Tuesday 31st January 2023 Message to email subscribers: I am very sorry some subscribers didn’t receive Saturday’s blog and quite likely today’s too. I have raised this issue with…| BusAndTrainUser
Tuesday 2nd November 2021 It’s taken over six months longer than planned but after a £26 million upgrade and four of the five ‘new’ two-coach trains delivered it’s good to see the Island Line up an…| BusAndTrainUser
Tuesday 1st February 2022 As expected the southern section of Cambridgeshire’s guided busway between the railway station and Addenbrooke’s Hospital and Trumpington closed yesterday for …| BusAndTrainUser
Saturday 23rd March 2024 I still call it St Pancras even though it gained its International suffix back in 2007 and if you want to buy a ticket from a ticket machine to travel there you have to kno…| BusAndTrainUser
Tuesday 4th April 2023 This week sees the controversial withdrawal of many tendered bus routes within the West of England Combined Authority (WECA) area and their replacement with an extensive DRT …| BusAndTrainUser
Tuesday 18th July 2023 Go-Ahead Group’s Metrobus is the latest bus company to roll out a small fleet of hydrogen powered buses. It follows First Bus in Aberdeen, National Express West Midland…| BusAndTrainUser
Sunday 13th August 2023 As explained in last Sunday’s blog about route 99 in West Sussex, the other stalwart of semi-flexible rural bus routes to succumb to a technology upgrade and expansion…| BusAndTrainUser
Monday 7th January 2019 It’s all happening in Guildford this week. Stagecoach South introduced a fleet of nine ADL Enviro 200EV electric buses on the Guildford Park and Ride services today wh…| BusAndTrainUser
13 posts published by BusAndTrainUser during April 2024| BusAndTrainUser
15 posts published by BusAndTrainUser during March 2024| BusAndTrainUser
Saturday 3rd February 2024 Third in this year’s fortnightly route 100 odyssey is another cross-county-border inter-urban bus route but, unlike the first two already featured (Stevenage/Hitchin and …| BusAndTrainUser
15 posts published by BusAndTrainUser during February 2024| BusAndTrainUser
Wednesday 17th April 2019 One of London’s best bus routes started up again today for the summer season. Route RP1 runs on Wednesdays from 17th April until the end of October. It runs outside …| BusAndTrainUser
Tuesday 21st January 2025 They say the railway’s byzantine fare structure is going to be sorted when Great British Railways (GBR) finally gets up and running. But that promise is like Billy B…| BusAndTrainUser
Saturday 18th January 2025 Leicestershire County Council introduced a raft of changes to its subsidised bus network in the Melton Mowbray area from 5th January including major renumbering of bus ro…| BusAndTrainUser
Thursday 16th January 2025 Today’s blog is dedicated to Adam Trimingham, probably the most superb journalist who’s ever worked in the regional newspaper industry and a truly wonderful, …| BusAndTrainUser
Tuesday 14th January 2024 It’s good to see Merseyside’s Mayor Steve Rotheram provided funding for the reintroduction of the limited stop bus route between Runcorn, Widnes and Liverpool …| BusAndTrainUser
Saturday 11th January 2025 Welcome to a new blog series featuring towns and cities around Britain which, by a quirk of history, are blessed with having two railway stations on different lines servi…| BusAndTrainUser
Thursday 9th January 2025 In the current era of BSIP funding for exciting new developments you don’t find many brand new bus routes being introduced on a purely commercial basis these days, b…| BusAndTrainUser
Tuesday 7th January 2025 Biggest news on the Changing Hands front this week is of course the start of the third and final tranche of Greater Manchester’s Bee Network from Sunday when Metrolin…| BusAndTrainUser
Saturday 4th January 2025 There are quite a few recent developments on the DRT front to catch up on so here’s an update to keep blog readers informed. ting begets TIGER As reported in my year end r…| BusAndTrainUser
Thursday 2nd January 2025 Welcome to the first blog of the New Year which is my monthly look back at things that caught my eye during the past month’s travels not previously covered in posts.…| BusAndTrainUser
Thursday 28th November 2024 Readers may recall a blog in August describing an unusual situation north of Bedford where competition had broken out between Grant Palmer and Stagecoach on a bus route …| BusAndTrainUser
