Tartan Day, Castles and Kilts.

The one off- putting thing about Scotland is the drive to get there: the long slog on terrible motorways. For those of us around the south coast, there is now a much better alternative, including the opportunity of a day trip, and that is curtesy of Loganair from Eastleigh Airport to Edinburgh. Departing at 08.40, and just over an hour and ten minutes later, you arrive in Edinburgh with eight hours until the scheduled return departure time. 

Lothian SB19 GMY, Volvo B8L/AD H52/29D. Arriving into the airport from the city centre on Airlink 100 the direct route into the city centre, running every 10 minutes and taking just 32 minutes.

The first hurdle is getting out of the dreadful airport, a long walk through the combined departures and arrival hall, to the far end where the convenient bus station and tram terminus are located. Right by the exit door is the stop for service 200, part of the Lothian Skylink network, with a thirty-minute headway and travel time of 43 minutes to Leith Ocean Terminal. This being the rush hour, the timetable bears no relation to the reality, with heavy traffic in both directions on the A8 Glasgow Road making progress very slow. Whilst you might think that Skylink was a service designed for airport passengers, offering a speedy service to areas in the city centre, it is in fact a local residents service, meandering its way through several large housing estates before running along the coast road into Leith. 

Leith and the area around Fishmarket are suffering from travel disruption caused by the tram extension works on both roads and pavements. The tram will eventually end at Fishmarket, outside a residential block of flats which is not a significant location. The reason for coming to Fishmarket was to enjoy a ride on one of Lothians’ three-axial Volvo B8L/AD’s. Route 16 from Fishmarket into the city centre is the longest of three options available from this location and unwittingly for us, turned out to be the wrong choice. What should have been a relatively short 30-minute journey turned into one hour and ten minutes, as heavy loadings and further tram disruptions around Hillside resulted in the bus being stationery for long periods. Having never approached Edinburgh city centre from this direction, I did not realise that Hillside was just a short distance from Princes Street otherwise it would have been quicker to walk. 

What can one say about Edinburgh during festival time and a refuse collection strike: packed and filthy is probably the politest. As a location for looking at buses Princes Street is ideal. There are so many buses using a relatively narrow roadway, speed is glacially slow, not helped by the tram taking up so much space. For less congested bus and pedestrian streets, Queens Street and York Place offer a better alternative, running parallel to Princes Street. With sightseeing buses removed from Waverley Bridge, the best location for them to congregate is now Lawnmarket, close to the castle entrance. Despite the crowds, it was encouraging to see tourists returning in large numbers, borne out in part by the number of coaches parked along Regent Road utilizing virtually all the available spaces. 

There were tourists aplenty. The coach bays along Regent Road were full by mid-afternoon. TJ Travel from Wakefield were there with TJ07 OUR, a Mercedes Benz Tourismo 2 parked in front of the Burns Monument.

Edinburgh is a paradise for a bus and coach enthusiast provided you enjoy walking but, after five hours, it is time for a sit down and to make the return journey to the airport. Fortunately, the tram was back in service after a power outage earlier in the day. Little did we know of the chaos that would greet us at airport security, with confined space and large passenger numbers. With no luggage and having checked-in online we were only required to arrive 30 minutes before departure: it was tight. 

  

Stagecoach SN67 WWP AD E20D MMC B38F. Operating service 747 from Edinburgh Airport across the Forth Road Bridge to Halbeath Park & Ride.

Stagecoach (Megabus) YIL 8430 (OW14 LKC, T505 UBE), Van Hool TDX27 Astromega. Passing through on the two-hourly service 909 - Edinburgh - Glasgow via Stirling and Cumbernauld. The vehicle was new to Oxford Tube.

 

Stagecoach Western YX18 LKO, Volvo B11RLET/Plaxton CH65/22Dt. Photographed in Princes Street departing for Glasgow on service 900. The service operates at 15 minute intervals between 6.30am and 7.45pm with earlier and later journeys timed at 30 minute intervals.  

      Edinburgh tram No.203 a CAF Urbos 3 stuck in Princes Street due to a power failure.

East Coast Buses (Lothian) SJ18 NFV. Volvo B5TL/Wright H48/30F. Departing Edinburgh, heading east on service X6 to Haddington, operating every 30 minutes with a journey time of 1hr 7mins. 

