Trip to Burnley / Padiham 04-04-2015

Bus	From	To	Service	Operator
2755	Burnley BS	Altham, by Simon Jersey	152	Transdev Lancashire United
404	Altham, by Simon Jersey	Burnley BS	152	Transdev Lancashire United
1869	Burnley BS	Padiham, by St James Place	23	Transdev Burnley & Pendle
2759	Padiham, by Post Office	Burnley BS	152	Transdev Lancashire United
715	Burnley BS	Burnley, by Harold Avenue	1	Transdev Burnley & Pendle
286	Burnley, by Harold Avenue	Burnley BS	1	Transdev Burnley & Pendle

Today we decided to re-visit Burnley. We had checked the weather and the weather was forecast for fare weather in all directions. We gave Matthew a list of destinations from the North West and Midlands and from these he chose Burnley. Matthew got up around 09:45 and had toast and orange juice for breakfast. We set off a fraction before 12:00 and we headed onto the A5035. We turned Northwards onto Stanley Matthews Way and we joined the Westbound A50. We went North on the A500 which we did up to the M6. Traffic was a little slow when we joined the M6. We passed through the roadworks and the and the traffic improved a little. As we got close to Knutsford Service we were caught up by Greenline coach 4076 branded for service 758 Brent Cross to Victoria on a Northbound excursion.

Green Line 4076 on the M6

At junction 21A we joined the Eastbound M62. Just before we got to the M60, we were caught up by Plymouth based Target Travel YIL 9895 on a day trip.

Target Travel YIL 9895 on the M62

This Northern Irish registration had been carried by one of their Darts until very recently. We joined the clockwise M60 through the 50mph roadworks and we did this around to the M66. On the M66 we were able to get back up to speed again and we did the M66 / A56 Northwards until we reached the M65. We went eastwards 2 junctions along the M65 before coming into Burnley town centre along the A671. We parked adjacent to the bus station and we set off on foot to the Atlantis cafe for dinner. On the way we took a few bus pictures. The first bus to pass us was Transdev Burnley & Pendle 1861 on a #22 to Padiham.

Transdev Burnley & Pendle 1861 in Burnley

We also saw Transdev Burnley & Pendle 1066 on a #27 to Clitheroe.

Transdev Burnley & Pendle 1066 in Burnley

Outside the exit to the bus station we saw Transdev Burnley & Pendle 1071 on a #25 to Keighley.

Transdev Burnley & Pendle 1071 in Burnley bus station

This was followed by Wrightbus demonstrator ERZ 2028.

Wrightbus ERZ 2028 in Burnley bus station

This bus on loan to Transdev Burnley & Pendle was operating a #1 to the Stoops Estate. Finally we saw another new Wrightbus Streetlite, 601/602/603/605/606/609 which was on a #4 to Harle Syke.

Transdev Burnley & Pendle 605 in Burnley bus station

We headed into the Atlantis Cafe and Matthew as usual headed straight for the toilet at the top of two very long flights of stairs! After he had finished we headed down to the dinner which was quite full... Probably as busy as we have ever seen this place. Matthew had a breakfast Washed down with a cup of Coke. After we had finished eating we said goodbye to mum and we headed around the outside of the bus station to take a few bus pictures. We saw required Transdev Burnley & Pendle 2776 on a X43 to Nelson.

Transdev Burnley & Pendle 2776 in Burnley bus station

We then saw required Transdev Burnley & Pendle 1866 on a #22 to Padiham.

Transdev Burnley & Pendle 1866 in Burnley bus station

We also saw dud Transdev Burnley & Pendle 1868 on a #28 to Skipton.

Transdev Burnley & Pendle 1868 in Burnley bus station

We first had this bus back in February 2014 from Whitegate to Burnley on a #22 service. We then saw dud Transdev Burnley & Pendle 2777 on a X43 to Manchester.

