THE BACK END OF '23
31 December 2023
ABOVE: A 23-reg vehicle on route 23 - what better way to wave off 2023? McGill's 5061 (SG23 OTR), a Yutong E12, is in Renfrew Street, Glasgow, on a short-working to Braehead Shopping Centre, near Renfrew. It's just under four miles as the crow flies, but the journey will take 41 minutes. Taken on Wednesday 6th September.
So we have reached the back end of '23 (see what I've done with the title picture)? I've had a remarkable year of travels, and I thought I would share a few reflections of my year.
This isn't going to be a review of the industry's year - this is something more personal to me. If you want to read a really good summary of industry developments, I would recommend Bus and Train User.
Let's start with some statistics; I love statistics...
This isn't going to be a review of the industry's year - this is something more personal to me. If you want to read a really good summary of industry developments, I would recommend Bus and Train User.
Let's start with some statistics; I love statistics...
Why do I never have any spare time?
A few numbers related to the View from the Top Deck itself:
- 53: I aim to publish one article each week on average. During 2023 I have actually released 53 articles, so I managed to sneak an extra one in somewhere!
- 424: I usually spend a full day working on each article (when do I get time to travel)?! So that works out at around 424 hours spent putting the stories together.
- 1,060: I usually put at least 20 photographs up with each article. That implies something like 1,060 photos over the year! And those are just the ones that are good enough for publication!
- 132,500: An estimate of the number of words I have written this year. Apparently 500 words is a good length for a blog, but I have long since given up on 'blogs' in favour of 'articles'. And, at an average of 2,500 words per article, including photo captions, that's 132,500 words! I appreciate that some of you think that every article that I produce is the equivalent of War and Peace, but it's only about 22.6% of the word count of that book, which has 587,287 words in it. (In my 'spare' time I also set a few quizzes for work, and there's a good tiebreak question right there!)
My Travels
How about a few numbers related to my actual travels, I hear you ask? OK, if you insist...
By the way, none of the above figures include time spent on travelling on Transport for London (TfL) buses, or on Running Days.
- 3,218: My estimate of the number of miles I have travelled by bus in 2023. That mileage would take me to Portsmouth, New Hampshire, to the Gulf of Guinea off the south coast of Ghana, to Tomsk in Russia (I should probably measure that one from Wimbledon Common), or so far north that even Google Maps doesn't let me go that far!
- 41: The number of days (or part-days) spent on my travels.
- 218: The number of individual bus rides I have taken in 2023.
- 204.7: The number of hours spent travelling (but not the time waiting for buses).
- 56 minutes & 20 seconds: Average length of journey.
- 2 hours & 16 minutes: The longest individual journey, on route 53 from Grimsby to Lincoln.
- 3 minutes: The shortest individual journey, on route 1 from Halton Lea to Halton Village in Runcorn - just so that I could see a bit more of the Runcorn Busway.
By the way, none of the above figures include time spent on travelling on Transport for London (TfL) buses, or on Running Days.
ABOVE: This is preserved London Transport STL 2377 (EGO 426), an AEC Regent I of 1937/38 vintage (exact date depends on what you read). It is perhaps best described as the Grandfather of the famous Routemaster. Despite its age, the London Bus Museum put it out in service at various Running Days in 2023, including the event on route 38 (Victoria to Clapton Pond). It is seen on Shaftesbury Avenue, approaching Cambridge Circus in central London, on Saturday 16th September.
Let me now share a few short stories and reflections on 2023.
Covid Restrictions have ended - Please tell our Operators
I still see numerous notices on buses and at bus stops asking me to observe social distancing, or to keep windows open.
The one above, photographed at a bus stop in Huyton on Wednesday 14th June, was presumably placed in 2021, which is the last time that 24th January was a Sunday (or Sunnday as it says here).
The one below was on a Centrebus vehicle working route 24 from Grantham to Newark, on Wednesday 29th March. I like the bit about getting on and off the bus "one at a time". That's how most of us do things, isn't it?
