Trip to Hanley / Newcastle 17-10-2018

Bus	From	To	Service	Operator
63176	Fenton, Victoria Place	Hanley BS	6	First Potteries
41500	Hanley BS	Fenton, Victoria Place	6	First Potteries
DV10 JCU	Fenton	Newcastle	Charter	Shelton Care Group
DV10 JCU	Newcastle	Fenton	Charter	Shelton Care Group

Today Matthew was in the residential unit and he was going to his day service. Matthew was also going to visit his uncle Dave later on. Matthew got up around 08:00 and had toast for breakfast. before Matthew went to the day centre he watched buses out of the window. whilst waiting for the time to go to the day centre, we saw Shelton Care Group DV10 JCU.

Shelton Care Group DY08 FFX in Fenton

we went downstairs and out of the unit. We set off outside and we saw Intercity SF58 EXE.

Intercity SF58 EXE in Fenton

We set off on foot to the day centre. We walked onto Temple Street and right onto Christchurch Street. At the day centre we saw Shelton Care Group DY08 FFX.

Shelton Care Group DY08 FFX in Fenton

First Potteries 67661 in Fenton

SF67 GYV in Fenton

First Potteries 63176 in Fenton

We got on the bus and we booked to Hanley before we sat down. We set off down Victoria Road and we crossed over the A52 at Joiners Square. We ran up Lichfield Street and we crossed over the ring road. We got up and got off the bus at the stop outside the bus station.

ECO Travel MK18 UZX in Hanley

First Potteries 41500 in Hanley

We got on the bus and we booked to Fenton before sitting down towards the back of the bus. We set off up Lichfield Street and we turned right into Birch Terrace. We followed the road around to the left onto Charles Street. At the top we turned right onto Old Hall Street before turning right onto the ring road and we saw Blackfriars FE bus DK58 HPU. We turned left onto Lichfield Street and we ran down the hill to Joiners Square. We crossed the roundabout onto Victoria Road and we ran up the hill into Fenton. At the top of the hill we got up and got off the bus. One off the bus we set off on foot onto City Road and we turned left onto Christchurch Street. We turned right onto Temple Street. We went out for dinner and we saw it was Shelton Care Group DY08 FFX. We got on the bus and we set off onto Temple Street. City Road and we continued down to the A52. We went under the railway line and over the A500 before going around Stoke's one-way system. We came out of the other side onto Church Street and we ran up the hill onto Hartshill Road. We continued along the A52 through Hartshill and forwards onto George Street. We ran down the hill into Newcastle and we crossed over the roundabout onto Ironmarket. Matthew went to the toilet and then had a glass of Coke. After Matthew had a burger and chips followed by chocolate fudge cake and ice cream. Once we had finished eating we returned to the residential unit on Shelton Care Group DY08 FFX. We set off along Ironmarket and over the roundabout onto the A53. We went around the one-way system onto the A52 and we ran through Hartshill and down the hill into Stoke We went along Eleanora Street and onto Glebe Road and around the Stoke one-way system. We went onto Church street and we crossed over the A500 and under the railway line. We ran up City Road and we turned right into Smithpool Road. We turned left into temple street and back to the residential unit. Back at the unit Matthew went to his room to chill out on his computer and watch buses out of the window. Later on Matthew was going to uncle Daves for tea.

G14 SBX in Fenton

First Potteries 67637 in Fenton

City Cabs PE11 RWY in Fenton

Trip to Northampton / Smallthorne 16-10-2018

Bus	From	To	Service	Operator
DV10 JCU	Fenton	Northampton	Charter	Shelton Care Group
DV10 JCU	Northampton	Fenton	Charter	Shelton Care Group
HV18 GVR	Fenton	Smallthorne	Charter	Shelton Care Group
HV18 GVR	Smallthorne	Fenton	Charter	Shelton Care Group

Today Matthew was in the residential unit and he was going to his day service. Matthew got up around 08:00 and had toast for breakfast. before Matthew went to the day centre he watched buses out of the window. whilst waiting for the time to go to the day centre, we saw Shelton Care Group DV10 JCU.

