Trip to Stone / Eccleshall 05-09-2015

Bus	From	To	Service	Operator
53829	Blurton, Opp Ladybank Grove	Granville Square, Stone	23	First Potteries
SN05 HDC	Granville Square, Stone	Stone, Adj Mount Road	2	Bennetts Travel
SN05 HDC	Stone, Adj Mount Road	Granville Square, Stone	2	Bennetts Travel
T48 JBA	Crown Street, Stone	Eccleshall, Adj Stone Road	490	Bennetts Travel
53830	Eccleshall, Adj Cherry Tree Close	Crown Street, Stone	23	First Potteries
V281 DRC	Granville Square, Stone	Longton Interchange	4	Bennetts Travel
66303	Longton Interchange	Newcastle BS	2	First Potteries
66306	Newcastle BS	Keele, Opp Sneyd Arms PH	3	First Potteries
60176	Keele, Adj Sneyd Arms PH	Newcastle BS	3	First Potteries

Today we decided to re-visit Stone and Eccleshall. It was the last day of First Potteries operating the #23 between Newstead and Eccleshall and it was also the last day of Bennetts Travel buses operating North and Central Staffordshire. From the 6th of September D&G will be taking over all of these services. We put the idea to him of going the buses in Stone and Eccleshall and he thought it was a good idea.We had checked the weather for today and it was forecast for cool, cloudy weather with sunny intervals. Matthew got up around 10:00 and he had toast and orange juice for breakfast. We left home around 11:45 and we set off towards the Beaconsfield Drive stop opposite to Ladybank Grove. On the way we saw dud First Potteries Scania 60069 on a #22 to Newcastle.

First Potteries 60069 in Blurton

On Beaconsfield Drive we saw First Potteries 65729 on a #22 to Longton. This was followed by required First Potteries 53830 on a #23 to Hanley. A few minutes later we saw another First Potteries Solo approaching. As it got closer we saw that it was dud 53829.

First Potteries 53829 in Blurton

We got on the bus and we booked a Network Day ticket at £5.50. We sat down near to the back and the bus set off onto Finstock Avenue. Near to Ingestre Square we turned right onto Ripon Road before joining the Eastbound A5035. We turned onto Barlaston Road and we entered the Newstead estate. After passing the shops on Winbourne Road we rejoined Barlaston Road and turned right onto Blurton Road. We turned right onto Wedgwood Drive and we stopped at the stop on Wedgwood Lane. The stop has been brightened up with a knitted bus stop cosy covering the top and a few feet of the pole... We re-joined Wedgwood Drive and carried on South down Blurton Road for a few hundred yards. We turned right onto Longton Road and we ran into Barlaston. There was a village fete on in Barlaston and we saw our ice cream man doing some brisk business! we turned right onto Station Road and we crossed over the level crossing by Barlaston railway station. after a quick stop near to Neil Morrisey's Plume of Feathers, the bus would normally turn right onto Meaford Road. Due to the road being closed for roadwork the bus continued West on Tittensor Road to the A34. We passed what used to we the old Little Chef where mum used to work, and we past the big roundabout at Darlaston. Further South down the A34 we passed the other end of Meaford Road and we were back on the normal route again. Just North of the motorcycle shop we turned onto Newcastle Road and we got off the bus in Granville Square. The bus set off around town towards Eccleshall and Matthew got another picture of First Potteries 53829.

First Potteries 53829 in Stone

When we planned this trip we asked Matthew if he wanted to have dinner in Eccleshall or Stone and he said Stone. Mum had told us of a cafe in a walkway adjacent to the Co-operative food stall so we set off around town towards the rear of the Co-op store. Just as we started to walk off we saw our first Bennetts Travel bus of the day, required Solo W246 PAU.

Bennetts Travel W246 PAU in Stone

We carried on around the backwards around the one way system on foot and when we got to the rear of the Co-op we spotted the covered walkway. We went past the cafe the first time as we weren't sure it was the one that mum had meant, but we walked back when we saw that it was the only one... Matthew went to the toilet and I ordered him a breakfast and a glass of coke to wash it down with. After we has finished eating we went straight up the pedestrianised High Street to Granville Square to see if there was a town service there. As we got there we saw required Bennetts Travel Dart SN05 HDC on a #2 town circular.

