Night bus Services

[Samuel88]

How does a medium sized town such as Reading manage to operate a 7 days a week night bus system when other much larger cities can't?

 

[swt class 450]

I think if the town or city has a university then that really helps. I have noticed that those with universities seem to have the best night bus services. Brighton is another one where Go Ahead Brighton & Hove operates the N25 (Brighton to Falmer) every 10 minutes all night long and 7 days a week. This service is extremely busy every time i have seen it despite the frequency. Even in the early hours of Monday morning it can get packed.

Routes serving airports also often have good night bus services. Such as Go Ahead Metrobus operating a network of night bus routes to Gatwick Airport (10/20/100/200) all night long and First Berkshire operating a network of night bus routes to Heathrow Airport (7/8/9) all night long.

So i think it depends on whether the town or city has a university or airport or somewhere that attracts a lot of people to travel to and from at night time.

 

[Statto]

How does a medium sized town such as Reading manage to operate a 7 days a week night bus system when other much larger cities can't?

Most likely down to money, how busy night routes are & that RB is a municipal, companies were profit is the bottom line aren't going to bother with night routes, with cost of employing drivers who will want bigger paycheck for working nights & so on

 

[route101]

In Scotland St Andrews has a night bus from Dundee .

 

[LancasterRed]

I think if the town or city has a university then that really helps. I have noticed that those with universities seem to have the best night bus services. Brighton is another one where Go Ahead Brighton & Hove operates the N25 (Brighton to Falmer) every 10 minutes all night long and 7 days a week. This service is extremely busy every time i have seen it despite the frequency. Even in the early hours of Monday morning it can get packed.

Routes serving airports also often have good night bus services. Such as Go Ahead Metrobus operating a network of night bus routes to Gatwick Airport (10/20/100/200) all night long and First Berkshire operating a network of night bus routes to Heathrow Airport (7/8/9) all night long.

So i think it depends on whether the town or city has a university or airport or somewhere that attracts a lot of people to travel to and from at night time.

Yep. Stagecoach and Lancaster SU run buses throughout some nights, fair to say the Lancaster SU ones are always full and standing... (despite it not being advertised as running University-Lancaster after certain times, they'll always let you on and use it as a public service)

 

[ooo]

In Bristol the 48, 49, 70, 75 and 76 all run 24/7 (48 and 49 have a shortened route)

 

[DaveHarries]

In Bristol the 48, 49, 70, 75 and 76 all run 24/7 (48 and 49 have a shortened route)

Other 2/47 routes in Bristol:
- 43 City Centre to Cadbury Heath
- A1 Bristol Bus Station - Bristol International Airport

Dave

 

[175mph]

Here in Scunthorpe we have two 1a circulars going the opposite way to each other, the last one reaches the bus station just after midnight and an hour earlier on Sundays.

 

[Jordan Adam]

In Aberdeen there's the following...

N1 (First) to Bridge Of Don
N7 (Stagecoach) to Portlethen/Stonehaven
N17 (Stagecoach) to Westhill
N17 (First) to Dyce via Newhills
N19 (First) to Culter
N20 (First) Cross city service linking Garthdee, RGU, Hillhead & Kittybrewster.
N23 (First) to Sheddocksley/Kingswells
N37 (Stagecoach) to Inverurie
N54 (Stagecoach) to Ellon

Until recently First also operated the...
N5: Torry - Northfield, CrossCity service.
N18: To Dyce via Danestone
N21: Circular serving Kincorth & Cove

Stagecoach in the past operated...
963: to Peterhead via Newburgh
N59: Torry - Northfield, CrossCity service.

Independent Bain's Coaches also operated a pair of services at the turn of this decade, these were...
N12: to Garthdee
N16: Circular serving Hilton, Heathryfold, Northfield, Mastrick & Mid-Stocket

 

[swt class 450]

Until a few years ago Go Ahead Brighton & Hove used to charge an extortionate flat fare Single of £8.00 on all of their night buses. This was a massive rip off at four times the normal £2.00 day time Single price. Luckily they have since used some common sense and now charge the same ordinary fares as their day time services (probably because hardly anyone used it before as getting a taxi was often cheaper especially for groups).

