Troublesome Tridents!

For my final day out in the South West before the move to Huddersfield this weekend I decided on a few trips on one of the most picturesque routes in Great Britain, that being the 93 (incorporated within a round loop using the X80/1). Typically though, pretty much everything that could have gone wrong, did! 

The day didn't start off well, with me missing the 0705 80 to Cremyll, but was no matter, the 81 via Torpoint would be along by 0720, only putting me back by half an hour in Plymouth. The Trident that came to greet me on the preceding service to the one I planned was, thankfully, one of the newer East Lancs bodied 55' plate Tridents, WJ55 CRX, and not one of the dreadful Ex-London monstrosities. And so content with this, I boarded in a relitively decent mood, despite not receiving the Olympian which I was hoping for. Things started to go wrong worryingly early on though, with the windscreen wipers coming on with no intervention from the driver at all! It was if they had a mind of their own. This was followed by a worryingly small turn of speed on the A38, and on reaching Lee Mill, only 20ish minutes into the journey, the alarms started going off, and the bus was pulled over in the village. We stepped outside to find water leaking severely from the front of the bus, a problem which has been re-occurring with 32761 a worrying amount of times. It seems to have started when she first starting getting used on Torpoint service, in which she ground out several times and with it damaged the water pipes, and henceforth they never seem to have been repaired properly. 

An hour passed by with the fitter unable to stop the leak, and therefore we were transferred onto the following service, operated annoyingly by Ex-London, LR02 LYS. Because we then effectively were getting two bus loads on one bus, the service got so packed that the driver actually had to start refusing passengers, it had completely reached capacity! And so I was very glad to leave the service in Paignton, to transfer to the X81 to Dartmouth! 

A very pleasant journey ensued aboard what I'd come looking for, Leyland Olympian K619 LAE! Despite being the 'worst' of the 4 still in service from Plymouth, she performed immeasurably better than the two previous Tridents, and we made good time along the lovely stretch of road right through to Dartmouth. 

Because so much time had been lost with the breakdown, I decided on getting on the first 93 that came along rather than hanging around, and this unfortunately ended by being provided by another Ex-London Trident, this time from the even more dire T-LLC batch. Before we'd even got going, T803 didn't want to play ball, with her not starting on the button! Luckily, the depot supervisor at Dartmouth was soon on hand to open up the engine compartment to start her manually. But things still were clearly not right with T803, the was banging and clattering into gear when the throttle was re-applied from neutral as the Voith gearboxes do, and this preceded to get worse and worse during the leg from Dartmouth to Kingsbridge. At points it simply wouldn't re-engage, with the bus just revving uncontrollably before eventually pulling itself back into gear. Sure enough, just minutes after leaving Kingsbridge bus station the inevitable happened, and T803 LLC ground to a halt outside Kingsbridge Hospital. 

None of FDC's engineers were available to come out to fix it, and naturally there were no spare buses/drivers left for the service to be taken over, so another wait followed. Tally Ho! engineers did arrive to attempt to get her going again, but it was difficult enough just getting into the engine bay, with the handle having been broken off an hour earlier in Dartmouth! Unfortunately with AGF (automatic gearbox fluid) leaking across the road, there wasn't much hope, and therefore it meant another wait for the bus behind. This was even worse considering the next service is the one I particularly didn't want to travel on, the infamous school service 93! Because of its extra journey up to the school, it took even longer to come than was hoped, and after a good 1hr 20minutes of waiting, the ever dependable Torpoint Trident WA54 OLP materialised, and quite frankly I was very glad of it! The Torpoint Tridents have always seemed to be far more reliable than any other Tridents I've ever experienced, and naturally, 32757 carried a full and standing load capably and efficiently back to Plymouth. This included passing yet ANOTHER Trident that decided to litter itself across Devon on Tuesday, with Mayflower Link branded LR02 LYV disgracing itself in a particularly difficult place to get past! 

So, thanks for the sendoff Tridents! I'll be bloomin' glad to see that back of you...