Bennetts Travel SN05 HDC in Stone

I asked Matthew if he wanted to do this bus and he said yes. The next First bus to Eccleshall wasn't due for another 40 minutes at this point. We got on the bus and we asked to travel for a circuit back to Granville Square! We sat down towards the back of the bus and the bus set off to the North East and over the railway. We whizzed through Oulton Cross and Stonefield area traveling back into town along Prince's Street, Mount Avenue, Station Road and Newcastle Road. As we traveled back I consulted some time that I jotted down in a notebook and I realised there was a #490 to Stafford from outside Crown Street toilets at 13:05 in around 5 minutes. We let the bus empty and Matthew took a picture inside Bennetts Travel SN05 HDC.

Inside Bennetts Travel SN05 HDC

He got another picture of Bennetts Travel SN05 HDC before it carried on with the next part of the #2 circular service.

Bennetts Travel SN05 HDC in Stone

We started to walk towards Crown Street and we saw dud First Potteries Volvo double decker 32627 on a #10 to Stafford.

First Potteries 32627 in Stone

After we had taken the picture we had a brisk walk down to the stop. We asked if anyone had seen the #490, and there were a few others waiting for it too. Whilst we waited for the Bennetts bus to turn up we saw dud First Potteries 65033 on a Hanley bound #10 service.

First Potteries 65033 in Stone

A few minutes later dud Bennetts Travel T48 JBA came around the corner on the #490 to Stafford.

Bennetts Travel T48 JBA in Stone

We got on the bus and we booked to Eccleshall before sitting down towards the back of the bus. This was a bus we first had on the #205 Whitchurch to Chemistry estate circular back in May 2009! A photo of the bus back then can be found here. The bus set off up the road and we went forwards onto Newcastle Road. We turned left onto Trent Road and left again onto the A34. We crossed the A34 and turned right onto Yarnfield Lane. After crossing the M6, we passed through the village of Yarnfield and right onto Meece Road. In Cold Meece we turned right and we ran the 2 or so miles into Swynnerton village. On the way up we passed First Potteries 53829 returning from Eccleshall. We turned in the triangle outside St Mary's Church and we headed back down to Cold Meece village. At the junction in Cold Meece we took the road towards Sturbridge and beyond onto the A519. We turned right and we were surprised how quickly we went from country to centre of town in Eccleshall. We got up and got of the bus and the bus turned the corner onto Stone Road. We went around the corner and we spotted a public toilet block. Whilst Matthew was in the toilet we saw Bennetts Travel V156 JKG on a #490 to Stone. We had planned on catching the #23 back to Stone, but we couldn't work out where the Badger Inn was. We sat on a bench in the middle of town and Matthew ate a Milky Way and drank a can of Barr Limeade. Once we worked out where the Badger In should be, we went into the Co-operative Food store and brought some more chocolate and pop to fill up the trip bag. On the way out we spotted some new D&G bus timetables for the up and coming chances in the Co-op window, so we took a couple. One for us and one for one of our neighbours. As we went back onto Stafford Road we saw required First Potteries 53830 on the #23. It went around the corner onto the Newport bound A519 so we followed it, only we could see where it had pulled over or see anything that looked like it use to be the now defunct Badger Inn. We decided to go back to Stone Road and wait for the bus there. We sat down for a few minutes and then the bus came around the corner... As expected it was required First Potteries Solo 53830.

First Potteries 53830 in Eccleshall

We got on the bus and we flashed the Network Day ticket to the driver. Matthew honked the horn and then took a picture inside the empty First Potteries 53830.