 

[alex397]

Yes, having a university certainly helps. Canterbury has the Uni2 route operated by Stagecoach East Kent, running hourly during the night. However, its not 24/7 exactly as it doesn't run on Sunday nights (except during exam periods), and doesn't run in university holidays (except in Easter when students are revising) - yes its complicated! But it is very well used, with some buses with a standing load. It also extends from the Uni to the Hales Place housing estate where many students live in ex-council houses, meaning it can be useful for permanent residents too (not that there are many left on that estate!).

Without the university, a service like that very likely wouldn't run in Canterbury (and the local economy wouldn't be very good either - even if the locals constantly moan about students). To my knowledge, it is the only night bus in Kent.

 

[Red Onion]

In Aberdeen there's the following...

N1 (First) to Bridge Of Don
N7 (Stagecoach) to Portlethen/Stonehaven
N17 (Stagecoach) to Westhill
N17 (First) to Dyce via Newhills
N19 (First) to Culter
N20 (First) Cross city service linking Garthdee, RGU, Hillhead & Kittybrewster.
N23 (First) to Sheddocksley/Kingswells
N37 (Stagecoach) to Inverurie
N54 (Stagecoach) to Ellon

Until recently First also operated the...
N5: Torry - Northfield, CrossCity service.
N18: To Dyce via Danestone
N21: Circular serving Kincorth & Cove

Stagecoach in the past operated...
963: to Peterhead via Newburgh
N59: Torry - Northfield, CrossCity service.

Independent Bain's Coaches also operated a pair of services at the turn of this decade, these were...
N12: to Garthdee
N16: Circular serving Hilton, Heathryfold, Northfield, Mastrick & Mid-Stocket

I forgot about the Bains services! Many a moon ago. I’m guessing patronage wasn’t the best.

I do occasionally use the Ellon service but even though it goes right past the house, I’m quicker jumping off at the first stop and walking. Also saves me falling asleep and waking in Aberdeen

Interestingly are first still running the night service to Kingswells? I thought that stopped when the 14 truncated to Hazlehead.

 

[Jordan Adam]

I forgot about the Bains services! Many a moon ago. I’m guessing patronage wasn’t the best.

I do occasionally use the Ellon service but even though it goes right past the house, I’m quicker jumping off at the first stop and walking. Also saves me falling asleep and waking in Aberdeen

Interestingly are first still running the night service to Kingswells? I thought that stopped when the 14 truncated to Hazlehead.

The Kingswells Service N23 does a loop serving "Sheddocksley > Kingswells > Woodend"

Spoiler: First Aberdeen Night Network (2018)

The Bain's Service's N12 & N16 were council subsidised, they were withdrawn after the council pulled the funding, i've put the timetables for both below...

Spoiler: Bain's Coaches N12

Spoiler: Bain's Coaches N16

Most "Aberdeen - Ellon Town" services have had the same flaw that people from a certain area always end up with a "slower" service.

 

[Mwanesh]

Most likely down to money, how busy night routes are & that RB is a municipal, companies were profit is the bottom line aren't going to bother with night routes, with cost of employing drivers who will want bigger paycheck for working nights & so on

I will disagree with you Reading Buses being a municipal does not mean it does not make a profit.There is a premium payment for night work and people find it easier to use buses than taxis.Its also helped by a University ..You will find if they dont make a profit to repay the loans the council will give them a loan.

 

[NorthernSpirit]

In West Yorkshire there's four nightbus services, of which three radiate out of Leeds and one out of Hebden Bridge.

Service N1 (First Leeds) operates between Leeds City Centre and the Ring Road via Headingley.
Service N9 (Arriva) operates one journey on Friday & Saturday nights to Cleckheaton.
Service N10 (Arriva) operates two journeys of which one runs to The Hepworth in Wakefield before heading down to the depot at Belle Isle.
Service FLX (TLC) operates as a "on request" journey from Hebden Bridge, Hope Street to Blackshaw Head. So if there's no one waiting at Hope Street then the service simply doesn't run.

If anything, a small two bus nightbus operation (which wouldn't go amiss) could work in the university town of Huddersfield. I am discounting the service 314 0005 Huddersfield to Holmfirth and its 310 return working, the 0030 Holmfirth to Huddersfield as its not a proper nightbus its a sort of leftover from when services ran via the railway station until a few years back.

