Trip to Stoke / Tunstall 29-11-2014

Bus	From	To	Service	Operator
42892	Magdalen Road, Blurton	Trentham, adj Man-in-Space	22	First Potteries
40025	Trentham, adj Man-in-Space	Stoke-upon-Trent, adj stop R	21B	First Potteries
60196	Stoke-upon-Trent, adj stop Q	Newcastle BS	1	First Potteries
2238	Newcastle BS	Tunstall (Stoke-on-Trent), adj stop A	91	Wardle Transport
37156	Tunstall (Stoke-on-Trent), adj stop B	Hanley BS	3	First Potteries
40378	Hanley BS	Bradeley, adj Moorland View	9	First Potteries
40173	Bradeley, adj Moorland View	Tunstall (Stoke-on-Trent), adj stop B	9	First Potteries
2356	Tunstall (Stoke-on-Trent), adj stop B	Newcastle BS	91	Wardle Transport

Today we decided to go on a local trip. It was the last day of the First Potteries timetable before major changes, and I had a works do. The weather had been checked, and it was for cloudy weather, with a mild temperature of 8'... Positively tropical for November! Matthew got up just after 10:00 and had toast and orange juice for breakfast. We told Matthew we were going locally and we did a small amount of research into which First Buses were required. Just before 12:00 we set off on foot all the way to the bus stop on Magdalen Road. I hadn't been out to view what was on any of the buses so it was going to be a surprise what turned up. A minute or two late First Potteries 42892 turned the corner.

First Potteries 42892 in Blurton

We got on the bus and we booked a Smart Day ticket at £5.30. We sat down at the back of the us and the bus set off onto A5035. The bus carried on through to Trentham. We turned into New Inn Lane and we got up and got off the bus at the Man in Space. We didn't have to wait for more than a couple of minutes before another bus turned up. It came into sight and we could see it was a Solo. As it got closer we saw it was required First Potteries 40025.

First Potteries 40025 in Trentham

We got on the bus and flashed the Smart Day ticket. We sat down near to the back of the bus. As it was nearly empty Matthew took a picture of the inside of this bus facing forwards.

Inside First Potteries 40025

The bus carried on along New Inn Lane and into Hanford. WE went down Wilson Road before er turned left into Church Lane. At the bottom of Church Lane we joined the Northbound A34. We crossed under the A500 and into Trent Vale. We turned right onto London Road. We carried on towards Stoke passing City Cabs minibus LT02 XLJ at their new base. When we got to Stoke we got off the bus and Matthew got another picture of First Potteries 40025.

First Potteries 40025 in Stoke

We set off on foot towards the Stoke Cafe. On the way we saw dud First Potteries 40367 on a #21A to the Trentham hotel.

First Potteries 40367 in Stoke

We carried on across Campbell Place and we turned the corner onto Church Street. WE went in the cafe and Matthew went to the toilet whilst I ordered the food. Matthew had a breakfast washed down with a can of Fanta. After we had finished we set off onto Church Street to see what we could catch up towards Newcastle. Going the other way towards Meir was dud D&G 113 on 'The Orange One'.

D&G 113 in Stoke

We got to the Newcastle stop and we could see two buses approaching. There was a Cherry branded bus and a classic liveried Scania. We decided to flag the second bus down and let the Cherry bus go. First we saw dud First Potteries 66845 on a #3 to Newcastle.

First Potteries 66845 in Stoke

Behind that was dud First Potteries Scania 60196 on the #1 to Newcastle.

First Potteries 60196 in Stoke

We got on First Potteries 60196 and we flashed the Smart Day ticket. The driver recognised Matthew from when he was a young lad and he used to drive him to school in First minibuses around the turn of the century! WE sat down towards the back of the bus and the bus set off along Church Street on onto Hartshill Bank. WE climbed the hill into Hartshill and we continued onto George Street for the run down into Newcastle town centre. It turned out that we had only been on this bus once before back in May 2012 from Hanley to Cross Heath, when we did the Wardle Transport running day. We turned onto Barracks Road and then we entered the bus station. We let the bus empty and then Matthew got a picture inside First Potteries 60196.