Transdev Burnley & Pendle 2777 in Burnley bus station

Transdev Burnley & Pendle 2777 was the first 'Witch Way' double decker we rode on when they were brand new back in November 2013. In the time it took us to eat our dinner, Transdev Burnley & Pendle 605 was back in the bus station on the next working.

Transdev Burnley & Pendle 605 in Burnley bus station

We walked into the bus station and we considered what we could catch. As we though about our next bus we saw dud Transdev Lancashire United 2755 coming into the bus station on a #152 to Preston.

Transdev Lancashire United 2755 in Burnley bus station

We decided to catch this bus despite it being one we had been on before... We last rode on this bus from Blackburn to Accrington back in January 2015. We got on the bus and we booked Burnley area day tickets at £4.20 each. We went upstairs and the bus was nearly empty but people were randomly distributed along the top deck. As we sat and waited departure we saw dud Transdev Burnley & Pendle 1069 on one of the adjacent stands.

Transdev Burnley & Pendle 1069 in Burnley bus station

The bus set off through town and out along St James's Street. We joined Westgate followed by Westway. We crossed the M65 and we headed A671 towards Padiham. The bus wasn't emptying out so Matthew took a picture of the seats opposite as we passed through Whitegate.

Inside Transdev Lancashire United 2755

From previous trips we knew we could go to Altham Business Park to catch the bus back. We carried on into Padiham and across the river. We headed up the hill and then we turned to head towards Altham. We headed West and we crossed the A6068 though the set of lights. We carried on a short distance West and we turned into the Business Park. When we got to the appropriate stop we got up and got off the bus. Matthew took another picture of Transdev Lancashire United 2755 as it headed off towards Preston.

Transdev Lancashire United 2755 in Altham

We had around 5 minutes to wait for the return bus. Matthew had time to eat a Galaxy Caramel which he shared with uncle Dave and I. A few minutes later dud Transdev Lancashire United 404 made an appearance.

Transdev Lancashire United 404 in Altham

We got on the bus and we flashed our Burnley day tickets to the driver. We went upstairs and and we sat down. We had first been on Transdev Lancashire United 404 back in November 2013 from Accrington to Haslingden. The bus set off out of the Business park and we headed East towards Padiham. We crossed over the crossroads with the A6068 and we headed into the East end of town. We we down the hill and over the river before leaving Padiham to headed towards Whitegate. We headed down the A671 and we crossed over the M65 and ran into town. When we got to the bus station we let the bus empty before Matthew took a picture inside Transdev Lancashire United 404.

Inside Transdev Lancashire United 404

We got off the bus and Matthew went to the toilet. Once he had done we had a look to see what we could catch next. There was a required 'Witch Way' double decker on the X43 to Manchester and required Transdev Burnley & Pendle 1869 on a #23 to Accrington.

Transdev Burnley & Pendle 1869 in Burnley bus station

We decided to do Transdev Burnley & Pendle 1869, so we got on the bus and flashed the Burnley day ticket to the driver. We sat down near to the back of the bus. Whilst we waited for departure time, Matthew photographed the required bus on the X43 Transdev Burnley & Pendle 2774.

Transdev Burnley & Pendle 2774 in Burnley bus station

The bus set off through town and out of town along St James's Street the same as the #152. We headed over the M65 and along the A671 Westward out of Burnley. The bus was quite full and Matthew photographed the empty rear seat as we passed through Whitegate.

Inside Transdev Burnley & Pendle 1869

When we got to Padiham we turned left towards the railway just before the river. We got off the bus and Matthew took another picture of Transdev Burnley & Pendle 1869 before it carried on towards Accrington.

Transdev Burnley & Pendle 1869 in Padiham

We walked back onto the main road and we saw Transdev Burnley & Pendle 1859 on a #23 to Burnley.

Transdev Burnley & Pendle 1859 in Padiham

We decided to cross the river and walk up the hill to find a shop. As we started to climb the hill we saw Transdev Burnley & Pendle 1839 returning to Burnley on a #22 service.