The only routes which would more likley be used for any nightbus service in Huddersfield, as they can interwork without much difficulty, would be the 306 via Newsome, 310 & 314 via Holmfirth, 185 via Marsden, 549 & 363 looped via Brighouse (one route one way and back via the other), 200 (to get back to the depot) and the 398 via Storthes Hall.

 

[Typhoon]

So i think it depends on whether the town or city has a university or airport or somewhere that attracts a lot of people to travel to and from at night time.

Two of TrentBarton's Skylink services operate throughout the night.

 

[higthomas]

So, my attempt at a completish list of night bus services.

• Aberdeen:
  • First run 5 urban night uses on a Friday and Saturday night. Frequencies generally hourly, except the university bus which is half hourly during term time. www.firstgroup.com/aberdeen/routes-and-maps/night-services
  • Stagecoach run 4 interurban services on a Friday and Saturday nights. https://www.stagecoachbus.com/promos-and-offers/north-scotland/north-scotland-night-bird
• Dundee
  • N99 to St Andrews Friday and Saturday https://www.stagecoachbus.com/routes/east-scotland/99d/dundee-city-centre-st-andrews/xhao099d.o
• Edinburgh
  • Lothian run a fantastic service within the city and surrounding area including 24/7 on many routes, with extra on Weekends. https://www.lothianbuses.com/our-services/nightbus/ (A couple get up to ever 30 minutes 24/7!)
  • East coast buses run 3 routes to East Lothian on weekends https://eastcoastbuses.co.uk/nighthawk/
  • Lothian country run the N28 to Livingstone weekends https://lothiancountry.co.uk/n28/
  • Stagecoach run the N55 to Dunfermline weekends, https://www.stagecoachbus.com/timetable-pdf?ServiceId=XHAN055.O
• Glasgow:
  • First run 9 routes urban hourly on weekends https://www.firstgroup.com/greater-glasgow/routes-and-maps/night-bus
  • Stagecoach run 3 of their interurban coaches until late on weekends. https://www.stagecoachbus.com/promos-and-offers/west-scotland/glasgow-night-buses_closed
  • The airport bus runs 24/7 https://www.firstgroup.com/greater-glasgow/routes-and-maps/glasgow-airport-express
• The Glasgow-Edinburgh coach runs 24/7. This is pushing it for a night bus thread, but since it operates a bit like a bus (turn up and go frequencies etc.) I'm including it https://www.citylink.co.uk/service900.php
• Newcastle:
  • Stagecoach operate 5 urban night buses weekends only about half hourly https://www.stagecoachbus.com/promos-and-offers/north-east/night-buses
  • Go-North East run a couple of routes to Sunderland and Durham at weekends https://www.gonortheast.co.uk/nightbuses/
• York:
  • The N66 runs to the university every 30 minutes till about 0330 every night duringterm times only https://www.firstgroup.com/york/pla...ce=N66&routeid=22762696&operator=29&print=pdf
• Leeds:
  • The 36 to Harrogate runs hourly till 0315 Saturday nights only http://www.harrogatebus.co.uk/times?routeID=43
  • See above
• Manchester: airport, oxford road every night, some other routes weekend. Both first and stagecoach. Also transfer routes to the north.
• Liverpool: Airport every night
• Derby: a few Trent routes at weekends and skylink every night to Leicester
• Burnley: dunno if it still runs, but the 66 had a service a few years back
• Nottingham: few 24/7 routes, plus a good urban (nct) and interurban (Trent) services at weekends
• Mansfield: some from derby and Nottingham, but also one route of its own
• Birmingham: few 24/7 routes, plus some which run till 1
• Norwich: had a uni service a few years ago
• Cheltenham/Gloucester have a connecting night bus service
• Cardiff: had a couple, though soon to be cut
• Oxford:
  • Oxford bus company run the NU1 and NU5 Brookes university night buses Wednesday, Friday and Saturday Nights https://brookesbus.oxfordbus.co.uk/timetables/ (Only the NU1 on weekends out of term time)
  • Arrivals run the 280 to Aylesbury on weekends https://www.arrivabus.co.uk/beds-an...ire---aylesbury-to-oxford/?direction=outbound
  • Thames Travel run the NX2 and the NX40 to Wallingford and Didcot respectively at weekends https://www.thames-travel.co.uk/timetables-fares/
  • Stagecoach run a variety or services, with 7 services running till 3 at weekends and some running on weekdays. There are a mixture of both city and interurban services.
• Reading: good number
• London: loads
• Cambridge: a few on a citi route or two
• Guildford: one on the main uni route
• Thanet: had one on the triangle last I looked
• Canterbury: see higher post
• Gatwick: had a few metrobus routes
• Heathrow: significantly downsized operation by first
• Isle of Wight: loads weirdly
• Brighton: loads, mainly b and h, by also stagecoach and a random one from Horsham (dunno if still around, but it was only ever advertised on facebook)
• Southampton: both first and go ahead used to have some, although both have almost disappeared now
• Poole/Bournemouth have the 24/7 m1 and m2 routes.
• 
  