Inside First Potteries 53830

The bus set off out of Eccleshall along Stone Road for around a Kilometre and then we turned Northwards towards Sturbridge. Once in Sturbridge we turned right and then we were back on the same route as the #490 had taken. We headed through Cold Meece up to Swynerton, up to the turning point outside the church and back down to the triangular junction at Cold Meece where we turned towards Yarnfield. We crossed the M6 and we joined the Northbound A34. We went up to the roundabout by Newcastle Road and we turned 180' and went back down the A34. We came into Stone from the South up the A520 and we turned into Crown Street. We got and got off the bus and Matthew got another picture of First Potteries 53830.

First Potteries 53830 in Stone

Matthew went to the toilet and we decided to wait and see what turned up next at this stop. There was quite a crowd, and the next bus to appear was required First Potteries 65037 on a #10 to Hanley.

First Potteries 65037 in Stone

It was full when it pulled up and there were at least a dozen people waiting to get on the bus, so we decided to give this bus a miss. As we had a network ticket we thought we would see what was on the next Stafford bound service, so we walked up to Granville Square. As we got there we saw dud First Potteries 65033 on the #10 to Stafford.

First Potteries 65033 in Stone

It wasn't quite as full as 65037 had been, but we decided to turn it down and wait 15 minutes for the #4 to Longton operated by Bennetts. We sat down on a bench and Matthew had drink of Irn Bru. Whilst there we saw City Cabs minibus EA04 FYF go past on a recovery truck and Bennetts T48 JBA on a #435 to Salt. A few minutes later we saw a Solo approaching. It was required Bennetts Travel V281 DRC.

Bennetts Travel V281 DRC in Stone

We got on the bus and we booked to Longton. Matthew beeped the horn and the driver looked somewhat unimpressed. We sat down towards the back of the bus and D&G 198 pulled up behind us running out of service. The bus set off out of town, past Kibblestone and up onto the A520. At Meir Heath we turned right past the Windmill Pub. We travelled for around a mile down the B5066 and then we turned left and wet through Stallington and under the A50. We crossed the railway line and we entered Blyth Bridge. We turned left onto the a521 and we crossed back over the railway and ran down to the A50. We joined the Westbound A50 and we did it as far as the Eastern end of Longton. We crossed over the A50 and we ran through Longton down The Strand. We turned left into Baths Road and we entered the interchange. We let the bus empty and Matthew took a picture inside Bennetts Travel V281 DRC.

Inside Bennetts Travel V281 DRC

We got off the bus and we walked to the end of the bus station to take a few pictures. Dud D&G 111 arrived in the bus station on 'The Orange One towards Meir. This was followed by dud First Potteries 66303 on a #2 to Newcastle.

First Potteries 66303 in Longton Interchange

Required First Potteries 63098 came in on a #6 to Hanley and I asked Matthew what bus he wanted to do. He chose to do 66303 to Newcastle. We got on the bus and we flashed the Network Day ticket to the driver. The bus set off out of the bus station and onto baths Road. We turned left under the railway line and onto King Street. We travelled down through Fenton and down into Stoke. Due to Church Street being closed for pedestrianisation, we went around the one way system and onto Campbell Place before rejoining Church Street. We carried on up the hill into Hartshill and we dropped down into Newcastle along George Street. The first unusual thing about Newcastle we noticed today is that the old Jubilee baths have been knocked down. We turned left into Barracks Road and we entered the bus station, passing First Potteries 50281 on a #72 to Clayton. We let the bus empty and Matthew took a picture inside First Potteries 66303.

Inside First Potteries 66303

We got off the bus and we sat at thr bottom of the bus station whilst we worked out what to do next. Dud First Potteries 37157 was parked up on Stubbs Street.

First Potteries 37157 in Newcastle bus station

Dud First Potteries 60202 was on a #3 to Talke.

First Potteries 60202 in Newcastle bus station

Whilst we sat down Matthew ate a Cadbury's Flake. We then saw required First Potteries 66306 enter the bus station on a #3 to Madeley.

First Potteries 66306 in Newcastle bus station

I asked Matthew if he wanted to do the required Volvo single decker and he said yes. We got on the bus and we flashed the Network Day tickets to the driver before sitting down. Whilst we waited for departure time Matthew took another picture of First Potteries 66303 as it left the bus station on the #2 towards Hanley.

