Trip to Northwich 26-01-2013

Bus	From	To	Service	Operator
876	Northwich Interchange	Northwich, Iron Bridge (SW-bound)	1	Arriva NW&W
7628	Northwich, Iron Bridge (NE-bound)	Northwich Interchange	1	Arriva NW&W
2497	Northwich Interchange	Leftwich, opp Shops	29A	Arriva NW&W
2497	Leftwich, opp Shops	Northwich Interchange	29A	Arriva NW&W
2616	Northwich Interchange	Leftwich, opp Shops	29A	Arriva NW&W
2616	Leftwich, opp Shops	Northwich Interchange	29A	Arriva NW&W
4156	Northwich Interchange	Leftwich, opp Shops	29A	Arriva NW&W
4156	Leftwich, opp Shops	Northwich Interchange	29A	Arriva NW&W
3349	Northwich Interchange	Leftwich, opp Shops	29A	Arriva NW&W
3349	Leftwich, opp Shops	Northwich Interchange	29A	Arriva NW&W
869	Northwich, opp Tesco	Barnton, Broomsfield Lane (cnr)	4	Arriva NW&W
869	Barnton, Broomsfield Lane (cnr)	Northwich Interchange	4	Arriva NW&W

Today we decided to go to Northwich. No research was done other than to check the weather and it was to be a tropical 6' C and sunny! Matthew got up around 09:30 and had toast and juice for breakfast. We set off a little earlier today at 11:45 to try and avoid some of the football traffic. That had been heavy snow the night before so driving was a little tricky on the side streets. We got on the A5035 and headed down to the A34. We did this West to the A500 and we did this North. As we headed up past the Britannia Stadium we passed Wardle Transport 4547 & 4898 and a Stanways coach on football specials. We got on the M6 and we took it steady up to the A54. As we headed North we were passed by Selwyn's SEL 133 and expat explorer YJ11 ANX. when we reached the A54 we did this into Middlewich where we stopped at The Country Kitchen. We were hoping the New Morrison's was going to be open, but it doesn't open until Monday. So we had dinner at the food van with a promise to re-visit Middle sometime in the near future! Whilst we ate our Dnner we saw 2 Northbound #37's Arriva NW&W was the first one, and this was followed by 2497 30 minutes later. We caried on to Northwich along the A533 and we reached there a little before 13:30. We parked up at the car park adjacent to Watling Street Northwich and walked back to the interchange. The #37 and the #29A were both Centro's so we scratched our heads for a few minutes wondering what to do. First we visited the toilet by the markets. We then saw required Arriva NW&W 876 on the #1 so we decided to do this up to the bridge. Matthew got a picture of this fine bus before we got on it.

Arriva NW&W 876 in Northwich

We got on the bus and booked Arriva Daysavers before we sat down near the back. The journey out was quite pleasant in the sunshine and we arrived at the bridge in no time. We got off and Matthew got another picture of this bus as it powered away into the distance.

Arriva NW&W 876 by the Iron Bridge

We crossed the rod to wait for the other #1 turn. we only had to wait a couple of minutes and we saw a Marshall Dart approaching. As t is now the only one at Winsford we knew it was Arriva NW&W 7628.

Arriva NW&W 7628 by the Iron Bridge

We on got on this bus and it was nearly empty. we sat near the back and enjoyed the journey back into town on what is currently Winsford's finest Dart. When we got back the bus emptied out and Matthew got his empty bus picture.

Inside Arriva NW&W 7628

When we got off this time we saw Arriva NW&W 2497, which had caught us up and was now about to work the next #29A. I asked Matthew if he wanted to do this required cadet and he said yes. He got a picture of this bus and then we got on it.

Arriva NW&W 2497 in Northwich

As the bus was nearly empty, Matthew got a picture of the inside of the bus as he got on.

Inside Arriva NW&W 2497

We set off to the Leftwich estate on this bus. The melted snow had caused flash flooding in some parts and there was a gigantic puddle near the entrance of the estate on Old Hall Road. The bus went through the puddle and it caused a tidal wave. The bus went down to the shops and waited for a few minutes before returning, and back through the puddle as we have to go on the opposite side of the road to go around the parked cars. Before we knew it we were back in Northwich. We got back and the only choice was to do the next #29A which was required Arriva NW&W 2616. We waited for the driver to ready the bus for service and whilst we waited we saw Tomlinson's Mercedes minibus Y556 KSC run past out of service. A few minutes later 2616 was ready. Matthew got a picture of this bus.

Arriva NW&W 2616 in Northwich

Once again the bus was nearly empty as we got on. I think the weather must have been keeping people indoors today.

