Search Results

Former Black Prince Volvo V1 has been with us here in the north since July and our Wetherby Wanderers event but it’s almost time to return the Ailsa back home to the Midlands, with Keith Billingsley and the 4738 group. It’s been very kind of Keith to offer V1 for our 50th anniversary celebrations and also most kind of the few people who pledged a donation to make the loan possible-thank you to all concerned!... As you’ve seen, the bus has appeared at the Wetherby event and more recently the Leeds Running Day, proving most popular indeed wherever it has been in service... Before V1 returns south, it’d be fitting to say a proper goodbye, so what about a V1 running day, with an enthusiast photo trip over it’s former regular route, the 63B, followed by an evening fish and chip run on Saturday the 7th September... Starting in Morley with an X49 to Leeds Corn Exchange at 1200, we shall then direct our attention at the 63B where V1 and sister bus V2 operated this lucrative student service battling with Firstbus in the period after Black Prince Routemaster operation ended. We shall return to Morley as an X49 in the afternoon, then head off for fish and chips on the 205 route to Pudsey. The fish and chip run will leave from Morley town hall, bus stop A, 1800-returning from Pudsey bus station at 2000 giving around 90 minutes to enjoy fish and chips or have a drink or two in the Pudsey watering holes! On arrival back in Morley, I'll run to Leeds if required to drop any passengers who might have joined us there On Sunday 8th, I’ll take the Ailsa to a local event, as yet undecided as there’s lots to choose from!. Who’s interested in this, all are most welcome, especially Black Prince enthusiasts!... Cheers All, Bradley

Hiya All, Sunday 18/08/19 was the date for The Leeds Running Day 2019 and I've just enjoyed a week or two to relax after a very busy transport weekend!... The day, organised jointly with Neil Millington at Classic Connections proved to be another huge success with bumper enthusiast visitor numbers and many families using our buses to visit the great Leeds attractions along the route. The running day seems to be building year on year with full standing loads on most services operated during the day. Radio Leeds and Classic FM promoted our event really well and I have no doubt this coverage encouraged many more people to come out and have a look at our great Leeds museums!. The museums at Thwaite, Middleton and Armley all report great feedback about the buses and all parties are keen to go ahead with an event next year... I managed a few snaps during the day, which I shall post later on in a photo blog, for your enjoyment. A massive thank you to all who helped make it happen again this year, we are already planning for 2020... See you all next year!... Bradley

Come to Leeds for a great day of museum hopping using classic buses and coaches from across the decades!...