Shelton Care Group DV10 JCU in Fenton

Across the road we saw First Potteries 65040 on a #11 to Newcastle. we set off onto Temple Street and we turned right onto Christchurch Street and to the day centre and we saw Shelton Care Group DY08 FFX.

Shelton Care Group DY08 FFX in Fenton

Transport for the trip was Shelton Care Group DY08 FFX. We got on the bus and we set off onto Christchurch Street. We turned right onto Masterson Street and we ran to the end. We turned right onto Smithpool Road and at the end we turned left onto City Road. We turned left onto the A500 and at Sideay we got on the eastbound A50. We ran through Longton and Meir. We continued along the A50 through Blythe Bridge and Uttoxeter. A50 and we ran down towards Uttoxeter. We by-passed Uttoxeter and we continued along the A50 to the edge of Blythe Bridge. We continued along the A50 through Meir and Longton and We ran down to Heron Cross and we came off the A50. We ran along Heron Street and forwards onto Station Bridge Road. We ran forwards onto Glebedale Road. once we got back we returned to the residential unit. We walked onto Christchurch Street and down Temple Street and back to the residential unit. Matthew went up to his room to chill out on his computer and watch buses out of the window.

Lucky Seven SJ13 DLE in Fenton

Stoke-on-Trent city council LK17 DXB in Fenton

First Potteries 67151 in Fenton

Later on Matthew went out for tea in Smallthorne in an ABC Supreme taxi. We set off onto temple Street and we turned left onto Christchurch Street. We turned left onto City Road and we ran down the hill and we turned right onto the A52. We ran past the railway station and on towards Joiners Square. At the roundabout we turned left onto Lichfield Street and we ran up the hill to the ring road. We went anti-clockwise around town and we turned right onto Waterloo Road. We ran through Cobridge up to Burslem and we turned right onto Moorland Road. We ran to the top of the hill and we turned into the pub. Matthew went to the toilet and then had a glass of Coke. Matthew had a mixed grill burger for tea followed by sticky toffee pudding. when it was time to go home we returned on an ABC Supreme taxi. We set off onto Moorland Road and we ran down the hill into Burslem. We turned left into Waterloo Road and we ran through Cobridge. At the end we turned left onto the ring road. We went clockwise around Hanley and we turned left onto Lichfield Street. We ran down the hill to Joiners Square and we crossed over the roundabout onto Victoria Road. We ran up the hill and we turned sharp right onto City Road. We turned left onto Smithpool Road and left onto Temple Street and back to the residential unit. Matthew went up to his room to chill out and use his computer. Later on Matthew had a bath and then had toast for supper. He then chilled out in his room until bedtime around 23:00... Mark.

Trip to Bilston / Wolverhampton 13-10-2018

Bus	From	To	Service	Operator
20745	Bilston Interchange	Dudley BS	223	Rotala Diamond
6761	Dudley BS	Wolverhampton BS	X7	NX West Midlands
YJ67 FYN	Wolverhampton BS	Wednesfield, Church Street	57	iGo
2107	Wednesfield, Church Street	Wolverhampton BS	50	iGo
4335	Wolverhampton BS	The Scotlands, Leason Lane	11	NX West Midlands
4358	The Scotlands, Leason Lane	Wolverhapmton BS	11	NX West Midlands
4366	Wolverhampton BS	Bilston, War Memorial (Stop BB)	79	NX West Midlands