Inside Arriva NW&W 2616

We set off around to Leftwich again. Back down London Road and back through the gigantic puddle. back to the shops and then back into Northwich. This time as we approached we saw a double decker heading North onto town. As we entered Watling Street we saw 2 double deckers! Arriva 3334 was on the #31A and we assumed Arriva 4156 must be on the next #29A. The stand that we would usually go onto was blocked and so we parked up at stand B or C. As we walked back down to the double deckers we saw Network Warrington 63 and Matthew got a picture of it.

Network Warrington 63 in Northwich

Arriva 3334 set off before we got to it and that left 4156. There was also 2615 which was also displaying 37. We had noticed Arriva MPD Dart 866 was on stand every time we returned to Northwich. What appears to have happened is that 866 must have failed. It was decided to put a Centro of the #37 on the #2/4 diagram and this was taken over on #37/29A by 4156 which had run up empty from Winsford. We decided to do 4156 rather than anything else that was about at this time. i got a picture of this bus before we got on it.

Arriva NW&W 4156 in Northwich (Mark)

The top deck was empty and so Matthew got his empty bus picture.

Inside Arriva NW&W 4156

Whilst were waiting for time the #289 Altricham service arrived with GHA T789 KNW. Matthew got a picture of it out of the front window of Arriva 4156.

GHA T789 KNW in Northwich

At 15:00 we set of back to Leftwich. Back down london Road and back through the big puddle on Old Hall Road. We stopped at the shops and the bus had to move back to let a car through as someone had parked a car opposite the bus stop with almost as if they had stolen it! We set off back North into Northwich. As we passed he museum a Victorian gent doughed his bowler hat as we passed by. We arrived back and we didn't know what we were going to do next. The #31 was a Centro and then the next #29A mae an appearance. It was required step-entranced Arriva NW&W 3349. I knew this was the bus that we were going to to do next even though it meant a 4th spin around the leftwich estate! This is a bus we have only seen work once before back in March 2012 when we passed it whilst doing 4156 to Middlewich. We waited for the bus to be readied for service and we took a picture before getting on this fine beast.

Arriva NW&W 3349 in Northwich

Once again the top deck was empty and so he got his empty bus picture.

Inside Arriva NW&W 3349

We set off down London Road again and through the puddle on Old Hall Road. We stopped at the shops and this time the car that had been parked like an abandoned vehicle had been moved. We then set off back to Northwich. We decided that the next trip would be the last of the day but we didn't know what we were going to do. We could do 3349 to Sandbach, do the Next warrington bus to the railway station or hopefully not the #29A was going to be required and useful. We got back and we saw that the next #29A was 2614. A required bus, but Matthew didn't want to do it today pass. The Network Warrington bus on the #45 was required 74 but he didn't fancy that either.

Network Warrington 74 in Northwich

We asked him if he wanted to do 3349 to sandbach and he didn't. We walked up and down the stands and he also visited the toilet. He eventually chose to do dud Arriva 869 on the #4. It was a good choice as we had never been on a #4 before and we got to see another part of Northwich.

Arriva NW&W 869 in Northwich

We got on and we sat at the back. we set off North out of town and past the hospital. we then crossed over a railway line and canal before climbing up into Barnton. We whizzed around the Barnton estate before returning to the main road and back down the hill. We passed the canal and the Chemical Work and went back down past the hospital and into town. back at the interchange, Matthew got his empty bus picture.

Inside Arriva NW&W 869

Mum was waiting for us and we took a couple more bus pictures before returning to the car. We ate a sausage roll and a small egg custard before heading out of town. We went east along the A559 until we met up with the A556. It was now going dark. We did this to the M6 and then South 14 or so miles to the A500. Today we went back down the A34 through Newcastle. As we passed the garage most of the bus were too far back to identify, but we did see an unidentified Marshall Dart. We presume this must be one of Adderley Green's old buses here for component retrieval. We then headed out of Newcastle along George Street and onto Shelton New Road. We joined the southbound A500 and did the A50 to Longton. At Z carz tonight we saw the following... Coach V690 EBC.

Z Carz V690 EBC in Longton

We then saw LDV minibus T408 JUX...

Z Carz T408 JUX in Longton

then we saw DAF coach W344 WNS...

Z Carz W344 WNS in Longton

next we saw another LDV minibus DS51 ZJU.