Inside First Potteries 60196

We got off the bus and we decided to spend some time taking pictures. First we saw dud Wardle Transport 3614 on a #92 to Ball Green.

Wardle Transport 3614 in Newcastle bus station

Next we saw dud First Potteries 40020 on a #72 to Park Site.

First Potteries 40020 in Newcastle bus station

Leaving the bus station was required First Potteries 66307 on a #4A to Hanley.

First Potteries 66307 in Newcastle bus station

Then we saw required First Potteries 43875 on a Clayton bound #72 service.

First Potteries 43875 in Newcastle bus station

We then saw dud Wardle Transport 2131 on a #33 Westlands circular service.

Wardle Transport 2131 in Newcastle bus station

We turned around to see dud Wardle Transport 2221 arrive on a #28 to Newcastle from Keele.

Wardle Transport 2221 in Newcastle bus station

Next we saw required First Potteries 66313 depart on a #4 to Hanley.

First Potteries 66313 in Newcastle bus station

We then saw required Wardle Transport 2238 arrive on the #91 from Bradeley.

Wardle Transport 2238 in Newcastle bus station

We decided that we were going to do required Wardle Transport 2238. We walked towards the group of stands from which the #91 departs from. As we walked over there we saw dud Bakerbus 185 arrive on the #94 from Biddulph.

Bakerbus 185 in Newcastle bus station

At the bottom end of the bus station was dud First Potteries 66840 on an unidentified service.

First Potteries 66840 in Newcastle bus station

Wardle Transport 2238 pulled onto the stand and we waited patiently to get on the bus. When we got on we flashed our Smart Day ticket and went to the back of the bus. Before we sat down Matthew got a picture of the empty rear of Wardle Transport 2238.

Inside Wardle Transport 2238

This was a bus that we had seen but not caught The bus set off out of Newcastle and past the Bramptons. There were lights at the first roundabout as there were roadworks to replace underground electricity cables. After the traffic light we carried on into Wolstanton before turning right towards Longtport. We crossed the A500 and we turned left at Trubshaw Cross. We passed Westport lake and we went right at Williamson Street before going passed Asda and back on to the High Street. At the top of the high Street we got off the bus and Matthew got another picture of Wardle Transport 2238.

Wardle Transport 2238 in Tunstall

We ducked into Tunstall Cafe and Matthew used the toilet before having a slice of toffee Cheesecake and a glass of Coke. Whilst we ate we saw new arrival First Potteries 32630 in service only a few days after arriving from Leicester. It was working the #9A Hanley Burslem - Tunstall - Bradeley - Hanley service. After we had finished eating we crossed the road to wait at stop B. There were two buses due in the next few minutes. A #9 to Newcastle and a #3 to Hanley. The #3 turned up first and it was required First Potteries 37156.

First Potteries 37156 in Tunstall

We decided to do this required double decker.We got on the bus and we flashed our Smart Day ticket. We went upstairs, and as the rear of the bus was empty Matthew took a picture of the empty bus behind us.

Inside First Potteries 37156

The bus set off down the High Street and turned right onto Williamson Street. At the end we turned right onto Scotia Road, and we went passed what used to be the Burslem bus garage before we climbed over the hill and into Burslem town centre. We continued along Waterloo Road and into Cobridge before dropping into the bottom of Hanley. We entered Hanley along Hope Street before going into Stafford Street and passed 'the scary man' on the side of Debenhams. We went passed the town hall and into the bus station along Bagnall Street. The bus pulled into the bus station and we got off the bus. Matthew went to the toilet and then we headed off on foot towards John Street car park. On the way to the car park we saw one of First Potteries new Wright Streetlites. First Potteries 63172 was on the #6A to Meir.

First Potteries 63172 in Hanley bus station

This was followed by Adderley Green allocated double decker 32633 on the #101 to Stafford.

