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| Queens Terrace outside the former Fleetwood Railway Station was the terminus for Ribble and Blackpool bus routes for many years. Four basic Ribble routes ran from here - in post war era these departed in pairs with an F1 (Holmfield Road) and F2 (Eden Avenue) leaving in tandem then 15 minutes later an F3 (Eden Avenue) and F4 (Golf Club) departed. Here different eras of single deckers with a high floor Leopard 507 alongside early National 381 await departure - oddly both showing F3! (Mike Rhodes) |
The Lawrence Network
In 1931 Ribble took over the Lawrence Motor Services operation and this brought the following network, numbered initially as:
- 178 Fleetwood Pharos Street to Cemetery via Mount Road, Carr Road, Warren Avenue North, Shakespeare Road every 12/15 minutes
- 179 Fleetwood Pharos Street to Cemetery via Ash St, Poulton Road, Carr Road,Promenade, Fleetwood Road every 30 minutes
- 180/180A Fleetwood Pharos Street to Poulton Square via Broadwater, Gardners Arms (180) or Trunnah (180A), Four Lane Ends and Castle Gardens every 30 minutes (hourly 180 or 180A)
- 181 Cleveleys Beach to Poulton Square via Four Lane Ends, Thornton Station, Little Thornton (Silcock's Corner) every 30 minutes
- 182 Cleveleys Beach to Thornton Station via Victoria Road every 15 minutes with one per hour to Stanah
- 183 Cleveleys Beach to Thornton Station via West Drive and Trunnah Road every 30 minutes
- 184 Fleetwood Queens Terrace to Laidley's Walk via Esplanade every 15 minutes
- F1 Summer only Fleetwood Queens Terrace to Queens Hotel via seafront up to every 10 minutes (former 184)
- F2 Fleetwood Pharos Street to Cemetery via London Street (former 178)
- F3 Fleetwood Pharos Street to Shakespeare Road/Dronsfield Road via London Street
- F4 Fleetwood Pharos Street to Cemetery via Ash Street/Elm Street (former 179)
- F5 Fleetwood Pharos Street to Shakespeare Road/Dronsfield Road via Ash Street/Elm Street every 30 minutes
Ribble also provided a typical 7/8 minute service between Cleveleys and Thornton, mostly via Victoria Road but with two per hour via West Drive. This was made up of:
- F8 Cleveleys to Thornton via West Drive
- F9 Cleveleys to Poulton via Little Thornton
- F10 Cleveleys to Thornton Four Lane Ends
- F11 Cleveleys to Thornton Station
- F12 Cleveleys to Stanah
- F13/F14 shorts Thornton to Stanah
- F15 Cleveleys to Thornton via Church Road and Woodlands Avenue
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| Leopard 531 approaches the Golf Club terminus of service F4 on Rossall Grange Lane (Ian Clark) |
- F6 Fleetwood to Thornton Four Lane Ends via West Drive and Gardners Arms
- F7 Fleetwood to Thornton Four Lane Ends via West Drive and Trunnah
- F16 Fleetwood to Cleveleys via The Mount, Queens Hotel, Rossall Square every 30 minutes
- F1 Homestead Drive via Lord St, Elm St, Poulton Road, Highbury Aveune, Hatfield Avenue, Heathfield Road, Holmstead Drive (returns via Whinfield Avenue) - 30 mins - no ESu (15 mins with F3)
- F2 Eden Avenue via Lord St, London St, Mount Road, The Esplande, Dronsfield Road, Shakespeare Road, Beach Road, Chatsworth Avenue to terminate at Eden Avenue 30 mins - hourly E/Su (combines with F4 on common sections and F3 at Eden Avenue)
- F3 Eden Avenue via F1 to Hatfield Avenue then Chatsworth Avenue to terminate at Eden Avenue 30 mins daily (makes 15 with F1 to Hatfield)
- F4 Golf Club via Lord St, Elm St, Poulton Road, Carr Road, Warren Avenue North, Agnew Road,Shakespeare Road, Beach Road, Rossall Grange Lane to Golf Club 30 mins - hourly E/Su (combines with F2 on common sections)
- F5 Fleetwood Road Camp Summer via Esplanade, Laidleys Walk, Fleetwood Road
The Cleveleys network was simplified. The F9 (Cleveleys to Poulton) continued initially In the early 1960s Ribble linked various local services together and the F9 was incorporated into service 180 (Great Eccleston to Preston) which now extended to run hourly Cleveleys to Wigan! Route 92 had also emerged making a second hourly Cleveleys to Poulton service but continuing onto Blackpool.