Today we decided to re-visit Bilston. The weather had been awful for the last couple of days and although it was set to improve the weather was moving in from the South. We gave Matthew a choice of destination in the Midlands and from the list Matthew chose Bilston. Other than checking the weather and AA Roadwatch, we did no research. Matthew got up around 09:45 and had toast and orange juice for breakfast. We set off around 11:30 onto the A5035 and we saw former party Bus L102 GBO parked up by the industrial estate. We ran over the railway line to Trentham and at the roundabout we went Northwards onto the A34. We turned left onto Whitmore Road and we followed Bulgarian minibus Y 3097 HA. We got onto the Northbound A519 and we turned left onto the Southbound M6. As we travelled Southwards we saw an unidentified Ashcroft's Travel coach, preserved Crosville 103. Bennetts VX63 YHB, an unidentified Don's of ??? coach, Silverline (Landflight) YT12 RKZ, grey minibus DG60 FZO, an unidentified maroon double decker Van Hool coach with trailer & white minibus DY68 AOA. After Stafford services and just before we got to junction 14 traffic came to a standstill. The road had been closed temporarily to recover an overturned vehicle. This added around 15 minutes to our journey. We got going again and we made good time to junction 10. We came off the M6 at junction 10 and we went Westwards on the Black Country route. We ran West for a few miles and as we approached the Bilston turning we passed white coach VU13 EES. We turned right onto the A41 and left onto Church Street. We turned right onto Walsall Street and we crossed back over the tramline before we parked up in Walsall Street car park. We walked back down Walsall Street and we walked through Stafford Street to the interchange. As we got to the interchange we saw National Express West Midlands 1846 on a #34 to Walsall.

NX West Midlands 1846 in Bilston interchange

Behind the National Express single decker was Thandi ex Stagecoach Dart NK56 EPL on a #334 to Walsall.

Thandi NK56 EPL in Bilston interchange

We also saw National Express West Midlands 4363 on a #82 to Dudley.

NX West Midlands 4363 in Bilston interchange

We went to use the toilet in the interchange but it was engaged, so we crossed over to the outdoor market site and Matthew used a toilet there. We crossed back over the the interchange and met up with mum again. For dinner Mathew had an all day breakfast washed down with a can of Coke. When we had finished we went back to the counter and brought a small bottle of Cola. We said goodbye to mum and we walked around the bus station to find something we could catch. On layover was required Rotala Diamond Solo 20745 in between runs on the #223 to Dudley.

Rotala Diamond 20745 in Bilston interchange

We decided to do the required Rotala Solo, so we walked down to the bottom stand to catch the bus. We got on the bus and we brought nBus day tickets at £4.30 each before we sat down towards the back of the bus. We set off out of the interchange and we ran forwards onto Hall Street. We turned right onto the A41 and right onto the Black Country Route. We ran fast for around a mile and we turned right onto Overfield Drive. We did a u-turn at the roundabout and we stopped outside the pub. We re-joined the Black Country Route and at the end we turned right onto the A4123. We turned left onto Rookery Road and at the end we turned right onto Woodcross Lane We turned right onto Pugh Road and left onto Mount Road. We turned left onto Dovedale Road and onto Woodcross Street. We joined walthan Avenue and right onto Robert Wynd. We turned left onto Hall Lane and right onto Gorge Road. We ran forwards onto Bilston Road and we turned left onto Sedgley High Street. We ran Southwards onto Dudley Road and we turned right onto Modern Hill. We turned left onto Vale Street and we ran down the hill into Lower Gornall. We ran forwards onto Ruiton Street and forwards again onto Temple Street. We continued onto Zoar street and left onto Bull Street. We turned left onto Himley Road and and we turned left into Central Drive. At the end we turned left onto Grosvenor Road. We turned right onto Corncrake Road and right onto Milking Bank. At the roundabout we turned left onto Himley Road. At the roundabout we turned left onto the B4176. When we got to the edge of Dudley we turned left onto Priory Street and left onto Prior Road. We turned left onto Ednam Road and right onto the Broadway. We turned right into Castle Street and left into the bus station. We got up and got off the bus. Matthew went to the toilet and then we had a wander around to take a few bus pictures. We saw National Express West Midlands 5419 on layover in between runs on the #1 to Tattershall.

