Sunday November 16th 2008 ~ Part Time Blog

As I previously intimated, I am now running down this blog and after tomorrow, I will only be using it to report any notable observations, for example B10 workings and any excessive late running/incidents. Don't forget whilst the blog has only been going since July, I've been doing all this for 4 years now !!
A fine afternoon saw me make a trip over to Lynn. Vancouver Avenue garage was locked up as usual but contained 20118/120 plus five white elephants in the shape of 37567/571/2/4/6. At Rowan Road were 37575 and 20351/3 along with 20105/14/19/31 and the nine Paragons. 20119 came in last night after a three month absence on the X1 route. 20500 had as reported yesterday returned from Norwich/Ipswich rail replacement work - thanks very much to Sam for this information.
On the X1, the potential for a completely B9 worked service was there, but in action were 20104/07/26 along with six Geminis, including 37564 off repairs.

Saturday 15th November 2008 ~ A Few Observations

With a friend staying today, my observations were very limited. Cheryl spotted Gemini 37570 this morning on J11 which on Saturdays begins and ends at Yarmouth/Lowestoft. The football made this turn late to tonight and it was about 28 late heading to Peterborough compared to the usual 10-15 when a coach. Y9 is the only weekday turn which begins and ends at Lowestoft and the same applies on Saturdays, today it was 37563 which may mean it at last gets a day off on Sunday. Saturday's Y9 is normally idle at Lowestoft on Sunday. 37573 was stopped for a service at Lynn today and 37564 was also undergoing repair plus servicing. Michael saw 37577 at Lowestoft depot today, it has not worked since Tuesday. 20119 was ready to work and 20117/24 were undergoing maintenance there.
Profile 20351 was failed at Thorney tonight at 17.15 after its lights failed and a fitter had to attend. Meanwhile 20352 replaced a Gemini on J10 today and somewhere along the line 37579 on K5 was replaced by 20127 which was seen on time on the 16.39 Wisbech - Yarmouth.
20141/142 & (shocks) 20500 were utilised on rail replacement work today.
Bruce saw 20111 at Walpole this morning - he couldn't decide whether it was 26 late on the 08.48 ex P'bo (K4) or 4 early on the following 09.18 (K6). In any event, this evening it was on K6 when seen running about 10 late at Terrington. Another B10 out today was 20104 on L12.

Thoughts from Bruce

Bruce has had a hatful of the X1 this week, so read on.........

Today I am going to Tesco where the trolleys are my friends and park in rows and are never late and don't have fleet numbers. The X1 does that to you.

Then I am going to the bottom of the paddocks to play with the other pixies and elves and if the big bad White Elephants come looking for us, we will hide in the dyke until they have all gone away. Even when they come in pairs, like they do sometimes.(On Saturday nights do they dance round their handbags and go to the loo in pairs as well?) The X1 does that to you.

Well I was a bit worried for Bruce after reading that, but tonight he says :
Sitting in bed in the new bedroom watching Sky last night, a strange white light kept filling the bedroom at 18 minutes past the hour each hour. Looking up the village and expecting to see Santa on his Round Table practice run, I saw a ghostly white apparition lit up like a Christmas Tree and heading towards Lynn through the mist and rain each time. No people were to be seen - a veritable Marie Celeste proceeding down the old A47! Have I found a ghost from times long ago, searching for a last passenger? Why does it always pass by at 18 minutes past the hour? Where does it go after 00.18 - does it have other roads to haunt?

Tonight I am hiding under the duvet until it passes!


Oh well Bruce, maybe 20107 will be out tomorrow and sanity will return.

G

Friday 14th November 2008 ~ It's All Over - Well Almost

Well I guess I've now acheived the object of this blog, i.e. to document the introduction of the new fleet of X1 Geminis. With a handful of B10s left to help out and all the B12s now temporarily retired, I hope we can continue to report when possible unlikely events.
So to Friday's report and today the combination of Wisbech roadworks and FST resulted in some pretty heavy delays. 20105 on L13 was on time from Wisbech at 11.31, but was 48 late returning, while the following two services avoided passing me at work presumably by taking the western end of the Wisbech bypass. Next eastbound past me was 20104 on K16 running 35 late and followed 6 minutes later by 20111 on K17. 47 minutes then elapsed before 37569 went east on K18 and a further 18 minutes before 37576 (complete with side advert) on K3 at 16.21 (only 17 late). The afternoon part of K20 had a Gemini for the first time today in the shape of 37574.
Apparently L13 19.59 Lynn - Peterborough is likely to remain a B10 working for a while as drivers seem uncertain as to whether Geminis are suitable for working the 23.00 Lynn - Hunstanton due to obstacles (trees I guess) in the Heacham region.
In addition to the nine Paragons stored at Rowan Road, 20114/127 are also out of service there as well as 20120 still dumped at Vancouver Avenue.

