Trip to Southport / Crosby 19-09-2021

Bus	From	To	Service	Operator
15304	Southport, The Monument	Thornton, adj Edgemoor Drive	X2	Stagecoach Lancashire
2916	Thornton, opp Edgemoor Drive	Thornton, Masefield Road	54	Arriva NW&W
4578	Thornton, Green Lane	Kirkdale, Briar Street	47	Arriva NW&W
3022	Kirkdale, Pansy Street	Crosby, Village stop A	53	Arriva NW&W

Today was the second day of out NW adventure. We woke up in the hotel room and we got dressed and ready to go out. We decided we would go to nearby Chorley to have breakfast before going out for the day. We set off on foot along the path amd we got in the car outside the main hotel. We set off along the drive and we turned left onto Park Hall Hall Road. We followed the road to the left onto Mill Lane and we crossed over the M6. We headed Spouthwards down Preston Road and we turned right onto Spendmore Lane. We ran through Coppull and we crossed over the West Coast main line before crossing the roundabout onto the B5251. We ran towards Chorley and the place where we hoped to have breakfast was shut. We continued into town and we missed the turning so we ended up on the Northbound A6. We turned around and headed back Southwards and we turned right onto. George Street. We turned right onto Market Street and we spotted another cafe. There were no parking spaces on market street so we turned into West Street and parked up there. We walked around the corner and we went to Crown Cafe. Matthew visited the toilet and mum ordered the food. Matthew had a breakfast washed down with a can of Coke. When we had finished eating we had a quick walk around town whilst mum visited a nearby charity shop. We walked back up West Street and up the Steps onto West Street car park. We cut through St Mary's RC Church and down an alleyway back onto Market Street. After get some money out of the nearby cash machine we met up with mum and we returned to the car. We turned around and we ran down West Street and turned right onto Market Street. We turned right onto the B5251 and we headed out of Chorley towards Coppull. We veered right onto the B5251 ans we turned left onto Butterworth Brow. We crossed the railway line and we headed through Charnock Richard village. We turned right onto Preston Road and we headed Northwards. We turned left onto Mill Lane and we followed the road to the right onto Park Hall Road. We ran past the hotel and into Heskin. We turned left onto the Southbound B5250 and we turned right onto Town Lane. This was a very narrow road and we had to pass people very slowly a couple of times. At this point we decided to set the route to be fastest route rather than most direct!. We turned left onto Barmskin Lane and we headed Southwards. We ran forwards onto Courage Low Lane and we turned left onto Moss Lane. We joined the Eastbound A5209 and we headed towards the M6 motorway. Once on the motorway we headed Southwards and we joined the Westbound M58. We ran to the end and We joined the Southbound A5036 and we saw an unidentified Aspect coach. We turned right onto Copy Lane. We turned right onto the B5207 and we followed the road around a housing estate. We crossed the B5244 and we ran forwards onto Lydiate Lane. We turned left onto the A565 and we ran towards Crosby. We ran past Sainsbury's and we ran along Manor Road. At the end we followed the road to the left onto Hall Road East and we past the railway station. We ran onto Hall Road West and we turned the corner onto the promenade where we said goodbye to mum. The first thing we did was to head to the beach to see if we could see any interesting historic bricks on the famous beach. We managed to find a few that had not been eroded by the sea. We also went to see a coupke of the Anthony Gormley statues. The weather was statring to turn so we headed back onto Burbo Bank Road North. We turned the corner onto Bank Hall Road West and we heded up to the bus stop. A quick check of the stop revealed there was no bus service from there until Monday moring. We decided to head up to the station and catch a train into Southport. On the way we saw grey minibus RO17 ZWE waiting at the level crossing.

RO17 ZWE in Hall Road

We went onto the station and we booked 3 saveaway all areas tickets befpore crossing over the bridge and waiting for the next Northbound train. We only had to wait about 20 minutes or so and the train appeared. We got on the train and we headed North towards Southport. The journey took around 20 minutes and when we got to Southport we came out of the station onto London Street. We walked up to Lord Stree and we stop at the Southbound stops and waited for a suitable bus. As we approached the Stop we saw Arriva NW&W 4582 on a #46 to Carr Lane.

Arriva NW&W 4582 in Southport

We decided to catch a bus going Southwards back towards Crosby where mum dropped us off. A short time later we saw an X2 bus approaching. As it got closer we saw it was Stagecoach Lancashire 15304 on the X2 to Liverpool.

