swt class 450
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Does the Stagecoach Manchester network currently connect up with their Cheshire / Cumbria / Lancashire / Merseyside networks? Or is it an isolated network these days?
That would have been the 106 via Shap - again, a wonderful run out on the top of the Pennines!! It did get withdrawn but now survives only on certain days of the week.
Think the 108 was the Penrith to Patterdale (Ullswater) service but it's now the 508 to fit in with the other Lakes services
You can still do Dumfries (or Newcastle!) to Chester - but not Manchester - using this ticket. The Penrith-Kendal section is the weak link, the shoppers bus 106 runs one journey Kendal-Penrith and return on Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. There is also a college bus from Appleby to Kendal via Penrith and return on college days (506) which might be useful for the northbound return. Of course, you can always divert via Keswick instead which is much easier with regular services south to Kendal and Lancaster, north to Carlisle and east to Penrith, also west to Workington. The 508 still runs to Patterdale but maybe best leaving this service till summer when alternate buses go all the way to Windermere over the Kirkstone Pass.
I guess you can do Dumfries to Bolton though?
Quicker the other wayYeah, Bolton to Dumfries is possible with a bright & early start. Not planned out the reverse direction, but for the marathonners out there:
905: 125, Bolton - Preston (arrive 1049)
1105: 40, Preston - Lancaster (1220)
1315: 555, Lancaster - Keswick (1614)
1735: 554, Keswick - Carlisle (1853)
2112: 79, Carlisle - Dumfries (2245)
I'm sure there'll be faster ways of doing it if you leave earlier, but the earlier connection from Keswick goes at half 1, so it might mean getting the X4 over to Penrith and the 104 to Carlisle.
Quicker the other way
I had it that if you left at 0700 from Dumfries (you could do 0745 but you'd only have 12 mins gap in Carlisle and miss your 554), then you could be in Bolton by 1808! That way you can see the sun rise over the Solway Firth, enjoy the delights of Bassenthwaite and the central Lakes, and then arrive in Bolton in the dark!
If I might add, sorry, the 85/685/X85 to and from Carlisle and Newcastle.
Recently I was looking up this route to and from Carlisle and Newcastle or vice versa (a route I'd love to use if I come up to Penrith / Carlisle!) and if I'm right the £10.50 explorer ticket means you can travel either one or both ways / places along this route all for that.
As not bad as Northern's Pacers are / good their other trains are, I wouldn't be surprised if the 85/685/X85 routes have more people using it than the train. Mainly because this route I believe is run by new 68-plate E400 MMC's from Stagecoach which will have leather seats and USB sockets - very useful for a 2 hour 15 minute trip!
Think the rolling stock tends to be 156s rather than Pacers for the longer journeys. Most of the long 685s are supposed to be operated by Arriva Scania Omnicities dating from 2007.
The Tyne Valley Line has had a fall in patronage but that’s more to do with higher bus frequencies with the hourly Hexham to Newcastle being upped to 3 BPH once GoNE started competing.
One Stagecoach board is now the new E400MMC - works the second journey off Carlisle on a weekday morning and the last journey from Newcastle. Arriva’s 3 boards are supposed to be the Omnicitys new in 2007 - however one board (which happens to be the last one from Carlisle) is usually two buses on weekdays, a single decker works the first full trip to Carlisle and back (as well as - I think - a short from Hexham to Newcastle) arriving into Newcastle at 1230 to be swapped for a decker as the 1245’s return journey from Carlisle at 1515 gets school kids on the way back. Officially it’s supposed to be swapped back to a single for the 1750 departure but normally the decker is just left on.
I thought they were Omnicities given I've seen pictures of these buses in Cross-Pennine livery.
Does the Stagecoach Manchester network currently connect up with their Cheshire / Cumbria / Lancashire / Merseyside networks? Or is it an isolated network these days?
I think both Stagecoach Manchester (Wigan) and Stagecoach MCSL (Preston) both serve Wigan - I'm sure when I was there last year I saw Preston allocated Solo around various Wigan vehicles but that is without checking.
A different Transdev journey would be X43 Witchway Manchester to Skipton, (Maybe a quick trip to Grassington on the 72) 66 to keighley then 60 to leeds and 36 to Ripon as said above
You can still do Dumfries (or Newcastle!) to Chester - but not Manchester - using this ticket. The Penrith-Kendal section is the weak link, the shoppers bus 106 runs one journey Kendal-Penrith and return on Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. There is also a college bus from Appleby to Kendal via Penrith and return on college days (506) which might be useful for the northbound return. Of course, you can always divert via Keswick instead which is much easier with regular services south to Kendal and Lancaster, north to Carlisle and east to Penrith, also west to Workington. The 508 still runs to Patterdale but maybe best leaving this service till summer when alternate buses go all the way to Windermere over the Kirkstone Pass.
To add to that, I'm sure they do a day ticket which could get you from Manchester to Whitby/Scarborough. It was definitely available when the CityZap went from Mcr-Leeds.
Pulsars or occasionally Streetlites such as here (not my photo) https://www.flickr.com/photos/paulgrindley/24364526927/ poor passengers!The other duties were operated from Hexham (i.e. United/Northumbria/Arriva) but were moved to Jesmond when Hexham depot was sold. They have 3 Omnicities in Cross Country colours for the three boards but, as you can imagine, they have to substitute for breakdowns and servicing and so Pulsars will deputise. I'm sure Kuyoyo can add more on this.
There is such a ticket it's Daytripper Plus, £17 adults.
In my opinion £17 is very overpriced for a day bus ticket, even if you can travel all the way from Preston to Whitby with it!
In my opinion £17 is very overpriced for a day bus ticket, even if you can travel all the way from Preston to Whitby with it!
Is the Stagecoach North West Explorer ticket sold and accepted on Stagecoach Manchester buses? It doesn't show on their website when you look at fares for Stagecoach Manchester buses so i am not sure if it is?
They don't join up anymore since the X61 was withdrawn years ago, the closest Stagecoach Lancashire get is Bolton on the 125, as for Stagecoach North East, you're correct, they don't accept the North West Explorer, they have the North East Explorer, which is a multi-operator ticket.That's a shame. It would be useful if they sold and accepted it considering that their networks join up. Any idea why they stopped accepting it? I presume that it is not sold or accepted on Stagecoach North East buses either (other than the 685 service)?