Trip to Widnes / Runcorn 16-07-2016

Bus	From	To	Service	Operator
2555	Widnes, Green Oaks	Runcorn BS	79C	Arriva NW&W
2535	Runcorn BS	Halton Lea, Hospital	3A	Arriva NW&W
2554	Halton Lea, Hospital	Runcorn BS	110	Arriva NW&W
HIG 5672	Runcorn BS	Halton Lea South	52	Ashcroft's Travel
2524	Halton Lea South	Runcorn BS	110	Arriva NW&W
2519	Runcorn BS	Murdishaw Central	79C	Arriva NW&W
3138	Murdishaw Central	Runcorn BS	X1	Arriva NW&W
2554	Runcorn BS	Widnes, Green Oaks	110	Arriva NW&W

Today Matthew decided that we were going to Runcorn. As we had never been to Rucorn by road we asked Matthew if it would be OK to drive to Widnes and catch a bus to Runcorn which he said was OK. We had checked the weather for today and it was for cloudy weather and showers in the North West and North Midlands and better weather to the South. We gave Matthew a list of Midlands destinations, but he didn't seem too happy. He instead point to a picture of a Halton Transport bus he had taken at Huyton which was a Rucorn service, and he wrote Runcorn on his day planner! Research then consisted of down loading the Halton & Widnes Arriva map from the website. Matthew got up around 10:00 and toast and orange juice for breakfast. We set off around 12:00 and we went onto the A5035. We turned right onto Stanley Matthews Way and we ran down to the A50. We went West to Sideway and then we took the Northbound. As we ran North up the A500 we saw Stanton's of Stoke 3093 RU, white minibus MX05 NFA and an unidentified Belle Vue coach. When we got to the M6 we turned right onto the Northbound side. On the M6 we saw quite a few coaches as the southbound traffic was slow due to an earlier accident. We saw Alfa 67, YN11 AYA on a #550, An unidentified Andrew's Coach, Telford's X5 TCN, blue coach ???? XYJ, Phillips BT57 LCT, black minibus SF16 DWE & Park's of Hamilton LSK 832 on a #570. We had made a decision to go via thw M62 and not the M56, which turned out to be a good decision. We left the M6 onto the Westbound M62 and on the M62 we passed Maghull Coaches coach WK02 UMC. At junction 7 we left the M62 and we went South down the A557. Approaching Widnes we saw Oakward's Travel A12 OWT. We turned right and we went North into the Green Oaks shopping centre car park where we parked up near to the bus stops and the market hall. On the way to the market we saw Halton Transport Solo 55 on a #26 circular service to Cronton.

Halton Transport 55 in Widnes

Also in Green Oaks was Halton Transport 3 on a #61A to Huyton.

Halton Transport 3 in Widnes

We walked into the market Hall and Matthew went to the toilet, and then we walked down to the other end to the Market Cafe. Matthew had a breakfast which he washed down with a can of Coke. After we had finished eating we spotted the disabled toilet which Matthew had to quickly explore, and then we went out of the market hall to the bus stands outside. Whilst we waited for a bus to Runcorn we saw Halton Transport 46 on a #61 to Widnes.

Halton Transport 46 in Widnes

A few minutes later we saw an Arriva bus coming around the corner. It was required Arriva NW&W 2555 on a #79C to Murdishaw.

Arriva NW&W 2555 in Widnes

We decided to do this bus so we got on and booked Arriva Day Saver tickets at £5.30 before we sat down towards the back of the bus. We set off onto Green Oaks Way ans we ran South into the old town via Gerrard Street. Milton Road and Kingsway. Traffic was very busy and queue to cross over the roundabout. In front of us was Arriva NW&W 3138 on a X1 to Windmill Hill. After we crossed the roundabout we ran out of town and over the railway line and under the A533. There are quite a few roadworks at the moment due to the building of a new bridge over the Mersey referred to as the Mersey Gateway project. We joined the A533 and we ran over the Mersey on the Silver Jubilee Bridge and we saw required Arriva NW&W 2522 on a #110 to Warrington. We ran around in a near circle and we got onto the High Street. We passed The Waterloo, the pub which ise the feature in the sitcom 'Two pints of lager and a packet of crisps' and we ran into the Old Town town centre where there was a small collections of bus stands just off the High Street. As we came int the bus station we saw a coach parked up.Matthew decided he wanted to get off here so we got up and got off the bus. Matthew took another Arriva NW&W 2555 before it carried on towards Murdishaw.