Stagecoach Lancashire 15304 in Southport

We got on the bus and we placed the Metro cards on the scanner before going upstairs and sitting down. We set off Southwards down Lord Street and we croseed the roundabout onto Lord Street South. We turned left onto Liverpool Road and we ran past Birkdale railway station. We continued Southwards for a couple of miles and into Ainsdale. We continued onto Liverpool Avenue and we ran Southwards onto Liverpool Road. We joined the Formby bypass and we ran past the airfield before turning right onto Southport Road. We ran forwards onto Ryeground Lane and we turned left onto Church Road. We ran forwards onto Cross Green and we turned left onto Liverpool Road. At the roundabout we turned right onto the Formby Bypass and we continued Southwards. We ran forwards onto Scaffold Lane and we continued Southwards through Lady Green. We ran forwards onto Southport Road and at the roundabout we turned right onto Moss Lane. We got to a section of road where there was another bus service so we decided to get up and get off the bus. We got off the bus by Edgemoor Drive and Matthew got another picture of Stagecoach Lancashire 15304 as it continued towards Liverpool.

Stagecoach Lancashire 15304 in Thornton

Once off the bus we decided to cross the road and wait for smoething going Northwards. We had already seen on the map the there was a bus heading Northwards on a #54 to Thornton. A few minutes later we saw the bus approching. It was Arriva NW&W 2916 on a #54 to Thornton.

Arriva NW&W 2916 in Thornton

We got on the bus and we placed the Metro cards to the driver. The back of the bus was empty so Matthew took a picture inside Arriva NW&W 2916 before we saw down towards the back of the bus.

Inside Arriva NW&W 2916

After a quick check on the bustimes.org map it seemed that Thornton was only just up the road! We set of along the A565 and we turned right onto Edge Lane. The bus turned left onto Runnels Lane and terminate towards the Notrh end. We got off the bus and Matthew took another picture of Arriva NW&W 2916 as it waited to depart towards Liverpool.

Arriva NW&W 2916 in Thornton

The bus was due to sit there for a few minutes before returning South So I asked Matthew if he wanted to walk to the main road and catch a different bus to which he agreed. We walked Northwards up Runnells Lane and at the end we turned left onto Lydiate Lane. We went forwards onto Green Lane and we went past the Nags Head pub. We turned right onto the A565 and we headed to the Nearest Southbound stop. We looked at the map and we could see a bus approaching to the North. As it got closer we saw it was Arriva NW&W 4578 on a #47 to Liverpool.

Arriva NW&W 4578 in Thornton

We got on the bus and we we placed the Metro cards on the reader before going upstairs. We headed Southwards down the A565 and into Crosby. We turned left and followed the A565 Southwards to Seaforth. We turned left onto the A566 and we headed Eastwards to North Park. We turned right onto Stanley Road and we continued Southwards past the Bootle New Strand shopping centre. We continued Southwards to Kirkdale and we crossed the railway line. We didn't want to go too far into the unbknown so we decided to get of the bus where there were some shops, so we got up and got off the bus. Once off the bus Matthew took another picture of Arriva NW&W 4578 as it continued Southwards towards Liverpool.

Arriva NW&W 4578 in Kirkdale

Once off the bus we headed into a nearby convenience store and we brought a can of Coke and a couple of Chocolate bars. WE headed across the the vide road and we sat at the Northbound bus stop. Whilst we were ating a chocolate bar we saw Arriva NW&W 4632 on a #52 to Netherton.

Arriva NW&W 4632 in Kirkdale

We decided to catch the net bus to somwhere mum could come and pick us up. A few minutes later we saw Arriva NW&W 3022 on a #53 to Crosby.

Arriva NW&W 3022 in Kirkdale

We got on the bus and we place the metro card on the scanner for the final time today before sitting down towards the back of the bus. We set off Northwards up Stanley Road and we ran past Bootle New Strand shopping center. We continued Northwards past North Park and we ran forwards on Linacre Road. We turned shap left onto Bridge Road and we crossed the roundabout continuing along Bridge Road. We crossed the railway line and we ran forwards onto Seaforth Road. We turned right onto Church Road and right onto Crescent Road. We ran forwards onto Ewart Road and we crossed over the roundabout onto Sandy Road. We followed the road around to the left onto Cambridge Road. We turned right onto the A565 and we headed Northwards over the railway line. We turned left onto South Road and right onto Mount Pleasant and we ran Northwards onto Oxford Road. We turned right onto Mersey Road and we crossed over the railway line. At the roundabout we ran forwardes onto Corobnation Road. We turned left onto Islington and we ran up to the roundabout and did a 180' turn to get to the bus terminal. When we arrived at the bus station the bus eptied out and Matthew got a picture inside Arriva NW&W 3022 before we got off the bus.

