New Sunday Town Services for Scunthorpe

For around two decades, the only dedicated town service in Scunthorpe on a Sunday has been a 'round-the-houses' circular, operating in both directions - currently numbered 1A. Out of town routes provided some additional services for local travel within Scunthorpe, notably along Ashby Road (services 4 and 350) and Frodingham Road (service 350), but at uneven intervals. Sunday buses in Scunthorpe have existed, but at a rather basic level.

Things got better on Sunday 5th May as three extra Sunday town services were introduced, all operated by Stagecoach and funded by North Lincolnshire Council's Bus Service Improvement Plan Plus funding.

Firstly the 6, between Scunthorpe Bus Station, Ashby Road, Ashby High Street and Ashby Manifold Road. The 6 runs four times an hour Monday to Saturday daytimes, half hourly each by Hornsby and Stagecoach (departing every 15 minutes from Scunthorpe Bus Station, but the even interval is lost later on as they each have different timing points and running times). However despite being 'turn up and go' Monday to Saturday daytimes, there is no evening service and was no Sunday service. Along Ashby Road Monday to Saturday daytimes, as well as the 6 four times an hour along the Southern section, there is also hourly services 3, 4 and 100, plus the two hourly 103 - i.e. 7-8 buses per hour. Sunday daytimes however had just been the 350 on a frequency of every one to three hours, and the 4 on a frequency of every 90 to 120 minutes. So as can be seen, relative to the Monday to Saturday daytime service, the Sunday service was very poor.

Now there is an hourly service 6 Sunday daytimes, departing Scunthorpe Bus Station between 0900 and 1700. This fills a gap in the Manifold Road, Grange Lane South and Everest Road areas of Ashby, and provides an improved service for Ashby Road. Hopefully the Sunday 6 is a success.

Next up are the interworked services 7 and 8 in North Scunthorpe. Each service operates hourly Monday to Saturday daytimes between Scunthorpe Bus Station, Scunthorpe Hospital and Skippingdale Retail Park, each via different routes between the Hospital and Skippingdale. With the new Sunday service, each route operates every two hours, with the 7's to Skippingdale returning as an 8 and vice versa. The 7 and 8 gaining a Sunday service isn't such an obvious addition to the Sunday network, compared to the 6, but they are the only option to improve Sunday daytime buses in Scunthorpe without either duplicating or changing the 1A (which could then lead to a different route between Sunday daytimes and daily evenings - not ideal).

However rather unfortunately, the 7 and 8 leave Scunthorpe Bus Station at the exact same time each hour as the only other direct service to Scunthorpe Hospital on Sundays - the 1A. What could have been a half hourly frequency between the three routes remains an effective hourly service.

Goole + Howden Hopper

On Tuesday 7th May, a new bus service launched in Goole and Howden, the 'Goole+Howden Hopper', also known as the 'J36'. The route is operated by Sweyne Coaches and funded by the Goole Town Deal. It is an initial two year pilot to "gauge demand". The principle aim of the route is to link Goole with Howden Station - previously unserved by a bus service - and to better improve access to the large employment area west of Goole known as Capitol Park; it's in this area that the new Siemens Mobility train factory is located, as well as various other employers such as Guardian Glass (who have regular railfreight deliveries of sand). Capitol Park is otherwise only served by the Goole Town Service Monday to Friday peak times, which is designed to connect the residential areas of Goole to employment, not for rail connections.

Operating Monday to Saturday, the service operates from Howden Station, via Howden Town Centre, Airmyn Village and Glews Services (by Junction 36 of the M62) to Tom Pudding Way in Capitol Park. From Tom Pudding Way a large loop is then operated via Andersen Road (Lidl), Rawcliffe Road, Boothferry Road (Morrisons and Tesco), Goole Interchange, North Street (Town Centre) and the southern part of Andersen Road back to Tom Pudding Way, Airmyn and Howden. 

The frequency is every 25-50 minutes for much of the day, with the occasional longer gaps; I presume the lack of an even interval frequency is to optimise train connections at Howden Station. First service from Goole is 0605, with a last departure at 2200. From Howden the first departure is at 0615 with a last service at 2235. The timetable is written as Howden to Goole Interchange and Goole Interchange to Howden, so at certain times of day, a trip from Lidl, Morrisons or Tesco back to Airmyn or Howden may involve a wait in Goole Town Centre.