Thursday 13th November 2008 ~ My Bus Was On Time ! (err 30 mins late actually)

Well the advantage of running a half hourly service is that when things get behind by 30 minutes, nobody notices - except US of course ! Well we do our best, but Bruce, Rob B and myself were all caught out by this today.
Piecing together reports from Jamie R, Bruce, Rob B and John W it has been possible to work out what happened. Temporary three way traffic lights outside Wisbech Tesco were responsible for the delays from an early hour. Jamie saw 20107 nipping through Eye Village to avoid congestion on K2 08.18 ex Peterborough a few minutes after witnessing 20352 heading into the City also running late. By the time Bruce saw 20352 returning it was 25 late. John W arrived at Lynn bus station at 10.30 and saw the Profile unloading and then retiring to the middle. Unbeknown to all of us, 20107 on K2 had lost more time and Lynn had sent 20109 out to Lowestoft at 09.42 and then 20107 (now as K4) at 10.12. John says 20117 (which had in fact done K20 to Norwich and returned light) then left as K6 10.42. Meanwhile 37574 which had arrived about 10 late on L12 and which was due to depart for Peterborough at 10.29, failed with a diesel leak and 20352 then went back west in place of it. 37572 which eventually arrived on K6 about 25 late was stepped up to become Y8 11.12 to Lowestoft. The incoming Y8 itself was well late with 37571 and this set the pattern for the day.
Identifying the new buses can be a problem, as even though the numbers are quite big, when travelling at speed they can blur into the white paintwork. 37568 did K1 this morning and Bruce swore it also did J11, although other sources say this was 37567. Whatever did it, it was not seen returning from Peterborough by Bruce or myself. Identification might become a bit easier if what I saw tonight is going to be the norm. 37576 was in the process of having a large advert fitted for the new James Bond film called 'Quantum of Solace' whilst parked in Vancouver Avenue. This of course has been fitted over the route destinations as some people predicted would happen ! 576 had come off Y9 and the 17.59 to Peterborough was good old 20105.

Speaking to Bruce at lunchtime, we were mystified by the non-appearance of the 11.29 Lynn - Peterborough. The 10.59 (L13) with 37569 was only 9 late and K15 11.59 was only 6 late with 37573. That was until we realised that 573 was actually Y14 running 36 late ! As a result 37563 on the 11.59 was (we think, unless you know different) held at Lynn until its afternoon departure to Lowestoft. There were 10 consecutive Gemini worked turns commencing with the 10.59 Lynn - P'bo, broken by 20109 on K2 15.59. Timekeeping thanks to the Tesco roadworks was a mess, with 37570 on K3 13.59 Lynn - Peterborough being 7 late on the outward and 32 late returning, following this we had 37579 on K5 which saw its 4 minutes late increase to 28 by the time it left for Yarmouth at 17.07.
The mystery of 20500's disappearance yesterday remains just that after it reappeared at Rowan Road today. B10 20121 which came in on Y21 last night did K19, the X2 turn throughout today.
Our Yarmouth correspondent says that 20123 has now arrived from Lowestoft for MOT and 20111 was there last night also. Apparently all three overnighting Geminis had arrived at the depot with yellow 'low fuel' lights flashing.
B9s not seen in service today were 37566 (collision), 37564 (o/s at Rowan Road) and 37577, with the remaining 14 in traffic.

