• Our booking engine at tickets.railforums.co.uk (powered by TrainSplit) helps support the running of the forum with every ticket purchase! Find out more and ask any questions/give us feedback in this thread!

Lothian Group discussion (Lothian City, Lothian Country Bus and East Coast Buses)

Snow1964

Established Member
Joined
7 Oct 2019
Messages
6,024
Location
West Wiltshire
I'm pretty sure all 09 plate Gemini 2's are the same batch.

Am I correct in thinking the 09 plate buses were the last of the euroIV spec buses? Buses from Autumn 2009 were euroV.

So is the plan to offload anything that is not at least euroV ?
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Sponsor Post - registered members do not see these adverts; click here to register, or click here to log in
R

RailUK Forums

scosutsut

Member
Joined
1 Jan 2019
Messages
932
Location
scosutsut
Am I correct in thinking the 09 plate buses were the last of the euroIV spec buses. Buses from Autumn 2009 were euroV

So is plan to offload anything that is not at least euroV ?
I think all B9s are Euro 5, as Lothian's Bus2020 was about getting the whole fleet to Euro 5 or better.

For the up coming LEZ they have to be aiming for Euro 6, so B9s need equinox Euro 6 upgrades fitted, or they need to go. So I'd assume the newer B9s have got / will get that treatment, everything else will be going.

If the target remains to run vehicles to 13 years old and then dispose of them, the 09s should all leave the fleet in 2022, so I'd assume they haven't been treated and instead are going to go slightly early.

Lothian have (according the The Scotsman so believe it at your own risk) committed to Euro 6 only by the end of 2021 - ahead of the proposed LEZ introduction (2022) and LEZ enforcement (2024).
 

CN04NRJ

Established Member
Joined
28 Nov 2019
Messages
1,711
Location
UK
I think all B9s are Euro 5, as Lothian's Bus2020 was about getting the whole fleet to Euro 5 or better.

For the up coming LEZ they have to be aiming for Euro 6, so B9s need equinox Euro 6 upgrades fitted, or they need to go. So I'd assume the newer B9s have got / will get that treatment, everything else will be going.

If the target remains to run vehicles to 13 years old and then dispose of them, the 09s should all leave the fleet in 2022, so I'd assume they haven't been treated and instead are going to go slightly early.

Lothian have (according the The Scotsman so believe it at your own risk) committed to Euro 6 only by the end of 2021 - ahead of the proposed LEZ introduction (2022) and LEZ enforcement (2024).

1-10, 351-400 1000-1050 1141-1152 along with a handful (don't know which ones) of the 59 plates at Marine have been upgraded to euro 6 to my knowledge. Assume these are the buses that are staying for the meantime.

Anything else is euro 5, pretty sure all the 07 onwards B7RLEs were euro 5 too (and some of the native 04/55s?)

If that is the case then Lothian Country's 928 - 936 won't have long left either.

Why? They're a part of a different fleet.

What would need to be repainted and replaced in the Lothian fleet to facilitate this?
 
Last edited:

scosutsut

Member
Joined
1 Jan 2019
Messages
932
Location
scosutsut
1-10, 351-400 1000-1050 1141-1152 along with a handful (don't know which ones) of the 59 plates at Marine have been upgraded to euro 6 to my knowledge. Assume these are the buses that are staying for the meantime.

Anything else is euro 5, pretty sure all the 07 onwards B7RLEs were euro 5 too (and some of the native 04/55s?)

The Three Bridges Tour pair 905/906 are badged externally as Euro6 from memory - would make sense, keep older assets on them given the seasonality of the work.

I don't know about the former motorhomes ones, I'm going to guess with a few repainted into LC colours they have been, and would guess 844-850 will all go over to LC when ECB get their B5TL/E400s - unless the aim is to push out the 20937-950 batch as previous comments have highlighted, they've had bruising allocations so will be higher mileage.

ECB's 10195 - 10199 and survivors from 20937-20950 (Inc 942) will need treatment or be taken off allocations that take them into the LEZ.
 

Graeme Duncan

Member
Joined
3 Mar 2018
Messages
151
According to the tracker 900 + 916-925 are the remaining 08 B9s currently still in service.
However I find it somewhat baffling that 900 has not been withdrawn . Reason being
it is out of numerical sequence.
 

scosutsut

Member
Joined
1 Jan 2019
Messages
932
Location
scosutsut
According to the tracker 900 + 916-925 are the remaining 08 B9s currently still in service.
However I find it somewhat baffling that 900 has not been withdrawn . Reason being
it is out of numerical sequence.
I think the biggest mistake to make is to assume a bus company gives a hoot about what order they come out of service, the best examples will likely stay out the longest. Be it overall condition, mileage, length of MOT etc.
 