Also worth noting, is that a flat £1 fare is in operation, along with a £5 weekly ticket - a good job the 55 between Goole and Howden and the 88 between Goole and Airmyn are tendered, as that £1 fare plus the significantly more frequent timetable must be abstracting passengers from these services.

The Town Deal report that in the first month "almost 3,000 passengers made use of the service. More than 2,000 of these passengers paid the standard £1 flat fee, there were 589 concessions and a further 101 people paid £5 for a weekly ticket, giving them unlimited use. In June, as awareness of the new service increased further, the total number of passengers jumped to almost 4,500, with 3,281 people paying the standard £1 flat fee, 966 concessions and 136 £5 weekly tickets sold. These weekly tickets were used 723 times in total".

I wish the service well. It's maybe not the Goole Town Deal's major concern, but Howden is set to undergo a significant expansion in the coming years and the 55 on it's current timetable - every two hours, no peak service - is already poor and would be totally inadequate in the future. The new 'Hopper' will certainly help here. Add in the new rail connections and vastly improved service for Airmyn and Capitol Park and there is a lot to support here.

My only note of caution is that the service seems rather 'disjointed' from the rest of the bus network. I know the 'Hopper' is only a two year trial, but on Friday and Saturdays both the Hopper and the 55 have 2000 and 2200 departures from Goole to Howden as an example. The 88 diverting via Airmyn is rather pointless with the Hopper. Plus maybe it would be an idea to route more existing services via Capitol Park (with or without the Hopper); the 401 to Selby (Goole's only commercial bus service I think) could divert with only a minor time penalty. Maybe the peak service 360 to/from Eastoft could run as a 361 and also serve Capitol Park?

Goole GoFar goes Further

Community Transport operator Goole GoFar's two timetabled bus routes both gained an increased service back at the start of April. I think these are both funded by East Riding of Yorkshire Council's Bus Service Improvement Plan Plus funding allocation.

Previously Friday only service 198 from North Cave to Market Weighton via Hotham, South Newbald, North Newbald and Sancton gained a Tuesday service, whilst continuing to depart from North Cave at 0930, returning from Market Weighton at 1200.

Meanwhile the Tuesday only 358 from Holme on Spalding Moor to Goole gained an additional Wednesday service as well as a revised route. From Holme it continues to operate via Bubwith, Breighton and Wressle, but now omits Howden before continuing to serve Hook en-route to Goole Town Centre. Within Goole the 358 previously served North Street in the Town Centre and Boothferry Road Supermarkets (Tesco and Morrisons), but now also serves Goole Interchange and extends beyond Boothferry Road to Lidl. Departure time from Holme remains 0930, returning from Goole Lidl at 1310 (the Goole North Street departure time remains 1335).

An evening peak service returns from Doncaster to Epworth

Since COVID-19 there had been an oddity in the Isle of Axholme - a morning peak bus service from Epworth to Doncaster, but no evening peak return. For a number of years Isle Coaches 291 provided an evening peak departure from Doncaster to the Isle of Axholme, but when then 291 returned after the pandemic, it was on a more limited basis before finally ceasing altogether.

Utilising Bus Service Improvement Plan Plus funding, that all changed from Monday 8th April. Firstly though it is worth noting that First South Yorkshire's 57 between Finningley, Auckley and Doncaster - with one morning journey starting back in Epworth - became the 357 on Sunday 7th April as part of a wider renumbering scheme by First in Doncaster.

With the 357 came the extension of the 1739 Monday to Friday/1752 Saturday Doncaster to Auckley 'short' onto Epworth via Westwoodside, Haxey and Low Burnham. As well as serving commuters, these extended journeys could also be useful for Doncaster shoppers; the previous last service from Doncaster to the Isle was at 1545.

On arrival in Epworth, the 357 works back in service to Doncaster, departing Epworth at 1848 Monday to Friday and 1857 Saturday. Whilst I doubt these journeys will get much use, it's good to see the bus returning to Doncaster in-service for any odd passengers that might benefit from it. The 357 also serves as a slightly later last bus of the day from Epworth to Haxey and Westwoodside, the previous service being a 399 at 1811.

An Epworth, Haxey and Westwoodside to Doncaster summary timetable is available on the Summary Timetables page.

X46 and X47 Improved

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Welcome Back to the Brough Town Service

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Sunday Town Services for Bridlington

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

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

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

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

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

Flamborough Evening Cutbacks

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

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