Inside Arriva NW&W 3022

Also in the bus station was Stagecoach Merseyside 15564 which was on a #53 to Liverpool.

Stagecoach Merseyside 15564 in Crosby

We walked around the corner to the Sainsbury's where mum had parked up to pick us up. We got in the car and we set off towards the Nag's Head in Thorton which we had seen earlier on on our travels. We set off out of the car park onto Richmond Road and we crossed over the roundabout onto the Eastbound A565. We ran for about a mile up the road and we turned right into Green Lane. We turned left into the pub car park and we parked up. As we got to the door we saw a sign that said 'No walk-in customers'. We returned to the car and we tried to book online but the website would not let us book. We tried to phone up but they weren't answering the phone either! We decided to try another pub in the area so we looked it up and we set off. We turned left onto Lydiate Lane and we headed Eastwards. We crossed over the B5422 and we ran forwards onto Northern Perimeter Road. We followed it to the end and we turned left onto Copy Lane. We crossed the A5036 and we continued Eastwards to Old Roan. We ran forwards onto Aintree lane and we got to the pub in about 1/2 mile. We parked up and whilst the pub was currently operating with a limited menu due to supply issues, we were able to get in angoet something to eat. Matthew went to the toilet and afterwards we returned to the table and mum ordered the food. Matthew had a burger and chips washed down with a glass of Coke followed chocolate fudge cake and ice cream. When we had finished we got back in the car and we headed back to the Hotel. We travelled Westwards along the Aintree Lane and we turned right onto the A59 at Old Road. We ran northwards to the giant interchange and we got onto the Eastbound M58. We ran about 10 miles or so up the the M6. We went Northwards up the M6and we came off at junction 27. We turned left onto A5209 and almost Immediatley we turned right onto the Northbound B5250. We ran Northwards through Mossy Lea and Writington and into Heskin. We turned right onto Park Hall Road and we turned left into the hotel grounds. This time we went right around the main hotel and we parked at the back, which was a little closer to the room thean the previous car parking spaces we had used. We walked back to the room and we chilled out on the laptop writing some of the Blog. Matthew had a can of Irn Bru and we settled down to bed around 00:00... Mark

Trip to Chorley / Leyland 22-02-2014

Bus	From	To	Service	Operator
33178	Chorley TI	Towngate, Tesco (Stand F)	109	Stagecoach Lancashire
47326	Towngate, opp Job Centre	Chorley TI	109	Stagecoach Lancashire
15565	Chorley TI	Whittle-le-Woods, by Hardacre Lane	125	Stagecoach Lancashire
15839	Whittle-le-Woods, by Moss Lane	Chorley TI	125	Stagecoach Lancashire
15564	Chorley TI	Whittle-le-Woods, by Foxglove Drive	125	Stagecoach Lancashire
15565	Whittle-le-Woods, by Moss Lane	Chorley TI	125	Stagecoach Lancashire

Today we decided to re-visited Chorley. We didn't chose where we were going until Friday night as we were lookng at the weather forecasts to see where the weather would be best this weekend. It seemed to be that we could go almost anywhere except west so we ruled out Chester and Birkenhead. Having chosen to go to Chorley we looked at the stagecoach website to get a map of the Chorley area and also looked up the price of the local Mega Dayrider ticket (£4.40). The weather was set to be cloud but dry. Matthew got up around 10:00 and had toast and orange juice for breakfast. We set off just after 11:30 and we drove onto the A5035 before going onto Stanley Matthews Way. We then headed onto the West bound A50. We were passed by Silverdale MV12 ODY as we got onto the roundabout at Sideway before heading North on the A500. We did the A500 to Shelton new road where we stopped to take on LPG. We headed back onto the A500 via the Westbound A53. We got onto the Northbound M6 and the traffic was moving well we headed North over the Thelwall viaduct and North beyond the M62. We came off at junction 27 and we headed East towards Standish. We had looked up a few cafe's for something to eat when we reached Chorley, and we had seen there was a cafe on A6 as you came in to Chorley from the South. So we headed over to the A6 via the A5106. We didn't see the cafe on the way in, but as we entered the town we saw a sign for a chip shop cafe. We came around and parked on the Fleet Street car park and after I had checked out the parking and the location of the chippy we walked along Fleet Street to the corner of Pall Mall. Here lies the Big Lamp chippy which has a small dinning area to one side of the shop that seats around 20. Matthew visited their toilet and he had Chips, egg and sausage with a round of bread of butter washed down with a can of Coke. After we had finished eating we walked by to the car, and I photographed some interesting stencil art on the wall as I went. We drove around to the main car park in town which is adjacent to the the Transport Interchange. The car park was very busy so we stopped and said goodbye to mum whilst she parked up the car. There was a required Dart on layover in the Interchange in the form of Stagecoach 34620. We also saw another Dart coming around and we guessed correctly that it was probably on the #109 to Preston via Leyland. It pulled onto stand and we saw it was Required Stagecoach Lancashire 33178.