Transdev Burnley & Pendle 1839 in Padiham

Near the top of the hill on the right hand side of the road was a bargain booze. Matthew had a couple of chocolate bars and a can of Coke and we set off down the hill to have a picnic at the bus stop before we head back to town. On the way down we saw required Transdev Burnley & Pendle 2759 on the #152 to Burnley. It stopped at the bottom of the hill and we walked down towards it. As it the bus was there we decided to forgo the bus stop picnic and catch the required bus, but not before he had taken a picture of it!

Transdev Lancashire United 2759 in Padiham

We got on the bus and we flashed the Burnley day ticket at the driver before we headed upstairs. The bus headed through Whitehead and we paused for a while outside the Tom Bobbin pub. We crossed the M65 and we headed through town before going into the bus station. We let the bus empty and Matthew took a picture inside Transdev Burnley & Pendle 2759.

Inside Transdev Lancashire United 2759

It had now gone 16:00 so we had time to do one quick out and back before we went home. There were a couple of Darts in the bus station, so we decided to do one of those. Required Transdev Burnley & Pendle 715 was on a #1 to the Stoops estate.

Transdev Burnley & Pendle 715 in Burnley bus station

We got on the bus and we flashed the Burnely day tickets to the driver. We sat down near to the back of the bus and the bus set off out of the bus station around 16:20. The bus set off through town and out of St james's Street. We then doubled back along towards the bus station on Hammerton Street. We crossed the canal and we joined Trafalgar Street. we turned left by MacDonald onto Burnham gate and we ran parallel to the railway for a short while. We turned left onto Coal Clough Lane and we crossed the railway line. We left the lane to run a round a block of houses and we returned to Coal Clough Lane before we turned left onto the A646. We headed into the Stoops estate and the driver change the blind for the return journey. The bus hadn't emptied so Matthew took a picture of the empty rear seat behind us.

Inside Transdev Burnley & Pendle 715

We got to the edge of the Stoops estate on Harold Avenue so we decided to get off to wait for the next bus. Matthew took another picture of Transdev Burnley & Pendle 715 before it returned towards Burnley.

Transdev Burnley & Pendle 715 in Stoops Estate

Whilst we waited Matthew had a flake and a bottle of coke from out of the trip bag. We went around the corner onto the A646 to see if there were any other buses that we could catch but there wasn't, so we returned to the stop that we got off the bus. The 15 minutes went by quickly and then we saw required Versa Transdev Burnley & Pendle 286 approaching.

Transdev Burnley & Pendle 286 in Stoops Estate

We got on the bus and it was empty so Matthew took a picture inside Transdev Burnley & Pendle 286.

Inside Transdev Burnley & Pendle 286

We flashed the Burnley day tickets to the driver for the final time today and we sat down near to the back of the bus. The bus set off onto the A646 and we headed South Eastwards towards Coal Clough Lane. We turned into the lane the then we headed into the houses on the right hand side before joining back onto Coal Clough Lane closer to town. We crossed the railway line and we joined Burnham Gate. At the end we turned left onto trafalgar Street and we turned left at the roundabout to head into town. So that we run through town via St James's Street we went North Eastwards onto Hammerton Street. We ran into town and we got to the bus station. The bus paused before we went on stand. This gave Matthew the opportunity to take a picture of Holmeswood Dart S9 BOS which was on a #65 service.

Holmeswood S9 BOS in Burnley bus station

We went onto the stand and we got off the bus. We met with mum and we went to the newsagents. Matthew had a can of Coke and a chocolate bar. Matthew used the toilet and we went out of the bus station. Before we went to the car on Croft Street we saw dud First West Yorkshire 66746 on a #589 service.