It’s already one week since our Isle of Man 🇮🇲 adventure, where does the time go!? ... Here is my summary of what we got up to over the weekend, I hope it is an interesting read! ... After collecting 441 from the depot, picking up passengers in Morley on the way, the journey to the port of Heysham started. We sailed Thursday 26/07 on the 1415 departure from Heysham to Douglas, the boat was “Ben-My-Chree” of the IOM Steam Packet Company. The sailing was very pleasant and the experience of conveying the bus by ferry was a first and very expensive one for me! On arrival at Douglas we were very kindly met by our friend from the Isle of Man transport dept, who gave us some information about the weekend and suitable parking locations for 441, which was left at the ferry terminal on Thursday evening. Thursday night we took a tram ride to Laxey for some refreshment and socialising with friends who had already arrived on the island. On Friday after breakfast we took 441 (via the TT course) to a place close to Jurby, where Douglas 50 is kept in store. We were introduced to the owner of Brian’s first ever bus and it was an absolute pleasure to see the Regent in the metal at last!. The operation to remove the bus from its resting place of many years was a great challenge for the recovery driver but he managed it in the end and we followed 50 to the Jurby transport museum where we all mucked in to wash the years of dirt off the body. After spending some time at Jurby, we decided to take 441 to Laxey coach park, spending a leisurely afternoon with friends in Laxey, before heading home to Douglas for tea and a great evening was had by all! ... The Saturday saw 441 taking in all corners of the island as we used the bus to provide transport for our friends to explore Ramsey, Peel and finally Port Erin. Unfortunately, during the first leg of our tour, we were involved in an accident where a tree branch came down in front of the bus and smashed the nearside windscreen. Thankfully nobody was injured and there was no body damage to 441. The bus was able to continue in traffic without issue. The day ended in Port Erin, with refreshments and great company, before retiring to Douglas in the evening. Sunday saw us heading to Jurby transport museum, for the big event of the weekend, the spectacle of Mercedes 441, one of Brian’s last Buses, being posed alongside his first ever bus DMN650, the first time this has happened and very appropriate in the 50th anniversary of the former Black Prince bus company. The way to Jurby was via the mountain road, a gruelling climb into low cloud and we were running with a Bus Vannin double decker, as we duplicated the 19X service bus, driven by our host for the weekend Richard Cranmer!. The museum at Jurby was really superb and the sight of 441 posed alongside 50 made the whole trip worthwhile, despite the awful weather on this day!. We also had the great opportunity for Dave to recreate that famous black and white pic of his dad proudly posing with his newly purchased preservation project back in 1968!. After a great day in the museum, we headed back via the mountain road, enjoying our final meal in Douglas before taking the 0845 ferry on the Monday morning. The return trip was fine, with both ferry crossings smooth and pleasant. 441 currently resides at the depot in Selby, awaiting a new piece of glass!. Many thanks to Dave Crowther for driving the bus during the weekend, we all had a really great time! ...

As our trip to the Isle of Man rapidly approaches, I thought I'd share some memories of the bus which started it all, DMN650. In 1968, Brian Crowther purchased the AEC Regent directly from the Isle of Man, bringing the bus to the mainland where it gained the identity SWU222F. The photo shows a very proud Brian posing with his new pride and joy. The bus was a preservation project, but was the first vehicle in the fleet which was to become "Black Prince" in 1969!. Douglas 50 DMN650 is seen here in whilst still in service on the Isle of Man. As we celebrate 50 years since the creation of Black Prince, it is a fine coincidence that the original bus carries the fleet number "50"...We shall see the bus in the metal on Sunday 28th July, as we join the Isle of Man Transport Festival running day at Jurby Transport Museum, the arrangements have been made by Richard Cranmer of Bus Vannin, to whom huge thanks are due for making this historic vehicle meeting happen. We are certainly all looking forward to our trip to Douglas, with a red and yellow Mercedes-Benz single decker, uniting the first Black Prince with one of the last!. The AEC is shown in this final photo, near the home of Black Prince in Fountain Street, Morley West Yorkshire.

