Transport in North Lincolnshire 

• Bus disruption survey 

• Extensions to existing services 

-Villages South and East of Brigg including Humberside Airport. 

-Scunthorpe to Barton and Hull 

-Main residential corridors in Scunthorpe 

• Reduced fares for young people 

2.5 Based on the above measures identified in the Enhanced Partnership Scheme, the following proposals related to bus services have been approved at the Enhanced Partnership Board pending final sign-off. 

• Improved Maintenance of Bus Infrastructure – ongoing development of improved maintenance scheme. 

• Additional services on service 4 Sundays and Bank Holidays - 9.00am service from Scunthorpe to Brigg and return journey. Extend the 17.45 service to Brigg which currently terminates at 18.02 at Morrisons. Return journey from Brigg at 18.30. 

• Revision of service 10 timetable – Additional services from Burringham Monday to Friday. 9.30am from Burringham to Scunthorpe. 12.00 return from Scunthorpe to Burringham. 12.30 from Burringham to Scunthorpe. 

• Additional evening services on service 90 – Additional 7pm evening service Monday to Saturday from Scunthorpe to Crowle and return. Additional 9.30pm Friday and Saturday service from Scunthorpe to Crowle and return. 

• New Saturday Service for South and East of Brigg – The new Saturday service c4 will link into Brigg giving the same frequency of buses in the area on Monday to Friday. 

• Ferry Ward – Additional Bus Services – Service 260 Extend service 260 to Immingham incorporating South Killingholme, North Killingholme and East Halton. 

• Section 22 Community Transport in North Lincolnshire - Route 96 is between Barton and Brigg. Route 97 on the Isle of Axholme between Garthorpe and Wroot. Monday to Friday.

• Additional Sunday service provision on service 350 - A new 7.55am Scunthorpe to Hull service to alleviate the pressure of the 10am service. 

• Bus Disruption Survey – To be carried out by NLC staff in conjunction with operators and drivers. Working group to be set up.

It should be noted the c4 was introduced earlier this month. I cannot find timelines for the other proposed measures to commence. 

I presume the above is an updated version of these ideas from the September Enhanced Bus Partnership meeting. Early evening improvements to the 350 are no longer mentioned, whilst mention of the devolution of bus infrastructure to town and parish councils has morphed into 'improved maintenance'. New are the potential improvements to services 4, 10 and 90.

New Summary Timetables

I have added a new summary timetables page to the blog, with an initial 8 timetables summarising bus services on the following corridors:

• Althorpe, Gunness and Keadby to Scunthorpe
• Amcotts to Scunthorpe
• Barrow to Barton
• Crowle and Ealand to Scunthorpe
• Crowle to Ealand
• Crowle to Eastoft, Luddington and Garthorpe
• Eastoft to Scunthorpe
• Grimsby to Laceby

Feedback welcome, please post a comment. More will follow as and when I have time.

Christmas and New Year Bus Services 2023/2024

Here is my annual summary of Christmas and New Year bus services across the Humber Region. It covers the following operators, but not their services outside the region:

• Arriva Yorkshire
• CallConnect
• East Yorkshire (excluding JustGo)
• First South Yorkshire (Doncaster Area)
• First York
• Grayscroft Coaches
• Hornsby Travel
• PC Coaches
• Stagecoach
• York Pullman

Please check exact details before travelling as I have only summarised here, or for any occasions were publicity is incorrect (it's happened before!). If you have any information for other operators, or to correct any details listed below, please post a comment.

Christmas Eve:

Normal Sunday service with an early finish between approximately 1700 and 2000. 

Christmas Day:

No services.

Boxing Day:

No services. Which deserves a comment as previously East Yorkshire had provided Boxing Day daytime buses on main routes around Hull as well as from Beverley and Withernsea; going back to 2021 the network had extended to Bridlington and York. This follows Stagecoach ceasing Boxing Day buses in Hull from 2021 onwards.

Wednesday 27th December:

Predominantly a Saturday service, with the following exceptions:

• Hornsby Travel and PC Coaches will operate a normal Wednesday service.
• East Yorkshire services 131 (Bridlington-Carnaby Industrial Estate), 142 (Beverley-Middleton), 145 (Market Weighton/Lund-Driffield-Bridlington), 360/361 (Goole-Scunthorpe), 504 (Bempton-Bridlington) and G1-5 (Goole Town Services) will operate as normal.
• Stagecoach services 35 (Amcotts-Scunthorpe), 60 (Whitton-Scunthorpe), 79 (Hull-Hedon), 90 (Crowle-Scunthorpe), 260 (Barton Villager) and 277 (Hedon-Hull) will operate as normal.
• Stagecoach service 255 (North Bransholme-Barton Wren Kitchens) will operate two journeys only, at 0700 from North Bransholme and at 1710 from Barton Wren Kitchens. (The 255 would not normally operate on Saturdays).

• East Yorkshire service 196 (Allerthorpe-York) will not operate as per East Yorkshire's timetable page (wouldn't usually operate on a Wednesday).
• East Yorkshire services 18/25/54/55/63/75/121/747/X47 Friday and Saturday only evening journeys will not operate (normal Wednesday evening journeys on the 54/55/63/75/121/X47 will however).
• East Yorkshire services 57/66/104 Saturday only nightbus journeys post midnight will not operate.
• Stagecoach services 5/6/8/13 in Hull Saturday only nightbus journeys post-midnight will not operate.

