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Classic Bus North West - Red Rocket Express

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Deerfold

Deerfold

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radamfi said:
I'm sure a bendy bus from the 80s (like the ones in Sheffield) would have a lot more than 49 seats!
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I'm sure they did but as that's not what they're using, I'm not sure of the relevance - unless they've fitted more to these buses. If they've refitted them inside they may be far more suitable - but I suspect they haven't spent that sort of money.



overthewater said:
Its a Stagecoach Standard B10M ps single decker.

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/...D_in_Middlesbrough_bus_station_5_May_2009.JPG


But course its not low floor....
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The sentence still didn't make any sense.
 
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radamfi

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Deerfold said:
I'm sure they did but as that's not what they're using, I'm not sure of the relevance - unless they've fitted more to these buses. If they've refitted them inside they may be far more suitable - but I suspect they haven't spent that sort of money.
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The relevance is that you can't get single deckers with lots of seats any more. The Leyland National, and presumably the Sheffield bendy buses in the 80s, had no room of a wheelchair or buggies so had plenty of room for seats.

The ex-London bendy buses may be attractive for a number of reasons. They are (presumably) relatively low mileage given their premature ejection from London and are cheap because they are not considered useful in countries which drive on the left. 49 may be the number of seats they are looking for. They may not be looking for double deck capacity, but modern rigid single deckers don't have enough seats. And, of course, you are getting a Citaro!
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Looks like this service may not happen after all.

I read on the GM Buses Yahoo Group that Manchester City Council (who regulate bus stops in the city centre) and TfGM haven't been notified about this service, and the website no longer works.
 
gnolife

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Is it just me, or does the picture seem to be showing a bus with the doors on the right hand side?
 
robertclark125

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Good to see the discounts for senior citizens apply to those holding any local authority issued concessionary card.
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So, it's took off, has anyone seen it?
 
bb21

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So by the looks of the picture in their website, they haven't padded the seats by much.

Sore bottoms at the end of the 90 minutes I think.
 
Xenophon PCDGS

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Andrew Nelson

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With the return rail trip being £8.30 for holders of the GM OAP pass / Railcard, I doubt many will find the £8 single / Return attractive.
 
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northwichcat

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Paul Sidorczuk said:
I noted the "20 minutes late" comment in the text under the picture...and on its first day..:roll:
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A similar comment could have been said about the first day of the Vale Travel 27 Macclesfield-Knutsford service and at least they had the previous operator's timings to use in deciding on bus times.
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Daytripper said:
With the return rail trip being £8.30 for holders of the GM OAP pass / Railcard, I doubt many will find the £8 single / Return attractive.
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What were the on-the-day fares for the withdrawn X61 Stagecoach service in comparison? I know on that service there were a limited number of £1 Megabus tickets and people with over 60s passes travelled for free.
 
Xenophon PCDGS

Xenophon PCDGS

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Daytripper said:
Intended?....Why,did it not happen?
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I used the word "intended" in my posting as the company intended that this offer would be published in the Blackpool Gazette, but medical matters have unfortunately made it not possible for me to ascertain when this was done. Living in the rural part of Cheshire East, I am somewhat far removed from the publication area of the newspaper in question, but a day out on the Blackpool coast should aid my recovery when I feel up to it.
 
WestCoast

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Used this service yesterday for the first time and on the whole came away with a positive impression. Outbound on a Saturday at 13.30 from Manchester was operated by the Articulated Citaro, with just me and another passenger onboard. Service took around 75 minutes, which was indeed around the same time as the faster rail service. From Manchester to Blackpool in the evening, the service was operated by an older ex-Stagecoach B10M intended for local use, not quite a merc! However. This service was almost full with returning shoppers! Took a bit longer, around 95 minutes.
 
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Class20

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A surprise to hear a B10M being used on the service. Its usually ether an Olympian or one of the two recently purchased Wright Crusader bodied Volvo B6s used when any of the three Citaro Artics are unavailable. I plan to use the service next weekend, who knows what will turn up.

It is good to know that the service is being well used. I've read a couple of bits of info about the service recently and both say that loadings are good with revenue on the up. It will be interesting to see how the service stands up once the Christmas period is over, will passenger numbers remain high or will there be a significant drop.
 
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overthewater

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PS B10M are the most suited for operating this service, so I can see it appearing more often.
 
WestCoast

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Class20 said:
A surprise to hear a B10M being used on the service. Its usually ether an Olympian or one of the two recently purchased Wright Crusader bodied Volvo B6s used when any of the three Citaro Artics are unavailable. I plan to use the service next weekend, who knows what will turn up.
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Heading to Manchester, I noted a Crusader operating the opposite working, so it must have been swapped for the B10M later on. Apparently, 2 out of 3 Citaro Artics are not available at the moment, so there's quite a lot of variety!

Class20 said:
It is good to know that the service is being well used. I've read a couple of bits of info about the service recently and both say that loadings are good with revenue on the up. It will be interesting to see how the service stands up once the Christmas period is over, will passenger numbers remain high or will there be a significant drop.
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Yeah, it was a very healthy loading of approximately 35 - 40 passengers on the 16.30 from Manchester. With OAPs paying at least £8 (rather than nothing that they use to pay on the X61), I could see the service being sustainable.
 
robertclark125

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Why don't they also call in at Preston Bus station? It's a no brainer, fast link to Blackpool from that city, and also a fast manchester - Preston link?
 
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