Z Carz DS51 ZJU in Longton

We the Willow Row pen and that was empty, so we turned in the Road before heading down Longton Hall Road. We stopped at the one stop shop and we brought some pop and a chocolate bar and some lottery tickets before getting home around 17:45. We chilled out at home before having a late tea of bangers and mash with cake. Matthew went to bed just before midnight...Mark

Trip to Northwich 15-12-2012

Bus	From	To	Service	Operator
869	Northwich Interchange	Northwich, Iron Bridge (SW-bound)	1	Arriva NW&W
868	Northwich, Iron Bridge (NE-bound)	Northwich Interchange	1	Arriva NW&W
3330	Northwich Interchange	Leftwich, opp Shops	29A	Arriva NW&W
3330	Leftwich, opp Shops	Northwich Interchange	29A	Arriva NW&W
2617	Northwich Interchange	Leftwich, opp Shops	29A	Arriva NW&W
2617	Leftwich, opp Shops	Northwich Interchange	29A	Arriva NW&W
2611	Northwich Interchange	Leftwich, opp Shops	29A	Arriva NW&W
2611	Leftwich, opp Shops	Northwich Interchange	29A	Arriva NW&W
SB16	Northwich Interchange	Northwich, opp Tesco	289	GHA
877	Northwich, opp Tesco	Rudheath, Wright Avenue (cnr)	2	Arriva NW&W
877	Rudheath, Wright Avenue (cnr)	Northwich Interchange	2	Arriva NW&W
7628	Northwich Interchange	Sandbach, o/s Common	37	Arriva NW&W

Today we decided to revisit Northwich. As we are near the middle o winter we once again gave him to nearby destinations to chose from and he chose Northwich. Like last week we had been to Northwich on the equivalent weekend last year. We didn't do any research for this trip, and we checked the weather on the night before. The weather was forecast for cloudy with sunny intervals, with a positively tropical temperate of 9' C. Matthew got up around 10:00 and had some toast and orange juice for breakfast. We set off around 11:30 today and mum drove as dad had been out the night before. We asked Matthew where he wanted to eat and he chose the Country Kitchen in Middlewich, a place we have visited before. We headed along Stanley Matthews Way and onto the Westbound A50. We then did the A500 Northwards to the M6. We did the M6 2 junctions North and came off at the A54 and went into Middlewich and onto the car park for The Country Kitchen. It was very busy today as there were workmen having there dinner from across the road, working on the new Morrisons Store. We had thought it was going to be ready but the opening has been delayed. We ordered our food and after a short while we were eating it. Matthew got a picture of the trailer just before he tucked into his breakfast.

The Country Kitchen in Middlewich

We saw Arriva NW&W 3330 heading North. After we had finished eating mum carried on driving We headed North up the A533 to Northwich and headed to the car park. We saw Arriva 7628 on a #37 Sandbach short and Arriva NW&W 3334 on a #29A service. We parked up and then walked back to the bus interchange. 7628 & 3330 had gone and it was just after 13:00. We had a quick toilet stop and then walked back to the stops. First thing that we saw was GHA Solo SL16 on a #48 to Frodsham.

GHA SL16 in Northwich Interchange

We saw Arriva NW&W 869 on a #1 service. I remembered doing this move last year, and I thought it would be a good thing to do before the next #37 service. Matthew got a picture and we got on the bus.

Arriva NW&W 869 in Northwich Interchange

We brought some Arriva NW&W Daysavers and sat down near the back. I checked to see if we had been on this bus before and we had. It was in fact the first Arriva bus we had done in Northwich on our first visit back in October 2011. We did this service as we had done before to the Iron Bridge and got off. Matthew tried to take a picture but his batteries were flat. Fortunately the driver stayed put whilst he changed his batteries for which we would like to say thank you if he ever reads this Blog!

Arriva NW&W 869 by the Iron Bridge

We crossed the road to wait or the return #1. We didn't have to wait or more than a couple of minutes and required Arriva NW&W 868 made an appearance.

Arriva NW&W 868 by the Iron Bridge

We got on the bus and sat down. On the equivalent weekend last year the bus was full. This year it was virtually empty. The journey in was swift and when we got back Matthew got a picture of the empty inside.

Inside Arriva NW&W 868

When we got off we could see Arriva NW&W 3330, which had finally caught us up. It was about to do the 29A to Leftwich. Behind it pulled in Arriva NW&W 3334 which was going to do the next #37 to Crewe. We asked Matthew which bus he wanted to catch and he chose 3330 on the #29A. We got a picture of this bus before boarding and going upstairs.

Arriva NW&W 3330 in Northwich Interchange

As soon as we got upstairs Matthew took his empty bus photo.