Wednesday 12th November 2008 ~ White Elephant Charge

Today the Gemini B9s took over in full force. Profile 20352 was unusually provided for the K15 05.42 Lynn - Lowestoft and K19 & K20 (the X2 and Norwich commuter return empty turns) had 20126 and 20114. Apart from these the first non Gemini eastbound service was at 12.42 with 20105 on J11.
37575/6 completed the B9s into service today, but 37566/69/77 were not seen through Lynn. J11 with 20105 had been seen by Bruce on time at Eye heading west, but A47 shenanighans made it exactly 30 late returning. The novelty of thirteen consecutive Geminis heading from Lynn to the coast was then broken big time with a succession of old faithfuls, these being 20105 (J11), 20118 -17 on L12, 20103 -5 on L13 and 20104 -18 on Y14. Bruce was out filming these at lunchtime.
At this stage it looks like the entire fleet of B12s were idle today, 20501/4 having joined the others at Rowan Road but this evening 20500 was absent, so it has either left for First Essex or been required as a last minute X1 substitute. White Elephant 37564 was taken out of service today at some point, so it is just possible that 20500 replaced it.
Speaking of the B9s, there was a farce this afternoon when Bruce viewed K1 and K2 following each other, the former 30 late of course. 'There wasn't a cars width between them' says Bruce and I can confirm this, as on leaving Wisbech at 16.31 they arrived outside my window at the traffic lights in the mating position ! 37578/6 were the buses involved and both were carrying passengers. Earlier this morning Bruce (who had a busy day) saw 37571 on K4 running late at the eastern end of Thorney bypass and then 37575 following at the western end. 37578 has had its destination display changed to a different 'fatter' font and others have been noted elsewhere like this.
20107/114 were out on the Hunstanton route today in addition to 20126/131 on schools runs.

Tuesday 11th November 2008 ~ 13 Years Of Progress ?

20504 leaving Wisbech as the 12.01 to Peterborough today.

Firstly an apology to Sam & Co. for missing out of yesterday's blog the big news that 37568 managed to break new ground for the B9s by working the afternoon leg of K19 Lowestoft to Norwich via Beccles. This had started with 20104 but swaps at Lowestoft caused by the late running of K6 saw 20104 replace a Gemini on this and the decker off K1 (568) went on to the X2 turn.

Today 37571 was seen for the first time since attention at Volvo. It was at Lynn tonight alongside 37575/6 which are still awaiting paperwork. As 37566 was not seen today, it is assumed to be undergoing collision repairs. 37578/9 were new on the road today and the Gemini quotia in X1 service was noted as 12 with only 37569 of those available not being seen. Bodywork on the new B9s seems to be poor with 37577 having window leaks and 37563 same on the lower deck floor in addition to those previously mentioned.

20501 had a traumatic time last night as you may have seen from the message left by Des, failing on the Acle straight with a recurrence of its air loss problem. It had to be towed into Caister Road, but had nevertheless been repaired by today and was on Y21 tonight seen arriving at Lynn at 20.20. 20500 was certainly moved today and was seen by Jamie V in the bus station at King's Lynn at teatime, it may have helped on schools. The other Paragon still available for X1 duty is 20504 and this did Y14 today. Time will tell whether its outing to Peterborough tonight on the 20.59 ex Lynn is the final visit by a B12 to that location. Of the stored B12s 20506/8 are delicensed and 20502/9 unfit for service. They were joined by 20127 today which has a door fault. 20353 was in trouble again early this evening with power loss and was also at Rowan Road when Jamie V and myself paid a visit tonight.

John W saw 37573 on Y9 08.59 to P'bo being swapped for 20118, a mere 13 years its senior this morning at Lynn while 20105 was out on Hunstanton services all day. Other B10s out today were 20103/4/7/9/14/17/26. Strangely 20126 on K5 which ends up at Lowestoft was swapped during the day for 20109 and 126 did Hunstanton schools this afternoon.

Grahame B reports 20119 back on the road at Yarmouth today where it was being used on the 1s. It was last in X1 use on August 2nd !! He also saw 20111 on the Gorleston - Norwich shuttles.

Monday 10th November 2008 ~ Paragons - The Last Rites

Seen between two of their replacements are 20502/6/8/9. Will we see their like again on the X1 ?

20507/500/503 line up at Rowan Road tonight having been retired from the X1

The day began with the rather sad withdrawal from service of two excellent buses, 20502 & 20503. This being facilitated by the quick entry into service of 37570 (K18), 37572 (K4), 37574 (K2) and 37577 (K6). In addition to which this evening, 37578/9 were both new arrivals at Vancouver Avenue along with untaxed 37575/6 at Rowan Road. The latter complete the delivery of the X1 batch, but 37571 is still under repair at Volvo and 37566 had disappeared from Rowan Road tonight - either a hurried entry into service this afternoon or away having its bumper etc repaired.

On the B12 Paragon front, only 20501/04 remain in active service - the latter did K5 today while 20501 remained at Lowestoft. The only other B12 not in store at Rowan Road is 20505 which is still under repair at Volvo, believed to be a compressor failure.

If 20501/4 return west tomorrow, it would seem likely that they will be retired after that, so have your cameras ready for a final fling on Tuesday !