Branding developments

First Devon and Cornwall have began to capitalise on the new freedom to be able to locally brand their fleet in tune with the area, the first of this being the various Cornish depot. Buses within Cornwall rarely stick to the same depot, switching regularly, if not daily between various outstations, and hence a general theme was needed. This has materialised as 'First Kernow' and has quickly found itself onto quite a number of buses within the fleet. Its kept nice and simple, in fact you could probably argue its slightly too low key, with it only being placed above the driver's window and the front doors, but none the less its tasteful, and satisfying to the locals - the Cornish flag being particularly welcome!

Over the boarder we have seen the first of Plymouth's fleet to be re-painted into the new First Group livery, with the honour going to Volvo B6BLE, YJ51 RJX. YJ51 also has the claim to fame of being the first B6 in the country to receive the new livery, and I must admit, it does look a lot better on a single decker with less block colour, than it does on the Enviro 400s. Unforutunately 40586 has yet to be branded with a local identity in pink lettering along the sides, and speculation continues as to what it might end up being! The obvious answer would be Plymouth, but considering that Plymouth depot operates to Torquay, Dartmouth, Tavistock, Okehampton, right across to Bude and south towards Torpoint and the Rame Peninsula, Plymouth doesn't quite fit in. South Devon is a possibility but again, several services do operate into Cornwall. Others suggest they may wind back the clock and apply Western National, although to my knowledge, no other First subsidaries have yet to take this route, and have instead stuck with geographical information with their branding. First Somerset and Avon have gone with 'West of England', so its possible we may see ours applied with South West. Through all this questioning though, its perfectly plausible that what we actually may end up seeing is First - 'Devon and Cornwall'! Now wouldn't that be bold...

Snap on Sunday

This week's Snap on Sunday comes to you from in between Devon and Cornwall, at the mouth of the river Tamar. And aptly, the Tamar Belle is pictured within the shot, basking in the low summer sun, awaiting the point at which she will take over the Northern Belle's duties for her annual refit, in the not to distance future. Here also begins my final week in the South West before I move for pastures new on Saturday morning, but more on that later in the week! 

J-avlin

A remarkable survivor within the First Group empire appears to be this J registered Dennis Javelin, J732 KBC, currently in use with First Somerset and Avon at their Taunton depot. The coach had been new to Martins of Kettering, but has spent a majority of its life working for First Southern National, and later of course FSA, ideally suited to some of the longer express routes in the area, and indeed she was primarily brought in at first to run on the X53 between Exeter and Poole, while based in Weymouth. She has since had spells working within Weymouth since her withdrawal from frontline service. Weirdly though, J732 has carried Barbie 3 within her past, including during her time as a driver trainer, but looking through photos, it seems she has relatively recently undergone a repaint into what appears to be an older First Group livery as pictured above, very similar to the original Barbie livery, without the pink fades, which many buses did carry. My first thought was that this was to distinguish her from her more modern counterparts in Taunton, but other First Group trainers are painted in a much more up to date style than this. But back to the point, while many younger driver training vehicles have been withdrawn around her, J732 pounds on thanks to her being fitted with a manual gearbox. Taunton and Yeovil are some of the few places within the First empire where you can still find Mercedes 709Ds and 711Ds operating, and hence where a majority of subsidiaries now only train their drivers to automatic licences, FSA have had to continue training their drivers to full manual licences, so that they are able to driver the Mercedes in service. Somewhat strange considering that FDC withdrew many automatic Mercedes Varios for scrapping, or onward sale to Poland. I shouldn't complain of course, its always nice to have a bit of variety, despite First Group's questionable logic at times. My thanks go to David Jory for providing the photos of J732, seen here resting in Taunton Bus Station.    

The Carmel Triangle

Well respected coach and bus operator Carmel Coaches' latest expansion has now been revealed, with the first coach to appear in the Plymouth branded livery, and be moved to their current storage location in Plymouth. Carmel have been looking to expand into Plymouth for several months, and thanks to contract renewals for schools in the area, they now have a secure base to now be able to build on, rather than to dive in and hope for the best from private hire work. 

