travelinedata


Concessionary Passes

Eligible residents of Scotland and Wales have for some time had concessionary passes that allow them to travel throughout Scotland or Wales. From April 2008 eligible residents in England will also be able to travel anywhere in England by local bus.

Whereas travel in Scotland or Wales is covered by a single Traveline region the arrangements in England mean that requests for longer distance local bus journeys cannot be delivered by reference to just one Traveline region.

It is not yet clear how many people will want to do very long journeys by local bus and how or whether Traveline should gear up to provide such information.

Journey objectives

Traveline normally works on the basis of getting people from A to B by the fastest way. Sometimes this is modified to reduce the number of changes.

Long distance journeys by local bus can still be optimised for the fastest journey but it is likely that other objectives will need to be considered. These may be for example to take in the most scenic routes, to keep near the coast or to stop in interesting places.

Who gains from Concessionary Travel

The consequences of additional concessionary travel will push up the costs to the local authorities. Bus operators are required to be no better or worse off after being reimbursed for carrying passengers with concessionary passes. Therefore those in favour of providing more information are likely to be organisations promoting the welfare of elder and disabled people, DfT who have provided a fixed level of funding, and those who wish to travel.

Traveline is a source of impartial travel information. Attention may need to be given to ensure that in responding to increasingly varied travel objectives that impartiality is maintained.

"Daisy chaining" convoluted journeys

It is possible to "daisy chain" journeys from one Traveline region to another. It helps to know which are the towns near the Traveline regional boundaries which have a good overlap of bus services from each region. This is the beginnings of a provisional list:

North East and Cumbria

to North West: Lancaster

to Yorkshire: Kirkby Lonsdale, Hawes, Ripon, Darlington, York, Scarborough

North West

to North East and Cumbria: Lancaster

to Yorkshire

to East Midlands

to West Midlands: Crewe

Yorkshire

to North East and Cumbria: Kirkby Lonsdale, Hawes, Ripon, Darlington, York, Scarborough

to North West

to East Midlands

West Midlands

to North West: Crewe

to East Midlands

to South East

to South West: Gloucester

East Midlands

to North West

to Yorkshire

to West Midlands

to South East

to East Anglia: Peterborough

East Anglia

to East Midlands: Peterborough

to South East

South West

to West Midlands: Gloucester

to South East

South East

to South West

to West Midlands

to East Midlands

to East Anglia

London data is included in the South East.

Itineraries

The following journeys give some idea of what is possible.

Richard Worral's Round England Bus Tour:

