From the Archive: Tendered Services

Deregulation of local bus services in 1986 segregated services into commercial or contracted - the latter procured by local authorities, normally by competitive tendering so were commonly known as 'tendered services'. Lancashire County Council's approach in 1986 was to buy back the service levels prior to deregulation and most gaps in the commercial network were filled by tendered services. This led to some curiosities. Blackpool Transport had operated a half hourly service 2 to Poulton and an hourly 15 to Staining but registered only an hourly Poulton service, so Lancashire awarded Fylde contracts to run to Poulton and Staining every hour. This led to the unusual scenario of a 20 minute evening service along Newton Drive made up of one commercial and two tendered journeys.

Several of Blackpool's evening/Sunday services were put out to tender and Fylde won the 2 (Poulton eves only), 3 (Gynn-Mereside eves/Suns), 7/7A (Bispham circulars eves), 15 (Staining peak hours, eves/Suns), 23A (South Pier - Mereside eves/Suns) and the daytime services on the 8 to Whiteholme and the occasional 13 to Bispham.

Many of Ribble's services were put out to tender and Blackpool was quite successful in securing these - Fylde did win the Blackpool to Great Eccleston and Kirkham routes (190-192) but its other successes from Ribble were mainly school services.

Service 180/182 Fleetwood - Poulton - Preston

January 1987 sees Leyland National 2 543 departing from Preston on route 180 back to Poulton. This is Friargate/Ringway junction - a road that has since been pedestrianised.

Blackpool Transport took-over these services from Ribble on 26 October. The daytime service was basically hourly from Poulton to Preston via Great Eccleston, Elswick, Inskip, Catforth then either via Lea (180) or Woodplumpton (182) then though Ingol into Preston. Evening and Sunday services broadly ran every 2 hours but started in Fleetwood ran via Thornton to Poulton and on to Preston. Additional evening journeys ran from Fleetwood to Poulton. 2 buses were required for the daytime service and by 1987 these were provided by inter-working at Poulton with route 2A. 5 buses did a complex cycle of 2A Bispham-Poulton, 180/2 Poulton-Preston-Poulton, 2A Poulton-Bispham and 15 Bispham-Staining-Bispham. Leyland Nationals were normally used supported by Lancets at times. 2 buses were used in the evenings and on Sundays but with no inter-working.

Ex Strathclyde National 165 operates the Sunday service 182 in Fleetwood. Prior to deregulaton the 180/2 ran though to Fleetwood, but Ribble registered the weekday Fleetwood-Poulton section as the 81/82 (which continued to Blackpool)

Optare Deltas replaced the Nationals around 1991, Blackpool having renewed its contract in 1989 but was unsuccessful in 1992 with Stagecoach Ribble taking over with the service later passing to Phoenix North West. Unfortunately Phoenix ceased trading suddenly in 2001 and after a day of no service, Blackpool stepped in with Optare MetroRiders. This lasted until April 2002 when Stagecoach took-over once more. After a period with ACE Travel from 2003, Stagecoach resumed the service and in 2004 it was converted to low floor operation as part of the Fylde Villager network as service 80/82.

Today the service is run by Cumfybus of Southport from their Poulton outstation and is still recognisably the service Blackpool won in 1986, other than an extension to Fleetwood to replace local Stagecoach services.

Service 165 Preston to Lytham

Nationals were also regulars on the short-lived 165 to Lytham. Here ex Crosville 548 manoevers around Preston Bus Station

Prior to deregulation Ribble had provided a half hourly service from Preston to Lytham on the 167 - and had extended it to St. Annes via Ansdell in 1983. It registered an hourly service and extended it to Blackpool leaving Lancashire to procure a stand alone hourly service to maintain service levels. This took the 165 number as it diverted via Mythop Road in Lytham to replace Fylde's service 4. Blackpool won the contract and used two buses - again normally Nationals with a third at school times for journeys to Queen Mary and King Edward Schools. This lasted until around March 1987 when Ribble registered a half hourly service, replacing the 165 with route 168 which was extended to Heyhouses and later to Blackpool - the 1986 service was a far cry from Stagecoach's double deck operated 15 minute service of 2011.