First Potteries 32633 in Hanley bus station

We entered the car park and we did the stairs up to the next level. We then saw First Potteries 37156 continue on its #3 journey to Keele University.

First Potteries 37156 in Hanley bus station

We then saw required First Potteries 40019 on a #5 to Badderley Green.

First Potteries 40019 in Hanley bus station

There was yet another double decker out, as required First Potteries 32635 was working the #32 to Cheadle.

First Potteries 32635 in Hanley bus station

This was followed by recently painted and branded dud Scania Omnicity First Potteries 65004 on the #18 to Leek.

First Potteries 65004 in Hanley bus station

We then saw dud Wardle Transport Volvo 3611 on a #15 to Leek.

Wardle Transport 3611 in Hanley bus station

During a quieter spell, Matthew took a picture of dud First Potteries 65561, which was on layover in one of the dedicated layover spaces in the middle of the bus station.

First Potteries 65561 in Hanley bus station

Whilst we waited for another departure from the bus station, we saw former First Potteries minibus V117 DLH appeared and briefly parked up outside the bus station.

V117 DLH near Hanley bus station

Back in the bus station, Scraggs Blue Buses 22 was leaving on a #44 to Stanley.

Scraggs Blue Buses 22 in Hanley bus station

This was followed closely by dud Wardle Transport 3604 on the #13 to Longton.

Wardle Transport 3604 in Hanley bus station

Between pictures Matthew ate a Milky Way and a bottle of Coke. On a #314 to Southport was a Selwyns Coaches national Express Liveried coach, FJ61 EWL.

National Express FJ61 EWL in Hanley bus station

This was followed by required Bakerbus 246, which was on the #9 service to Biddulph.

Bakerbus 246 in Hanley bus station

Between service we saw Wardle Transport 2376 which parking up in the layover spaces.

Wardle Transport 2376 in Hanley bus station

At this point we decided to head back to the bus station. On the way we saw First Potteries 63175 on a #6A to Meir.

First Potteries 63175 in Hanley bus station

This was followed closely by First Potteries 66305 on a #4 to Audley.

First Potteries 66305 in Hanley bus station

We continued into the bus station were we thought about what we could catch next. On a #32 was required First Potteries 37160 on a #32. Eventually we decided to catch dud First Potteries 40378 on a #9 to Newcastle.

First Potteries 40378 in Hanley bus station

We thought we could do this bus to possibly intercept First Potteries 32630 on the #9A. Also First Potteries 40378 was also a low mileage bus. We had only been on this bus on the short hop from Blurton to Newstead back in October. Whilst we waited to depart, Matthew took a picture inside of First Potteries 40378.

Inside First Potteries 40378

The bus set off onto John Street and onto the ring road via Bethesda Street. We went up broad Street and onto Marsh Street before turning right onto Trinity Street. We turned left onto Stafford Street and we stopped to take on more passengers. After passing under the Potteries Shopping centre on Quadrant Road, we headed out of town along Town Road. We carried on along Chell Street and onto High Lane. We turned at the Green Star and onto Community Drive. We turned right onto Ford Green Road and then left onto Chell Heath Road. We decided to get off in Bradlely. AS we got up to get of the bus, we saw required First Potteries 32630 coming the other way on the #9A! We have traveled a stop or two too far... When we got off Matthew took another picture of First Potteries 40378 as it carried on towards Tunstall & Newcastle.

First Potteries 40378 in Bradeley

We had a quick check on nextbuses.mobi to see when the next bus was due. The next bus was a #9 10 minutes later, which was followed by a #9 to Biddulph. The 10 minutes passed quickly and we saw required First Potteries 40805 going towards Hanley on a #9 service. This was a recent arrival from the Hereford depot. We the saw a Marshall bodied Dart approaching. Could this be Matthew last required First Potteries Marshall bodied Dart? We had seen dud First Potteries 41070 earlier in the day on the #9 so we thought it was probably going to be this bus. Has it got closer we saw that it was indeed required First Potteries 40173...