Arriva NW&W 2555 in Runcorn bus station

On the other side of the bus station we saw Arriva NW&W 2538 on a #3C to Weston. We walked over to the coach which was Anthony's Travel RB16 ANT.

Anthony's Travel RB16 ANT in Runcorn bus station

A few minutes later we saw Arriva NW&W 2535 which was on a #3A to Halton Hospital.

Arriva NW&W 2535 in Runcorn bus station

Immediately behind that was required Arriva NW&W 2554 on a #110 to Murdishaw.

Arriva NW&W 2554 in Runcorn bus station

We decided to do required Arriva NW&W 2535 on the #3A service to Halton Hospital. We got on the bus and we flashed the Arriva Day Saver ticket to the driver before we sat down towards the back of the bus. We set off out of the bus station and we turned right and up the hill. We crossed the canal and we went under the A533. We turned left into Boston Avenue and we ran Eastwards. We turned left into Halton Brook Avenue and then erm turned right into Halton Brook Avenue. This was our first time in Runcorn, and as a new town part of it are designed differently as we were about to find out... We went forwards off Halton Brook Avenue on to Brackendale and after crossing over the B5155 onto Halton Lodge Avenue we turned left onto the busway. With Runcorn being radically different, there are three types of Roads. Tgere are main roads for passing through quickly. Local roads for residential traffic and special busways which run in between the housing estates that only have buses on them and residents walk off the estates to to the busway to stops rather like stops on a tramline. This particular busway ran under the A533 central expressway and into the Halton Lea shopping centre. The Eastbound busway calls at the library on an elevated road. After a brief stop we continued to the hospital where the bus terminated. We got off the bus and Matthew took another picture of Arriva NW&W 2535 before it ran up to the turning circle.

Arriva NW&W 2535 in Halton Lea

We crossed over the busway and we waited for a bus back to Runcorn. We saw required Arriva NW&W 5006 on a terminating #21 service from Chester, and we few minutes later we saw another Arriva bus approaching, As it got closer we saw that if was required Arriva NW&W 2554 on the #110 to Warrington that we had turned down earlier.

Arriva NW&W 2554 in Halton Lea

We got on the bus and we flashed the Arriva Day Saver ticket to the driver. The bus was empty so Matthew took a picture inside Arriva NW&W 2554.

Inside Arriva NW&W 2554

We sat down towards the back of the bus and the bus set off along the busway Westwards. We stopped on the Southside of the Halton Lea shopping centre where there was an elevated road on which the buses run and a platform with 3 bus stands on it. It was considerably bigger than the Northside library stop. The busway went around an Asda store and North under the Halton Link Road. the busway was on a sweeping curve to the right and we went through the middle of the Castlefields area. After around 3/4 of a mile we left the busway and went forwards on Tyrell Way. We followed the road around to the left and we turned left onto Castlefields Avenue East. We crossed over the A558 Daresbury Expressway and we then turned left onto another busway. We ran Westwards through the Astmoor area of town which is an industrial estate and docks. The busway crossed over road every couple of hundred yards and there were traffic lights which usually turned to green and we approached them. We also passed under the Southern end of where the Mersey Gateway bridge is being built. We went under the B5155 adjacent to the canal and we turned right at a roundabout off the busway onto Lieria Way with the town centre in sight. We ran down the hill and we turned left into the bus station. As we came in we spotted a minibus on the opposite side. Once we got up and got off the bus we took a picture of Ashcroft's Travel Renault minibus HIG 5672 which was about to work a #52 service to Beechwood.