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| RE 236 stands at Cleveleys Bus Station bound for Thornton on the F15 (Ian Clark) |
By the late 1960s the following Cleveleys/Thornton network had emerged:
- F6/F16 Cleveleys-Norcross F6 via Four Lane Ends and direct, F16 via Thornton Station and Beechwood Drive. Peak hours/lunchtimes to serve DHSS
- F7 Cleveleys to Burn Naze via Cumberland Avenue, West Drive, Heys St, Butt Lane. Hourly (no E/Su). 1x F17 via North Drive, 1x F19 out via Church Road and back as F18 via West Drive
- F8 Cleveleys to Thornton Station via Cumberland Avenue, West Drive, Trunnah Road to Thornton Station. (F9 on Sunday via Gardeners Arms/Woodlands Road) hourly all day (F9 on Sundays)
- F12 Cleveleys to Stanah via Victoria Road, Four Lane Ends, Railway Station, Stanah Road hourly all day, daily
- F15 Cleveleys to Thornton Station via Church Road 2/hour hourly eves, no Sunday service
- F80 Cleveleys circular via Victoria Road, North Drive, Northumberland avenue, Cumberland Avenue, North Drive, Victoria Road every hour - not Sundays
- 196 Queens Terrace via Lord St, Elm Street,Poulton Road, Beach Road, Chatsworth Avenue, Duddon Ave, Middleton Avenue, Northway, Larkholme Parade, Southway, The Strand, Broadway, Westbourne Road, Green Drive, Thornton Gate, Rossall Road to Cleveleys Bus Station (186 via Broadway)
- 162/4 Fleetwood via Lord St, Elm St, Poulton Road, Fleetwood Road, Trunnah Road, Woodlands Road, Fleetwood Road, Castle Gardens, Poulton then to Preston via Elswick and Kirkham (162 via Garstang Road, 164 via Mains Lane) hourly combined - eves 162 only to Poulton
- 163 as above Fleetwood-Poulton but direct via Thornton Gardeners Arms. Daytimes continues from Poulton to Blackpool.
During the 1970s the F8/F15 were combined into new Cleveleys to Thornton circulars F10/F11 with the F10 out via Victoria Road and back via West Drive and Cumberland Avenue with the F11 the opposite.
1980s Network Review
Around 1980 Ribble recast the network into a new 9x series into which the long established 92 (Cleveleys-Blackpool) now fitted
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| Leyland National 410 in NBC all-over red livery at Queens Terrace terminus of Fleetwood Circular 98 (Brian Pritchard) |
- 91 Cleveleys-Stanah (ex F12) via Victoria Road, Meadows Avenue, Church Road, Fleetwood Road, Victoria Road, Stanah Road, River Road.
- 92 (Blackpool Depot) Cleveleys-Blackpool via Victoria Road, Meadows Avenue, Church Road, Fleetwood Road, Victoria Road, School Road, Tarn Road, Little Thornton, Breck Road, Poulton, Blackpool Old Road, Layton Blackpool
- 93 Cleveleys-Burn Naze (ex F7) via Rossall Road, Cumberland Avenue, Cleveleys Avenue, Northumberland Avenue, Central Avenue North, West Drive, Fleetwood Road North, Heys Street, Butt Lane to Burn Naze.
- 94 Cleveleys-Thornton via Rossall Road, Cumberland Avenue, West Drive, Fleetwood Road North, Trunnah Road, Lawson Road, Alexandra Road, Belvedere Road, Beechwood Drive, returning via Fleetwood Road South, Victoria Road, Lawson Road and reverse
- 95 Cleveleys-Thornton via Victoria Road, West Drive, Fleetwood Road North, Trunnah Road, Lawson Road, Victoria Road, Fleetwood Road South, Beachwood Drive returning via Belvedere Road, Alexandra Road, Lawson Road and reverse
- 97/98 Fleetwood Circulars (replacing F1-F4) 97 via Lord Street then via London St, Mount Road, The Esplanade, Dronsfield Road, Shakespeare Road, Beach Road, Rossall Grange Lane, Princess Way, Chatsworth Avenue, Hatfield Road, Highbury Road, Poulton Road, Ash Street, Lord Street. Every 30 minutes 98 via reverse every 30 minutes - 97A/98A variants later followed serving Elm St/Poulton Road, Carr Road and Warren Avenue North from Lord Street to Shakespeare Road
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| Ribble route map as at 1984 - also showing Blackpool route 14 and the tramway |
At the same time the trunk The 162-164 group was withdrawn and replaced by:
- 180/2 extended from Great Eccleston to Fleetwood via Castle Gardens, Fleetwood Road, Woodlands Road, Trunnah Road, Fleetwood Road, Poulton Road, Lord Street every hour (replacing 162/4 Poulton-Fleetwood)
- 183 new Blackpool to Fleetwood service replacing 163 - same route as 180/2 from Poulton except omitting Trunnah Road/Woodlands Road
- 193 extended Wesham to Blackpool via Poulton every 2 hours replacing 162/4 Poulton to Kirkham and part of 87-89 between Elswick and Blackpool
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| Bus links between Cleveleys and Fleetwood were the subject of much dispute in the 1930s when Blackpool Corporation applied for a license to run during the summer along the new direct Broadway - while Ribble requested a year round license. Blackpool's operation - an extension of the 9 - ran from 1937-1939, leaving Ribble to provide the permanent service to the developing areas away from the tramway - it was the latter that Blackpool strived to protect. The Ribble service, previously the F16, became the 196 and ran every 30 minute. National 838 awaits for a tram to cross Victoria Square in Cleveleys before heading to the Bus Station (Mike Rhodes) |
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| Ribble routes in Thornton and Cleveleys c1984 |
In October 1986 the network, and its fleet of single deckers, was swept away by the a new Minilink network - the subject of part 4 of this series.