• That's all I can think of at the moment. So whilst unis help, they're definitely not th only reason. Its mainly just good local bus use (see all the areas at the top of the bus use table) and those with good nightlife. Airports, it's weirdly hit and miss, and often only on 1 routes.
• 
  
• Edit:
• 
  
• Forgot the strangely great service by first from Weymouth to Portland!
• And the stanstead routes from both Essex and Hertfordshire
• And the luton busway is 24/7 now I think
• And Bristol see above, although with a fair few weekend extras
• and bath is pretty good, although mainly uni related as well as the service to bristol
• And Falmouth had (has?) some for the uni there
• And some for uni of Warwick

And now my rankings of locations for night bus transport (weekday services, route variety, uni holiday services and frequency being the main things I look for):

• London (obviously, it's incredible)
• Edinburgh (excellent service all week)
• Bristol (lots of 24/7 routes, with many weekend extras)
• Nottingham (best weekend service in the country outside London, with some 24/7 routes)
• Brighton (alright service all week, although worse than it was a couple of years ago)
• Isle of Wight (wtf , why!)
• Oxford (cracking by number, and across 4 operators! Only really 3 on weekdays though, and not even the 1 is 24/7)
• Weymouth (24/3 is pretty impressive for a small town)
• Birmingham (4 24/7 routes, but otherwise struggling)
• Manchester (Oxford road excepted, I'd expect more on weekdays to be honest)

 

[Mutant Lemming]

There are some weekend night journeys on the Liverpool - Ellesmere Port - Chester service.

https://tiscon-maps-stagecoachbus.s...ool and Wirral/1Liverpool-Chester-3Sept17.pdf

 

[Typhoon]

Thanet: had one on the triangle last I looked

The main bus routes in Thanet are the 8 ('The Breeze') and the Loop.
8 - No buses between midnight and 05:00.
Loop - on a Friday and Saturday there are journeys anticlockwise at 23:50 and 00:50 finishing at 01:50. Clockwise, last journey finishes at the garage at 00:13.

The Triangle links Canterbury to Whitstable and Herne Bay. First journey departs at 05:14 (anticlockwise) except on a Saturday when there is a clockwise journey at 04:49. However, on a Monday to Friday a bus follows the same route to Canterbury but as a number 6. The early start for the Triangle routes is partly because the buses run in service to get to Canterbury ready for the return journey.

 

[route101]

So, my attempt at a completish list of night bus services.

