Friday June 3rd 2011 ~ Bus Spotting



37570 before departure from Yarmouth garage this morning : Photo D Speed.

 When the X1 timetable runs smoothly, viewing services from my desk at work is quite convenient. On days like today though, it is just the opposite. A47 traffic was the main cause of today's delays, the King's Lynn area was badly affected and there was also an accident on the South Gates roundabout at lunchtime. Also very slow was the Guyhirn to Wisbech stretch. Add in an Acle straight accident and the whole service did well to run anywhere near to time.
So back to my window in Wisbech then and viewed were Y6 with 37563 running 3 late to Peterborough and returning 10 late. K3 with 20352 was 3 late on the 08.56 to Lowestoft which is actually about normal for this service. Y7 had 37158 which was 2 x 9 late while K4 had 37571 which was removed at Lynn so that 37565 could take the 10.02 to Lowestoft. The latter was the second Lowestoft B9 to get a safety examination at Lynn this week. K5 with 37578 was missed by me but L8 with 37569 was seen on time by Cheryl. 37570 was next on Y9 and was 6 late to Peterborough. Westbound services were then L10 with 37159 11 late, L11 with 37157 7 late and L12 with 37564 3 late. I passed Y13 going home to lunch and it was 37572 running about 10 down. Well all this is quite normal for a Friday, but it was after lunch that the fun began.
 37568 on K14 was around 10 late departing Wisbech on the 12.48 Peterborough, but there was then a large gap in the service before K15 appeared 42 late with 37574. K16 looks to have turned round at Thorney as it went past eastbound at 15.19 (one minute early !) and was followed by K15 40 late. Logic dictates that by this time 37160 had become K15 & 37574 K16. Next was K17 due past me eastbound at 15.50 but which appeared at 16.15 with 37579. I had expected to see 20126 on K18, but it expired at Dereham on the 10.55 ex Lowestoft and instead at 16.25 (about 5 late) Scania 65529 went by on K18. Andy James reports this being replaced by 37571 at King's Lynn on the 17.02 Lowestoft departure.

Another Scania, this time 65529 gets a run out to Peterborough as K18, photographed by Bruce this afternoon.

Back to my office again and the 15.18, 15.48 & 16.18 Peterborough departures (K19, K1 & K2) ran as follows : 37575 6 late, 37566 13 late and 37567 21 late. Just as things then began to get back to normal, the Acle accident took its toll.
Des reports "I took 37157 on the 10.45 Lynn to Peterborough (L11). Queueing traffic from Mount Pleasant into Wisbech made us 8 late from Wisbech at 11.26 - more congestion from the Causeway to Eye Green roundabout made our Peterborough arrival  20 late at 12.19. This then made  me 14 late to start the 12.05 to Lowestoft, but this defecit was cut to 11 minutes on departing Queensgate bus station. Nevertheless, we were 21 late into Lynn.
37568 was my bus for K14 15.02 eastbound from Lynn and we were 5 late departing, but this was quickly made good and ran on time until encountering more queueing traffic on the A47 Acle Straight - this made us 15 late into Great Yarmouth". Des adds "The 15.55 departure from Lowestoft was seen about 55 late on the Acle Straight with the 14.55 ex Lowestoft being approx 1 hr 55 late, just behind it !!
37156 which had operated the 13.38 Lowestoft - Norwich X2 came in on Y9 tonight and several other turns had also swapped vehicles.