First Potteries 66303 in Newcastle bus station

The bus set off out of the bus station and went North onto Barracks Road. There are no booked stops before Queen Elizabeth Gardens so the bus could go either way around Newcastle, even though they usually travelled clockwise. Today the bus went down Merrial Street, presumably to get the drivers used to doing this for when they officially stop there from the 6th September. We crossed the A34 onto the A525 and then we turned into Orme Road. We bounced our way over the speed bumps and we re-joined the A525 for the run up the hill to Keele. We turned left into the University and we ran through the campus towards the village. The bus looked like it was carrying passengers through to Madeley, so Matthew to a picture of the empty seats opposite to us.

Inside First Potteries 66306

In the village we got up and got off the bus. Matthew took another picture of First Potteries 66306 as it carried on towards Madeley.

First Potteries 66306 in Keele

Today was the last time that First were running beyond Keele to Madeley, but we didn't really have time to cover another one of the routes that First were shortening or pulling out of. We could see an 'Olympia' liveried First Scania sat on the road in the distance, so we crossed over quickly to wait for the bus at the stop opposite to us. A minute or so later the Scania approached us and it was dud First Potteries 60176.

First Potteries 60176 in Keele

We got on the bus and we flashed the Network Day ticket to the driver for the final time today. We sat down near to the back of the bus and the bus set off through the campus. We called mum to tell her we were on our way to Newcastle and the bus went through the campus and onto the A525. As we came down the hill we could see a double decker in the back Hampton scrap yard. We crossed over the roundabout and we passed by the scrap yard before turning left into Orme Road. We bounced down through the estate and we rejoined the A525 briefly to get on the A34. We went anti-clockwise around the town and we entered the bus station from the Southern end. We let the bus empty and Matthew took a picture inside First Potteries 60176.

Inside First Potteries 60176

We got off the bus and we decided to visit the toilet. On the way we stopped and saw First Potteries 32055 on a #3 to Madeley.

First Potteries 32055 in Newcastle bus station

We also First Potteries 32627 make another appearance on the #10 towards Hanley.

First Potteries 32627 in Newcastle bus station

Matthew visited the toilet and he just got out to see First Potteries Scania 65038 on a #99 to Bradeley which was another previously rare sighting. The closure of First's Newcastle garage this weekend has been producing some strange sightings all week. WE walked up to meet mum and she was waiting for us with sausage rolls and a bottle of Irn Bru for Matthew. We did a u-turn at the Jubilee roundabout and we noticed another odd thing... The fountains were working again for the first time in several years. We headed South down the A34 and we stopped at the Riverside Chippy and we brought some chips to share between us. Once we had fed we got back onto the A34 and headed down to the A500. We went North on the A500 to Sideway before going East onto the A50. We came off the A50 at Longton to check out what was at Z Carz. Once again the buses were parked in two rows facing towards the A50. In the near to the end of the front row was Z Carz Mercedes minibus M372 NWN.

Z Carz M372 NWN in Longton

At the end of the row was Z Carz Renault minibus Y568 XFV

Z Carz Y568 XFV in Longton

Nearest bus in the second row was Z Carz Airport Division Ford Minibus DL03 HHU.

Z Carz DL03 HHU in Longton

We turned left into Willow Row to see what was in the compound. There were quite a few minibuses in here, mainly from the taxi fleet including Mercedes minibus S952 VMY and Z Carz Ford minibus LG09 JVX.

Z Carz LG09 JVX in Longton

Mum's friend had been stuck at work with no food, so we crossed the A50 to Macdonald to pick something up for her. We got back onto the A50 and we came off it again at Heron Cross. We headed through Blurton and we stopped at the shop to dropp off the food. We carried on through Blurton and we saw First Potteries 65729 again on a #22. We turned into Beaconsfield Drive and we got home a fraction after 18:00. For a late tea Matthew had bangers and mash with carrots followed by a jammy shortbread biscuit. Matthew then chilled out on his computer until bedtime at 00:30... Mark