First Potteries 40173 in Bradeley

We got on the bus and flashed the Smart Day tickets. WE sat now near to the back of the bus. The bus set off through Bradeley along Chell Heath Road, and a few people got off the bus. As the bus was now empty behind us, Matthew took a picture of the grey seats behind us.

Inside First Potteries 40173

WE carried on past Matthew's old school, which had now closed down. We carried on to Fegg Hayes, and we turned into Fegg Hayes Road. As the timetable was changing tomorrow this was probably going to be the last time that we do a bus up this road as first are going back to the old route up the A527. We carried on up onto the A527 before turning left onto High Lane. We turned right into the Mill Hill estate and we came out the other side on Greenbank Road / Queens Avenue. We got to the top of Queens Avenue and we turned right onto the A50 before going left into Tunstall High Street. We got off the bus, and had we been patient we could have photographed the bus empty. We decided to go to the toilet and then afterwards we visited the High Street Chippy for chips and a drink. After we had brought them we walked up to Butterfield Place and we sat on seats to eat the chips. Me and Matthew then shared a can of Vimto. When we had finished we walked up to stop B to catch another bus, perhaps two depending on what turned up. There was a #9A due which would mean we would have to get off at Trubshaw Cross and wait for the following bus if we did that. The bus stop didn't have details of Wardle Transport services on it, so we were surprised when we saw an ALX bodied vehicle. As it got closer we saw it was required Wardle Transport Dart 2356.

Wardle Transport 2356 in Tunstall

We got on the bus and it was empty at this point, so Matthew took a picture of the empty bus as we got on it

Inside Wardle Transport 2356

We flashed the Smart day ticket for the last time and I texted mum to tell her we would be in Newcastle at approximately 16:45. The bus set off down the High Street and we carried on down onto Brownhills Road. We went through Trubshaw Cross and through Longtport. We crossed the A500 and we climbed Porthill Bank before turning left to Wolstanton. We went through Wolstanton and into Newcaslte. When we got to Newcastle Matthew took a better picture of Wardle Transport 2356.

Wardle Transport 2356 in Newcastle bus station

Just as we got off Wardle Transport 2356 there was a flurry of double decker activity. First we saw required First Potteries 32056 on a #3 to Keele University.

First Potteries 32056 in Newcastle bus station

The we saw the elusive & required First Potteries 32630 which was now on a #8 to Ball Green.

First Potteries 32630 in Newcastle bus station

A few minutes later dud First Potteries 32057 on a #4A to Kidsgrove.

First Potteries 32057 in Newcastle bus station

At one point there were 3 double deckers on consecutive stands 32056 was next to First Potteries 32633 on a #101 to Hanley, which was next to one of the 3715x double decker which was also on a Hanley service. We also saw Arriva Midlands 3698 on a #164 Shrewsbury to Hanley service.

Arriva Midlands 3698 in Newcastle bus station

At this point we decided to walk up to the car on Barracks Road. Mum was waiting with Wrights sausage rolls and a bottle of Irn Bru. We drove out of town up the A53 and onto George Street. We went down Shelton New Road and we joined the Southbound A500. We did the A500 down to the A50 and we went East to Longton. We came of the A50 and we went to Z Carz to see what was there tonight. There were 2 buse parked on the spare ground tonight. Firstly there was Mercedes minibus S952 VMY.

Z Carz S952 VMY in Longton

Behind this in the shadows was Z Carz Mercedes minibus M372 NWN.

Z Carz M372 NWN in Longton

We turned the corner into Willow Row and the yard was full of minibuses which included Mercedes minibus W221 CDN & Ford minibus GL04 CVE.

Z Carz GL04 CVE in Longton

We rejoined the A50 and then we came off it again at Heron Cross. We passed Lightning Travel T2 DLT and we entered Blurton. We carried on along Blurton Road and onto Beaconsfield Drive. We got home around 17:15. I went to my works do and Matthew had a late tea of bangers and mash with carrots with uncle Dave and mum. Matthew then chilled out on his computer until around 01:00...Mark