Carmel have gained a very good reputation in Devon since 1984, and hence private hire work does come in from outside their immediate local area. The Exeter division of Carmel was only started 6 years ago, with just a handful of coaches, but has already grown into a dominant coach operator within the city, so it will be very interesting to see how fast they are able to grow in Plymouth. The coach industry in Plymouth has grown fast in itself in recent years, with the formation of Jackett Coaches and Oakley's, as well as the expansion of Target Travel, and Girlings (since their merger by Roselyn of Par). It will therefore be interesting to see how Carmel will mix in within Plymouth over the coming years. With the new base in Plymouth, it has also created quite an elegant triangle of coaches at the companies disposal, at Okehampton, Exeter and Plymouth, and therefore are in easy reach of any work that they may get within Plymouth, and over the borders into Somerset, and now quite possibly even Cornwall. 

The coach itself that has started off has had an interesting history, passing through quite a few different operators over its working life. R36 GNW is a relatively rare DAF SB3000  bodied by Van Hool, which started life with Marchwood Motorways, and then passed to Armchair of London, but has also worked on National Express duties with Selwyns Travel, as well as private hire work. This was the first time I'd travelled on the SB3000, and I have to admit, I was extremely impressed! DAF often seem to make quite 'exciting' vehicles, despite their relative youth, and indeed the exhaust note from R36 was music to my ears! She really shifts as well, and cruised very comfortably on the limiter all the way down to Plymouth, on delivery from Exeter.  

Snap on Sunday

This week, a photo from the ever wonderful, annual Torbay Vintage Bus Rally organised by the Devon and Dorset Preservation Group. This shot sees Devon General vehicles DD 7497, an AEC Regent, posed next to a much more youthful A680 KDV, one of the Leyland Olympians that used to appear regularly on the Exeter to Plymouth express services 'back in her day'. The photo is taken at the iconic Broadsands Viaduct, part of the Dart Valley Railway at which if the timings are right, you can pose vintage buses and trains together to create a real bygone era type photo. The rally was ever popular with enthusiasts once again this year, no doubt thanks to the huge amount of effort put in by the team who organise the event, so many thanks from me personally for a thoroughly enjoyable day out!  

Snap on Sunday

Something a bit out of the ordinary this week for the Snap on Sunday. This 18 meter beast is a Van Hool TG821 'Alligator'. JPB 738V was new to Across in 1980, built to operate on 'Jumbulance' services across the UK. When new she was fitted with 14 beds along the nearside, stacked in twos, hence the non standard double tiered windows, with standard windows and seating on the offside for carers and family members. Her duties simply were to operate day trips for the sick, so that they were able to get out and see the world, from the comfort of a bed, and alongside friends and loved ones. Today, JPB has been converted to a mobile home (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76752978@N02/7860444132/in/photostream) and despite looking a bit rough round the edges, drove 210 miles between her previous home in Chipping Camden, and her new home in Cornwall under her own power, and what power she's got! As you'd expect she's a heavy old lump, and therefore is fitted with an engine to match, a 17 litre Fiat V8! Certainly a very rare find, so thanks must go to Mr Mayhew senior for spotting this one among hedges on his commute through Cornwall. Her new owner certainly seems to have a real interest in bringing her back up to top notch condition, so it certainly appears that the future is bright for this remarkable survivor. 

Photos of her in original condition can be seen by following the links below:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/trickyfield/5726883518/in/photostream/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/42318062@N07/6944854069/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/42318062@N07/6944854191/

Peugeot for the Peninsula

The Maker with Rame (now re-branded Rame Peninsula) community bus has just been updated with this 2 1/2 year old Peugeot Boxer. HG59 HJZ replaced the Ex-Downderry Mercedes Sprinter WK55 ACU which has been plagued with problems since its introduction a few years ago and hence a replacement has been sought earlier than usual. With a lot more branding included on this new livery design, it is hoped that she will attract new users in the areas she will serve. Apologies for the quality of photography, she's parked far to close to that fence for any decent photography! 