Aberdeen: first and stagecoach run urban and interbank services.
Dundee: stagecoach night bus to st andrews
Edinburgh: Lothian and subsidiaries run an excellent night bus service. Stagecoach run some services across the forth.
Glasgow: first run an urban weekend service and a few routes. Stagecoach operate some services to the south on interbank routes
Newcastle: go-ahead have a couple of routes to the south of the city. Stagecoach have a few urban routes to the north.
York: uni night bus
Leeds: see above, plus the 36 to harrogate. Amazingly poor for a city its size.
Manchester: airport, oxford road every night, some other routes weekend. Both first and stagecoach. Also transfer routes to the north.
Liverpool: Airport every night
Derby: a few Trent routes at weekends and skylink every night to Leicester
Burnley: dunno if it still runs, but the 66 had a service a few years back
Nottingham: few 24/7 routes, plus a good urban (nct) and interurban (Trent) services at weekends
Mansfield: some from derby and Nottingham, but also one route of its own
Birmingham: few 24/7 routes, plus some which run till 1
Norwich: had a uni service a few years ago
Cheltenham/Gloucester have a connecting night bus service
Cardiff: had a couple, though soon to be cut
Oxford: a lot on multiple different operators, both urban and inter urban.
Reading: good number
London: loads
Cambridge: a few on a citi route or two
Guildford: one on the main uni route
Thanet: had one on the triangle last I looked
Canterbury: see higher post
Gatwick: had a few metrobus routes
Heathrow: significantly downsized operation by first
Isle of Wight: loads weirdly
Brighton: loads, mainly b and h, by also stagecoach and a random one from Horsham (dunno if still around, but it was only ever advertised on facebook)
Southampton: both first and go ahead used to have some, although both have almost disappeared now
Poole/Bournemouth have the 24/7 m1 and m2 routes.

That's all I can think of at the moment. So whilst unis help, they're definitely not th only reason. Its mainly just good local bus use (see all the areas at the top of the bus use table) and those with good nightlife. Airports, it's weirdly hit and miss, and often only on 1 routes.

Edit:

Forgot the strangely great service by first from Weymouth to Portland!
And the stanstead routes from both Essex and Hertfordshire
And the luton busway is 24/7 now I think
And Bristol see above, although with a fair few weekend extras
and bath is pretty good, although mainly uni related as well as the service to bristol
And Falmouth had (has?) some for the uni there
And some for uni of Warwick

And now my rankings of locations for night bus transport (weekday services, route variety, uni holiday services and frequency being the main things I look for):

London (obviously, it's incredible)
Edinburgh (excellent service all week)
Bristol (lots of 24/7 routes, with many weekend extras)
Nottingham (best weekend service in the country outside London, with some 24/7 routes)
Brighton (alright service all week, although worse than it was a couple of years ago)
Isle of Wight (wtf , why!)
Oxford (cracking by number, and across 4 operators! Only really 3 on weekdays though, and not even the 1 is 24/7)
Weymouth (24/3 is pretty impressive for a small town)
Birmingham (4 24/7 routes, but otherwise struggling)
Manchester (Oxford road excepted, I'd expect more on weekdays to be honest)

Whats an interbank route , stagecoach Glasgow?

 

[Ianno87]

Cambridge just has a night service on the Citi 1 on a Friday and Saturday night (couple of post-midnight journeys each way, premium fare charged)

 

[Hophead]

There are some weekend night journeys on the Liverpool - Ellesmere Port - Chester service.

https://tiscon-maps-stagecoachbus.s3.amazonaws.com/Timetables/Merseyside/Liverpool and Wirral/1Liverpool-Chester-3Sept17.pdf

Not for much longer! Planned to end on 28th April (consulting till 3rd March).

 

[Red Onion]

The Kingswells Service N23 does a loop serving "Sheddocksley > Kingswells > Woodend"

Spoiler: First Aberdeen Night Network (2018)

The Bain's Service's N12 & N16 were council subsidised, they were withdrawn after the council pulled the funding, i've put the timetables for both below...

Spoiler: Bain's Coaches N12

Spoiler: Bain's Coaches N16

Most "Aberdeen - Ellon Town" services have had the same flaw that people from a certain area always end up with a "slower" service.

A fantastic wealth of information as always!

 

[higthomas]

The main bus routes in Thanet are the 8 ('The Breeze') and the Loop.
8 - No buses between midnight and 05:00.
Loop - on a Friday and Saturday there are journeys anticlockwise at 23:50 and 00:50 finishing at 01:50. Clockwise, last journey finishes at the garage at 00:13.

The Triangle links Canterbury to Whitstable and Herne Bay. First journey departs at 05:14 (anticlockwise) except on a Saturday when there is a clockwise journey at 04:49. However, on a Monday to Friday a bus follows the same route to Canterbury but as a number 6. The early start for the Triangle routes is partly because the buses run in service to get to Canterbury ready for the return journey.

Ah yes, the loop. That was the one I meant.

 

[swt class 450]

I remember that Palaeobus (who went bust years ago) used to operate night bus services around Worthing which i always found strange considering Worthing is not the sort of place you would really need them.