DunsBus

Established Member
Joined
12 Jan 2013
Messages
1,405
Location
Duns
I think the biggest mistake to make is to assume a bus company gives a hoot about what order they come out of service, the best examples will likely stay out the longest. Be it overall condition, mileage, length of MOT etc.
Absolutely correct This waa certainly the case in LRT days, the worst examples were first to go.
 

ALADOU47

Member
Joined
11 Apr 2019
Messages
14
I had a test drive of the Enviro today. It felt weird looking forward instead of left and right for your mirrors.
 
Last edited by a moderator:

OmniCity999

Established Member
Joined
30 Jan 2018
Messages
1,283
Location
Scotland
Does anybody know if 601 will be back at Lothian soon?
Strictly speaking, it hasn't been delivered yet. It's a Volvo/ADL testbed. It may conduct demonstration duties with other people first. It's not entirely confirmed yet, or atleast that I know of.
 
Last edited:

CN04NRJ

Established Member
Joined
28 Nov 2019
Messages
1,711
Location
UK
174/175 back at Longstone. Make of that what you will... I suppose it is getting busier out there so a service change might be coming? :s (haven't checked to see if anything has been announced anywhere)
 
Joined
31 Jul 2020
Messages
741
Location
West Lothian
It would appear that a traning bus was on Lothian Country's X27.

Screenshot_20210616-182535_DuckDuckGo.jpg

I don't know the accuracy of this however the map looks like it was actually on the route.

Screenshot_20210616-182835_DuckDuckGo.jpg

Image references.

The first image is 168 SN58 BYV on the Lothian Country fleet list on bustimes.org.

The second image is of the route map that 168 took (Edinburgh to Whitburn).
 

Bus9120UK

Established Member
Joined
5 Oct 2019
Messages
1,397
Location
Edinburgh
It would appear that a traning bus was on Lothian Country's X27.

View attachment 98267

I don't know the accuracy of this however the map looks like it was actually on the route.

View attachment 98268

Image references.

The first image is 168 SN58 BYV on the Lothian Country fleet list on bustimes.org.

The second image is of the route map that 168 took (Edinburgh to Whitburn).
There is a chance of a tracker swap between TB2 and another vehicle - I highly doubt it actually was on it. This, or it was used to train on route X27 and not a public run.
 

FlybeDash8Q400

Established Member
Joined
26 Jun 2018
Messages
1,698
Location
Edinburgh
It would appear that a traning bus was on Lothian Country's X27.

View attachment 98267

I don't know the accuracy of this however the map looks like it was actually on the route.

View attachment 98268

Image references.

The first image is 168 SN58 BYV on the Lothian Country fleet list on bustimes.org.

The second image is of the route map that 168 took (Edinburgh to Whitburn).
A training bus cannot and won’t be used on normal runs, I believe certain modifications are made in such a way that they can no longer be used in regular service until they are reverted back to how they were. A training bus normally has a second seat and parking brake added for the instructor which is in direct conflict of any passenger flow.

AVL has likely been reused and bustimes hasn’t got a record of what bus now has the AVL. As I’ve said countless times previously it’s not the most reliable source in the world for things like this.

I’m sure 168 has been modified already, and is now TB2.
 

CN04NRJ

Established Member
Joined
28 Nov 2019
Messages
1,711
Location
UK
A training bus cannot and won’t be used on normal runs, I believe certain modifications are made in such a way that they can no longer be used in regular service until they are reverted back to how they were. A training bus normally has a second seat and parking brake added for the instructor which is in direct conflict of any passenger flow.

AVL has likely been reused and bustimes hasn’t got a record of what bus now has the AVL. As I’ve said countless times previously it’s not the most reliable source in the world for things like this.

I’m sure 168 has been modified already, and is now TB2.

This is TB2, former 168.

IMG_20210616_184322.jpg
 

cnjb8

Established Member
Joined
26 Feb 2019
Messages
2,113
Location
Nottingham
As said above, bustimes uses ticket machines for tracking, which operators seem to switch them around between vehicles. Bustimes is a good website, but it can lack accuracy due to this
 

mb88

Member
Joined
17 Aug 2012
Messages
438
It would appear that a traning bus was on Lothian Country's X27.

View attachment 98267

I don't know the accuracy of this however the map looks like it was actually on the route.

View attachment 98268

Image references.

The first image is 168 SN58 BYV on the Lothian Country fleet list on bustimes.org.

The second image is of the route map that 168 took (Edinburgh to Whitburn).

I'd imagine it was used for route learning and the trainer got the driver to log onto the ticket machine to do a bit of familiarisation with that along the way.
 

