TRIVIA: Limited-stop bus services

[Statto]

Fond memories of the old 500 which was limited stop from Speke to Kirkby. It was well used as it provided fast journeys from both Speke and Kirkby to the City Centre and also provided through journies from Speke to The North End of Liverpool via Scotland Road and Walton Road. It was stopped when the section of railway between Central and Garston was reopened in 1976(I think ) and the original Merseyrail train ran from Kirkby(Now Southport) to Garston. To placate the residents of Speke, a stopping service, 84, was put on which ran from Speke to Garston Station on the premise that you changed from bus to train to complete your journey. It was doomed to failure because the 84 was not limited stop and there was little time advantage in changing modes when going to the City Centre. It was just as quick to remain on the through services such as the 82 or indeed the old Crosville service,H1.500 has since been resurrected as an Airport to the City Centre Route for a different market than its predecessor.

That was 78, i have a PTE North South division timetable October 77 which has the 500 still operating Speke-Kirkby, the Garston branch was opened in 78, & the 500 was eventually withdrawn.

 

[Be3G]

In London there's the X26, 607 and X68.

There's a proposal for a new express route too, tying in with the launch of Crossrail: an X140, from Heathrow to Harrow.

Additionally, there're a few London buses which run non-stop along sections of route outside London that have stops for other buses. This is presumably because the point of the TfL buses is to ferry Londoners to and from the useful non-London locations, without trying to provide a local service for the residents of those locations. For example, the 96 skips some stops between Dartford and Bluewater, and school buses 608 and 677 operate a bit like expresses from the London boundary to the non-London schools they serve.

 

[ivanhoe]

That was 78, i have a PTE North South division timetable October 77 which has the 500 still operating Speke-Kirkby, the Garston branch was opened in 78, & the 500 was eventually withdrawn.

Thanks for this Statto. What it does show in Merseyside, is that for all the success of Merseyrail, Buses are still just as important. The corridor from Garston to the City Centre is dominated by the 82’s even though there are 4 trains an hour serving Garston, Cressington,Aigburth etc. More to do with the location of the stations in relation to where people actually live. Even Allerton which is closest to Garston station has a very good 86 Service. Of course, traffic has changed dramatically since 1978 and I don’t think a limited stop service between Speke and Kirkby would be commercially viable.

 

[Statto]

Thanks for this Statto. What it does show in Merseyside, is that for all the success of Merseyrail, Buses are still just as important. The corridor from Garston to the City Centre is dominated by the 82’s even though there are 4 trains an hour serving Garston, Cressington,Aigburth etc. More to do with the location of the stations in relation to where people actually live. Even Allerton which is closest to Garston station has a very good 86 Service. Of course, traffic has changed dramatically since 1978 and I don’t think a limited stop service between Speke and Kirkby would be commercially viable.

Yep, Aigburth Vale which is one of the bus hubs is quite a walk to Aigburth Station, then you have the shops on Park Road Toxteth well away from the nearest stations, the 86 is similar, Mather Avenue & Smithdown Road are some distance from the nearest stations, nearest being Mossley Hill & West Allerton both about a 5-10 minute walk.