 

[43055]

Derby: a few Trent routes at weekends and skylink every night to Leicester
Nottingham: few 24/7 routes, plus a good urban (nct) and interurban (Trent) services at weekends​

Trent Barton's Red Arrow also runs 24/7 between Derby and Nottingham except Sunday nights.

 

[Wirewiper]

Reading's 24-hour bus routes are 5 (Northumberland Avenue), 6 (Whitley Wood), 17 (Wokingham Road - Tilehurst), 21 (Lower Earley via University) and 26 (Calcot). All run hourly between midnight and 06.00, whilst the 17 and 21 have extra journeys on Friday night/Saturday morning and Saturday night/Sunday morning giving a half-hourly until 02.30.

There are also late night journeys on Friday night/Saturday morning and Saturday night/Sunday morning on Woodley circular route 13, with departures from Reading Station at 00.30, 01.30 and 02.30.

The night journeys on the 5 and 6 are unusual as they are linked across Whitley Wood as a loop, so an outbound 5 returns as a 6 and vice-versa and passengers can remain on the bus. The daytime routes do not do this. Also night journeys on route 6 do not operate around the Whitley Wood Estate.

Reading's night buses do not operate on the nights of 24/25, 25/26 and 26/27 December.

 

[Deerfold]

I will disagree with you Reading Buses being a municipal does not mean it does not make a profit.There is a premium payment for night work and people find it easier to use buses than taxis.Its also helped by a University ..You will find if they dont make a profit to repay the loans the council will give them a loan.

No-one said Reading buses didn't make a profit. Only that they are not only looking at getting the highest profit margin on routes.

 

[Deerfold]

In West Yorkshire there's four nightbus services, of which three radiate out of Leeds and one out of Hebden Bridge.

Service N1 (First Leeds) operates between Leeds City Centre and the Ring Road via Headingley.
Service N9 (Arriva) operates one journey on Friday & Saturday nights to Cleckheaton.
Service N10 (Arriva) operates two journeys of which one runs to The Hepworth in Wakefield before heading down to the depot at Belle Isle.
Service FLX (TLC) operates as a "on request" journey from Hebden Bridge, Hope Street to Blackshaw Head. So if there's no one waiting at Hope Street then the service simply doesn't run.

If anything, a small two bus nightbus operation (which wouldn't go amiss) could work in the university town of Huddersfield. I am discounting the service 314 0005 Huddersfield to Holmfirth and its 310 return working, the 0030 Holmfirth to Huddersfield as its not a proper nightbus its a sort of leftover from when services ran via the railway station until a few years back.

The only routes which would more likley be used for any nightbus service in Huddersfield, as they can interwork without much difficulty, would be the 306 via Newsome, 310 & 314 via Holmfirth, 185 via Marsden, 549 & 363 looped via Brighouse (one route one way and back via the other), 200 (to get back to the depot) and the 398 via Storthes Hall.

The N9 and N10 are fairly disappointing as night routes with one midnight journey - Leeds used to have 8 First-run routes with 3 journeys on each. They're much like the 314 except they've been given a special number.

The FLX has just the one journey at 2340 - enabling people to get home after leaving Leeds at 2231 or Manchester at 2258. Useful, but not what I'd call a night service.

Huddersfield also used to have a small nightbus network before First dropped it in the early nineties. A little later they dropped the Halifax network citing poor usage - odd news to those of us used to having to stand on a double decker. They did briefly run a Leeds - Bradford - Halifax night service hourly on Friday and Saturday nights.

 

[Kieran1990]

In West Yorkshire there's four nightbus services, of which three radiate out of Leeds and one out of Hebden Bridge.

Service N1 (First Leeds) operates between Leeds City Centre and the Ring Road via Headingley.
Service N9 (Arriva) operates one journey on Friday & Saturday nights to Cleckheaton.
Service N10 (Arriva) operates two journeys of which one runs to The Hepworth in Wakefield before heading down to the depot at Belle Isle.]

I have to say- the Leeds Night Service options aren’t great. Wish there was more of an offer the N1 & N10 to be honest.
For such a big city and with such a large Studnet population you’d ha e thought it would be fairly established night network and marketed well for students...