DunsBus

Established Member
Joined
12 Jan 2013
Messages
1,405
Location
Duns
Strictly speaking, it hasn't been delivered yet. It's a Volvo/ADL testbed. It may conduct demonstration duties with other people first. It's not entirely confirmed yet, or atleast that I know of.

Not the first time this has happened. :) Here's one from back in the day - photo credit to VRS323, William Walker.


Olympian 770 (B770GSC), the final bus of the 1984 batch of 34 Olympians, was used by Leyland as a demonstator before finally joining its sisters in Edinburgh in June 1985. By the end of the following month, it was off again as Leyland reacquired it for use as an overseas demonstrator (in connection with a potential order from Bangkok, if my memory is correct) and supplying a replacement 770, C770SFS, with the next batch of Olympians.
The demonstration never materialised and the bus was eventually purchased by Citybus in Hong Kong, becoming their fleet number 19. Latterly serving as a driver trainer, it was finally scrapped a few years ago.
 

CN04NRJ

Established Member
Joined
28 Nov 2019
Messages
1,711
Location
UK
I'd imagine it was used for route learning and the trainer got the driver to log onto the ticket machine to do a bit of familiarisation with that along the way.

Probably unlikely, as the bus showed up on all trackers and therefore would show up on bus stops as due etc. It would have to be logged into a running board and the AVL will deny any log on if the running board is logged into another bus.
 

Aaronb2601

Member
Joined
6 Oct 2020
Messages
61
Location
Private@55
Something I noticed is that on fleet numbers 401-425 and 551-570 there is a blue light that comes on above the main door when it is opened, is there any particular reason for this? Or is it just a design feature.
 
Last edited:

VioletEclipse

Member
Joined
10 Nov 2018
Messages
714
Location
Dùn Èideann
Something I noticed is that on fleet numbers 401-425 and 551-570 there is a blue light that comes on above the main door when it is opened, is there any particular reason for this? Or is it just a design feature.
As far as I know all buses (or at least most) have an interior light above the door that only lights up when the door is opened, it uses blue LEDs on those buses hence why it lights up blue.
 
Last edited by a moderator:

317 forever

Established Member
Joined
21 Aug 2010
Messages
2,544
Location
North West
Yes double deckers would sometimes appear on these routes but since Covid these routes (and service 2) became fully double deck operated. For several months Central was the only depot operating all services and 401-425, 551-570 and 441-465 were all transferred to Central from Longstone. When Longstone reopened only 551-570 returned to their original depot but others (such as the Central ex London buses) moved to Longstone. Service 22 (which was the main bus that used 441-465 at Longstone) has also remained at Central for the time being.
I had forgotten about route 2 being a recent double-deck conversion. I was expecting the ex-Go-Ahead London Volvo B9TLs on this as well as route 4. Thankfully I did track one down on route 21 instead. I realised route 22 was still at Central as I saw occasional ex-route 3 B5TLs here as well as on routes 14 & 31.
 

CN04NRJ

Established Member
Joined
28 Nov 2019
Messages
1,711
Location
UK
I had forgotten about route 2 being a recent double-deck conversion. I was expecting the ex-Go-Ahead London Volvo B9TLs on this as well as route 4. Thankfully I did track one down on route 21 instead. I realised route 22 was still at Central as I saw occasional ex-route 3 B5TLs here as well as on routes 14 & 31.

The 2 is split between Longstone and Marine - the former working 5 of the 8 buses and the latter the 3. Strangely though a Marine bus goes off service to Broomhouse and the first 2 goes off service to The Jewel from Longstone.

On a Sunday the 2 is run fully by Longstone with 5 buses.
 

nesw

Member
Joined
5 Jan 2013
Messages
252
Location
London
New timetables from 26 June are on Traveline Scotland , yet to be confirmed by Lothian as starting then.
 

90019

Established Member
Joined
29 May 2008
Messages
6,823
Location
Featherstone, West Yorkshire
The 2 is split between Longstone and Marine - the former working 5 of the 8 buses and the latter the 3. Strangely though a Marine bus goes off service to Broomhouse and the first 2 goes off service to The Jewel from Longstone.

Sounds like when the 1 was split between Central and Longstone - after the next again service change, most of the Central buses went off service to/from Clermiston while the Longstone buses went to/from Easter Road.
 

CN04NRJ

Established Member
Joined
28 Nov 2019
Messages
1,711
Location
UK
New timetables from 26 June are on Traveline Scotland , yet to be confirmed by Lothian as starting then.

On bustimes.org as well, good to see the return of X routes and the N14. Among other changes.
 

Top