Thursday 21st March 2024 Bus passengers travelling along the coast road between Brighton and Eastbourne are enjoying superb comfort from the brand new buses now entering service with Brighton &…| BusAndTrainUser
Tuesday 12th March 2024 I paid a visit to Somerset last Wednesday to investigate an interesting development in that county’s bus scene. Both Somerset and North Somerset Councils have used some of t…| BusAndTrainUser
Saturday 10th August 2024 All is not well on a rural bus route in Bedford. As you can see from the above headlines in last week’s trade press (Route One) and the Bedford Today online news web…| BusAndTrainUser
Wednesday 24th April 2019 It’s been a long wait with some well over a year late, but finally an avalanche of new trains is entering service; well one train has. First off the blocks is the mu…| BusAndTrainUser
Sunday 11th August 2024 I’m a child of the mid to late 1950s and early 1960s and as regular blog readers will know, growing up in the fairly affluent north London suburb of Winchmore Hill my early …| BusAndTrainUser
Tuesday 16th January 2024 It’s timely to have a DRT update. Firstly to Hertfordshire where the HertsLynx service based on Buntingford in ‘North & East Herts’ introduced in Sep…| BusAndTrainUser
Thursday 1st February 2024 The infamous £3 million Barry Docks Transport Interchange, which opened last year without any buses, can now proudly boast it has at least one bus route enabling passenge…| BusAndTrainUser
Thursday 8th August 2024 My recent post about The way ahead for buses and trains attracted a large response of more than 80 comments. I’m sure not every reader reads through every comment, pa…| BusAndTrainUser
Tuesday 6th August 2024 This summer school holiday has seen three new bus routes hit the road in Kent. First up, commencing on Saturday 20th July, is a free shuttle bus on new route 51 connecting F…| BusAndTrainUser
Sunday 4th August 2024 London Transport Museum’s programme of behind the scenes tours of disused parts of the Underground gained a new tour last week featuring Holborn. I was fortunate to secure a …| BusAndTrainUser
Saturday 3rd August 2024 Welcome to the second of only two bus routes numbered 100 in Wales which, as mentioned last time, are both to be found in the south. This one is in Barry in the Vale of Gla…| BusAndTrainUser
Thursday 29th September 2022 Nottsbus On Demand It’s been a few weeks since we’ve seen a DfT funded DRT launch but two more have recently hit the road including one in High Wycombe this week and an…| BusAndTrainUser
Thursday 1st August 2024 Welcome to another month’s miscellaneous matters. Those little things I spotted while travelling around during July but not so far blogged about ……. and f…| BusAndTrainUser
Sunday 28th July 2024 Nottinghamshire County Council has expanded its DRT scheme for the third time. Thanks to the DfT’s Rural Mobility Fund, NottsBus On Demand began back in August 2022 oper…| BusAndTrainUser
Thursday 25th July 2024 Here’s what King Charles III read out in his speech to both Houses of Parliament last Wednesday: “A Bill will be introduced to allow local leaders to take contro…| BusAndTrainUser
Tuesday 27th February 2024 A fortnight ago I explained in the blog about Flitwick’s Transport Interchange that Stagecoach was withdrawing its hourly route 2 between Bedford and Flitwick after…| BusAndTrainUser
Saturday 20th July 2024 We’re in south Wales for this ride on one of Britain’s 26 bus routes numbered 100. It’s one of only two route 100s in Wales and both can be found close to Cardiff. This 100 …| BusAndTrainUser
Thursday 22nd February 2024 I’m counting down Britain’s (aka London’s) top ten busiest railway stations according to the Office of Rail and Road (ORR), and after last month’…| BusAndTrainUser
Saturday 27th January 2024 A new monthly blog series for 2024 kicks off today, taking a look at Britain’s Top Ten Busiest Railway Stations. Except without giving away any spoilers, as well as…| BusAndTrainUser
Saturday 8th June 2024 It seems a good idea to complete the trio of bus routes numbered 100, all operated by the associated bus companies of Centrebus, Chaserider and D&G Bus, by taking a ride …| BusAndTrainUser
Saturday 25th May 2024 After last time’s wander from Syston to Melton Mowbray it’s the turn of the second of three route 100s operated by associated companies CentreBus, Chaserider and D&G Bus.…| BusAndTrainUser
Saturday 30th March 2024 I took a ride on the busy inter-urban route 100 linking Manchester and Warrington on its very last day as a commercial operation by Go North West – last Saturday, 23r…| BusAndTrainUser