The one below was on a Centrebus vehicle working route 24 from Grantham to Newark, on Wednesday 29th March. I like the bit about getting on and off the bus "one at a time". That's how most of us do things, isn't it?
And a journey on a First Greater Glasgow service from the city to the Airport (route 77) in September carried audible warnings at every stop that wearing a face covering was compulsory, and that the requirement was a condition of carriage.
A Dark Evening in Birmingham
I recounted a day on the buses in Birmingham that took place way back in January, but I ended that story at supper time. In fact, I took a further trip out in the evening, boarding the number 87 to Dudley and returning to the city centre on a number 74 (both operated by National Express West Midlands). The outward journey included a fascinating, and extremely-congested drive through Smethwick, and I want to go back in daylight and do that run again. The return trip was a very busy run with the Friday night clubbers heading into town. Some were extremely boisterous, and the smell that started circulating around the upper deck during the trip wasn't perfume or even a vape...
Where shall I sit?
I took a ride on Arriva Liverpool route 8 from Liverpool to Huyton in June, which happened to coincide with the morning school run. It got very crowded and one lad, not finding anywhere else to sit, hoisted himself into the luggage rack behind the driver. Not just perched on the edge, you understand, but fully into it. He looked incredibly uncomfortable, but perhaps it was the lesser of two evils for him as the alternative would have been standing up for a whole 10 minutes or more.
A Trio of Overloaded Buses
Buses are thriving in many parts of the country, and it's been lovely to travel on some popular services. But a completely-rammed bus does not generate new business.
I could tell as I boarded the 0900 service 56 in Skegness, bound for Lincoln, that it was going to struggle with capacity; it actually ended up leaving people behind. This shouldn’t have been a surprise to the operator, Stagecoach East Midlands, as it was looking exactly the same the day before when a similar number of passengers (but not me on that occasion) were boarding.
I could tell as I boarded the 0900 service 56 in Skegness, bound for Lincoln, that it was going to struggle with capacity; it actually ended up leaving people behind. This shouldn’t have been a surprise to the operator, Stagecoach East Midlands, as it was looking exactly the same the day before when a similar number of passengers (but not me on that occasion) were boarding.
ABOVE: A rammed single-decker bus on route 56 (Skegness to Lincoln) on Wednesday 29th March. Route 56 does see some double-deckers so why not one on this incredibly-busy journey? Me? I was the one squashed into a seat with inadequate legroom, balancing a suitcase on my knee.
The 800 / 850 services between Reading and High Wycombe, provided by Arriva the Shires, are always overloaded when I ride them, and my latest trip was no exception. This wasn’t a rush hour trip, but a late Monday morning run. These routes are screaming out for double-deckers.
A tightly-packed MB Citaro on route 850 on Monday 13th November.
And my local TfL route 195 (Charville Lane Estate to Brentford) desperately needs more capacity. Again, this photo was an off-peak Saturday lunchtime service. It appears on lists as one of the busiest single-decker services in London and has no restrictions preventing double-deckers being used. And yet, TfL has just awarded a new contract, using existing buses, which will seemingly prevent any improvements this side of 2030.
ABOVE: A crowded ADL Enviro200 in Southall, West London, on route 195 on Saturday 27th May. Note the queue outside the bus. Despite the driver's best endeavours (the "Please move down the bus" announcement and signage has been deployed), not everyone will be able to board. I'm in the seat immediately behind the exit door.
Let's Encourage Bus Use, and Let's Be Safe
The relationship between cyclists and bus users has always been a fractious one, but the ability of the cycling lobby to make itself heard where it matters has tipped the scales away from buses. Numerous examples exist of bus lanes having been ripped out to make room for cycle lanes instead. But the planners do struggle to work out how to deal with cycle lanes that pass bus stops. This is one of the worst examples I have come across, in Wood Street, Cardiff:
It is necessary to walk across the cycle lane in order to board the bus (what if there's a big queue?), whilst people getting off the bus can potentially step straight into the path of a bike. What were they thinking?