NX West Midlands 5419 in Dudley bus station

We carried on around the bus station to the main layover area. We saw Rotala Diamond 30888 on layover before working a #226 to Merry Hill.

Rotala Diamond 30888 in Dudley bus station

Aslo we saw National Express West Midlands 4431 on a #126 to Birmingham.

NX West Midlands 4431 in Dudley bus station

We walked to the other half of the bus station and we decided to catch something vaguely back towards Bilston after such a long run. We saw required National Express West Midlands 6761 on a X7 to Wolverhampton.

NX West Midlands 6761 in Dudley bus station

We decided to do this bus so we got on and we flashed the nBus day ticket to the driver before we went upstairs. The rear of the top deck was empty so Matthew took a picture inside National Express West Midlands 6761.

Inside NX West Midlands 6761

The bus set off out of the bus station and we turned right onto Castle Street. We turned left onto The Broadway and left onto Ednam Road. We turned right onto Priory Road and we ran Northwards out of Dudley until we reached the A4123. As we travlled Northwards up the A4123 we saw Merry Hill Private Hire SN10 ANU and an ex Westbus coach YJ12 CKK. We ran to the edge of Wolverhampton and we went around a one way system past the Travel Express bus garage. We ran forwards onto Snow Hill and we turned right onto St Georges tram stop and the police station. We ran onto the roundabout and we turned left and joined the bus lane and into the bus station. We saw National Express West Midlands 4160 on the #11 to Underhill. Once we got off the bus Matthew went to the toilet. When Matthew had finished we looked for a bus we could catch. We spotted required iGo YJ67 FYN on a #57 to Bilston.

iGo YJ67 FYN in Wolverhampton bus station

iGo YJ67 FYN in Wednesfield

iGo 2107 in Wednesfield

Arriva Midlands 2972 in Wolverhampton bus station

NX West Midlands 4335 in Wolverhampton bus station

Inside NX West Midlands 4335

Inside NX West Midlands 4335

NX West Midlands 4335 in The Scotlands

Arriva Midlands 3741 in The Scotlands

NX West Midlands 4358 in The Scotlands

Inside NX West Midlands 4335

Travel De Courcey MD25 in Wolverhampton bus station

Arriva Midlands 3691 in Wolverhampton bus station

NX West Midlands 4366 in Wolverhampton bus station

We got on and we flashed the nBus day tickets at £4.30 to the driver for the final time today before we went upstairs. We set off out of the bus station and onto Pipers Row. We ran onto the A41 and we ran South Eastwards for a mile or so. Before the road and the tram line separated we saw an old petrol station on the left into Bilston town centre. When we got to the stop by the war memorial we got up and got off the bus. Matthew took another picture of National Express West Midlands 4366 before it continued south to West Bromwich.

NX West Midlands 4366 in Bilston

Banga Travel YF02 SKO in Bilston

NX West Midlands 1881 in Bilston interchange

NX West Midlands 855 in Bilston interchange

Rotala Diamond 21018 in Bilston interchange

Z Carz HK57 LFY in Longton

Trip to Fenton / Newcastle 12-10-2018

Bus	From	To	Service	Operator
67601	Magdalen Road, Blurton	Newcastle, Opp Cherry Tree PH	22	First Potteries

Today Matthew was in the residential unit and he was going to his day service. He was also going to see Grandma later on and going to the pub and returning to Blurton for a long weekend. Matthew got up around 08:00 and had toast and orange juice for breakfast. Around 09:00 we went downstairs and out of the unit. We set off outside and we saw Shelton Care Group DV10 JCU outside the residential unit.

Shelton Care Group DV10 JCU in Fenton

We set off onto Temple Street and we turned right onto Christchurch Street and to the day centre where we saw Shelton Care Group DY08 FFX parked up outside.