Lothian SJ70 HNO, Volvo B8RLE/MCV B49F. Service 30 operates between Clovenstone – Musselburgh every 10 minutes with an end-to-end journey time of 1hr 36mins.

Lothian Country LXZ 5420 (BF60 VJE) Volvo B9TL/ Wright H45/27F (H39/23D). New to Centrewest. Entering Edinburgh on service X27 from Whitburn in West Lothian, a journey of 1hr 49mins operating every 30 minutes.

Lothian SJ18 NFD, Volvo B5TL/Wright H49/30F, on the heavily congested Princes Street, operating service 37 to Easter Bush from Silverknowes with an end-to-end running time of 1hr 38min. The full service operates every 30 minutes with intermediate workings between Silverknowes and Bilston.

Lothian SJ19 OXP, Volvo B8L/AD H61/39D. Operating service 16 between Torphin and Silverknowes, the complete journey takes 1h 30mins and runs every 12minutes. On the day of the visit this service suffered severe delays due to tram works around Leith and Hillside. 

East Coast (Lothian) SF17 VML, Volvo B8RLE/Wright B40F in Princes Street operating the X7 to Dunbar. 

Border Buses YA13 AEG an Optare Versa V1170 B41F, new to Perryman’s. On St. David Street arriving into Edinburgh on service 51 from St Boswells, a journey of 1hr 54mins.

Ratho Coaches YN22 YLE a rather unusual short Scania K360IB4 with Higer body picking up from the Travelodge.

Lothian SJ71 HKC a Volvo B5TL with Alexander Dennis H49/35F body. Heading out of the city centre along the A1 on route 44 to Wallyford. The service operates every 12 minutes with a running time of 1hr 34mins.

First Scotland East SN64 CKL. Wright Streetlite B41F standing at St. Andrews House, Regent Road awaiting a return journey on the X22 to Shotts. Just after this photograph was taken the business was acquired by McGill’s who trade as Eastern Scottish. The X22 operates every 30 minutes with a running time of 2hs 13mins.

Lothian (Majestic Tour) SJ16 ZZO, Volvo B5TL/Wright PO53/2F standing outside Old Royal High School. The hop on hop off service operates every 15 minutes and takes in sights beyond the city centre, visiting Leith and the Royal Botanic Gardens. 

Stagecoach Fife YX63 NEO, Volvo B13RT/Plaxton C61FLt, departing Edinburgh on service X54 to Dundee, a journey of 2hrs 13mins.

Borders Buses SN69 ZNG, AD E20D MMC B38F arrives into Edinburgh after a journey of 2hrs 35mins on the 253 from Berwick-upon-Tweed.  

Lothian SJ70 HNR a Volvo B8RLE with MCV B49F body. Climbing St David St from Princes St on service 30 to Clovenstone having come from Musselburgh, a total journey time of 1hr 15mins. 

Stagecoach Western Scania K230 with AD B43F body in St. David St arriving into the city from Biggar on service 101.

Necrobus KGJ 341A (666 DYE) former London Routemaster operating ghost tours (didn’t know they came out in the daylight!).

Stagecoach Fife YX18 LHN, Volvo B8RLET with Plaxton C53F body, passing through St. David Street on service X57 1hr 57min to Kirkcaldy. 

The end.

Omnibus World

62° North – August 2022. The Faroe Islands

 62° North – August 2022 

RB 071 a Scania from the Rasmussen’s fleet travels along Hvalviksvegur on route to Saksun with passengers from local tour operator MB Tours. 

The Faroe Islands are a self-governing country of 18 islands, within the Kingdom of Denmark, set midway between Scotland and Iceland. The islands have a total population of 53,882 of which 22,878 live around the capital, Tórshavn on Streymoy island with the only other major conurbation being Klaksvík on Borðoy island with a population of 5,401. 

Bus services are clearly defined by livery. Red is the Bussleiðin network which operates the free city services in Tórshavn, and blue (the Bygdaleiðir network) operates between towns and villages. There are also five buses painted yellow that operate the community network in Klaksvík. A small band of private coach operators provide tourist and private hire services, many of these coaches appearing in Bygdaleiðir livery for operating tendered services on behalf of Strandfaraskip Landsins (SSL) the public transportation company belonging to the Ministry of Finance.

