IPSWICH BUSES ROUTE 5 AND 11 TO GO AROUND BROKE HALL EVENINGS AND SUNDAY AND FUTURE OF THE 4

Seen Here earlier in the Summer is East Lancs Dart 86 PJ53 OLG

 Ipswich Buses has announced that they are to extend routes 5 and 11 in the Evenings and on Sundays from Ipswich Hospital to Broke Hall Estate, this is as MD Malcolm Robson has described as a slack period for the 5/11, buses will operate as follows service 5 in Via Foxhall Road, Bixley Road, Penshurst Road and out via Arundel Way and Foxhall Road to the Hospital, service 11 from Hospital via Foxhall Rd, Arundel Way and out via Penshurst Road and Bixley Road to Foxhall Road, this brings back an proper evening service to Broke Hall. Service 4 from Martlesham to Ipswich Railway Station is also being examined this week in regards to the section between Tower Ramparts and the Railway Station to see whether there is sufficient demand to keep that section of the route, there is also frequent timing issues that i am aware of as the buses run late at peak hours.

Above is one of the 5 Scania/Wright Solars soon to depart from Ipswich is 65674 SN51 UYH, which no one will miss!

Buses in from Refurb this week will be 69010 and 69425, the first of the ex Park and Ride B7RLES to be completed while departing this week has been 69423/24.

32492 ENTERS SERVICE

Just before i impart the latest news, just would like to add that many of you follow me on twitter and have heard me speak up for myself on a battle with another blogger, suffice to say that i will continue with the blog, i have a lot of personal problems at the moment but will continue to bring to you all the latest information for the Ipswich and Suffolk area, wherever possible i try to authenticate what i hear before putting it on a blog so please be assured about that.

Above pictured on a very wet Monday morning is 32492 AU53 HKK arriving in Ipswich, very late as it happened, not the best of images! as after that it disappeared out of service presumably working dead back to Martlesham, however it wasn't the day to see the other refurb 66985 as it wasn't around.

Seen here after arriving back from Felixstowe is another rear advertisement this time for hit the Beach in Felixstowe, though with the weather and the time of year is probably a little late for this year

Yet another Volvo B7RLE 69008 AU05 DME appeared on the 66 today, although a 66 Decker in 32490 was on the 65.

EASTERN COUNTIES PHOTO RECALL THE EARLY FIRST YEARS

Seen here in around 2002 is one of my favorites not! poor old Counties got suckered with these while in South Yorkshire they got shot of them after 10 yrs seen here on my route the 4 to Bixley Farm is 401 M584 ANG.

The end is nigh here by 2000 there was very few Bristol VR's left in Ipswich, i have very happy memories of VR 287 VEX 287X as it was the last ever VR that i rode in in Ipswich when it used to appear quite regularly on the 4 when they took over the route from IB.

In the main these were allocated to Norwich for most of their lives but here is JD7 laterly 507 G707 JAH a Dennis Javelin with Duple body whilst on loan to Ipswich on the 83.

Bought in at the tail end of the 90's were these all Leyland Olympians from Thamesway H101-04 HVX seen here a little later on 2004 with it's Sema Voyager number 34901.

Seen here when comparatively new is National Greenway LG 784 UFX 854S working a private hire.

Just before the end of the nineties Eastern Counties snapped up the vast majority of these Volvo B10Ms with Plaxton Premiere bodies from First Essex seen here in 2004 is 20106 N606 APU.

Also coming in around 1999/2000 were the affectionately known puddle jumpers not Wright's best ever looking body however the finished off a lot of Eastern Counties native mini buses seen here is 45337 JDZ 2337, followed by a type now come increasingly rarer within First Group is the Scania L113 with Wright Ultralow bodies is 65549 P549 RNG straying from it's intended 88 route, on the 75 to Felixstowe.

This blog should of gone out earlier in the week but some how went into the unpublished zone so here it is  better late then never.

FIRST IPSWICH NEWS UPDATE

Seen here in Felixstowe yesterday is Volvo B10BLE 66112 R912 BOU heading back into Ipswich on a 76.

Well it's been a few days now since the last blog, due to sickness and so on, first of all we have two arrivals back the above pictured 66985 KX05 MHO after it's arrival thanks once again to James Long and the depot staff for the picture and Volvo B7TL 32492 departures this week were Volvo B7RLE 69427 and Volvo B7TL 32655. From next week onwards the remaining Scanias should be gradually be swapped with First Essex Colchester depot with more of their 05 Plate Volvo B7RLES, the remaining Scanias are Wright Axcess Ultra Low's 65579,65588/89 and Wrightbus Solars 65670/72-75.

 Now i'm just showing off my new cameras abilities  here with a another shot of 32490 reversing out of the 66 bay just a shame it was about to rain at the time.