37577's entry into service today was a bit of an embarassment when it left Wisbech 30 late on the 08.31 to Peterborough being shadowed 5 minutes behind by 20117 on Y8. It is not known how it lost so much time but it is doubtful that the B9 was at fault. Other B9s were keeping time quite well today, notably 37573 on K16 and this evening 37563 on K15. There were eleven B9s seen in service today and if 37566 (see above) worked too that would make the figure 12.

As usual the trusty B10s were keeping their part of the bargain with 20103/4/5/7/11/14/17/26/27 all noted on the X1 today. The Hunstanton schools turns were covered by 20118/131 and 65532, while 20109 was on mainstream Hunstanton services. 20126 on Y14 was 28 late returning from Peterborough on the 12.48 to Lowestoft, but had regained all its lost time by this evening. Services were delayed between Wisbech and Peterborough today and average lateness going west was 10 minutes but double this returning east.

Sunday 9th November 2008 ~ White Elephants

20500/07 line up alongside four of their successors during a monsoon tonight !

Not surprisingly the B9 Geminis have acquired a few nicknames from enthusiasts. White Elephants or Phantoms are two of the more repeatable examples. Reports from other parts of the country don't give cause for much optimism with oil and water leaks commonplace and frequent top ups of adblu necessary. Some examples elsewhere have had fans disintegrate and Volvo have been called in to perform warranty work. 37563 has now been out every day since it began work on the X1 on October 23rd.

There was a welcome reappearance of B10 20127 today after 12 days absence. 20104, 20501/4 were other coaches out. Thanks very much to Bruce for his observations today while I was away in Bradford.

Saturday 8th November 2008 ~ A Grand Night Out

Most unusual event today was this evening when a local social club hired out 20501 for an excursion. It was being cleaned thoroughly at Vancouver Avenue this afternoon in preparation and had 'Private Hire' on the destination indicators. May be the hirers had heard it will be on its way shortly and wanted a last run for old times sake lol.

I didn't see all the X1 turns today so what came out of Lowestoft and Yarmouth this morning is not completely clear. 20506 certainly did but was removed at Lynn on its way back to Lowestoft and placed into storage at Rowan Road prior to reallocation. 20107 looks to have replaced it. This afternoon I encountered 37563 running 29 late on K7 (14.59 Lynn - Peterborough) and this was followed about 2 minutes behind by 20103 on K1.
Geminis 37570/2/4/7 were all at Rowan Road today and should be in service on Monday when a further 4 are scheduled to arrive. Registrations of those at the compound are AU58 ECT/ECW/ECY and EDF.
Lynn sent out the following this morning on the X1 : 37563/8/9/73, 20502/04 , 20103/04/17 and 20351/352.

Friday 7th November 2008 ~ An Old Fashioned Friday

Yes just like old times today, very few swaps and a dose of FST (Friday Standard Time) to make us feel at home.
Firstly though, news of more new arrivals at King's Lynn. The Gemini population increased today with 37570/72/74/77 all present this evening. Bruce had viewed two of them early this afternoon and he also noted 37566 undergoing inspection at Rowan Road prior to collision damage being repaired. No sign of the return of 37571 from Volvo as yet and Graham B reported 37573 at Caister Road garage in Yarmouth for much of the day. King's Lynn carried out the first scheduled service on 37563 yesterday. There was a bit of a rumpus two nights ago when the advertising chaps arrived at Lynn and were about to decorate a couple of Geminis when it was pointed out that this would obscure the route branding ! Something which might come in handy when the deckers move on.
Two of the 'stored' Paragons were called upon this evening as Lynn were short to cover Hunstanton schools after 20141/42 had gone away for rail replacement duty, 20500/08 were used this afternoon along with regular 20131.
On the X1, 20126 returned to Yarmouth last night and today 20117 came out instead (Y14). K5 began today with 20111, but this was changed at Lowestoft for 20121 which has been absent from the route since 22nd October and was not expected to return to traffic prior to moving to Edinburgh. 121 was 29 late at Wisbech this afternoon (due to depart for Peterborough at 15.01). Other Premieres appearing today were 20103 (K19 X2 diagram), 20104 (J10), 20105 (K20b), 20107 (Y8), 20109 (K20a) and 20118 (K6). in addition 20127 was allocated to Y21 17.25 ex Lowestoft, but 37573 seemed a more obvious choice.
20353 was undergoing repairs to a wiring fault in Vancouver Avenue tonight. One thing I failed to mention yesterday was 20111 putting in an excellent days work on L13. On time from Wisbech at 11.31 to Peterborough, 4 minutes early (yes really !) past Bruce returning to Lowestoft and dead on time departing on the 19.59 Lynn - Peterborough. I also have info regarding 20104 which is too sensitive even to divulge here, suffice to say that it has not been late this week !!