In the capital, the Bussleiðin network consists of seven routes offering a comprehensive day-time service with limited evening and Sunday operations. Most bus stops have timetables and easy to read network maps (fig 1). The Bygdaleiðir network is operated by a modern fleet of coaches and consists of 25 routes many with irregular timetables and route variations which make timetables difficult to understand. The network does however provide connectivity with feeder routes from smaller villages into the main road routes and links with the inter-island ferry services. 

The road infrastructure is excellent and the system of road tunnels amazing, including the now famous 11km long Eysturoy tunnel featuring the world’s first underwater roundabout complete with art installation and its own specially commissioned music. 

Gundurs Bussar operates the Tórshavn Bussleiðin on behalf of the Tórshavn municipality, the network having a PVR of 16 vehicles. AP 893 a Czech built SOR (SOR Libchavy spol. s r.o. Ltd.) BN model operating route 3. Photographed at the SMS shopping centre, the only edge-of-town shopping centre in the Faroe Islands. 

BN 954 heading out of the city on route 1. The nearside view of the SOR showing its semi-low floor twin door layout.

(fig 1) Bussleiðin bus stops have timetables and easy to read network maps.

Mouritsen’s Bussar BJ 828 Irizar i6s waiting in Gasadalurfor on Vágar island for the return of a pensioner group on a day out from Tórshavn.

HZ Bussar HU 934, Volvo 9900 parked in its hometown of Streymnes on Streymoy island, on what passes for a summer’s afternoon in the Faroe Islands. HZ is a small operator with just seven employees. 

 

HK Bussar HK 325 a Mercedes Benz Sprinter B17F new in 2015, sits at the Tjørnuvík terminal of Bygdaleiðir service 202. The five times a day service M-F only, plus two school day journeys from Oyrarbakki takes just 25 minutes and is designed to meet through service 400 Klaksvík – Tórshavn. Tjørnuvík is a seaside village with black sandy beach and a surf school set in a narrow inlet.

Former Bussleiðin SOR GB292 operating the shuttle bus service between Víkarnes and Tjørnuvík on Streymoy. The road down to the seaside village of Tjørnuvík clings to the cliff edge and, over the years, rock falls have reduced the width to single file so large vehicles are required to park at Víkarnes and use the park & ride. A set of traffic lights controls the flow of cars over a two-kilometre-long section of the road.

DS 053 Iveco Evadys of Landleiðin (Jón Thomasen). Standing at the Klaksvík terminus of Bygdaleiðir service 410, Fuglafjørður - Gøtudalur – Klaksvík, this is the Saturday/Sunday only 13.40 departure. The service feeds into connections at Gøtudali for onward journeys to Tórshavn using the 6.2km Nordoya tunnel.

The Landleiðin depot on the quayside in Klaksvík. RM 651 is an Iveco Daily whilst TD 415 and BF 055 are Iveco Magelys.

Landleiðin’s BF 055 Iveco Magelys in the Klaksvík depot on a Saturday afternoon. 

Klaksvík has its own fleet of five vehicles for town services operated by Askham. The fleet consist of two Mercedes Benz Sprinters and three Volvo full size buses. The two farthest from the camera were originally registered in 2012 to NFs Turistbusser in Holstebro (Denmark) and transferred to Askham’s in 2014. The one vehicle not in the photograph was parked in a residential area on the opposite side of the harbour, although no Saturday service appears to operate.

Sporting a personal registration Askham’s Volvo B12M-62 with Aabenraa 8500 body was new in 2002. Askham share the parking space on the Klaksvík quay with Landleiðin, although this view shows the bus parked across several bays of the public car park. 

HK Bussar HK 933 Volvo 9900 C53F new in 2019 operates a private hire journey for a visiting sports team.

Terminus in Tórshavn for the Bygdaleiðir network is on the quayside in front of the Smyril Line’s (Hirtshals, Denmark - Tórshavn, Faroe Islands – Seyðisfjørður, Iceland) ferry terminal. RB 740 is a Neoplan Tourliner from the Rasmuussen’s fleet. The quay is also served by Bussleiðin route 6.