Cardiff Bus 270 (CN64 FWU), an ADL Enviro200, passes the stop, out of service, on Friday 10th February. In the opposite direction, two more Cardiff Bus vehicles pass - 556 (CN17 BGY), an ADL Enviro200 MMC, is working route 25 to Llanduff and Whitchurch, whilst behind it is 261 (CN 64 FWJ), an Enviro 200, working route 95 from Barry.
And here's another crazy bus stop, close to my home in Southall, West London. In this case, the cycle lane runs down the inside carriageway, until it reaches the bus stop, where it is moved to the middle. Buses have to cross the cycle lane to reach the stop, and then cross back to reach the main carriageway, whilst also ensuring that they don't collide with any cars that might be turning from the right-hand lane into the side road; a manoeuvre that involves crossing the cycle lane immediately after the bus stop.
Cardiff Bus 270 (CN64 FWU), an ADL Enviro200, passes the stop, out of service, on Friday 10th February. In the opposite direction, two more Cardiff Bus vehicles pass - 556 (CN17 BGY), an ADL Enviro200 MMC, is working route 25 to Llanduff and Whitchurch, whilst behind it is 261 (CN 64 FWJ), an Enviro 200, working route 95 from Barry.
And here's another crazy bus stop, close to my home in Southall, West London. In this case, the cycle lane runs down the inside carriageway, until it reaches the bus stop, where it is moved to the middle. Buses have to cross the cycle lane to reach the stop, and then cross back to reach the main carriageway, whilst also ensuring that they don't collide with any cars that might be turning from the right-hand lane into the side road; a manoeuvre that involves crossing the cycle lane immediately after the bus stop.
The sign below, on Chorley New Road in Bolton, carries a sensible message, but why not change "active" travel to "green" travel and include the bus?
TfL also has some 'wonderful' posters in central London bus stops headed "Why not walk if you can" which, given how slow London buses have got now, might be the best idea. (A recent lunchtime trip from Tate Britain to Oxford Circus on route 88, a distance of two miles, took an hour.)
Mayor Khan's Superloop
I haven't had a good rant about TfL for some time now. I was going to do so in this year-end article, but then decided that there was enough material for a full article in itself, so that will follow in the New Year.
I will, though, just record the Superloop gimmick, a blatantly political stunt cooked up by Mayor Khan when he realised that he needed to offer a carrot to counteract the stick that is the Ultra-Low Emission Zone (see my response to the Superloop consultation). Funny how the first Superloop service (the renumbered SL8 from White City to Uxbridge) was suddenly launched with haste a few days before the Uxbridge Parliamentary By-Election...
More on TfL, and on Superloop, in 2024.
I will, though, just record the Superloop gimmick, a blatantly political stunt cooked up by Mayor Khan when he realised that he needed to offer a carrot to counteract the stick that is the Ultra-Low Emission Zone (see my response to the Superloop consultation). Funny how the first Superloop service (the renumbered SL8 from White City to Uxbridge) was suddenly launched with haste a few days before the Uxbridge Parliamentary By-Election...
More on TfL, and on Superloop, in 2024.
ABOVE: An unidentified BYD D8UR-DD ADL Enviro400EV of RATP DEV London United passes from Bessborough Road into Pinner Road in Harrow-on-the-Hill, at the end of a journey from Heathrow on Superloop route SL9 (formerly X140). This is dusk (3.50pm) on Sunday 5th November.
Extremities
In 2023 I reached the following extremities:
Curiously, my articles have taken you, my reader(s), even further - south to The Lizard in Cornwall, and west to ... er ... The Lizard in Cornwall. This was a 2022 trip written up in 2023 (see "100 British Bus Routes: Route 34").