First West Yorkshire 66746 in Burnley bus station

We got in the car and Matthew ate a sausage roll. We set off out of town via Trafalgar Street and the A671 and we joined the M65. We went two junction up to the A56 and we headed South to the junction with the A680. We filled up with diesel and we got Matthew a bottle of Irn Bru out of the car boot. We re-joined the A56 and we carried on Southwards. The A56 became the M66 and we did the down to the M60. We went anti-clockwise until we got onto the M62. We then saw a coach ahead of us. We caught it up and we saw it was Maynes of Buckie KM12 GSM carrying the david Urquhart livery.

Maynes of Buckie KM12 GSM on the M62

We joined the Southbound M6 and the coach went North. On the M6 we saw another couple of coaches running together. We overtook them and we sat behind a slower car in front of us so the the coaches would go past us. The first coach to pass us was Clynnog & Trefor KBC 1V.

Clynnog & Trefor KBC 1V on the M6

Behind this was another Clynnog & Trefor coach, JSU 986.

Clynnog & Trefor JSU 986 on the M6

The coached headed off onto the M56 and we continued South on the M6. It was a little busy around junction 19 but we picked up speed again until we got to the roadworks at junction 17. We left the M6 at junction 16 and we went Southwards along the A500. As we passed the Wolstanton area we saw Bakerbus 194 going the way. It had been doing rail replacement work earlier in the day. We joined the Eastbound A50 and we did this up to Longton so that we could check out what was on Z Carz tonight. Still under repair was Z Carz Mercedes minibus M372 NWN.

Z Carz M372 NWN in Longton

Next to this was Ford airport transfers minibus Z Carz MJ03 DPU.

Z Carz MJ03 DPU in Longton

Finally we saw Z Carz Iveco minibus GK02 NWJ.

Z Carz GK02 NWJ in Longton

We turned into Willow Row to see if there was anything in the compound. We saw Z Carz Mercedes minibus S952 VMY.

Z Carz S952 VMY in Longton

We headed back onto the A50 and we came off it again in Heron Cross. We went through Blurton along Blurton Road and Church road before turning into Beaconsfield Drive. We got home around 19:10. For a late tea Matthew had bangers and mash with carrots followed by a Manchester tart. Matthew then chilled out on his computer until bedtime around 01:00... Mark

Trip to Rawtenstall / Burnley 23-11-2013

Bus	From	To	Service	Operator
2777	Rawtenstall, Bank Street (Stand L)	Burnley BS	X43	Transdev
1069	Burnley BS	Accrington BS	23	Transdev Burnley & Pendle
N375 PNY	Accrington BS	West End, by Percy Street	46	M&M Coaches
N125 YHH	West End, opp Percy Street	Accrington BS	46	M&M Coaches
404	Accrington BS	Haslingden, opp Health Centre‎	X41	Transdev Lancashire United

Today we decided to visit Rawtenstall. We gave Matthew a few options of place we could visit and Matthew said yes to Rawtenstall. research consisted at looking at the Rossobus website and to check the weather which was for cold and sunny weather. Matthew got up around 10:00 and had cheese and oatcakes for breakfast washed down with orange juice. We set off around 11:45 heading onto the A5035. We went down stanley Matthews way and passed former Procters Coaches Van Hool coach HIL 7614 which now operates with Atlantic Travel. We headed onto the A50 and then onto the Northbound A500. We came off the A500 at Shelton New Road and we headed to the garage to pick up LPG. Once we had filled up we got onto the Westbound A53 before carrying on Northwards on the A500. We headed North on the M6 up to the M62 and then carried onto the clockwise M60. We then headed North on the M66 and carried on to the A56. around Haslingden we joined the A682 to do the last mile or so into town. We then parked up in a car park just off Bacup Road. We had planned on eating at a chip shop on Bacup Road but when we got there it was closed! We walked up to the bus station and we saw Rossendale Tranport 203 parked up between duties.

'Rosso' 203 in Rawtenstall bus station

Still a little thrown by the 'Chip shop shut on a Saturday' situation, we carried on past the bus station whilst we went to look where we could go and eat. As we passed the bus station, a couple of Rossendale Transport buses arrived into the bus station. 'Rosso' 334 appeared on a #465 to Todmorden.