Inside Arriva NW&W 3330

We sat down and relaxed ready for the journey ahead.We set of and headed South under the railway arch. by the time we reached the letwich road junction 3334 had caught us up and the 2 palatine II double deckers stood side by side. If I had been quicker perhaps I could have got some kind of picture. We carried on around the estate and then we headed back into town on the bus. i had thought that we might carry on on this bus when it did the #37 so we could go after Arriva NW&W Marshall Dart 7628. When we spied a Network Warrington Dart 31 on the #45.

Network Warrington 31 in Northwich Interchange

We had followed Arriva NW&W 2617 into town on the #37 so we knew it was going out to Leftwhich on the #29A. when I gave Matthew the choice of 2617 or 3330 he chose 2617. He got a picture and then we got on and sat near the back.

Arriva NW&W 2617 in Northwich Interchange

Doing this bus did surprise me a little. it was a required bus, but Matthew has often turned down these Plaxton Centros and we have been waiting around other than catching one of these buses. We did the bus around the estate again and at his point it started to rain a little. We headed back into town and hen the bus arrived back and emptied out he got a picture of the inside of this bus.

Inside Arriva NW&W 2617

Arriva NW&W 2611 came in to work the next #29A and Matthew decided he wanted to do this too. This bus was a dud one, having done it before on a Sandbach trp back in March this year. We did the bus around the estate again and then when we got Back Matthew took a picture of the inside of that bus too.

Inside Arriva NW&W 2611

When we spied GHA SB16 on a #289 service. He got a picture of this bus.

GHA SB16 in Northwich Interchange

Matthew wanted to do this but I told him he couldn't as we didn't know what we could do back if we caught it. Required Arriva NW&W 2608 had arrived to do the next #29A and Matthew didn't seem interested in catching it. I went back to the stop and saw that the #45/46 also went off the same stop and at least on of the service seem to go in the same direction.i went back onto the bus and asked the driver if he went past the station and he said yes. So i went to fetch Matthew and told him we could do the bus but only for a short distance. We got on a and sat near the back.The bus took a slightly different route to the station from what we could remember on doing the Warrington Bus last October, but we got to Tesco and we got off the bus. Matthew got another picture of this bus before it pulled off into the distance.

GHA SB16 by Northwich Tesco

When we did the Warrington bus last time we did a #2 back to Northwich, We walked back past Tesco and then we looked up and down the road. we couldnt remeber the route of the #2 from last time, and we decided to turn right as that was the most likely route. The stop on the Northwich side of the road had no timetable and no text information. There was a phone number to ring for bus time but the stop wasn''t marked! We went to the shop and Matthew had a bottle of Irn Bru and a twin Milky way. We decided to cross the road as that stop was marked. It also had a timetable and we saw there was a bus due 10 minutes ago and 20 minutes later.There was someone waiting so we assumed the bus was late. Almost immediately we spied an Arriva MPD Dart approaching. Matthew got a picture and it as required Arriva NW&W 877.

Arruva NW&W 877 on Station Road Northwich

We sat down near the back on this bus which was reasonably well filled. We headed put of town first and then around the end before heading back in. We knew that we had missed Arriva 7628 on the #29A, but we knew we should be back in plenty of time to see it do the #37 service. We got back and Matthew got a picture o the inside of this bus.

Inside Arruva NW&W 877

GHA wright bodied single decker YJ04 BVB made an appearance on the #82 service and Matthew got a picture.

GHA YJ04 BVB in Northwich Interchange

Matthew then revisited the toilet and we formulated a plan to get a decent run on required Arriva NW&W 7628. It arrived and then we got on.we then realised that it wasn't due o until 16:00 so we had 10 minutes. We were also going to be in darkness by the time we reached Sandbach. So we got off and got a picture and then got back on again.

Arriva NW&W 7628 in Northwich Interchange

We sat back down and waited for time. I arranged with mum to drive down to Sandbach and meet us there. When the bus pulled of I texted mum to let her know we were on our way. we headed south to Winsford and then through Middlewich. I thought that mum knew the way to Sandbach and so did she! She got a little lost and was going to head back towards Stoke-on-Trent when she saw a sign for Sandbach. It took her nearly an hour to do what should have been a 30 minute journey, but that was OK because the bus was scheduled to take longer. We got into Sandbach and we saw Arriva NW&W 4491 on a #38 Macclesfield service. On the Common Matthew got his empty bus picture.

Inside Arriva NW&W 7628

We met up with mum who was a little bit annoyed with her journey down, and she went to get some chips. Matthew went to the toilet supervised by Uncle Dave and I went to get lottery ticket from McColls. As Matthew walked back towards mum he got a picture o D&G 66 on the #78 service.