Dear Readers, This time last weekend, the heritage buses were just about back at respective home depots after a fabulous day at The Wetherby Wanderers running day. Sunday 07/07/19 saw a fine selection of preserved buses in service on the Leeds-Boston Spa-Wetherby route, a brief report of which I have compiled below!. Last year, I started to organise the event as part of the Black Prince 50th birthday celebrations, but also to showcase this beautiful countryside bus route, which links many small towns & villages along the way. My idea for the day was to illustrate several generations of rolling stock seen on this fabulous countryside corridor over the years, starting in the morning with West Yorkshire red buses from the 1970's/1980's, progressing through to the earlier Black Prince style vehicles, the 1990's Harrogate & District colours then ending the day with more modern Black Prince vehicles in the shape of the Mercedes-Benz single decker. The route carried several number variations over the years, so the departures were numbered according to the vehicle type allocated. The West Yorkshire departures of the day therefore carried route number 741, as would have been seen in the days of West Yorkshire (WYRCC) operation. Simon Wiles provided his beautifully restored WYRCC Bristol VR double decker PUM149W fleetnumber 1746 to operate the 741 journeys shown in the timetable. Simon & his crew thoroughly enjoyed putting the VR through its paces over its old stamping ground, the bus looked absolutely at home on the Leeds to Wetherby corridor, photographed here in Wetherby bus station. The numbers (or era illustrated) changed as the day progressed, through the 1990's 760 era, on to the 770 of the early 2000's. Buses used to illustrate the 760 were of the Leyland & Volvo variety, representing years gone by. Keith Billinglsey & the 4738 group kindly provided us with superb former Black Prince Volvo Ailsa, A101SUU (V1), which proved very popular with enthusiasts sampling a ride on this Voith gearbox machine. It was really good of Keith to offer V1 for use at the event, the attendance of the bus was made possible only by the generosity of a handful of Black Prince fans & former employees who clubbed together to fund the temporary vehicle transfer to the North from its base in the West Midlands. V1 is seen here after preparation for our event with destination displays & also whilst on service in Wetherby. Driver Jon Folwell, a regular driver of V1 during its time at Black Prince is photographed with his former machine. To avoid potential for conflicting vehicle movements in the narrow streets of the Thorner area, the afternoon saw short workings introduced between Wetherby & Bramham, the buses numbered as 760 & using the loop in Bramham to turn around & slot back in to the 15 minute frequency of service, the preserved buses working with the Transdev service buses to create this clockface timetable. Our friends & current operators of the route at Transdev ran their smart fleet of buses, the route being known now as a "7" on its own & running through from Wetherby to Harrogate. The photo below shows FJ58LTK, number 1859 of Harrogate Starbeck depot, awaiting departure from Wetherby. Illustrating a previous era of the Leeds-Wetherby route, Craig Temple brought along his superb Volvo/Alexander single decker, painted in the smart red & cream colours of Harrogate & District, this type of vehicle was new to Transdev predecessor, Blazefield. The image below shows the Volvo sharing the stand at Wetherby with 441, a sight which would have been very familiar in the town during the 1990's-2000's. After the failure of our Mercedes 577 in the run up to the event, Craig also very kindly offered to substitute his Leyland National to run in its place. The SYPTE machine was used to run those short workings between Wetherby & Bramham numbered 760. The National is seen in the image below, parked on the stand at Wetherby bus station, complete with a display of Black Prince slip boards. We were blessed with some beautiful sunshine during the course of the day, providing some simply stunning photo opportunites along the route, the photography fans have been sharing the results during the last few days-fantastic to say the least!. Into the evening, P441SWX was pressed into service, having been parked on display representing Black Prince at Wetherby during the course of the day. 441 operated the 1625, 1825 round trips from Wetherby to Leeds in the capable hands of drivers Jon Folwell & Craig Temple. The Mercedes was a regular performer on the evening 770 service during the early 2000's, alongside fleetmate 577. The bus is seen here taking off from a pause at Thorner Kirkfield Avenue which was the traditional passing point for the 2 buses on the route during the evening. The Leeds bound service would wait patiently for the Wetherby bound bus to pass, to avoid a conflict in the extremely narrow streets ahead. Star of the show during our Wetherby event had to be the lowheight Volvo Ailsa, TRR814R, supplied by Richard Huxham/4738 Group. The Black Prince liveried machine performed absolutely superbly, running in service for several hours, 0900-2230 to be precise!. The bus was entrusted with a double shift, deputising for Mercedes 577 in the previous days. The veteran Volvo was driven mostly by Dave Crowther & Stephen Hough during the daytime running, transferring over to myself in the evening to work on the opposite journeys to 441 at 1725/1925 from Wetherby to Leeds & return. The Volvo is seen posed, lights blazing, on the last return to Wetherby of the night. The location is The Pax Inn, Thorp Arch, a long-standing fare stage on this route. Metro WYPTE have been particularly helpful with the planning for this event, the use of stand 24 at Leeds City Bus Station was a really welcome & very kind gesture, enabling the sight & sound of Black Prince buses to grace the former Wetherby stand for the first time since 2005... It would certainly be a pleasure to work with the bus station management again in the future. The photograph below shows Volvo Ailsa 814 parked on stand 24 Leeds City Bus Station, awaiting departure with the 2025 service 770 to Wetherby. I'd just like to say a massive thank you to everyone who contributed to and helped out with the Wetherby running day!... The day seems to have been a massive success with favourable comments streaming in from visitors who stopped by to say hello whilst I was manning Wetherby bus station. I'm really pleased with how the event progressed and the weather made the day extra special!. 2019 is proving to be a great year for preserved Black Prince buses in what would have been the 50th year of operation for Brian Crowther's red and yellow fleet. Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed the write up! Bradley