Stagecoach Lancashire 33178 in Chorley Interchange

There was a driver change so we had to wait for the bus to be readied for service. In the meantime Matthew photographed a required stagecoach 15581 on the adjacent stand.

Stagecoach Lancashire 15581 in Chorley Interchange

When the bus was ready we got on and purchased our Chorley Mega Dayrider tickets. The back of the bus was empty so Matthew took a picture of the inside of the bus at the rear step.

Inside Stagecoach Lancashire 33178

We sat down and the bus left town Westwards. We passed the big out of town Tesco store and the crossed over the railway line into Euxton. We turned right and we headed North through the village on the A49. At this point we passed required ALX300 bodied MAN Stegecoach Lancashire 22253. At a crossroads by a pub called The Bay Horse we turned right onto Euxton Lane. We headed East for a short while crossing back over the West coast main line and then we turned left to head into Buckshaw Village crossing over the line to Manchester via Bolton. Buckshaw Village is a large housing estate built on the grounds of and old ordinance factory. They seem to be really nice and unusual house set in unusual landscaping. It's not every day you can buy a house with its own moat! We then turned back West for the run into Leyland. Here we passed required Stagecoach Dart 34680 on a #109 to Chorley. We rolled into Leyland and we got off the bus. Matthew took another picture of 33178 before it carried on Northwards.

Stagecoach Lancashire 33178 in Leyland

Before we walked to the stop around the corner to look at the timetable. The buses run in an unusual pattern of being 20 and 40 minutes apart. We had just missed the 14:08 and the next bus back was 14:48! So we decided to go for a bit of a walk around town. On the opposite side of the road to where we got off, we saw Fishwicks 14 on the #111 Preston service.

Fishwicks 14 in Leyland

We walked along St Andrews Way around a large Tesco store and we saw Fishwicks 15 on a #111 service.

Fishwicks 15 in Leyland

We sat down and Matthew a Rice Crispies Square bar and a bottle of Cherryade. We decided to go into a local chip shop and replace the pop from the trip bag and we also brought a can of Coke. As we were going to go back Matthew spotted the toilet in an ice cream parlour! After using the toilet Matthew had a vanilla cone at £1.50. We walked back along St Andrews Way and back to the stop for the return service. Just as our bus was due we saw Fishwicks 5 on another #111 service.

Fishwicks 5 in Leyland

Right behind the Fishwicks bus was required Stagecoach 47326 on the #109 service.

Stagecoach Lancashire 47326 in Leyland

We got on the bus and booked to Chorley. With it being a Solo Matthew tried to beep the horn but we didn't let him.We sat down near the back of the bus and we headed out of town towards Buckshaw Village. On the way in we noticed the wicker man statue as we entered the village. We headed South and back through Euxton. We passed the big Tesco and we went into Chorley. When the bus emptied Matthew waited for the Solo to empty before getting a picture inside this bus.

Inside Stagecoach Lancashire 47326

There wasn't anything significant in when we got back so we had a walk around the Interchange taking pictures. We saw required Transdev Lancashire United 1101 on the #2 to Darwen. A couple of double deckers come in so we walked back into the interchange to catch one. The bus towards Bolton was dud Stagecoach 15573 and the bus towards Preston was required 15565.

Stagecoach Lancashire 15565 in Chorley Interchange

We got on Stagecoach 15565 and booked to Whittle-le-Woods and then we went upstairs. The bus was emptied in front of us, so Matthew took his picture straight away.

Inside Stagecoach Lancashire 15565

The bus set off though town along the A581 before going onto the Northbound A6 by the out of town retail stores. We passed the hospital and crossed over the Preston to Bolton line before going into the village of Whittle-le-Woods. This is a place we had been before last time we came to Chorley back in June 2013. We decided to get off where we had gotten off last time. Just after the BP garage we got up and got off. Matthew then got another picture of Stagecoach Lancashire 15565.

Stagecoach Lancashire 15565 in Whittle-le-Woods

We walked back down to the BP garage and got some cash from the cash machine. We then visited the Spar shop where Matthew used the toilet and then we brought Chocolate & pop. After we had finished we headed back to the road and we were about to cross when we spotted a strange tri-axle minibus. It was Lancashire County Council welfare bus PO60 AYT.