- Furthest point North: Callander, Stirling (article yet to come)
- South: Swanage, Dorset (see "100 British Bus Routes: Route 50")
- East: Broadstairs, Kent (see "Looping the Loop in East Kent")
- West: Ettrick Bay, Isle of Bute (see "100 British Bus Routes: Route 90")
Curiously, my articles have taken you, my reader(s), even further - south to The Lizard in Cornwall, and west to ... er ... The Lizard in Cornwall. This was a 2022 trip written up in 2023 (see "100 British Bus Routes: Route 34").
Memorable Journeys
My most memorable journey of the year was the aforementioned day trip to the Isle of Bute. Believe it or not, I actually felt the need to be courageous in order to venture over there (it's always about the fear of being stranded somewhere remote). So glad I did it!
I will also highlight a ride on Kinchbus route 9 from Nottingham to Loughborough, where the driver arrived and opened the bus with an audible and enthusiastic: "OK, let's do this"! It's just stuck with me for all the right reasons.
My most improved journey was a ride on the Arriva North West X30 from Chester to Warrington. I made this trip in 2021 and it was ghastly. It started 22 minutes late, was rammed for the first half of the journey, and got stuck in traffic. Towards the end of the trip I had been wondering whether I would ever get to Warrington. My 2023 trip could not have been more different. On time all the way, a nice smooth drive and an interesting detour - via the Daresbury Science & Technology Park - that wasn't in the original journey.
I will also highlight a ride on Kinchbus route 9 from Nottingham to Loughborough, where the driver arrived and opened the bus with an audible and enthusiastic: "OK, let's do this"! It's just stuck with me for all the right reasons.
My most improved journey was a ride on the Arriva North West X30 from Chester to Warrington. I made this trip in 2021 and it was ghastly. It started 22 minutes late, was rammed for the first half of the journey, and got stuck in traffic. Towards the end of the trip I had been wondering whether I would ever get to Warrington. My 2023 trip could not have been more different. On time all the way, a nice smooth drive and an interesting detour - via the Daresbury Science & Technology Park - that wasn't in the original journey.
ABOVE: Arriva North West 5002 (MX13 AAJ), a MAN 18.270 CNG Caetano EcoCity, powered by Compressed Natural Gas (CNG), in Warrington Interchange having just carried me from Chester. This is Friday 16th June. I've heard that Arriva North West has since withdrawn its entire fleet of CNG vehicles.
Some rides were more disappointing of course. The driver of a number 15 bus from Huyton to Liverpool (an otherwise fascinating run via Knotty Ash) drove straight past a father and son at a bus stop for no reason.
I had a few drivers whose customer service skills could do with a hone. You don't have to smile but an acknowledgement at least? This "I don't want to be here" impression is more prevalent in the cities - drivers on routes in less built-up areas are invariably friendlier.
The operator most in need of a tidy-up on its buses is morebus in Bournemouth. Smart, modern vehicles marred by litter everywhere. One journey I haven't yet written up included a bus with a half-eaten pizza, still in its box, on one of the seats. This was a quiet Sunday afternoon run and I couldn't help suspecting that it was left over from Saturday.
15 out of 34 out of 100 British Bus Routes
My 100 British Bus Routes series was always intended to be a long-term exercise, but I had intended to be about halfway through by now. In fact I have only completed 34 of the 100 routes so far, with only 15 new ones produced this year.
There are six more services in this series that are ready to go - routes 4, 6, 29, 38, 59 & 69 - although you'll have to wait to find out which routes 4, 6, 29, 38, 59 & 69 I have selected. Having said that, I need to revisit a couple of them to get a few more pictures...
There are 10 other routes that I have identified for this series for definite, and several other 'possible' options, so I just need to get out and travel on some of them. My plan is to finish this series by the end of 2026 (I know...).
There are six more services in this series that are ready to go - routes 4, 6, 29, 38, 59 & 69 - although you'll have to wait to find out which routes 4, 6, 29, 38, 59 & 69 I have selected. Having said that, I need to revisit a couple of them to get a few more pictures...
There are 10 other routes that I have identified for this series for definite, and several other 'possible' options, so I just need to get out and travel on some of them. My plan is to finish this series by the end of 2026 (I know...).