Volvo Ailsa, A101SUU, owned and cared for by the 4738 group will be in the north for our Wetherby Wanderers running day, this coming Sunday 07/07/2019!. On arrival at Black Prince, the Ailsa was famously operated in a very scruffy ex-London condition, complete with Potters Bar "PB" shed plate on the bodyside, as shown in my image above. This Ailsa has now been been restored to a much smarter but earlier variation of London Buses livery, but during its time at Black Prince was perhaps more famous for being the "pink panther" painted in a very bright overall advert livery for Office Angels!. The bus, along with sister V2, could be found almost exclusively on the 5A route, then migrating to the Headingley Lane corridor on the 63B service, after the end of AEC Routemaster operation on the student corridor. A huge *Thank You* is due to the small number of contributors who have clubbed together to make the return of V1 for our event possible!. Catch this superb Ailsa in service at "THE WETHERBY WANDERERS" 07/07/2019.

Good Afternoon All!. If you intend to visit our Wetherby running day, Sunday 07/07/19, please pay attention to the following information update. Since my last news release, changes have had to be made to the classic bus service arrangements, as a result of road closures in Leeds City Centre connected with the ASDA Foundation Leeds 10K "Run For All" event. Most roads around the Vicar Lane, Headrow and Kirstall areas are closed to traffic at various parts of the day. The road closures will affect several bus routes around the centre, details below, for information purposes... https://www.runforall.com/events/10k/leeds-10k/ https://www.runforall.com/events/10k/leeds-10k/road-closure-information/ https://www.wymetro.com/plan-a-journey/travel-news/bus-alerts/leeds10krun/ Our original stopping arrangements have been amended accordingly, our classic bus services will follow the revised route taken by the Transdev 7 service, leaving York Road at the Marsh Lane exit. As a result of a very kind gesture by Metro, our buses will be granted the use of Leeds City Bus Station! I am hugely grateful to Sam Lister at Metro for making this short notice alteration possible and can confirm our buses will be arriving/departing from the stand formerly used by Black Prince departures on the Wetherby service many years ago-stand 24!. **We MUST ensure we do not cause any unnecessary complications whilst using the Metro bus station. It is imperative that no unauthorised person crosses or enters the vehicle movement area for photogrpahy or other reason. Please do respect the rules of the bus station to ensure we do not abuse the fantastic privilege of preserved bus access to this building.** The bus service diversion will be in place until 1600, at which point inbound services will return to the normal route, leaving York Road at the Vicar Lane exit, observing bus stop U7 at Vicar Lane bus station and then stand 22 in Leeds CB (7) or stand 24 in Leeds CB (741, 760, 770) Outbound services departing after 1600 will return to the normal outbound route, on departure from the bus station observing New Briggate stop N4 (Grand Theatre) So, It's been a mega re-planning exercise, but now we finally have a completed roster for Sunday 7th July!. You'll be able to take a nostalgic ride along the route, with