Ashcroft's Travel HIG 5672 in Runcorn bus station

We crossed over to the other side of the bus station and we waited at the appropriate stand. A quick check of the time table revealed that the bus was due off in 5 minutes and it was going via the southside of Halton Lea shopping centre. A few minutes later the bus came on stand and we got on and booked to the shopping centre. As the bus was empty Matthew took a picture inside Ashcroft's Travel HIG 5672.

Inside Ashcroft's Travel HIG 5672

We sat down and the bus went out of the bus station Eastwards onto the B5155. We crossed the canal and we turned left onto Halton Road. We traveled around 1/2 mile and we turned left onto Halton Brow, running under the A533. At the end of Halton Brow we turned right onto Main Street through and old part of the town with older building that you typically find in a rural village in Cheshire. The road curved around to the East ans we turned right onto Holt Lane. e ran through part of the Halton Lea shopping centre that were very run down and the we circle around onto the Southway and into the bus station. We got up and got off the bus and Matthew took another picture of Ashcroft's Travel HIG 5672.

Ashcroft's Travel HIG 5672 in Halton Lea

Once off the bus we decided to go for a little walk and find the toilet. We went downstairs and we walked around a little until we found a mall map and we worked out where the toilet were. The direct route had been cut off by re-development work on a new shop, so we went around in big circle! Matthew used the facilities which were unusual as all the toilet stall doors were different colours with a large gents type sign with crossed legs! We walked back towards the bus station and we went up the escalators to the bus station level. We got there in time to see required Arriva NW&W 3139 on a X1 service to the Liverpool One bus station.

Arriva NW&W 3139 in Halton Lea

a few minutes later we saw another Arriva bus approaching. As it got closer we saw it was required Arriva NW&W 2524 on a #110 to Warrington.

Arriva NW&W 2524 in Halton Lea

We got on the bus and we flashed the Arriva Day Saver ticket to the driver before we sat down towards the back of the bus. We traveled back through Castlefields via the busway and then we headed back into Runcorn via the busway through Astmoor. When we got back into Runcorn Matthew took another picture of Arriva NW&W 2524 before it carried on towards Warrington.

Arriva NW&W 2524 in Runcorn bus station

It wasn't quite 16:00 so we decided to do another trip out East. A few minutes later required Arriva NW&W 2519 made an appearance on a #79C to Murdishaw.

Arriva NW&W 2519 in Runcorn bus station

We decided to do this bus so we got on and flashed the Arriva day Saver ticket to the driver. As it was the first time we had done a #79C beyond Runcorn we getting to experience yet another different way to travel between Runcorn and Halton Lea. We set off out of town as we had done on the #3A earlier and as we got close to the town hall on Heath Road, we turned right into Ivy Street and left into Langdale Road. We ran through Halton Lodge Norleane Crescent and Linkway. This is an older part of town and perhaps the roughest part... There were gangs of kids wearing masks hanging around the bus stop. We ran clockwise around Grangeway and we joined the busway and we ran though Halton Lea North close to the library. We decided to go a bit further East to Murdishaw. We ran past the hospital and we discovered the run up to Murdishaw was entirely along the busway. We traveled East for about a mile and the busway opened out at a turning circle and we guessed we had reached the end of the run. we got up and we let the bus empty before Matthew took a picture inside Arriva NW&W 2519.

Inside Arriva NW&W 2519

The bus ran off around the other side to go layover where there was also required Arriva NW&W 2525 on a #79 to Hough Green. By the bus stop was a Co-operative Food store. We went in and brough a can of Coke and a small bottle of Irn Bru as well as some chocolate. After we had paid food the stuff we went back to the bus stop and Matthew had a double Milky Way and drank a can of orange Fanta. Whilst he ate we saw Halton Transport 49 go on layover.

Halton Transport 49 in Murdishaw

We also saw Halton Transport 90 on a #62 to Halebank.

Halton Transport 90 in Murdishaw

We were considering doing Arriva NW&W 5004 on a #2 Halton Lea circular when from the opposite direction we saw required Arriva NW&W 3138 on a X1 to Liverpool.