ABOVE: The One That Got Away: When I travelled on Arriva Beds & Bucks route 37 (High Wycombe to Maidenhead) as part of my Richmond to Richmond journey, I pencilled it in as my route 37 choice in the 100 British Bus Routes series. Then, in September, it was renumbered 7. I already have a route 7 in my collection, so this one has missed out - although I will write about it one day. This is Optare Versa 2954 (YJ61 MHX) arriving at High Wycombe to start the journey down to Maidenhead on Saturday 10th June.
The Cruellest Cancellation
I must emphasise again that the majority of the services I go for do turn up. Not aways on time, admittedly, but they generally turn up. I have already recorded the failure of ARG Travel route 395 to appear in Neilston one Thursday morning, and the consequences for my plans that day.
But the cruellest cancellation was one I only found out about after waiting around 15 minutes in Shotts, North Lanarkshire (with a suitcase) for the 1232 service on route 23 towards Livingstone, only to then find out that it was cancelled. It was an integral part of a major journey that I was undertaking. I have not yet told this story but will do so in 2024.
But the cruellest cancellation was one I only found out about after waiting around 15 minutes in Shotts, North Lanarkshire (with a suitcase) for the 1232 service on route 23 towards Livingstone, only to then find out that it was cancelled. It was an integral part of a major journey that I was undertaking. I have not yet told this story but will do so in 2024.
That's a lot of ground covered...
The average day's mileage comes out at 78.8 miles. But my most intensive single day's travels was, perhaps unsurprisingly, Day Two of my "Richmond to Richmond" journey - an estimated 151.2 miles from Chesterfield to High Wycombe. And, unlike the Shotts case described above, I never had any doubt that I would achieve my objective on that epic journey.
What Happened to Summer?
I think it's generally acknowledged that the peak summer holiday season in 2023 did not generate much decent summer weather. I do recall a couple of nice Wednesday lunchtimes sitting in Westminster Abbey Gardens enjoying the "Brass on the Grass" brass band concerts that take place there each August, but even some of those were transferred to an indoor location because of the unsettled conditions.
I was very lucky in a way. Very severe work pressures prevented me from taking any leave in July or August. Why was that lucky? Because my main trips in June (Merseyside) and September (Scotland) were both blessed with hot, fine weather almost throughout - some of the best sunshine of the year. Of course, that does turn leather seats at the front of the top deck into a hot proposition, but I'm prepared to suffer for a front seat view!
In terms of my travels, whilst I had some very decent weather for my main trips, my week in Lincolnshire / Nottinghamshire in March was a near total wash-out in terms of the weather. I experienced similar on a day in Sussex in November, after two of the most stunning and beautiful days that one could imagine for that time of year. I still do the trips on these occasions, but heavy rain is just not conducive for photos, and therefore for my articles.
I was very lucky in a way. Very severe work pressures prevented me from taking any leave in July or August. Why was that lucky? Because my main trips in June (Merseyside) and September (Scotland) were both blessed with hot, fine weather almost throughout - some of the best sunshine of the year. Of course, that does turn leather seats at the front of the top deck into a hot proposition, but I'm prepared to suffer for a front seat view!
In terms of my travels, whilst I had some very decent weather for my main trips, my week in Lincolnshire / Nottinghamshire in March was a near total wash-out in terms of the weather. I experienced similar on a day in Sussex in November, after two of the most stunning and beautiful days that one could imagine for that time of year. I still do the trips on these occasions, but heavy rain is just not conducive for photos, and therefore for my articles.
A Picture Paints A Thousand Words
And I do need my photos to help tell my stories! Indeed, they have become an integral part of the website. On a decent day out "researching", I might take 300 pictures - a fraction of which I will keep and use. On that very wet day in November, I 'only' took 49. Says everything about how the weather can put a dampener on things, so to speak.