Saturday 20th January 2024 Metrobus 100 between Crawley and Redhill Second in this years fortnightly series featuring all Britain’s 26 bus routes numbered 100 brings us to another busy cross county…| BusAndTrainUser
Saturday 6th January 2024 A new year heralds a new fortnightly series of BusAndTrainUser blogposts. And for 2024, instead of another A-to-Z, I’ll be featuring all Britain’s bus routes n…| BusAndTrainUser
Friday 14th June 2024 It’s some time off completion but my visit to Cardiff and the Valleys the weekend before last confirmed work is well in hand to transform the area’s rail network into a modern…| BusAndTrainUser
Thursday 18th July 2024 A commenter recently suggested I publish a blog outlining the logistics of last month’s Rail Rover. On that very theme here’s one I prepared earlier … (it’s been sitti…| BusAndTrainUser
Tuesday 16h June 2024 TfL introduced the final route change in its Central London Bus Review at the end of last month – the extensive proposals launched and consulted on during the summer of …| BusAndTrainUser
Sunday 14th July 2024 This delightful paperback book by Gray Lightfoot was published earlier this year and if you fancy a funny, irreverent, down-to-earth honest account of what it’s like to be a b…| BusAndTrainUser
Saturday 13th July 2024 I’m back on the the top ten countdown of Britain’s Busiest Railway Stations and at Number 5 it’s Victoria where Southern and Gatwick Express meet Southeastern in a div…| BusAndTrainUser
Thursday 11th July 2024 It’s been ages since I’ve explored the four branch lines off the Great Western Main Line between Paddington and Reading, so I put that right on Saturday taking a…| BusAndTrainUser
Tuesday 9th July 2024 Two very different new bus routes began operating on Sunday and I’ve taken a ride on both. First up, thanks to Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP) funding, is a cross-city lim…| BusAndTrainUser
Sunday 7th July 2024 Ian Budd, the enthusiastic knowledgable convenor of the Friends of the Far North Line (FoFNL) kindly invited me to speak at the organisation’s Annual Conference last mont…| BusAndTrainUser
Saturday 6th July 2024 Time for another exploration of one of Britain’s 26 bus routes numbered 100. And this time I’m back in the Home Counties taking a ride on Red Rose Travel’s route between Ayle…| BusAndTrainUser
Thursday 4th July 2024 It’s just over three weeks until Arriva’s exit from High Wycombe (along with Aylesbury) so I decided to pay a visit to see what the company will be leaving behind…| BusAndTrainUser
Tuesday 2nd July 2024 Hot on the heels of the much delayed commencement of trams running to Blackpool North railway station, comes another “At last” transport development: the long awaited, much an…| BusAndTrainUser
Sunday 30th June 2024 Blog reader Stuart got in touch and kindly recommended I take a ride on the Faringdon Tourist Bus. It was a new one on me. A Saturday only route exploring border territory whe…| BusAndTrainUser
Thursday 27th June 2024 It was back in December 2017 Secretary of State for Transport, Chris Grayling (remember him?), gave the formal go-ahead for the £23.4 million Blackpool Tramway extension fro…| BusAndTrainUser
Tuesday 25th June 2024 Highland Council issued a press release a few weeks ago promoting the opening of its first every “Mobility Hub”. The story was picked up by the Highland Times at …| BusAndTrainUser
Sunday 23rd June 2024 If you’d told me ten years ago much of the rural parts of the counties of East Sussex and West Sussex would be served by a fleet of around 20 minibuses trundling around …| BusAndTrainUser
Saturday 22nd June 2024 We’re at the halfway stage on this fortnightly odyssey of all Britain’s 26 bus routes numbered 100 so I thought I’d celebrate by taking a ride on my local route 100 in West …| BusAndTrainUser
Thursday 20th June 2024 I joined around 50 members of London Transport Museum Friends on a fantastic day out last Wednesday recreating London’s most iconic rural bus route and loved every nos…| BusAndTrainUser
Tuesday 18th June 2024 Taking a ride on Pulhams Coaches route 801 has been on my to do list ever since seeing buses on the route pass through the delightful Bourton-on-the-Water when trying out the…| BusAndTrainUser
Monday 17th June 2024 The McGills group of bus companies are building up an impressive portfolio of open top sightseeing operations with a newly introduced tour of Stirling from Bank Holiday Monday…| BusAndTrainUser