D&G 66 on Sandbach Common

We all met up back at the car and we ate chips and Matthew had a spam fritter and a sausage roll too. We set off around 17:15 and we headed back to the M6 along the A534 to the M6. On the radio we heard the stoke had drawn with Everton following an unfortunate Ryan Shawcross own goal and then a Kenwyne Jones header. We got of the M6 at junction 16 and headed southwards down the A500. at Sideway we headed east along the A50 to Longton and then we passed he Z Carz depot. On the depot was coach D104 XAN, Mercedes minibus T131 SGA, LDV breadvan M420 UEH and airport transfer bus DL03 HHU. We then headed down Longton Hall road and then home. We got back around 18:15. Matthew had sausage, carrots and mash for a late tea before spending time on his computer before bedtime...Mark

Trip to Northwich 22-10-2011

Bus	From	To	Service	Operator
SB23	Northwich Interchange	Sandiway, Weaverham Road (NW-bound)	82	GHA
SB02	Sandiway, Weaverham Road (SE-bound)	Northwich Interchange	82	GHA
49	Northwich Interchange	Northwich, opp railway	45	Network Warrington
869	Rudheath, o/s Telephone Exchange	Northwich Interchange	2	Arriva NW&W

After last weeks trip to Chester, Matthew expressed a wish to travel on a GHA bus. He even pointed to the destination on one of his pictures and so we planned a trip to Northwich. planning consisted of visiting the Cheshire West and Chester council website and printing out a copy of the top half of the Northwich and Winsford bus map, and downloading a selected few timetables. Setting off at just after 12:00, we picked up uncle Dave on the way and we left his house around 12:30. We parked up on the edge of town having done a lp trying to find a good parking space. We parked a good way out of town in a car park opposite Lidl, and we walked back into town to the Weaver shopping centre. We had a quick walk around and found a self service restaurant in which to have dinner. 2 breakfasts, 2 baps and 3 Vimto's came to just short of £15. After dinner we got back to the transport interchange around 14:00. We took a couple of pictures before required GHA SB23 appeared on the #82 service. With the sun being where it was, the best pictures were taken from the back of the bus.


SB23 in Northwich Transport interchange (Matt)

This was not one of the timetables I downloaded, but I remember the buses passed on the other side of Sandiway, so we decided to travel to there. As we got off Matthew got a picture of the bus.


SB23 in Sandiway (Matt)

Not being exactly sure of how long we had to wait, Sandiway must have been where the bus passed with more than 5 minutes so we where here for closer to 15 minutes. When the bus appeared it was required SB02. Matthew mis-timed his picture and didn't get a very good picture. After the short journey back, Matthew took a picture of the empty bus.


Inside SB02 (Matt)

Matthew didn't take another picture of this bus, but I did.


SB02 at Northwich Interchange on a #82 (Mark)

We didn't have to wait long for our first sighting of a Network Warrington bus, in the form of 49 on the #45 service.


Network Warrington 49 about to work the #45 to Warrington (Matt)

Having missed read the timetable I didn't think there was a 15:50 departure, but i was looking on the weekday timetable. I asked the driver when he was due out and he said around 10 minutes. So we booked to the railway station with the intention of coming back on an Arriva service from around the corner. The driver was a really nice man and asked if Matthew want to go back out and take a picture with the destination blind switched on! As the sun was in a bad position we said thanks but declined! We did the service to the the station and alighted as planned. The driver even hung on a few seconds so Matthew could take another picture...


Network Warrington 49 adjacent to the railway station (Matt)

After we got off we crossed the busy road and went over the railway line and to the stop adjacent to the telephone exchange to catch a bus back into town. At this point i was hoping to see 7673 appear, but I had gotten my #2 and #29A services mixed up. We saw 869 head South around 10 minutes before he returned. Still, 869 was another required bus.


Arriva NW&W 869 by the telephone exchange (Matt)

As we approached the interchange, we saw 865 displaying #2. Buses on the #2 and #4 appear to inter work to compensate for the different length of service time. When we got back into town, Matthew photographed the inside of the refurbished Dennis Dart.


Inside 869 (Matt)

We also saw 7647 on a #29A service.


7647 about to work a 29A (Matt)

We then started to walk back to the car stopping to get a few pictures, including 865 about to work on the #2.


Arriva 865 also on #2 (Matt)

We then walked back to the car. Driving back in the late autumn sunshine the roads were relatively clear and we arrived back at Longport just after 17:00 where we filled up with LPG. We had a quick stop a t a local shop to pick up lottery as our Co-op is hut for renovation, and then we got home around 17:30...Mark