So here's the sort of photo I get when it's tipping it down:
So here's the sort of photo I get when it's tipping it down:
ABOVE: This is the Tesco Extra store at Hollington, between Hastings and Crowhurst in East Sussex, and this is one of my BETTER photos from the washout that was Saturday 18th November. The vehicle in front is an unidentified Stagecoach South East ADL Enviro200 on route 22 (Hollington Tesco to Ore via Hastings Town Centre). Because of the weather, even though I am right behind it (on another bus), I can't read the numberplate, and even the route number is unclear!
But at least I try to see the funny side of it...
ABOVE: A Stagecoach Oxfordshire double-decker on route 2 (Oxford to Kidlington), somewhere north of the city centre on Thursday 12th January.
As noted above, I've probably brought you over 1,000 photographs this year (I haven't counted). All are my own work. Some are better than others, but I occasionally use what I might term a sub-standard one to illustrate something, when it's the best one I have.
I try not to reuse a picture, although I sometimes forget that I have used one already - like the electric bus at Tally-Ho Corner in North Finchley, London, which turns up both here and here! I suppose, subconsciously, I just think it's a good picture (but I won't publish it a third time - not yet anyway)!
Operators Far and Wide
In 2023 I travelled on the services of 53 different operators. I count subsidiaries of large companies separately, so this figure includes seven subsidiaries of Arriva, four of First and a whopping ten Stagecoach companies. But I have also 'discovered' Cuckmere Buses, McColl's and Minsterley Motors, and travelled with companies that I had not travelled with before, including Chaserider, Delaine's and McGill's.
Lessons Learnt
I've learnt a few lessons in 2023, although whether I will put them into practice is another matter entirely...
- I love a trip into the unknown, as long as I know where I'm going (you might have to read that sentence a couple of times). But it is sometimes worth researching a service before riding on it! There are places I would probably have stopped off at if I had only known before what I know now. Route 1 from Kilmarnock would have been worth a ride, and I wish I had stopped off a couple of times on route 68 to see the Freckleton Memorial Garden, the town centre of Lytham, or even the statue of Bobby Ball.
- I enjoy a long ride from end-to-end, but I'm learning that, sometimes, I should probably jump on a local route that doesn’t really link two or more towns, but just serves a suburb of one specific town. I’ve found a few examples, after the event, of routes that I wish I had looked into at the time. So you might see more of these shorter trips to less-significant destinations.
- I spend hours sometimes trying to work out where on a route a photograph has been taken. I end up recreating the route on Google Streetview to try and find the precise location. This is a very time-consuming process, so I'm trying to get more efficient at recording locations of 'key' photos as I take them.
- Whenever I go to look at a town or city bus operation, I always get distracted by the longer routes. My trip to Nottingham in March was a case in point. I should try to focus on what I have intended to do!
H... H... How Much?
So how much has 2023 cost me in bus fares?
Well, the £2 single bus fare cap across England has certainly kept my costs down, and some single- or multi-operator area tickets have reduced things even below the £2 level (£26 for the freedom of Arriva North West and Wales for an entire week feels like a particularly good bargain - I made 33 trips on that ticket so one could realistically say that I saved £40 there). Tap-On, Tap-Off payments are generally capped in generous ways as well, so I've picked up some good deals out there.
My overall bus fares tally for 2023 (not including London) comes out at:
£400.30
Sounds a lot (or does it?), but we all spend money on our hobbies, don't we! Without the £2 fare I think it could easily have been doubled! The £400.30 averages out at 12.4 pence per mile, or £1.84 per journey.
Of course, the 33 nights in hotels, and the various train (and ferry) fares to get to some of the locations I visited should probably be reckoned on top of that, but I'm not going there!
Oh and the subtitle of this section refers to that great comic creation, Arkwright the Shopkeeper from "Open All Hours", and his exclamation whenever he found out how much something was going to cost him.
Well, the £2 single bus fare cap across England has certainly kept my costs down, and some single- or multi-operator area tickets have reduced things even below the £2 level (£26 for the freedom of Arriva North West and Wales for an entire week feels like a particularly good bargain - I made 33 trips on that ticket so one could realistically say that I saved £40 there). Tap-On, Tap-Off payments are generally capped in generous ways as well, so I've picked up some good deals out there.