Sunday 16th June 2024 I’d read about Gloucestershire Council’s plans to spend £33 million on a Transport Hub at Arle Court in Cheltenham, so while I was wandering around the country on my recent Ra…| BusAndTrainUser
Saturday 15th June 2024 Bradford city centre is in a bit of mess at the moment. The city’s large multi-level Transport Interchange closed overnight back in January due to structural safety co…| BusAndTrainUser
Saturday 18th May 2024 It’s a measure of the impact of the Elizabeth line on London’s public transport that yet another station that sees purple trains calling has a place in the Top 10…| BusAndTrainUser
Saturday 11th May 2024 My latest ride on a bus route numbered 100 is one of three to be featured in this fortnightly series operated by the closely linked bus companies of Centrebus, Chaserider and…| BusAndTrainUser
Thursday 9th May 2024 Rail companies which bought into the Vivarail idea of refurbished London Underground D78 stock becoming diesel/battery Class 230 and electric Class 484 trains in their new gui…| BusAndTrainUser
Tuesday 30th April 2024 Another month end. Another motley collection of miscellaneous matters and some good news to begin with ….. £920,000 fence reopens Cambridge busway The northbound Cambridge b…| BusAndTrainUser
Saturday 27th April 2024 We’re now a third of the way through this fortnightly series featuring all of Britain’s bus routes numbered 100 and having been to Stevenage, Crawley, Lincoln, …| BusAndTrainUser
Thursday 25th April 2024 Mid Cornwall Metro is a £56.8 million project providing a new hourly Coast to Coast link with direct trains running between Newquay, Par, St Austell, Truro, Penryn (for the…| BusAndTrainUser
Tuesday 23rd April 2024 Welcome to another investigation into a sensational public transport headline from the mainstream media. Way back on 11th October last year BBC News carried a story stating …| BusAndTrainUser
Saturday 20th April 2024 The Office of Rail and Road (ORR) are at pains to point out on its website how its statistics on rail station usage can only be estimates: “as Great Britain does not …| BusAndTrainUser
Thursday 18th April 2024 This month has seen four developments in the burgeoning world of DRT operations. Firstly, Nottinghamshire County Council expanded its Nottsbus On Demand offering last week …| BusAndTrainUser
Tuesday 16th April 2024 What do the three bus routes linking Maidstone with Ashford; Ashford with Canterbury; and Canterbury with Maidstone have in common? And I don’t mean they’re all …| BusAndTrainUser
Saturday 13th April 2024 The eighth route 100 to be featured in this fortnightly series must rank as one of the quirkiest. It’s Arriva’s second of that Company’s two routes numbered 100 but u…| BusAndTrainUser
Thursday 11th April 2024 I attended a fascinating and timely visit organised by the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport to Metrobus’s Crawley bus garage on Tuesday. It was to hear more a…| BusAndTrainUser
Tuesday 9th April 2024 I paid a visit to the Didcot Railway Centre over the Easter weekend. Never having been before, it had been on a list of interesting looking places to visit for a long time ha…| BusAndTrainUser
Saturday 6th April 2024 No, sorry train fans, this blog isn’t about the much hyped Greater Anglia super duper two return journeys a day express linking Norwich with London Liverpool Street in…| BusAndTrainUser
Thursday 4th April 2024 Something odd has been happening to rural bus routes in the Dacorum district of Hertfordshire these past few weeks. Readers may recall the County Council’s Herts Lynx …| BusAndTrainUser
Tuesday 2nd April 2024 It’s not often a bus service has to succumb to a 10 mile diversion due to a road closure resulting in half its route and two villages left unserved for up to six months. That…| BusAndTrainUser
Tuesday 19th March 2024 Two of Britain’s bus services numbered 100 are Park & Ride routes and in a happy numerical coincidence when I took a ride on Guildford’s route 100 on Saturday afte…| BusAndTrainUser
Saturday 2nd March I’m back in Scotland for this fifth journey exploring all Britain’s 26 bus routes numbered 100, and it’s another short one Or should I use the plural, as it’s really two mi…| BusAndTrainUser
Saturday 17th February 2024 Having featured three fairly strategic route 100s so far in this year’s meander around the country ticking off all 26 similar numerically defined bus services, this late…| BusAndTrainUser