Thursday 7 February

13.22: Walsall - Wolverhampton 14.04 TWM 529

14.20: Wolverhampton - Telford 15.17 Arriva 891

15.30: Telford - Shrewsbury 16.03 Arriva X5

16.20: Shrewsbury - Whitchurch 17.45 Arriva 511

18.40: Whitchurch - Chester 19.50 Chester 41

Friday 8 February

10.02: Chester - Liverpool 11.13 Arriva 401

11.57 Liverpool - Preston 13.55 SC X5

14.10 Preston - Blackpool 15.35 SC 68

16.45 Blackpool - Lancaster 18.06 SC 42

18.20 Lancaster - Kendal 19.25 SC 555

19.30 Kendal - Staveley 19.47 SC 556

Saturday 9 February

09.02 Staveley - Keswick 10.06 SC 555

10.25 Keswick - Carlisle 11.35 SC 554

12.07 Carlisle - Newcastle 14.18 Arriva 685

14.30 Newcastle - Berwick-upon Tweed 18.43 ARN 501/505

18.47 Berwick-upon-Tweed - Alnwick 19.48 ARN 505

20.06 Alnwick - Morpeth 21.20 ARN 518

21.51 Morpeth - Blyth 22.27 ARN 447

22.34 Blyth - Whitley Bay 22.54 GNE 308

Sunday 10 February

08.49 Whitley Bay - Newcastle Haymarket 09.30 GNE 308

10.00 Newcastle Eldon Square - Middlesbrough 11.20 GNE X10

12.15 Middlesbrough - Scarborough 15.05 Arriva 56

15.25 Scarborough - Hull 18.15 EYMS 121

Monday 11 February

07.30 Hull Interchange - Grimsby Bus Station 08.44 SC X1

08.50 Grimsby - Louth Bus Station 09.43 SC 51

10.15 Louth - Mablethorpe10.50 SC 10

11.30 Mablethorpe - Skegness 12.40 SC 9

13.00 [13.30] Skegness - Boston 14.12 [14.40] SC [Brylaine] 7

15.00 Boston - Spalding 17.27 Brylaine 5

17.40 Spalding - Kings Lynn 18.52 Norfolk Green 505

19.37 King Lynn - Lowestoft 22.37 EC X1

Tuesday 12 February

08.08 Lowestoft - Beccles 08.45 First EC

09.02 Beccles - Diss 10.13 Anglian Coaches 580

10.24 Diss - Ipswich 11.34 Simonds 114

12.55 Ipswich - Colchester 14.12 Network Colchester 93

14.35 Colchester - Chelmsford 15.55 First 71

16.20 Chelmsford - Grays 17.56 First 100

18.16 Grays - Tilbury, Civic Square 18.27 Ensign Bus 73

18.32 Tilbury Civic Square - Tilbury Fort Road 18.38 Clintona Mini Coaches 99

18.45 Tilbury Fort Road - Gravesend 18.55 Walk, Ferry

1902 Gravesend - Bluewater 19.20 Arriva Medway 490

19.30 Bluewater - Chatham 19.56 Arriva Medway 781

20.38 Chatham - Maidstone 20.59 Arriva Medway 101

Wednesday 13 February

07.39 Maidstone - Faversham 08.40 Arriva KS 333

08.57 Faversham Rail Station - Court Street 0901 Chalkwell Garage 666

09.08 Faversham - Canterbury 09.33 SC 3X

10.23 Canterbury - Dover 10.58 SC 15

11.40 Dover - Camber 13.20 SC 711

14.23 Camber - Hastings 15.20 SC 100

15.35 Hastings - Eastbourne 17.00 SC 99

17.15 Eastbourne - Brighton 18.22 Brighton & Hove 12

18.36 Brighton - Shoreham 19.04 SC 700

Thursday 14 February

08.19 Shoreham - Arundel 09.53 SC 700

10.05 Arundel - Chichester 10.40 Compass 85

10.51 Chichester - Portsmouth 11.52 SC 70

12.25 Portsmouth - Southampton 13.15 Solent Blue Line X27

15.25 Southampton - Bournemouth 15.16 Wilts & Dorset X35

15.50 Bournemouth - Exeter 20.20 First Dorset X53

Friday 15 February

07.00 Exeter - Plymouth 08.25 SC X38

Alternative 1: loop from Truro via Helston to Penzance:

08.30 Plymouth - Liskeard 09.20 Western Greyhound 592

09.30 Liskeard - St. Columb Major 10.24 Western Greyhound 593

10.30 St. Columb Major - Truro 11.09 Western Greyhound 597

11.30 Truro - Helston 12.27 Truronian T2

13.10 Helston - Penzance 14.02 First Cornwall 2

Alternative 2: Truro - Penzance direct:

09.30 Plymouth - Truro 12.30 Western Greyhound 592/3/7

12.35 Truro - Penzance 14.14 First Cornwall 18

15.05 Penzance - Lands End 16.23 First Cornwall 1A

16.35 Lands End - Penzance 17.30 First Cornwall 1

17.33 Penzance - Hayle 17.50 First Cornwall 17A

17.56 Hayle - Threemilestone 19.08 First Cornwall 14A

19.23 Threemilestone - Newquay 20.16 Western Greyhound 587

Saturday 16 February

07.05 Newquay - Exeter 10.20 Western Greyhound 510

11.35 Exeter - Taunton 12.53 First 92

13.15 Taunton - Wells 14.25 First 29

14.41 Wells - Bristol 15.41 First 376

17.15 Bristol - Bulwark 17.40 First 10

18.05 Bulwark - Gloucester 19.25 SC 73

19.45 Gloucester - Hereford 21.20 SC 32

Sunday 17 February

09.45 Hereford - Ludlow 10.53 Whittle 492

11.10 Ludlow - Kidderminster 12.03 Central Connect 292

Alternative 1: direct back to Walsall via Birmingham

12.10 Kidderminster - Birmingham 12.55 Central Connect 192

13.10 [13.12] Birmingham - Walsall 13.45 [13.47] Travel West Midlands [A2Z]

Alternative 2*: round trip Kidderminster - Shrewsbury (start of the clockwise circuit of England on 7 February), then home

12.45 Kidderminster - Bridgnorth 13.45 Severn Valley Railway *

14.11 Bridgnorth - Shrewsbury 15.09 Choice 436

15.15 Shrewsbury - Bridgnorth 16.10 Choice 436

16.30 Bridgnorth - Kidderminster 17.42 Severn Valley Railway *

18.04 Kidderminster - Birmingham 18.55 Central Connect 192

19.13 Birmingham - Walsall 17.47 Travel West Midlands

* This alternative is subject to full re-opening of line at half-term, as announced, following last year's floods. As there are no Sunday buses between Ludlow and Shrewsbury, the SVR provides the missing link.


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© traveline 2008, Last updated: 23 February 2008