BUSS 1 operated by Poulsen Bussar of Toftir is a MAN Lion’s coach. Heading out of Tórshavn on highway 10 having just departed the Smyrial terminal. Sitting atop the rock formation on the right is the Skansin fort and lighthouse.

HK Bussar HK 933 a Volvo 9713 C44F dating from 2012 is operating the airport shuttle into Tórshavn. This was the oldest vehicle seen on a regular express service. 

Omnibus World

  

Norway 1985

In the Hemsdalsbilene depot at Hemsedal, Volvo with Vest Buss body. Hemsedal is a small town with a permeant population of around 2000 swollen by a large influx of tourists. The town is home to Norway’s second largest ski resort and a popular hiking/climbing resort in summer.  

With our first brand-new car sitting in the drive, a decision was needed: where should we go on holiday? Out of nowhere came the answer - Norway. Being 1985, this was a relatively simple drive. Head north to Newcastle-upon-Tyne, board the Norway Lines ferry to Bergen and head east with our goal being Gol in Hallingdal district midway between Oslo and Bergen. Gol was chosen for its central location whether using road, rail and, as it transpired, bus, plus a rather attractive self-catering log cabin. Gol lies in the Hallingdal valley 290 kms from Bergen on highway 7, with a population around 2400 at the time. Hallingdal district also includes the villages of Flå, Nes, Hemsedal, Ål and Hol, all of which were served by a network of regular bus services.

Despite reassurances from Norwegian tourist information that English was widely spoken, which might have been the case in the more popular tourist destinations, in Gol and the surrounding area English was very much the preserve of the young, and fortunately for us, the staff in the tourist information office.      

Without doubt the public transport highlight of the holiday was a suggestion from a tourist office employee that we purchase a one-day multi-modal ticket for a round trip Gol-Aurland-Flam-Myrdal-Gol.

An early morning start from Gol towards Geilo found us as the only two passengers aboard a Hallingdal Billag DAF with Repstads Brothers body. Before too long, the driver indicated we were to alight at a road junction close to Hagafoss. No one else waiting, no obvious houses around and no onward connection in sight, a few nail-biting minutes ensued. Out of nowhere came another Hallingdal Billag bus: this time a Volvo with one other passenger already on board and it took us on a beautiful journey alongside lakes with mountains in the background and a surprisingly comfortable ride considering the road had no tarmac surface. It is worth noting that a spare wheel was carried, attached to the outside of the boot. Eventually we made our first and, as it turned out, only stop. Not to pick up passengers, but a refreshment stop at the ‘Trolls Café’. Fifteen minutes later we were back on the road, travelling through narrow tunnels with rough bare rock sides and roofs and virtually no lighting. After many hairpin bends and a steep descent we arrived in the town of Aurland, located on Aurlandsfjord, where the bus pulled in adjacent to the ferry departure point. This was the last bus journey of the day as from here we boarded a ferry to Flåm, along with a number of German tourists travelling on Neoplan Ciyliner. Our onward journey from Flåm was aboard the famous Flåm Railway to Myrdal before completing our circular trip aboard the mainline Bergan-Oslo train service. However, those seeking an onward westerly journey from Flåm were meet by a waiting BHV bus service to Voss. 

Sadly, a few days later, with the sun shining at 3am, we would start the journey home, needing to be at the Eidfjorden ferry for the 6am departure, and joining the Norway Lines midday ferry departure at Bergen for Newcastle via Stavanger.  

Today, there are eight local bus routes serving Gol township, plus a ski service and three express coach routes, and whilst the railway station remains open, it is no longer staffed - a mere shadow of its 1985 status when it was a fully staffed freight/distribution hub. The local bus network is coordinated by Brakar, formed in 2009 by the regional council and several local councils, and today it is 100% owned by Viken county municipality and provides twenty-four local bus services in the Hallingdal area.

BVH Volvo B58-60 with Arna body, photographed at Flam ferry terminal about to depart for Voss. A prime example of coordinated transport, the service delivering/collecting passenger from the Aurlandsfjord ferry. 

Bergen-Hardanger-Voss Billag A / S (BHV) was formed in 1978 from a merger between three well established bus companies who could trace their roots back to the 1920s and 30s. BHV was taken over in 1997 by Hardanger Sunnhordlandske Dampskipsselskap (HSD) which later merged with Gaia Trafikk to form Tide ASA .