Back to Barnstaple

After being away from Barnstaple depot for nie on 3 years, K803 ORL has recently returned to the depot in its final weeks of operation to cover for the Tridents that had been at work on the Plymouth Park and Ride. K803, along with 801 and 804 were of course based up in Barnstaple for several years prior to their move to Torpoint at the withdrawal of the C-HJN Leylands. This is why in particular that these three had been somewhat pampered with a refurbished interior and newer coat of paint than sister bus K802 ORL, which never made the move to North Devon. May well be nice for the drivers at Barnstaple to re-live a bygone era, also rekindling memories of their batch of very similar Olympians. This of course is the L-CFJ batch, of which only one now survives, this being L816 CFJ, currently based in Cornwall. She is pictured at the top in the bus station after a run to Ilfracombe, with the photo coming with thanks from Kameron Allan. The photo below coming with many thanks from Luke Farley is from her time when permanently based in Barnstaple, without the headlight surrounds fitted which I think actually detracts from the 'happy' face found on a Northern Counties bodied Olympian with round headlamps!  

Well, at least there's a bit of blue

While photographing Ex-London Dennis Dart X769 HLR yesterday there was a certain little surprise hiding in the blind box! After zooming in on the photos it appears that instead of using a paper number as they have done before, First have dug out a blue Western National number blind dating back to the 80s! Obviously they'd thrown out all the black ones, other than the black destination blinds, and hence have had to install this rather than continue using bits of paper. Weird to think that this is the only bit that is at least in some way coloured correctly on the vehicle! 

Relaying the Enviros

So to the skeptics that thought the '12 plate Enviros may not return after Olympic duties, fear not! All of the original batch we've had have made it back to Plymouth after their work at Eton Dorney, with a majority of them being out on the PR1 and PR2 today. Quite of a few of them are still clinging onto fame, with their First for London branding. I'd presume this is likely because they'll be needed once again when the Paralymic games start in a few weeks time, and hence would have been a waste having to re-print them all and to re-apply them. As for the Barnstaple stock that has been on loan to cover, three of them have been confirmed working today in place of the 12 plates that aren't back on the road yet, but as to the whereabouts of the rest of them, it appears a bit of a mystery. They may well have been sent back up to Barnstaple again to live out their final few weeks, but then again it does seem somewhat wasteful of time and money to make such a transfer for only a few remaining weeks. We'll just have to see what pans out.  

Snap on Sunday

Today I take you up into the foothills out Mount Snowdon, with the photos shown here being taken in Pen-Y-Pass at the base of the iconic Welsh mountain, but yet still being at some 1'200ft and hence is widely considered to be the highest bus station in the UK. This of course does depend on your definition of a bus station, but Pen-Y-Pass is a pretty safe candidate, with several stands, and several terminating services, as well as through services stopping here. The two Solos seen here are CX08 AOG of Express Motors aboard which I traveled right up from Porthmadog, and Padarn Bus' CH60 CDH having climbed from Betws-Y-Coed. Both very challenging routes, particularly the S97 which negotiated some pretty tight roads and steep climbs on its run up.  

Seen here looking down Llanberis Pass is Padarn Bus Volvo Olympian M215 VSX working an S2, which I journeyed on in place of the Ex-Plymouth Citybus Leyland Atlantean which is the usual allocation to service S1 and S2 from Pen-Y-Pass. The S97 on which I rode on with the Solo has been operated by open top Bristol VR in years gone by, but unfortunately UWV 622S, sister to two of Riverlink's examples,  is now residing out of use in the depot with tarpulin draped over it, and is not set to be used in service again any time soon. 

Coaches in the capital

It wasn't just local buses that made it up to the 2012 Olympics though, a couple of our local coach companies also won work on various duties within London. 

First up is Filer's of Barnstaple's Bova Futura FT12 BBB, new only a few months ago, looking good in its dark red livery.

Also on offer was Carmel Coaches King Long WA09 LKX, looking somewhat strange with various body panels, particularly around the wheel arches, painted in a non matching creamy colour rather than the pure white found on the rest of the coach. Still looking very smart though in its 3^rd year with the company since she was bought new in 2009

Benz bonanza

The Mercedes 709D appears to be making somewhat of a comeback in the area of late, now joined by the introduction to service once again of N276 PDV, returning to service out of preservation for the first time in several years. After passing her Class 6 MOT first time yesterday, N276 was brought out onto service 80 this morning, and ran capably and reliably throughout the day, despite having sat out of use at Winkleigh for many months, showing how reliable these little machines really are. I'd like to see a Vario do the same!