vehicles from the 1970's to the 2000's running alongside the current Transdev fleet for the day!. As the Leeds-Wetherby via Boston Spa service carried several route number variations over the years, I have allocated the appropriate route number to a corresponding vehicle from the same era. 7-Transdev, The Harrogate Bus Company (current operator) 741-West Yorkshire Roadcar 1970's/1980's 760-Black Prince 1990's 770-Black prince 2000's We intend to operate all day long, on the opposite half hour to the Transdev service buses. ...During the afternoon, there will be half hourly short workings between Wetherby Bus Station and Bramham.... This short working will enable the provision of a 15 minute frequency of service combined with the Transdev route 7. Into the evening, you will be able to enjoy the spectacle of a twilight journey on a preserved Mercedes bus, with the Black Prince single deckers running until around 2200. The first and last departures are posted below, with the full timetable coming later today. Leeds-Wetherby Early departures from Leeds... 7, 0935, LCBS stand 22. 741, 1005 LCBS stand 24. 7, 1035, LCBS stand 22. 760, 1105 LCBS stand 24. Last departures from Leeds... 770, 2025, LCBS stand 24. 7, 2055, LCBS Stand 22. 7, 2155, LCBS Stand 22. 7, 2255, LCBS Stand 22. Wetherby-Leeds Early Departures from Wetherby Bus Station Stand A... 7, 0825 7, 0925 760, 0955 7,1025 741, 1105 Last Departures from Wetherby Bus Station Stand A... 770, 1925 7, 1955 7, 2055 7, 2155 7, 2255 IMPORTANT INFORMATION Please be aware of the following :- Normal Transdev conditions of carriage, operating rules and fares apply to all Transdev services shown on this timetable (7 service) Preserved bus services will operate alongside Transdev and will run FREE of charge All departures (all services) from Wetherby towards Leeds will use the bus station, stand A UNTIL 1600-In Leeds, Transdev 7 will depart from the usual place, Leeds City Bus Station, stand 22 then via diversion to York Road UNTIL 1600-All preserved bus services (741/760/770) will arrive at/depart from Leeds City Bus Station stand 24 then via diversion to York Road AFTER 1600-In Leeds, Transdev 7 will depart from the usual place, Leeds City Bus Station, stand 22 then observe Leeds New Briggate Stop N4 (Grand Theatre) followed by all regular stopping places en route AFTER 1600-All preserved bus services (741/760/770) will arrive at/depart from Leeds City Bus Station stand 24 then observe Leeds New Briggate Stop N4 (Grand Theatre) then non-stop to Seacroft followed by all regular stopping places en route On departure from New Briggate N4, all preserved bus services will operate non-stop to Seacroft Ring Road, the first pick up/set down point will be stop number 45013737 (Outbound to Wetherby) 45013736 (Inbound to Leeds)-this decision has been made to avoid any conflict with service bus operations and the crowded Seacroft Bus Station. Inbound preserved bus services to Leeds will operate non stop from Seacroft to Vicar Lane In addition to our bus running day, a superb family fun day is planned on the same day at Thorner Victory Hall, the details are shown below. You can access this event by alighting from any of our buses in Thorner Main Street, near the Mexborough Arms, then enjoy a short walk along Carr Lane to the Victory Hall.