Thursday 6th November 2008 ~ Movements Imminent

The first B12 Paragons to move to pastures new would seem to be 20500/07/08/09 as all were marked 'not to be used ' this evening and were residing at Rowan Road. 20500 finished X1 work at Lynn last night as the 23.37 arrival from Peterborough, 20507 returned from Norwich today (34903 believed to have gone the other way), 20508 did K4 07.29 Lynn - Peterborough and 08.48 Peterborough - Lowestoft as far as Lynn today where John W viewed it in the bus station centre, to use John's own words 'looking forlorn'. 37567 replaced it. 20509 last worked on Monday morning. If as looks likely these are the final workings of the four at FEC, they will owe 'First' very little.
20141/142 are due to be used for rail replacement work this weekend (Chelmsford ?).
Meanwhile the three expected Geminis + repaired 37571's move back to Lynn were postponed for a day. The disruption to booked turns is partly because some drivers don't have digital tacho cards yet and this can cause unscheduled swaps. B7 20353 was out of service today with an electrical fault, while 20141 was being repaired at Vancouver Avenue.
Once again the X1 service was in disarray at lunchtime. Successive westbound departures from Wisbech went thus : L13 11.29 20111 right time, Y14 12.01 20502 -6, K15 12.31 20504 -15, K16 13.01 20352 -30 ! The 'late' lady driver was in charge of 20352 and made efforts to regain some time, being 21 late past Bruce on its return.
The undoubted 'highlight' of the day, if indeed it can be called that was the use of Scania 65527 on the 12.59 Lynn - Peterborough (K17). Quite incredible with the amount of coaches at Lynn, but with 20500/7/8/9 sidelined and 20107/31/42 earmarked for later schools turns, resources were stretched. Whether 20352 on K17 was running very late or had a fault is unknown, but it appears to have been Ok to relieve 65527 at 15.42. At the other end of the scale, today seemed to pass without a Gemini debacle. K6 departing 13 late from Lynn to the coast with 37565 as witnessed by John seemed about the worst timekeeper.
B12s in service today were 20501 (on K19 X2 turn - how the mighty are fallen !), 20502/3/4/6 and B10s 20103/104/105/107 (did 16.59 Lynn - P'bo etc after schools), 109/111/126. The seven serviceable Geminis were again all in traffic.

Wednesday 5th November 2008 ~ Buses Buses Everywhere !

King's Lynn has become a bus spotters paradise lately with loans, wiithdrawn and blown up vehicles, those awaiting transfer to new homes and brand new Geminis all adding to the interest. One problem now however, is that space constraints are becoming an issue. Last night Rowan Road lock up was almost full as well as the garage at Vancouver Avenue. This is likely to worsen tomorow as three more new B9 Deckers plus 37571 off adblu repairs at Volvo are all due to arrive, while also expected back is Paragon 20507 which is due to be exchanged for Norwich Olympian 34903 which has been at Lynn since the weekend.

Paragon 20509 is now officially classified as out of service and 20508 may also be the same. A backlog of repairs has meant 20141 is still dead at Rowan Road, but better news for fans of 20126 (of which I know there are several !) as it has now had brake repairs completed and was out on Hunstantons late today. 20106 is having its scheduled service at Rowntree Way this week to relieve some of the pressure at Lynn. 20505 which was last seen on the X1 on 28th is at Volvo for repairs at the moment.