She was joined in Torpoint by PUI 6627, also out working today on service 80A/B. giving a nice comparison not only with the differing frontage fitted to them, but also the difference in length. It is quite interesting to note though how much younger PUI does look, despite actually being a year older than N276.

The other 709D (hmm possibly a 811D actually!) that could have been spotted was the South West Ambulance Service's J126 UNV, appearing extremely well presented in Plymouth City Centre.

Go 2 the Olympics!

How could have I possibly turned down the chance of a day trip to London to photograph vehicles from all over the country gather together in one venue! It was certainly a unique opportunity, unlikely to repeat itself again any time soon, if again in my lifetime at all, and hence the £45 price tag for a return journey to the capital seemed very reasonable! Unfortunately with a somewhat limited knowledge of London itself, decent photography was a huge challenge, but thankfully we did stumble across some quieter areas to acquire some decent photos. Central London just proved a nightmare though, practically impossible without some real knowledge and a fair amount of practice to get the photos you'd want! But anyway, I post here a small selection from the day, all of which are relatively local vehicles to us. At the top we see Go 2 branded Enviro 400 WA08 NOF, of course used on Stagecoach's route along the coast between Exeter and Newton Abbott. Below that you will find Exeter Park and Ride liveried Enviro WA59 FWS, and below that, WA60 FHO, a Torbay based Enviro 400. It seemed slightly strange to me that despite a majority of Stagecoach's newest Enviros having a Scania chassis, that only the ADL versions were used during the Olympics, despite Enviros such as WA08 NOF being comparatively old compared to other on offer. If anyone does know the reason as to why only the ADL ones were used, I've very much appreciate hearing the reasoning behind it. In the mean time if you're interested in some more of my photos taken last Friday in London, then please do follow the link below to view the whole collection. 

http://www.flickr.com/photos/11717981@N02/sets/72157631071970364/

Snap on Sunday

This week, my first go at some night time photography with the D5000, after looking through some fantastic shots produced by the likes of Nick Rice and Shaun Courtnage, to which I have provided some links to at the bottom of this post. With the wonders of Flickr, you are able to delve into the various settings that the masters use to gain the best photos, without this guidence, I would have been completely lost, but am fairly happy with the first attempt! The photo shows Plymouth Citybus Dennis Dart R114 OFJ standing on Royal Parade late on Friday night, about to head for Whitleigh on the 44. It is amazing how different the whole scene looks when dark, the whole atmosphere of Royal Parade, or any area for that matter changes creating a completely different, but certainly desirable photograph to be had!  

http://www.flickr.com/photos/marauder43366/5373073835/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/capuchinoking/6993686346/in/photostream
http://www.flickr.com/photos/capuchinoking/7354384528/in/photostream
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sulzerpower/6750148709/

Snap on Sunday

This week, I go back two weeks to the WNPG's Plymouth Hoe Rally, and the resplendent 824 KDV. This stalwart of the preservation scene is a regular visit to the rally, but never fails to impress, and turn heads with the general public. As I've probably mentioned in previous years, its lovely that the public are able to mix with enthusiasts in this environment, where usually it is purely a gathering of enthusiasts. Then again, its not uncommon to overhear some quite spiteful and derogatory comments from some of the public who seem to think that they know better how we should be spending our time! But there we go. 

Turner's turn up the wick

Turner's Tours are infamous for operating their somewhat rough looking beige fleet, the mainstay being Dennis Darts, in and around Barnstaple and Exeter; but look at this! What a step up. This is KX60 DVP, a 1 1/2 year old Dennis Enviro 200, which had been new to Thurmaston Bus, but unfortunately less than a year after KX60 had been purchased, the company entered bankruptcy. Although this will have meant the bus was undoubtedly cheap in comparison, its still a quantum leap from what you would normally expect from Turner's, as pictured below...