View allAll Photos Tagged Axcess
P1070292
Operator: First Eastern Counties Buses Ltd
Fleet No: 65588
Registration: V588DVF
Body/Chassis: Scania L94UB Wright Axcess-Floline
Chassis No: 1835519
Seating: B40F
New: October 1999
Ex: --
Livery: First "Standard Barbie"
Date: Tuesday 26th November 2013
Location: Tower Ramparts Bus Station, Ipswich
Route: 61 (Greenwich via Landseer Rd)
And while a huge fleet of Wright electric buses are now being introduced to York as I upload this, which I'm equally as eager to see, let's wind the clock back to 1995 when another innovation, this being low-floor Wright buses, were first introduced to the York Park & Ride by what was then known as Rider York. Back then 8414 was the final one of 14 Scania-Wright Axcess Ultralows introduced to the Park & Ride following the retendering of the service to Rider York from Stephensons of Easingwold, who used... erm, dual-purpose coaches. Hardly the lap of luxury we expect in York now!
If anything, I was only a little let down by the way this was parked, not allowing me to get a full photo in good lighting of the side branding. And if the owners are viewing this, if you're looking for something for the destination display, I have a photo taken of an issue of Coach & Bus Week of a yellow vinyl reading 'To and From Grimston Bar' over the top of the display if you want it for reference? Send me a FlickrMail if you do.
Finally seen in the flesh after so long wanting to see it, very much my highlight of the trip is preserved Rider York's Park & Ride branded 8414, a 1995 Scania L113CRL Wright Axcess-Ultralow which was quickly yoinked by the FirstGroup following Rider's purchase for use with First Potteries, later becoming 60133 over there, is seen on display at the 2023 Big Bus and Truck Show. Note the luxury-looking Hella foglamp covers!
P1060401
Operator: Sanders Services
Fleet No: 312
Registration: T367JWA
Body/Chassis: Scania L94UB Wright Axcess-Floline
Chassis No: 1835007
Seating: B43F
New: May 1999
Ex: Apcoa
Livery: Sanders Services
Date: Monday 28th October 2013
Location: Norwich Bus Station
Route: 210 (North Walsham via Buxton)
First Beeline 830, V830FSC, Scania L94UB with Wright Axcess Floline B43F body at Reading Station on 13 May 2000
Less than 18 months after it opened and First Potteries has removed one of its busiest clusters of routes - those serving the Bentilee area and beyond - from Hanley's 'new' bus station, which can be seen in the background, Instead opting for them to stop just outside the stations main passenger entrance. Of course I am sure this has nothing to do with the fact that the bus station was too small in the first place.........;)
Seen about to draw forward to the new stops is one of First Potteries ageing Scania saloons, V142DND (60173), a Wright Axcess-Floline bodies Scania L94UB that is about to work the next 1A.
Photo: Sally Roberts (under my direction!)
Harrogate Coach Travel has obtained this ex Arriva Scania in an exchange deal with Ensign, Purfleet. 5480WY has gone to Ensign. The 5480WY number is being retained for further use.
S116CSG Scania L94UA-Wright Floline Axcess B40F New January 1999 First Bus Glasgow Fleet No 61017. Ex Yorkshire Rider (Fleet No 8116) & First Glasgow (Fleet No SS171)
Preserved Merseybus Wright Axcess-Ultralow bodied Scania L113CRL 5309, P 309 HEM is pictured at a rally in Birkenhead.
New to Lincolnshire Road Car, which then became Stagecoach East Midlands 28803, S803SJV is a 1999 Scania L94UB Wright Axcess-Floline B43F which has been bought by Harrogate Coach Travel Connexions Buses for use on route X1 between harrogate and Knaresborough in competition against Transdev. It is also one of two which don't have the Metro service sticker on the side.
It is seen finding a space to pick up passengers from Harrogate Station Parade, as a sister HCT vehicle had broken down in the bus station and so had blocked the entrance thereby closing the bus station.
Seen on Boar Lane Leeds is "Purple Slug" FTR - a Volvo B7LA Wright Streetcar - 19022 (YJ07LVO). Just behind is Wright bodied Scania Axcess Floline 61032 (T431GUG)
This Bramley-based Scania L113CRL/Wright Axcess Ultralow is photographed here on New Station Street in Leeds. The bus is on a 19 journey, which finishes on Farrar Lane in Ireland Wood. This bus sports First West Yorkshire's old standard livery.