Arriva NW&W 3138 in Murdishaw

We decided to do this up to Runcorn so we got on the bus and we flashed the Arriva day Saver ticket to the driver before we sat down towards the back of the bus. The bus turned around the turning circle and we ran West up the busway to Halton Lea hospital. The bus emptied a little and Matthew to a picture of the empty seat adjacent to us inside Arriva NW&W 3138.

Inside Arriva NW&W 3138

We pulled up in Halton Lea South and the bus didn't load up very much. We ran back into town via Castlefield up the busway. After around 3/4 of a mile we left the busway and went forwards on Tyrell Way. We followed the road around to the left and we turned left onto Castlefields Avenue East. We crossed over the A558 Daresbury Expressway and instead going along the busway we traveled Westwards along Astmoor Road. Where the road crossed the busway we joined the busway and we also passed under the Southern end of where the Mersey Gateway bridge is being built. We went under the B5155 adjacent to the canal and we turned right at a roundabout off the busway onto Lieria Way with the town centre in sight. We ran down the hill and we turned left into the bus station. We got up and got off the bus and we saw Halton Transport 81 on stand opposite to us.

Halton Transport 81 in Runcorn bus station

We also saw Halton Transport 43 on a #61 to Huyton bus station.

Halton Transport 43 in Runcorn bus station

A few minutes later we saw an Arriva bus approaching. As it got closer we saw that it was dud Arriva NW&W 2554 on the #110 which we had scored earlier in the day.

Arriva NW&W 2554 in Runcorn bus station

We got on the bus and we flashed the Arriva Day saver tickets to the driver for the final time today before we sat down towards the back of the bus. We set off up the High Street and we passed close to the Waterloo pub as was and we joined the A533. We crossed over the Mersey and we ran into the old town of Widnes up Victoria Road. We crossed over the roundabout and we ran through a bus lane into the Asda car park. We joined onto Gerrard Street past Marks & Spencers and we turned left onto Green Oaks Way. We we got to the bus stops by Green Oaks we got up and got off the bus. We saw Halton Transport 92 on a #14C to the old town in Widnes.

Halton Transport 92 in Widnes

We walked over to the car and mum was waiting with Greggs sausage rolls and Irn Bru. We set off out of the car park and as we couldn't turned right we ran up to the B5178. What we should have done is turn around at the roundabout and go back onto the A557 and onto the M62. What I ended up doing is going East towards Warrington on the B5178 and onto the A562 past Fiddlers Ferry power station. We went into Penketh past the Tesco Express that we caught a bus to from Warrington back in April 2012. We turned sharp left onto Liverpool Road and we ran North up the junction 8 of the M62 via Lingley Green Avenue. Once on the M62 we ran East to the M6 and then we went South. The journey back was uneventful, except as we left the M6 we caught up with Wint's coach FL02 ZXV heading back towards the moorlands. We ran South down the A500 to Sideway and then east onto the A50. As we were going towards Longton I realised the coach was behind us. As we came off the slip road for Longton Matthew got a picture of Wints FL02 ZXV.

Wints FL02 ZXV on the A50

We went over to Z Carz to see what was parked up there this evening. On the spare ground in the first row tonight we saw Z Carz Ford minibus LG09 JVX.

Z Carz LG09 JVX in Longton

We also saw Z Carz Ford minibus BN03 OVS.

Z Carz BN03 OVS in Longton

In the second row was Z Carz Ford minibus YS09 LWV.

Z Carz YS09 LWV in Longton

We turned into Willow Row to check out what was in the compound this evening. We saw Z Carz Ford minibus LG09 WPE.

Z Carz LG09 WPE in Longton

We also saw Z Carz Iveco minibus YJ53 WPD.

Z Carz YJ53 WPD in Longton

We got back onto the A50 and we crossed over to the other side onto Baths Road. We stop at Tesco petrol station yo take on Diesel and then we returned onto the A50. We traveled West to Heron Cross an we came off onto Blurton Road. We ran through Blurton and we turned right onto Church Road and then right onto Beaconsfield Drive. We got home just before 19:00. For a late tea we had sausages, potatoes and carrots followed by a jam filled shortbread biscuit. We then chilled out on the computer and watching telly until 01:00... Mark