Atlantean 311 puts in a stint on the 165 - quite rare for the main Preston-Lytham workings. Atlanteans blinds had not been modified to show Preston so white blank had to suffice. This is the layover point for the 165 and 22/22A at Lytham Station.

Blackpool returned to the corridor in February 1988 with the solitary 0610 Blackpool to Preston journey on service 761 - the Ribble/North Western limited stop Blackpool to Liverpool service. A commercial return journey was later introduced and this journey outlasted the withdrawal of the remainder of the 761 in August 1990. Carriages took over 0610 in January 1991 (the return journey was dropped) with Archways succeeding it. Fylde replaced Archways in 1994 and Stagecoach replaced Fylde in 1997 before eventually absorbing this into the main 167/8 service.

In April 2001 Blackpool won the contract for the hourly Sunday St. Annes to Preston 167 service and initially used Deltas with through working on service 12 to Cleveleys. The Metro changes at the end of the month saw the service operate with MetroRiders on a stand alone basis - buses running back to depot for driver change-overs - the replacement driver bringing a fresh bus. In April 2004 the service was diverted via Ansdell to match the commercial service (previously it ran via Clifton Drive) and in November it became the 68 following changes to Stagecoach's service numbers. The contract was reduced to Sunday evenings only in March 2005 and ended in October with Stagecoach taking over.

185 Blackpool to Preston
Blackpool's final service into Preston was an unusual one as it had two distinct versions. Monday, Wednesday and Friday saw it operate from Weeton Camp via Great Plumpton, Kirkham, Treales, Salwick, Lea Town to Preston. The bus departed at 0930 from Weeton Camp to Preston then ran empty to Kirkham for the 1100 to Weeton. In the afternoon it worked a single 1400 Preston to Weeton Camp journey.

On Tuesdays and Thursdays the service ran from Blackpool via Poulton, Singleton, Weeton Camp and Great Plumpton to Kirkham with trips from Kirkham at 0916 and 1316 and from Blackpool at 1230 and 1430. Single deckers were used including AEC Swifts.

The infrequent 185 was not often photographed so we must make do with this withdrawn Swift 594 - and the hand written slip board for "WEETON CAMP 185"

Fylde took-over the contract in January 1988 and two years later it passed to Ribble who only operated the Blackpool-Kirkham section. Around 1992 it was increased in frequency to provide around six journeys per day, Monday to Saturday following the withdrawal of service 158 - the main service through Weeton. By 1995 it was operated by R&M Travel who used a Dodge minibus, or at times a Bristol LHS but by the end of the year it was being operated by Phoenix North West. The route was later extended to Preston, again serving Treales and Salwick but replacing the more frequent 184 (Preston-Salwick service). The extended service ran roughly every 90 minutes. Stagecoach took-over on the collapse of Phoenix and the 185 has evolved into the hourly service 75 provided today by Cumfybus as part of the Fylde Villager network.

7 Kirkham Roamer
Blackpool Transport operated the Kirkham Roamer from 1986 to 1988 and again from 2001-2006. The service ran Monday to Friday only on a four leg rotation, starting in Wrea Green to Lower Lane, then Weshan and Newton and back to Wrea Green passing through Kirkham each time. 

Blackpool Swift 572 operates Kirkham Roamer service 7 at Wrea Green (Brian Turner)

Fleetwood Minibus Services
Ribble introduced a commercial minibus service in Fleetwood, Cleveleys and Thornton in mid October 1986 - just before deregulation. When the initial three month 'honeymoon' period was over and operators were able to make their first service changes, Ribble chose to withdraw the evening services. Blackpool picked these up providing a half hourly Fleetwood to Cleveleys service (F3) and separate hourly services to Thornton (F4 and F5) - all interworked at Cleveleys using three single deckers until the City Pacers entered service in May. The Sunday services passed back to Ribble in early 1988 and the evening services passed to Fylde later in the year.