'Rosso' 334 in Rawtenstall bus station

Behind this was 149 on a #482 to Bacup. We walked past a corner shop which was closed and passed a toilet block which was also shut. Across the car park / public space we could see a bakery on Kay Street. We walked across to there to see if we could find anything Matthew would eat. Matthew had a bacon bap followed by a slice of cake all washed down with a glass of Coke. Whilst we were there we saw a couple of Transdev's new Witch Way X43 buses. I asked Matthew if he wanted to do Rosso or Transdev and he chose Transdev. After we had eaten we went in search of toilets. This was solved by a visit to local pub The Crown and Matthew having another drink of Coke. We went to the bus station to see where the X43 we from, and the board directed us to stops L & K on Bank Street. As we were about to walk back up to the stops we saw 'Rosso' 221 on a #483 to Bury.

'Rosso' 221 in Rawtenstall bus station

We stood near the stops and we saw a very full X43 heading towards Manchester which we decided to give a miss to. The was a X43 due at 14:03 which we should have seen but hadn't followed by another at 14:18. Around 14:18 a bus arrived and it was required Transdev 2777.

Transdev 2777 in Rawtenstall

We got on this bus which was also quite full and we booked some Transdev Silver day tickets. We sat down upstairs and the bus was quite full. The bus set off out of town along the A682 and it was a straight run. It took around 25 minutes to do the trip. As we headed into town we saw Gibson Direct K70 AYR a set of lights to the right of us. The coach followed us into town and Matthew got a picture of it put of the rear window of the bus!

Gibson Direct K70 AYR in Burnley

When we arrived in Burnley bus station Matthew waited for our bus to empty before getting a picture inside Transdev 2777 too.

Inside Transdev 2777

This was our first visit to Burnley, so we decided to have a quick explore around the bus station. Matthew visited the toilets and then we went out of the bus station and walked around the outside on the path we had spotted when we came into the bus station on 2777. There was a small layover area with space for 3 vehicles. There were 2 vehicles parked up there today. The vehicles were Transdev Burnley and Pendle 1072 and Springfield JH03 HDW. We saw 'Rosso' 204 on a #483 to Bury.

'Rosso' 204 in Burnley bus station

We also saw First West Yorkshire 66790 on a #592 service to Halifax and Transdev 'Starship' MPD dart 715.

Transdev Burnley & Pendle 715 in Burnley bus station

At the far end of the bus station we saw Tyrers 'Pendle Green Line' Solo MX08 DGE.

Tyrer MX08 DGE in Burnley bus station

We walked back into the bus station and then we visited the Information centre to pick up a few timetables. We then spotted Transdev Burnley & Pendle 1066 on a #25 to Keighley which was going even further away. We had also seen Transdev Burnley & Pendle 1069 on a #23 to Accrington which was headed in a similar direction to where we came from, and also somewhere we knew we could get back to Rawtenstall from, so we decided to do this.

Transdev Burnley & Pendle 1069 in Burnley bus station

We got on the bus and we sat near the back. The bus set off through town and then out towards Padiham passing Transdev Lancashire United 1102 on a #152 from Preston. The bus turned into Green Lane and then headed through a housing estate to Hapton. We passed over the M65 and then through Huncoat before heading into Accrington. The bus pulled into town and Matthew waited for the bus to empty before getting a picture inside Transdev Burnley & Pendle 1069.

Inside Transdev Burnley & Pendle 1069

As we had come into town we noticed M&M coaches minibuses parked up in 2 of the side streets. In bank Street was required M&M Coaches N375 PNY between working #46 turns to Blackburn.

M&M Coaches N375 PNY in Accrington

In Bridge street M&M Coaches N201 UHH.