I was kindly given the opportunity to compare the seating comfort between an Olympian Royale (W reg) on loan from Lowestoft and a brand new Gemini tonight and there is simply no contest. The older vehicle wins hands down and has become a favourite with the Lynn drivers thanks to its handling too.
Well what about the X1 today ? Timekeeping was pretty good with a couple of notable exceptions. K6 07.59 Lynn - Peterborough was seen leaving Wisbech at 08.50 (19 late) this morning partly due to very heavy traffic at this location. 37567 was the vehicle. John W later noted it leaving Lynn about 30 mins late and it was stepped down at Lowestoft to become Y8. By the time it had arrived back at Lynn this evening it had already amassed 7489km on the clock since its entry into service on 23/10. John also witnessed Y8 arriving with 20111 and this being replaced by 37569 for the 11.12 to Lowestoft. Again there were numerous swaps today.
I had an emergency trip to Lynn this morning on business and on my return found myself heading west from Lynn to Wisbech on the A47 bypass and catching up none other than Gemini 37563 on J11 10.29 Lynn - Peterborough running approx 28 late and thus avoiding Tilney, Terrington and Walpole in an effort to make up some time. As we have mentioned before, at the moment scarcely a day goes by without a Gemini having to do this - it was a rarity during full coach operation. I did take the opportunity of following it for about a mile and can confirm that with a clear road it was doing a solid 56mph. For the poor passengers waiting at the villages they at least had the luxury of the following service (L12) being on time with 37573. Better than last evening when the 20.18 Peterborough - Lowestoft (K20) failed to run over the western section leaving passengers stranded in the fog. The bus off Y21 (20118) looks to have gone forward on K20 at 21.42. Tonight's Y21 - the one journey trip turn as 17.25 Lowestoft - Lynn had 20506 which had gone over earlier on K18 06.57 Lynn - Lowestoft.

Tuesday 4th November 2008 ~ Transition Stalemate

Nice atmospheric picture of 37568 & 37564 by Jamie Vendie

After the influx of Geminis, things seem to have stalled somewhat and further new deliveries have not occurred as yet. Today the timetable ran well for the most part and First seem to be carrying out just as many swaps, but with less time lost. Something odd was happening at Lynn this morning, K2 08.18 ex Peterborough viewed by Rob Brooks was 37567, but this was replaced at Lynn by 20105. 37567 then returned to Peterborough on L12 07.15 ex Lowestoft instead of 20351. Meanwhile the service in front of this (J11 with 37564) was delayed with the result that at 11.07 37564 was seen leaving Wisbech Horsefair 36 late on J11 followed by 37567 one minute behind on L12. It seems very unlikely that 37567 ran through to P'bo as it was then seen at Walsoken 2 minutes late at 12.15 heading back to Lowestoft as J11. Are you with me thus far ?? The L12 turn had a strange day as 37564, which having swapped turns with 37567 was now on it only worked back to Lynn where its original vehicle Profile 20351 went forward. This wasn't the end of 564's day though as it was then called upon to replace 20501 on L13 12.18 ex Peterborough, the Gemini itself being replaced by 20504 later to work the 19.59 to Peterborough. There were many other changes of diagram today and one of note was Gemini 37568 arriving at Lynn from Lowestoft at 16.54 on K6 and then being sent back east as K5 at 17.12 instead of 20117 which did the opposite and returned to Peterborough on Y8 17.29 replacing 20107.

There was excitement in Beccles today when for the first time a B7 Profile appeared on the X2, it was 20352 on the second part of K19. This had begun with 20104 which was diverted onto an X1 (K17). The other vehicle involved in a sort of triangular swap was Gemini 37565. 20114 also put in an appearance on the X2 today and according to Michael, this was the first day he had noted where no old Olympians appeared on the service.

20126 spent its second day under repair at Vancouver Avenue, while the return to service of 20353 meant there was a surplus of coaches and 20508/9 were idle at Rowan Road with 37566 (accident damage) and 20141 (water leak/brakes).

Monday 3rd November 2008 ~ A Case of Comfort

Pat travelled to Peterborough on J11 with 37573 on Saturday. She thought the seats upstairs gave little room and noted that the headrests were uncomfortable. She and her husband decided to come back on K3 with 37564, but this was seen going to the rail station, but not returning and instead everyone had to wait for 20503 on K5 which impressed Pat with its riding qualities and additional room.
Today was the best day for timekeeping since the introduction of the new buses. The daytime service was punctual with the exception of 37568 on Y8 09.48 ex Peterborough which passed Bruce 18 late. The delays didn't kick in until later when K7 17.09 Wisbech - Lowestoft with 20506 was 17 late departing and 20107 was 15 late on K6 17.31 Wisbech - Peterborough. Once again a Profile was involved in an unusual swap. 20351 on K17 14.18 Peterborough - Lowestoft came off at Lynn at 15.37 and then returned west again with K2 15.59 to Peterborough. K17 went forward with 37565, this had done K16 until 15.07 but was replaced then by 20114 which was presumably requested by Lowestoft. The evening peak then saw numerous swaps involving late running Geminis. Earlier in the day 20508 on J11 had been replaced by 20353 at 12.42 to Lowestoft, its first journey out since its collision. 20111 on L13 came off at 19.54 and the 19.59 to Peterborough was 20117 off L12. 20105/09/31 were the schools turns today, but 20109 later took over Y9 17.59 to Peterborough from 37573.
Not only did 37566 receive collision damage after it ran into a car in Peterborough on Friday, yet another Gemini (so far unidentified) had a minor argument with a car at the same location yesterday. 37565 as previously reported has a bodywork leak and now 37569 has water leaking into the drivers cab from the windscreen, so construction leaves something to be desired.