WI FI branding seen on the side of one of First Ipswich's Enviro 200'S 44516 YX09 ACV with Enjoy the Chilled Air one of a series of adverts with Enjoy the Beach another one used on Felixstowe services

66986 BACK IN SERVICE

Many thanks to James Long and the depot staff allowing him to take the photo  for supplying me with a photo of 66986 KX05 MHU as twice today i missed a photo opportunity first another bus blocked it in the second time i misjudged where to stand, entered service on the Sunday on Rail Replacement duties followed by working on the 88 today,coming back this week thanks again to Chris Speed for the information will be 66985 on Wednesday followed by 32492 on Friday.

IPSWICH BUSES THE EIGHTIES

Coming in at the start of the decade was 4 ex West Yorkshire PTE and formally Leeds City Transport Atlanteans registered UNW 401-04W one 42 only lasted 2 years and never got repainted, never popular with drivers and passengers due to poor ventilation and heavy driving. Seen here is 41 UNW 401H at Ipswich Station in 1984.

Arriving in 1980/81 was 5 East Lancs bodied Atlanteans 36-40 RBJ 36W/RGV 37-40W which were sold after only 10 years to Hyndburn Transport seen here in Nacton Road in 1982 IS 37.

1981 also saw further second hand buses in five Bristol RE's 118-122 TRY 118-22H from Leicester seen here in Princes Street is 122 TRY 122H

1983 saw the first new single deckers for the Chantry routes since 1973 100-105 YDX 100-105Y were Dennis Falcons with East Lancs bodys,105 had a dot matrix narrow blind which in later years got replaced.

1985 saw the trial of two Double Deckers being bought 82 B82 NDX a Dennis Dominator and 45 a Leyland Olympian both with East Lancs bodies, 82 was the more popular with 45 being swapped in 1987 for Dodge mini buses from Eastbourne. Photos copyright James Long

The beginning of 1985 saw 4 unusual B21'S 114-117 later 144-147 B114-17 LDX originally destined for export these were converted to left hand drive and i believe were the last Bristol badged buses to be built, 117 was significantly named Bristolian in memory of the Bristol works seen here are both 114/15, 115 is now preserved by Richard Walker.

 In a break from the norm the next batch of Falcons were Northern Counties and IB were one of only two companies along with Hartlepool who bought them, 107-113 C107-113SDX were also joined by a solitary East Lancs bodied C106 SDX.

The middle Eighties saw a swing towards smaller minibuses to penetrate smaller areas of Ipswich the first was a Dodge with a East Lancs body 200 C200 WGV which had a redesigned front before entering service, was one of three in the batch along with 201/02 D201/02 YDX

Seen above is 201 D201YDX another Dodge with East Lancs body along with Ex Eastbourne 213 D473 UHC after that came Northern Counties Bodied 203/04 D203 YDX/C204 WGV followed by the above pictured 206 E206 GPV part of a batch of 4 205-208 E205-08 GPV.

 

1987 saw Ipswich Buses saw them go back to East Lancs for their next batch of Dennis Falcons with 114-117 E114-17 KDX, seen here is E116 KDX.

Ipswich then decided that they needed bigger buses than the smaller Dodges and rapidly changed their allegiance first with this MCW Metrorider 220 F220 PPV in 1989 then of course in the nineties with Optare.

 

 Then the first Double Decker appeared in 1989 in F81 ODX an East Lancs Dennis Dominator seen here in the Ipswich OCM on a Sundays only 635 to Walton on the Naze.

The last new buses of the decade saw more East Lancs bodied Dennis Falcons in the form of G118-24 VDX seen here heading out on a 13 to Chantry and Brookwood.
I haven't featured any of the taken over fleets such as Bickers and Bantams as thats a whole different story, most pictures have come from Flickr.

32486 ENTERS SERVICE AND FURTHER UPDATES

Welcome to another blog this week and a start of an new era for my photography as this is the first one with a new Sony A58 camera and as you can see from above i think the results so far are pretty good, seen above today is Volvo B7TL/ALX 400 32486 AU53 HKD which hasn't gained branding as yet, seen below at the tail end of last October is Volvo B7RLE 69422 AU58 FFJ which departed today while also confirmed is sister 69425 AU58 FFN which departed last Thursday, returning tonight should be either 66985 or 66986. In other news Volvo B7TL 32488 AU53 HKF collided yesterday into a former Estate Agents on the corner of Great Colman Street when it tried to avoid a broken down van which was parked on the other side corner, damage was just to two top windows on the offside which has been quickly repaired and the bus is now back into service. It is also worth noting thanks to last nights Ipswich Star that travel on buses in Suffolk has increased by 3% in the last year however as many have said, there are still cutbacks to rural services happening across the county which isn't good news.

66957 seen here today shows a side view of the new livery application.