BHV operated bus routes on the sections Bergen – Hardanger over Kvamskogen (in conjunction with HSD-Bilane), Bergen – Voss over Dale, and the section Bergen – Tysse – Eikelandsosen, as well as a route Bergen – Aurland which was the company's longest, 210 km.

Sogn Billag, Volvo with Vest body arriving into Gol.  Sogn Billag was established in 1936 in Sogndal and continues in business although now owned by Nettbuss. In 1982, three years before our visit, Sogn Billag acquired Gol-Lærdal-Maristubilene Ltd. (GLM) based in Lærdal, 113km west of Gol, who operated eight buses, five trucks and two trailers and had co-operated with Firda Billag and Sogn Billag on a route between Førde, Sogndal, Lærdal and Gol to connect with the train service between Oslo and Bergen.

Sogn Billag, Volvo with Vest Buss body, on torbuss duties. Waiting for the early morning Eidfjorden ferry. Today the ferry service has been superseded by the Hardanger Bridge.

About to depart Gol for Hemsedal, a journey of 30km, is Hemsdalsbilene, Volvo with Vest Buss body. Today this is service 360 operating twice a day.

Local traffic calming measures delay Hemsdalsbilene, Volvo with Vest Buss body on route to Hemsdal.

Hemsdalsbilene, Volvo with Vest Buss part freight body, loading in Gol Station for a service to Hemsedal. Vest Buss built its first bodywork in 1967. In 2002 Busscar acquired a major stake, later selling out. The final bus bodies were built in 2011 although the company continues to trade as an Iveco distributor.   

Hallingdal Billag (HB) was founded in 1972 following a merger between Hol Bilselskap AS and P / L Ål Rutebillag, later acquiring Fossgård Bilruter. At its formation, the company had 20 buses, 5 combined buses, 10 trucks and 4 trailers. By 1978 this had increased to 28 buses, 15 trucks, 4 combined vehicles and 4 trailers. In 1974, eleven routes were operated, plus one route operated jointly with Aurland Kommunale Rutebilar. 

May 1987 saw a summer only express between Bergen - Voss - Aurland - Ål - Oslo established. The route was a collaboration between Bergen-Hardanger-Voss Billag (BHV), Aurland Kommunale Rutebilar , Hallingdal Billag and NSB Krøderenrutene. It was not a great success and was closed down after the 1994 summer season.

In the late 1980s, the company experienced financial problems that persisted for several years. On 1 June 2002, Sogn Billag took over Hallingdal Billag, operating the 30 vehicles as a subsidiary, whilst Hallingfrakt A/S acquired the freight traffic. Eventually the business was absorbed into Nettbuss becoming Nettbuss Hallingdal Billag.

Hallingdal Billag A/S, Volvo with Arna body on route to Aurland, three passengers and the driver enjoy a scenic rest stop at the Trolls Café. It is worth noting the unsealed road surface, quite common in 1985, even for a main road such as this. This road linking Aurland with what is now the A7 was opened in the early 1970s. In 1974 the bus service became a joint operation between Hallingdal Billag and Aurland Kommunale Rutebilar.

Hallingdal Billag A/S DAF MB200 with Repstads Brothers body At Gol on route to Geilo at the start of the author’s long day trip to Flåm. Geilo is the largest town in the area 69km west of Gol with a population of just under 3000. The town sits astride highway 7 and is the focal point for an array of ski activities spread over a large part of the surrounding area.  

 

Laying-over in Gol, Hallingdal Billag A/S, Volvo BB57 with Repstads Brothers body.  In 1912 Gunnar and Edvard Repstad started a blacksmiths business in Lunde, Norway with the first bus bodies leaving the smithy in 1925, and between 1933 and 1980 the company continued to expand with the exception of the war years. The business went bankrupt in 1990 having produced about 5000 buses during its existence.

Hallingdal Billag A/S. Mercedes Benz with Arna body laying-over in Gol having come from Al, a small town 26km further west along the A7 with a population of 5000. Arna Busser A/S commenced bus body production in 1947 and eventually went bankrupt in 1997, the assets being acquired by Vest Buss. 

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