Sunday 2nd November 2008 ~ Paragon Swansong

Surely there wont be many more Sundays left where five B12s are used ? I had expected 20508/9 to remain at Rowan Road until they leave for Glasgow, but today 20508 was in X1 service, although when seen at Walpole Highway as the 17.17 to Peterborough it had its old problem and had 'Great Yarmouth' showing in its destination box. 20500/03/06/09 were also out. Geminis used today were 37563 (19 late on the 18.17 to Peterborough), 37564 seen at Wisbech running 10 late as the 16.09 to Lowestoft and 37565 on time as the 17.09 eastbound. Sole Premiere in use was 20118 seen bang on time both at lunchtime and this evening.
Noted tonight at Rowan Road were 20109/114/126/131/141, 20351/2/3, 20501/2/4, 37566 and at Vancouver Avenue 20103/05/20, 37567/9.
20353 has returned from collision repairs at Yarmouth and the repaint job is quite noticeable.

Saturday 1st November 2008 ~ Profiles misplaced

After yesterday's chaos, 20351 and 20352 both ended up at Yarmouth, so today they worked Y8 and Y9. The latter was removed from this at Lynn after coming in from Peterborough at 11.37 and switched to K15 11.59 back westbound, while 20111 looks to have taken Y9 forward at 11.42 to Lowestoft. Normally the B7s are rested on Saturday and this move meant that 20352 ended up at Lynn this evening. K15 had started with Gemini 37568 and this then took K16 at 12.29 to P'bo while 20501 off K16 replaced 37567 on K17 which had an electrical fault and retired for the day. Other Geminis in trouble include 37566 which had collision damage sustained on K1 last night and needs attention to the front passenger side, while 37565 is letting in water on the lower deck so Wrights have been informed.
37568/573 ended up at Lowestoft tonight. Premieres on frontline duty today were 20103/5/7/9/42. Bruce had an excellent day observing and the worst delay was to 20352 on its second trip of the day to Peterborough on K15.

Friday 31st October 2008 ~ All Hallows Whatdunit ?

Almost every diagram swapped vehicle today at some point either at Lynn or Lowestoft. The continuing delays due to traffic congestion and the Gemini speed factor made a mockery of the timetable. The usual story of a Gemini being tailed by a coach came from Bruce today who saw L13 12.18 ex Peterborough passing Walpole Highway 33 late with an unidentified B9 (believed to be 37573) and followed closely by 20142 on Y14. The latter was a chuck out from Lynn as Y14 coming in either had a problem or was very late. K4 began today with 37567 but this had already lost 8 minutes before departing Wisbech for the coast at 09.39 (actual 09,47) and this evening was in Lynn garage while K4 had 'become' 37565 seen 20 late at Walsoken at 17.13 and 31 late on arrival back at Lynn (due 19.07). The Gemini which worked the 17.09 Wisbech - Lowestoft seems to have arrived empty from Lynn. 37568 on K1 07.48 P'bo - Lowestoft was swapped at Lowestoft for 37566 off K3 and this was only 9 late on the 16.01 Wisbech - Peterborough, however, it was later seen at Rowan Road compound when it should have been en route to Lowestoft on the 18.12 from Lynn.
The two B7 Profiles in service will both be at Lowestoft/Yarmouth tonight after working K2 and K20. 20114 which began the day on K5 was also at Rowan Road, 20103 having replaced it and 20502 came into Vancouver Avenue with 42 Fairstead Estate & Bus station on the front - the first time I have ever seen a Paragon with the correct service number and destination for this town route. 20501 returned today and took over K15 at Lowestoft after 37563 had lost time on the inward, this then appeared on K17. 20126 did K19, the X2 turn, for the second consecutive day.
Peter reported seeing his first Gemini today, 37568 on K1 (see above) while Neville (tongue in cheek) reported 20102 on the X22 07.45 Colchester - Stansted (buy a road map Nev !). I wonder if 20500/01 will end up on this route ? At the moment it is hard to see how the X1 could cope without the stalwart B10s and B12s.
20141 was back at Lynn tonight with a water leak and brake defect, but no sign of 20507. 20508 had moved into Vancouver Avenue for body repairs and 20509 had moved around the compound at Rowan Road.