Shelton Care Group DY08 FFX in Fenton

In the morning Matthew did some baking, but first he went to the shop to get some supplies. We walked onto Christchurch Street and into the Co-operative Food store. After buying some shop we walked along Christchurch Street and back to the day centre. Matthew made a chocolate cake. For dinner Matthew had sausage chips and gravy. In the afternoon Matthew did some cleaning in the yard of the day centre. When it was time to go back to the residential unit we set off on foot onto Christchurch Street. We turned left onto Temple Street and back to the residential unit. Matthew went upstairs to his room to chill out and wait for me to come and pick him up. I turned up around 14:30 and I came up to help Matthew get ready to leave. We got hings ready and we left the residential unit just after 15:00. We went downstairs and we got into the car. We drove onto Temple Street. We turned right onto Christchurch Street and right onto Station Bridge Road. We followed the road around onto Heron Street and into Heron Cross where we saw First Potteries 67155 on a #23 to Hanley. We went through the traffic lights and forwards onto Blurton Road. We continued through Blurton and we turned right onto Church Street. We turned right onto Beaconsfield Drive. We got home around 15:10. When we got home Matthew had toast and a can of Pepsi Cola. Today we were catching the 15:56 to Newcastle as we were going to the pub via Grandma's House. We set off around 15:45 on foot to the bus stop all the way onto Magdalen Road. Whilst we waited for our bus we saw First Potteries 67660 on a #22 to Longton.

First Potteries 67660 in Blurton

A few minutes later we saw a bus come around the corner. As it got closer we saw it was First Potteries 67601 on a #22 to Newcastle.

First Potteries 67601 in Blurton

We got on the bus and we booked to Newcastle and sat down towards the back of the bus. We set off onto the A5035 and we went over the railway line into Trentham. As we turned right into New Inn Lane we saw First Potteries 67155 on a #21A to the Trentham Hotel. We ran up the hill into Hanford and we turned right into Wilson Road. We ran down Church Lane We continued down onto the A34. We crossed under the A500 and we ran into Trent Vale where we saw Newcastle School HJ60 KXH. We turned right into Harpfields Road and saw First Potteries 67657 on the final #22 turn. We continued forwards on Hilton Road and we turned into the hospital. We ran through and we saw First Potteries 32632 on a #25 to Hanley and ABC Supreme KX08 UXE. We turned right onto the A34 passing Newcastle School SN67 TMV. A couple of stops down the road we got up and got off the bus. Behind us First Potteries 32639 on a #25 to Keele

First Potteries 32639 in Newcastle

We crossed over the road and we saw First Potteries 32630 on a #25 to Hanley.

First Potteries 32630 in Newcastle

We walked up the hill to Grandma's house. At Grandma's Matthew had a can of Irn Bru and used her computer. When it was time to go we went to the pub in the car. We set off just after 17:40 and we ran down Victoria Street. We turned left onto the A34 and we saw ABC Supreme KX14 EBZ parked up in the retail park. We continued southwards into Trent Vale and we turned left onto Little-Field. We ran forwards onto Collin Road. We turned right onto Trent Valley Road and we turned right onto London Road. We ran down to the A34 and we turned right and into the pub car park. We walked into the pub and sat down out our normal tables. Matthew had a brunch with oatcakes followed by toffee sponge pudding with custard. Whilst we ate highlights of the passing buses included First Poteries 65026 on a #101 to Stafford and silver minibus LL14 YTB. Once we had finished eating we set off to uncle Dave's to pick him up. We ran down the A34 and we joined the A500 at Hanford. We went North up the A500 to Sideway and we went Eastwards along the A50 passing an KWS executive coach XJZ 3715 going the other way. We came off the A50 at Heron Cross. We dropped down into Fenton to pick uncle Dave up. Once we had picked him up we ran up to Heron Street and we crossed over the A50. We continued into Blurton along Blurton Road. We turned right onto Church Road and we turned right into Beaconsfield Drive. We got home around 19:30. Matthew chilled out on his computer and we composed a few e-mails and sorted a few things out. We then chilled out on the sofa doing e-mails and writing the until bedtime around 01:00... Mark