As has become annual in recent years, the usually Saturday only Stagecoach 173 between Withernsea and Hull will be operated Wednesday to Saturday for one week only.

Stagecoach operating their morning journeys on service 79 between Hull and Hedon makes sense, as their is no equivalent in the Saturday timetable provided by the main operator of the route, East Yorkshire. However the afternoon service operating is odd. Stagecoach's tendered 1600 service 79 from Hull to Hedon is to cover for the East Yorkshire 1550 service 79 being Saturday only. However as East Yorkshire are operating a Saturday service, the 1550 will operate today, and on the 28th and 29th, in addition to the 1600. Likewise with the 277, Stagecoach's tendered Monday to Friday 1644 from Hedon to Hull is to cover for the East Yorkshire 1629 operating in the Saturday timetable only.

South of the Humber and if you take the publicity at face value, Hornsby are operating a full Monday to Friday service 399 between Scunthorpe and Doncaster, and Stagecoach a full Saturday service. Stagecoach's Saturday service operates all day to cover for no Hornsby 399 on Saturdays. So as per publicity, that means both operators will have an all day service 399 on the 27th, 28th and 29th. Presumably Stagecoach will actually operate their Monday to Friday timetable on the 399 on these three days, with just an evening peak service after the Hornsby service finishes for the day.

Finally, I do wonder if Stagecoach would be better off just running a normal weekday service in Scunthorpe between Christmas and New Year? Their commercial services are almost identical Monday to Friday and Saturday, whilst their North Lincolnshire Council tenders all seem to specify Monday to Friday service. It would be easier to communicate service levels to the general public at least.

Thursday 28th December:

Predominantly a Saturday service, with the following exceptions:

• Hornsby Travel and PC Coaches will operate a normal Thursday service.
• East Yorkshire services 131 (Bridlington-Carnaby Industrial Estate), 142 (Beverley-Middleton), 145 (Market Weighton/Lund-Driffield-Bridlington), 150 (Swanland-Hessle), 360/361 (Goole-Scunthorpe), 504 (Bempton-Bridlington) and G1-5 (Goole Town Services) will operate as normal.
• Stagecoach services 10 (Ashby Parklands-Ashby), 35 (Amcotts-Scunthorpe), 60 (Whitton-Scunthorpe), 79 (Hull-Hedon), 90 (Crowle-Scunthorpe), 260 (Barton Villager) and 277 (Hedon-Hull) will operate as normal.
• Stagecoach service 255 (North Bransholme-Barton Wren Kitchens) will operate two journeys only, at 0700 from North Bransholme and at 1710 from Barton Wren Kitchens.

• East Yorkshire service 143 (North Ferriby-Beverley) will not operate (wouldn't usually operate on a Thursday).
• East Yorkshire services 18/25/54/55/63/75/121/747/X47 Friday and Saturday only evening journeys will not operate (normal Thursday evening journeys on the 54/55/63/75/121/X47 will however).
• East Yorkshire services 57/66/104 Saturday only nightbus journeys post midnight will not operate.
• Stagecoach services 5/6/8/13 in Hull Saturday only nightbus journeys post-midnight will not operate.

Friday 29th December:

Predominantly a Saturday service, with the following exceptions:

• Hornsby Travel and PC Coaches will operate a normal Friday service.
• East Yorkshire services 1 (Holme-Selby), 131 (Bridlington-Carnaby Industrial Estate), 142 (Beverley-Middleton), 145 (Market Weighton/Lund-Driffield-Bridlington), 183 (Hessle Town Service),  197 (Pocklington Town Service), 360/361 (Goole-Scunthorpe), 504 (Bempton-Bridlington) and G1-5 (Goole Town Services) will operate as normal.
• Stagecoach services 10 (Burringham-Scunthorpe), 25 (Market Rasen-Grimsby), 35 (Amcotts-Scunthorpe), 60 (Whitton-Scunthorpe), 79 (Hull-Hedon), 90 (Crowle-Scunthorpe), 260 (Barton Villager) and 277 (Hedon-Hull) will operate as normal.
• Stagecoach service 255 (North Bransholme-Barton Wren Kitchens) will operate two journeys only, at 0700 from North Bransholme and at 1710 from Barton Wren Kitchens.

• East Yorkshire service 143 (North Ferriby-Beverley) will not operate. Not stated on their festive services page, but as per East Yorkshire's timetable page, neither will service 196 (Allerthorpe-York). Neither route would normally operate on a Friday.
• East Yorkshire services 57/66/104 Saturday only nightbus journeys post midnight (early hours Sunday morning) will not operate.
• Stagecoach services 5/6/8/13 in Hull Saturday (early hours Sunday morning) only nightbus journeys post-midnight will not operate.

Saturday 30th December:

Normal Saturday service.

New Years Eve:

Normal Sunday service with an early finish between approximately 1700 and 2000. 

New Years Day:

No services (train services will be operating however, in many instances to a normal Monday timetable apart from early morning services and engineering works related disruption).

Tuesday 2nd January:

Services return to normal, albeit with a mix of School Day and School Holiday variations.