Thursday 30th October 2008 ~ Half Way There

20502 and four B10s line up at Rowan Road on 29th October

Today saw the release to traffic of 37565 which arrived at King's Lynn tonight on Y21 17.25 from Lowestoft. This was rather surprising as Jamie V had seen 20501 on X1 shuttles and I had expected this to be Y21. For the first time, all seven Lowestoft allocated Geminis were in service (37563-569), plus King's Lynn's 37573. Five of these had arrived at Lynn by 20.30 and of these 37564 had come in on L13 with a broken side window caused by vandals throwing a rock (retrieved by depot staff) and which could have been serious. 20114 off J11 worked forward to Peterborough at 19.59. 37568 had come in on L12 with a cracked windscreen and arrangements for repair were being made, so a pretty hectic night. 37569 was involved in a late running episode on K16, due off Peterborough at 13.48, it was about 30 late departing with a full load. 37563 worked K15 for the second consecutive day and was 10 late this evening on the last Lynn - Peterborough.

20508/9 were again inactive at Lynn compound and it looks like they've finished working for FEC. 20505 went over to Lowestoft on Tuesday night but has not reappeared. 20117 was 3 early at Walton Highway on K1 07.48 Peterborough - Lowestoft and was seen later on the return working running 15 late at Wisbech at just after 16.15. 20105 had a strange day, it was seen on time on J10 06.40 Gorleston - Peterborough at Wisbech having come on at Lynn after 37567 failed and later was seen 28 late on K4 13.25 ex Lowestoft, again having come on at Lynn after late running. John W saw 37567 looking rather forlorn in the centre of Lynn bus station, but it later resumed work on J10 at 12.12.

Wednesday 29th October 2008 ~ Stop The Bus I Want To Get Off (and catch the coach behind !)

A sort of cat and mouse game seems to be happening where a Gemini (the mouse) heads off to Peterborough with a B10 or B12 (the cat) in hot pursuit. The Gemini then manages to escape by returning via the Wisbech bypass and leaves the cat behind ! There are variations on this game of course, the most common one being when the Gemini avoids Wisbech on the westbound trip.

Today was 37569's first in traffic. It was rostered for K3 ( 06.54 Wisbech - Lowestoft; 10.55 Lowestoft - Peterborough & 15.18 return and 20.58 Lowestoft - Lynn). The event was not a success and 569 was seen leaving Wisbech westbound 34 late on the 10.55, with 20500 on K5 just three minutes behind. 37566 restarted its X1 career today on K1 06.29 King's Lynn - Peterborough; 07.48 Peterborough - Lowestoft & 12.25 return, but by the time it reached Lynn on the latter it was running sufficiently late to become K2 and was noted departing Wisbech just 6 minutes late - that's being kind and ignoring the 30 minutes lost before Lynn !
37568 began on K4, but by teatime this was being worked by 20103. 37573 began from Yarmouth on the 06.32 (Y9) to Peterborough and had only lost 3 minutes by Wisbech indicating that it has probably been modified speedwise. Two other successes today were 37563 which was used on the longest turn K15. This begins as the 05.42 Lynn - Lowestoft. It was seen on time as the 13.18 ex Peterborough and this evening was just 6 late on the 18.58 Lowestoft - P'bo. 37564 was also on time on K18 14.48 ex Peterborough, but somewhere earlier it had swapped places with 20104. The B10 had begun the day on K18 and the Gemini on K17. Most likely explanation is that 104 caught up the decker and overtook it. Even our top man Wayne admitted today was a shambles due to the time lost by the unmodified Geminis.
20352 which due to yesterday's swaps had ended up at Yarmouth overnight, did the whole of Y8 today and was in Wisbech bus station at 19.31 this evening (due 19,35) on its way back to Lynn. Once again 20351 remained at Rowan Road as did Paragons 20502/8/9, a sure sign of impending departure. 20141 & 20507 which were last reported on rail replacement duty have still not returned to Lynn.
Coaches on X1 duty today were 20352, 20500/01/03/04/06 and 20103/04/05/07/09/11/14/17/18/26. Meanwhile 20131 & 20142 were out on Lynn local turns to Hunstanton.