Good Morning All!. Preparations are well advanced for the Wetherby running day and I'm able now to post the final arrangements. It's been a mega planning exercise, but we finally have a roster for Sunday 7th July!. You'll be able to take a nostalgic ride along the route, with vehicles from the 1970's to the 2000's running alongside the current Transdev fleet for the day!. As the Leeds-Wetherby via Boston Spa service carried several route number variations over the years, I have allocated the appropriate route number to a corresponding vehicle from the same era. 7-Transdev, The Harrogate Bus Company (current operator) 741-West Yorkshire Roadcar 1970's/1980's 760-Black Prince 1990's 770-Black prince 2000's We intend to operate all day long, on the opposite half hour to the Transdev service buses. During the afternoon, there will be half hourly short workings between Wetherby Bus Station and Bramham. This short working will enable the provision of a 15 minute frequency of service combined with the Transdev route 7. Into the evening, you will be able to enjoy the spectacle of a twilight journey on a preserved Mercedes bus, with the Black Prince single deckers running until around 2200. The first and last departures are posted below, with the full timetable coming soon. Leeds-Wetherby Early departures from Leeds... 7, 0935, LCBS stand 22. 741, 1005 Leeds Vicar Lane BS stop U7. 7, 1035, LCBS stand 22. 760, 1105 Leeds Vicar Lane BS stop U7. Last departures from Leeds... 770, 2025, Leeds Vicar Lane BS stop U7. 7, 2055, LCBS Stand 22. 7, 2155, LCBS Stand 22. 7, 2255, LCBS Stand 22. Wetherby-Leeds Early Departures from Wetherby Bus Station Stand A... 7, 0825 7, 0925 760, 0955 7,1025 741, 1105 Last Departures from Wetherby Bus Station Stand A... 770, 1925 7, 1955 7, 2055 7, 2155 7, 2255 IMPORTANT INFORMATION Please be aware of the following :- Normal Transdev conditions of carriage and fares apply to all Transdev services shown on this timetable (7 service) Preserved bus services will operate alongside Transdev and will run FREE of charge All departures from Wetherby towards Leeds will use the bus station, Stand A In Leeds, Transdev 7 will depart from the usual place, Leeds City Bus Station, stand 22 and then observe Leeds New Briggate Stop N4 (Grand Theatre) followed by all regular stopping places en route All preserved bus services (741/760/770) will arrive at/depart from the former WYRCC bus station, Leeds Vicar Lane Stop U7 and then observe Leeds New Briggate Stop N4 (Grand Theatre) On departure from New Briggate N4, all preserved bus services will operate non-stop to Seacroft Ring Road, the first pick up/set down point will be stop number 45013737 (Outbound to Wetherby) 45013736 (Inbound to Leeds)-this decision has been made to avoid any conflict with service bus operations and the crowded Seacroft Bus Station. Inbound to Leeds workings will operate non stop from Seacroft to Leeds Vicar Lane In addition to our bus running day, a superb family fun day is planned on the same day at Thorner Victory Hall, the details are shown below. You can access this event by alighting from any of our buses in Thorner Main Street, near the Mexborough Arms, then enjoy a short walk along Carr Lane to the Victory Hall.

Join us for a classic bus ride through beautiful Yorkshire countryside, stopping along the way at a local village pub for refreshments or alighting in Boston Spa to admire the historic centre. Celebrating both 50 years of Black Prince and the history of the Leeds-Wetherby via the villages corridor, we shall provide a fine selection of preserved buses running over the route alongside Transdev route 7 during this day. This lovely countryside bus route has operated with several number variations over the years, but the way has remained essentially the same with generally minor alterations. In early WYRCC days, the number was 41, then 741. During the Keighley and District era it became 760, which is when Black Prince gained the contract to operate the service on evenings and Sundays. The route came all the way from Keighley during this era, but Brian’s buses only operated the Leeds to Wetherby section. Eventually the service was split up, Keighley and district took the 760 entirely and the corridor eventually became “Aireline 60” as we know it now, running Keighley-Leeds. Harrogate and District took over the operation of the Leeds to Wetherby section; with Black Prince still operating the evening and Sunday contract. The route was now the 770 and it remained as such for a long time. The H and D operation eventually ran through from Wetherby to Harrogate, taking over all journeys when Black Prince closed. The service spent some time as the 77 then became simply "7" and continues as so under the current regime, still running the traditional route as we always knew it! More information as plans progress.

Whilst we celebrate 50 years of Black Prince this year, the RVPT celebrate 100 years of Ribble Motor Services!. We took 577 on a road trip to visit the Ribble 100 event in Morecambe on Sunday 26th May, sadly the day brought appalling weather conditions in the morning, improving in the afternoon but we all managed to enjoy a trip to the seaside!. Gary Hardwick is seen here on arrival at Morecambe, having driven 577 across from Liversedge. It was really great to see so many preserved Ribble buses together again, with vehicles representing many different eras of operation. Also very impressive was the fleet of modern buses, painted in variations of Ribble colour schemes from across the years, a real credit to each bus operator and all the staff involved with creating these heritage masterpieces!. Shown below is CX06BJY, from the Arriva fleet, carrying Ribble maroon livery.