M&M Coaches N201 UHH in Accrington

Back in August, we had mistakenly caught N202 LPN thinking it was a required bus. Today we did the opposite! We ignored doing N201 UHH thinking that it was a bus that we had already done... We did need N375 PNY so we decided to do this up towards Oswaldtwistle. We walked onto Peel Street were we saw N652 VSS on the #1 to Oswaldtwistle. We definitely did not need this bus as we had done it back in September 2013. Whilst we waited for N375 PNY to appear Matthew went to the toilet and we then saw Pilkington Buse S451 WAT on the Dill Hall Circular

Pilkington Bus S451 WAT in Accrington

M&M Coaches N375 PNY appeared from around the corner and we got on the bus. The bus was quite well filled so Matthew wasn't able to get a good picture inside this bus. There was however one empty set of seats.

Inside M&M Coaches N375 PNY

We set of towards Owaldtwistle with the intention of getting a X41 back to Haslingden or a Transdev Hyndburn Circular to Accrington if we missed the X41. We soon passed a X41 so we knew we were unlikely to be on one of those. We got off just before we reached the M65 and we crossed over the road to wait for the next Transdev bus. What I had forgotten about was the fact that there are 2 M&M coaches buses working on the #46. I was sorting out tickets and timetables in the trip bag when we saw an M&M Coaches minibus approaching. It caused me a bit of a kerfuffle but I kne Matthew would want to do this bus and we would have to pay for extra tickets. As it got closer we saw it was required N125 YHH!

M&M Coaches N125 YHH in Oswaldtwistle

We got on the bus and booked to Accrington. This unexpected move meant that we had to give the bus driver a £10 note which never goes down to well. We did this fine bus back into Accrington and when the bus emptied out Matthew got a picture inside the empty M&M Coaches N125 YHH.

Inside M&M Coaches N125 YHH

We checked the time of the next X41 to Haslingden. It was not due for another 25 minutes so we had a bit of time to kill. We went to the shop at the end of Peel Street where Matthew bought Some Coke and Irn Bru and a small selection of Chocolate. Matthew decided to drink the Irn Bru and afterwards we visited the toilets again. We saw for the first time Pilkington Bus step entranced decker E329 MSG, but unfortunately we couldn't do it today. The was also 'Rosso' 200 on a #484 to Helmshore.

'Rosso' 200 in Accrington bus station

Across the road from this was Pilkington Bus VU52 UEJ on another local service.

Pilkington Bus VU52 UEJ in Accrington

Eventually Trandev Lancashire United 404 turned up on the X41.

Transdev Lancashire United 404 in Accrington

We got on the bus and we went upstairs. We had originally thought that we had been on this bus before, but a quick check of the 'Buses I have Travelled on' page revealed that it was 407 that we had done on this service back in August. We set off out of town down the A680 towards Haslingden. We called mum to ask her to meet us there and the bus headed South and across the A56. When we looked like we had got to the built up centre of town we decided to get off. Matthew took a picture inside of Transdev Lancashire United 404 just before we got off.

Inside Transdev Lancashire United 404

After a few minutes mum managed to find us and we got in the car. Here Matthew tucked into his Greggs sausage roll and drank some Irn Bru. We found our way back onto the Manchester Road / A680 and then we headed South on the A56. We did the A56 straight onto the M66 and then we did the anticlockwise M60 around the North end of Manchester. We went onto the westbound M62 which we did onto The M6. We headed South M6 and then we went onto the Southbound A500. went East at the A50 which we did to Longton Z Carz to see what was parked up. There were 3 vehicle parked up on the spare ground. At the back was Mercedes minibus M372 NWN which was too far back to get a picture. In front of this was Volvo coach M534 RSO.

Z Carz M534 RSO in Longton

Nearby was LDV minibus M420 UEH.

Z Carz M420 UEH in Longton

In the Willow Row compound was LDV minibus T408 JUX in the same position as last week. We headed back home via the A50 and Heron Cross. We did Blurton Road through Blurton and onto the A5035. We got home at 18:45. For a late tea Matthew had bangers and mash with carrots followed by cheesecake. Matthew then chilled out on his computer until bedtime around 00:30...Mark