Photo Reference Number: FWY_61071_01
16/08/2012 | © Michael Mills
For years Wright 'Axcess' bodied Scanias have been the staple 'big bus' in First Potteries' fleet and, it was a batch of 9 new examples that brought 'barbie 3' livery and low floor buses to North Staffordshire way back in 1998. Now though with some examples approaching their 17th birthdays their reign looks to be nearing an end as the transfer in of some marginally newer B7L's from Leicester and some brand new (yes BRAND NEW!) Wright Streetlites later in the year looks set to make a dent in their numbers - some have already succumbed to the scrapman. S350MFP (60006) which is a Scania L113CRL with Axcess-Ultralow bodywork started its life in Leicester but has been serving this area for some time now, it is seen here arriving in Hanley on a 7A.
Still the Scanias survive at Bracknell.
Along with Trident 33153 and the John Nike Scania running the 171/2 in place of Citaros, another Scania, 65602 (S102 CSG) was out too - seen here on the 171.
Bracknell bus station, Bracknell, Berkshire.
Here we have an interior shot of 61137 S101CSG at Bury Bus Station, a First Manchester Scania L94UB with Wright Axcess-Floline bodywork on the 524 service to Bolton Bus Station!
Wrightbus Axcess Floline Scania L94UB new, 9/1998, as Newport 14. Taken at Newport Transport's Depot.
The buses of Scotland - FifeFirst
This particular bus was new as Midland Bluebird 578 in October 1996. However its claim to fame for the purposes of this article is that it was then transferred to fellow Firstbus company Lowland Omnibues Limited (still numbered 578) in May 1997 for use on "FifeFirst" services.
You may struggle to recall FifeFirst. It was a short lived venture by Firstbus to extend competition with Stagecoach into Fife which barely lasted a few years despite a promising start. However it owes its very existence to Stagecoach’s decision to launch an invasion of Glasgow against Strathclyde’s Buses.
Stagecoach had made no secret to its desire to gain a foothold in Glasgow, which had some of the best bus operating territory anywhere. At deregulation in 1986, it launched Magicbus which competed with Strathclyde’s Buses and Kelvin Scottish too, although the latter was only a limited competition. Magicbus soon carved out a useful niche in Glasgow but opportunities for expansion of it were limited. It looked at purchasing Kelvin Central Buses - the merged Kelvin and Central Scottish - to expand its presence in Glasgow as part of the privatisation of the Scottish Bus Group but when it saw the books of that company at the time it passed.
A second opportunity arose when news broke about Strathclyde’s Buses being potentially sold to its management and employees. Stagecoach lobbied hard that it should be allowed to bid for the company as well and went as far as to sell Magicbus to the more secure by this stage Kelvin Central. This would remove any possible competition concerns but in the end, Strathclyde passed to the employee/management ownership. This meant Stagecoach exited Glasgow for the time being.
The purchase of Western Buses in 1994 gave Stagecoach a way back into Glasgow after these false starts.. It announced at the end of 1994 that it was setting up a Stagecoach Glasgow subsidiary to compete against Strathclyde’s Buses. This looked like a full on bus war and Strathclyde’s Buses went as far as to begin to scour the United Kingdom for vehicles to set up operations competing in Fife and Perth against existing Stagecoach companies there.
At the last moment peace broke out and Stagecoach bought a 20% stake in Strathclyde’s Buses parent company, SB Holdings. As part of that transaction some of the buses intended for the new Stagecoach Glasgow operations passed to SB Holdings, the holding company for Strathclyde’s Buses. As it turned out, the Monopolies and Mergers Commission took an interest in the purchase and instructed Stagecoach to sell it, despite Stagecoach’s protests and, ultimately, a court case which it eventually won against the Commission. In the end, the sale was rendered moot when Firstbus purchased SB Holdings and Stagecoach made a handsome profit on the sale.
Flash forward to 1997 and Stagecoach again targeted Glasgow. It set up a Stagecoach Glasgow subsidiary with its registered office at Western Buses head office of Sandgate, Ayr, and promised to invest £10 million in services and create 250 jobs with over 100 new buses to be used. Again services to Easterhouse, Castlemilk and East Kilbride were to be run but also to new places such as Cumbernauld, Milton, Pollok and Drumchapel.
First retaliated by setting up a new FifeFirst company. This was to be run by Lowland Buses, competing with Stagecoach in Fife. At the same time, SB Holdings subsidiary Kelvin Central Buses began a service in Ayrshire competing against Western Buses on its prestigious former A1 Service. First also invested heavily in its Glasgow fleets.
