Thursday, 25 July 2013

K-oming back to Plymouth

For the last few months, certainly at the very least since I arrived back in the SW from Huddersfield, I haven't clapped eyes on a single step entrance offering from First within Plymouth. With the K-LAEs now gone, along with P568 EFL on her move to Truro, and K801 ORL's subsequent withdrawal from service, K803 ORL has been the only Plymouth based vehicle which is still aged enough to have some steps to climb before you get the chance to lounge in comfort upon her duel purpose seating. As I've mentioned previously though, good old 34003 spends nearly all of her time stowed away in Dartmouth, where she lives out her final days operating the Dartmouth Academy school bus, across the Dartmouth Higher Ferry, and therefore never sees any use within her home city. But of course, the schools are now on holiday, and hence K803 now appears to have been allowed back! It's actually quite strange seeing a standard in service step entrance vehicle in Plymouth these days, it's certainly a rarity, and K803 ORL stood out like a sore thumb as she trundled up Royal Parade; making all the right noises! Lets hope she hangs on a little bit longer, I'd definitely like one last blast before she's silenced, possibly forever...but time must now surely be short for the 20 year old Northern Counties bodied beauty. 

1 comment:

David Jory said...

She was in Torpoint this morning. Hopefully she'll remain here until all the tridents are repainted, or the start of the new school term.