My overall bus fares tally for 2023 (not including London) comes out at:
£400.30
Sounds a lot (or does it?), but we all spend money on our hobbies, don't we! Without the £2 fare I think it could easily have been doubled! The £400.30 averages out at 12.4 pence per mile, or £1.84 per journey.
Of course, the 33 nights in hotels, and the various train (and ferry) fares to get to some of the locations I visited should probably be reckoned on top of that, but I'm not going there!
Oh and the subtitle of this section refers to that great comic creation, Arkwright the Shopkeeper from "Open All Hours", and his exclamation whenever he found out how much something was going to cost him.
Where are articles 141 to 143?
You may have noticed that I number my View from the Top Deck pages sequentially (this article is number 140). Next week's, though, will be number 144.
I started what I thought might be a separate series of "Picture Galleries" early in the year (pages PG01, PG02 & PG03). But, to be honest, they're just part of the main series, so I'll be reclassifying them as pages 141, 142 & 143 respectively.
That also means that article 150 will genuinely be the 150th I publish, not the 153rd. What I am going to do to mark the 150th article is something that I haven't yet worked out, but I need to work it out very soon (even sooner now I've moved it three weeks closer)!
I started what I thought might be a separate series of "Picture Galleries" early in the year (pages PG01, PG02 & PG03). But, to be honest, they're just part of the main series, so I'll be reclassifying them as pages 141, 142 & 143 respectively.
That also means that article 150 will genuinely be the 150th I publish, not the 153rd. What I am going to do to mark the 150th article is something that I haven't yet worked out, but I need to work it out very soon (even sooner now I've moved it three weeks closer)!
What about the Top Deck Archive?
I can’t edit the items from the old site (archive), unless I bring them over to the new one.
I came up with the idea of recreating all of the pages from the old site and bringing them over, until I realised the scale of the task. So far, I have moved three out of 74. At an estimated half an hour per article, that’s a solid week’s work. Frankly, I would rather be out there ‘researching’.
I will move a few over, if they need updating, but I suspect there aren’t enough hours for me to move the lot. They are all indexed from the current site, but of course links within that site take you back to the old Home page.
I came up with the idea of recreating all of the pages from the old site and bringing them over, until I realised the scale of the task. So far, I have moved three out of 74. At an estimated half an hour per article, that’s a solid week’s work. Frankly, I would rather be out there ‘researching’.
I will move a few over, if they need updating, but I suspect there aren’t enough hours for me to move the lot. They are all indexed from the current site, but of course links within that site take you back to the old Home page.
Into 2024:
Here's a 24 to help us welcome in '24:
ABOVE: This is Lothian Buses 356 (SN11 EBD), a Volvo B9TL Wright Eclipse Gemini 2 on route 24 (Edinburgh Royal Infirmary to West Granton). This bus is passing another hospital, the Western General in Craigleith, north-west of the city centre, on Wednesday 13th September.
In 2024 I hope to bring you more of the same, as well as a few surprises of the "why on earth did he go there" variety. I will aim to keep to the one article per week average, when time permits.
I have many more stories from 2023 still to tell (and some older ones), and I'm looking forward to my first trips of 2024. I'll still throw in an occasional 'rant' (sorry, I mean "an objective but critical viewpoint article") from time-to-time, but the trips are what we all enjoy best, aren't they?
I'd like to thank you, whether you are one of my regular readers or someone who just drops in occasionally, for your support. I look forward to sharing more of my adventures with you.
Happy New Year!
ABOVE: A couple more 24s to get us in the mood for 2024. Preserved London Transport Routemaster RM 298 (VLT 298, right) passes Abellio London / TfL LT 622 (LTZ 1622) at Camden Town, on the occasion of the Chalk Farm Running Day on Sunday 5th November. Both are working London route 24 (Pimlico to Hampstead Heath).