Although there had been many skirmishes since deregulation between two buses companies, this was probably the first case of two super bus groups competing head on. It looked like Stagecoach intended to and was going to carve out a significant part of the Glasgow bus market. At the same time, First was determined to protect some of the most lucrative bus operating territory in the United Kingdom and it was opening up new fronts against Stagecoach with rumours of expanded operations against Stagecoach in Manchester by First owned Greater Manchester Buses North and a new operation against Stagecoach in Newcastle, where First had no presence.
However, unlike in Newcastle, where the proposed First operation never happened, in June 1997, the company launched the FifeFirst brand, in order to compete with Stagecoach Fife, who had recently started competing with First's Glasgow operations. Stagecoach had begun short operations between Cumbernauld and Glasgow using its Fife Scottish operations which ran from Fife through Cumbernauld to Glasgow.
To hit back, First launched a new operation in Fife. This was with service 56 from Edinburgh to Dunfermline, Cowdenbeath and Ballingry using a combination of 12 new Wright Axcess-Ultralow bodied Scania L113s alongside examples transferred from Lowland Scottish, Midland Scottish and Rider York, all painted in an allover red livery. In addition to these were a few Plaxton Pointer bodied Dennis Dart SLFs. The service mirrored two existing Stagecoach Fife services in part with extensions across to Edinburgh where the terminus was St Andrew’s Bus Station. It was actually quite an innovative service as previously some of the communities it served had to change around Dunfermline to get to Edinburgh. So that gave them useful links and an incentive to use it.
As mentioned the buses were painted allover red, the red being the same as the new allover red being applied to First’s new Glasgow fleets. However the red was very historically accurate for the area as following the split of the huge Alexander’s Empire in the 1960s, a red and cream colour scheme was adopted for the Fife region, for the company which later evolved into Fife Scottish and continued up until it was obliterated by Stagecoach’s corporate colours upon its acquisition. The fleet name chosen was FifeFirst and was added in white. Route branding showing were the buses went was also added to the upper panels.
A sub-depot was established in Dunfermline, with SMT’s Westfield - by this stage part of Lowland - providing most of the vehicles used. It set fares broadly similar to existing Stagecoach services but its main selling point was its use of accessible vehicles whereas as Stagecoach still used step-entrance Volvo B10M-55/Alexander PS-types.
At the time there were rumours of additional services being launched in Fife and it looked as though FifeFirst may go on to be a profitable venture. However it wasn’t to be. Unlike Firsr’s Ayrshire operations which lasted well into the naughties, FifeFirst barely made the millennium. As competition was scaled back in Greater Glasgow, FifeFirst it was felt had became a bit of an outlier, with little room for expansion. Stagecoach by this stage had also introduced accessible vehicles on the competing services, negating First’s main selling point.
When First introduced its new corporate livery, it saw the First name gain more prominence with the Fife name relegated to under the driver’s window or beside the entrance. So I suppose technically it became FirstFife then maybe? None of the vehicles were repainted in First’s new livery but technically none qualified to be fair, as they didn’t have the new corporate interiors. But what eventually did for FifeFirst was the closure of St Andrew’s Bus Station in Edinburgh for redevelopment. First took that as an opportunity to cull the service and it lasted until a few days after the closure of the bus station in July 2000. The buses all went back to Midland Bluebird for use in the Falkirk area.
So ended an interesting escapade when a former Scottish Bus Group company based in the Scottish Borders, used a depot of another Scottish Bus Grpup company based in Scotland’s Capital City against another Scottish Bus Company’s services in Fife with buses in the colours of what at one stage been the municipal operator in Glasgow. Who says the Scottish Bus industry is boring?
The emergency bus NJZ 3359 is now on the 190 service to Foxholes from Malton and is seen here in Malton after a great thrash from driver Nickos
Newport Transport 13 (S113 TDW), Scania L94UB fitted with Wright Axcess Floline B46F body, new 9/98.
Number 13 on an 8A Ringland working departing Ringland Circle on 04/05/99.
Coming up to 20 years old but still going strong is ex First Leeds 60133 which is seen here surviving for a little longer with ConneXionsbuses before retiring into preservation. Used mainly as a school bus for the 636H this sees normal service use if a bus brakes down. This was new to Rider York in 1995 to operate the Park & Ride services in York until 2002 where it was transferred to somewhere in West Yorkshire before moving to Leeds where it was withdrawn by First late 2014