Lancashire CC PO60 AYT in Whittle-le-Woods

We crossed the road and we had a picnic whilst we waited for the bus. Matthew had a can of Cherry Coke and a Milky Way. We didn't have to wait too long before required Stagecoach Lancashire 15839 appeared.

Stagecoach Lancashire 15839 in Whittle-le-Woods

We got on the bus and went upstairs. The journey back was swift and we got back into Chorley in no time. When we got back to Chorley Matthew took a picture of the lower saloon in Stagecoach Lancashire 15839.

Inside Stagecoach Lancashire 15839

On the #109 was required Stagecoach Lancashire 47331 but we didn't fancy doing another Solo today! After visiting the toilet we had a walk around the outside of the Interchange and took a few more pictures. It wasn't long before another couple of double deckers arrived in the bus station. Required 15572 was on the #125 to Bolton and required 15564 was on the #125 to Preston. I was hoping to go south on 15572 but Matthew chose to go North again on 15564. Whilst we were waiting for 15564 to re readied for service, we saw Transdev Lancashire United 253 on the #2 to Darwen.

Transdev Lancashire United 253 in Chorley Interchange

We took a picture of Stagecoach 15564 before we got on it.

Stagecoach Lancashire 15564 in Chorley Interchange

We went upstairs and the bus was empty, so Matthew took a picture inside before we sat down.

Inside Stagecoach Lancashire 15564

The bus set off through town and up to the A6 along the A581. We headed passed the hospital and over the railway before going into Whittle-le-Woods. We got off a stop earlier so we were closer to the bus stop for the return journey. When we got off we got another picture of Stagecoach Lancashire 15564.

Stagecoach Lancashire 15564 in Whittle-le-Woods

There seemed to be a small gap in the service, and whilst we waited Matthew drank a bottle of orangeade. The bus eventually turned up and it was dud Stagecoach Lancashire 15565 which we had done North earlier!

Stagecoach Lancashire 15565 in Whittle-le-Woods

We decided that this was going to be the last journey of the day. We headed back down the A6 and into town. When we got back Matthew waited for the bus to empty before getting a picture inside 15565 again.

Inside Stagecoach Lancashire 15565

As we got off Matthew said hello to a couple of people and he went to the toilet. We then decided to have one last walk around the Interchange before going back to the car. We had noticed there was quite a variety of buses on the the Arriva run #362 service to Wigan. On this occasion we saw East Lancs Myllennium bodied DAF Arriva NW&W 2829.

Arriva NW&W 2829 in Chorley Interchange

Matthew also got a couple more pictures double deckers in the Interchange, ironically the best was of Stagecoach Lancashire 15565 again.

Stagecoach Lancashire 15565 in Chorley Interchange

We walked back to the car where we surprised mm as we hadn't called ahead to let her know we were coming. Matthew had his sausage roll washed down with a can of Irn Bru. He also had a copy of this months Buses magazine to read. Mum nipped to Iceland whilst we ate the sausage rolls and then we set off home. We set off out of town down the A6 hooping to go back the way we came but I followed direction for the A49 & Wigan and we ended up going through Wigan! We went around most of the town and we joined on the A49 just South of the town near Sainsburys. Here we saw Stagecoach Wigan 27817 on a Leigh bound #600 and Stagecoach 22351 on a Wigan bound #600 service. We carried on down the A49 and joined the M6 quite a few miles South of where we intended to. It was now dark and we plough through Cheshire making good time of the relatively clear Road. As we neared the A500 I saw a few coaches so I slowed down so that we could see them. The first coach to pass up was Global Travel FN02 VBV. On the A500 we were passed by two other coaches Happy days 214 & 223. These coaches must have been returning from Stoke City's away game at Manchester City. We carried on down to the A50 and to Longton to see what was parked up at Z Carz. There were 3 vehicles that were easily seen on the spare ground. First in the row was Mercedes minibus S952 VMY.

Z Carz S952 VMY in Longton

Next to this was Mercedes minibus M372 NWN.

Z Carz M372 NWN in Longton

Then there was Blackwoods liveried coach B12 FWS.

Z Carz B12 FWS in Longton

At the back were airport transfer minibus DL03 HHU and Volkswagon minibus OV05 WSW. We turned into willow Row and in the compound were Y569 DSF from the taxi fleet and long term SORN LDV minibus T408 JUX.

Z Carz Y569 DSF in Longton

We headed back onto the A50 and into Heron Cross. We then went through Blurton and we got home around 18:45. After sorting out the photographs we took today we had a let tea of bangers and mash with carrots followed by cake. Matthew then chilled out on his computer until bedtime around 00:30...Mark