On the plus side August 1988 saw Blackpool take-over the Sunday 'Fleetwood Leisurelink' circular - effectively a combination of daytime services routed via Marine Hall. This served the Hatfield Avenue and Larkholme areas. It ceased in late 1989 but Blackpool's involvement was not over as a contract for three Sunday evening journeys on route F11 - a re-routed F3 from Cleveleys to Fleetwood started in November 1989 and lasted until May 1990.

The weekday evening and Sunday F11 later came back into the Blackpool fold indirectly as Fylde combined the service with its service 333 in 1994 to run from Fleetwood to Mereside and this was absorbed into the Blackpool network. In April 1996 the Sunday service withdrawn between Cleveleys and Fleetwood and the evening service followed in October 2000.

Fylde also brought with it the evening service on the F9 (Cleveleys-Poulton) and added the Sunday service in July 1996 just as Blackpool absorbed the company. The evening F9 passed to ACE Travel in October 1996 and the Sunday service to Stagecoach in October 1997. Later service changes saw the route evolve into the 88 which Blackpool operated from October 2003 until they absorbed it within Line 2 in 2007. A Sunday service was added in 2009 but the whole service ended in September 2009 partially replaced by Stagecoach service 74.

173 Blackpool to Kirkham
The loss of the 165 was partly offset by the gain of the 173 from April 1987. This Ribble service had been formed in the early 1980s by combining the Kirkham-Lytham 173 with part of the Freckleton to Blackpool 172. The resulting service ran from Kirkham to Blackpool via Wrea Green, Moss Side, Lytham Square, Park View Road, Ballam, Peel Corner, Mereside Estate, Marton Hypermarket, Oxford Square, Victoria Hospital and Layton. Ribble kept the service at deregulation but it passed to Blackpool in April.

The bus operated a Clifton - Queen Mary King Edward School variant in the morning and a return in the afternoon as well as two round trips from Kirkham at 0933 and 1218 returning at 1110 and 1450 from Blackpool. There was no weekend service. In August 1988 the service was withdrawn but partially replaced by a Tuesday and Friday only minibus from Peel Corner to Lytham Square departing at 0945 and returning at 1200. In November the service was extended to start at Wrea Green reaching Peel Corner via Westby and it was renumbered 172. In 1989 it passed to Nuttalls Coaches of Penwortham and had spells with McLaughlin's Coaches and ended up with Phoenix North West. It was withdrawn in 2001 on the closure of Phoenix North West. The original 173 route from Kirkham to Lytham via Wrea Green it today served by the 76 every hour - a far cry from the 1980s and 1990s.

190-192 Blackpool to Great Eccleston (190/1) or Kirkham (192)

Fylde Tiger 43 awaits departure for Kirkham on service 192 in 1987 (Keith West)

Ribble's pre-deregulation 87/88 to Great Eccleston and the Blackpool to Kirkham section of the 193 were replaced by contracted services 190 (Great Eccleston peak hours), 191 (Great Eccleston off peak) and 192 (Kirkham). A basic hourly service over the common section via Poulton and Singleton to Elswick was provided by alternate 191 and 192s with the 190 providing two morning journeys in from Great Eccleston. Fylde usually used Leopard coaches on the service and also provided a two hourly Sunday service between Blackpool and Kirkham which continued onto St. Annes as service 193 - exactly as the pre-deregulation service did.

Blackpool Transport took-over in October 1988, however as Fylde chose to operate the Spring Gardens to Wesham section of the 193 commercially, the Sunday service was dropped as were the early morning short journeys to Poulton. Nationals replaced Fylde's coaches. In November 1990 all 191 journeys were withdrawn except for an afternoon school duty. This left the 192 requiring one bus and the two buses used on the early 190s which ran onto other duties on arrival in Blackpool. Deltas replaced the Nationals in due course and in January 1995 the service was transferred to Fylde - by now a Blackpool subsidiary.

Fylde used a variety of vehicles on the service. It continued to use Deltas (its 1-3 and two (101/2 transferred from Blackpool). The sole Duple bodied Leyland Tiger; the four single deck Atlanteans and examples of the large fleet of Atlantean double deckers appeared. In October 1997 the service passed to Wingates - a Merseyside area firm who won a handful of contracts on the Fylde coast but gave them up almost as quickly. The 192 returned to Blackpool Transport at Squires Gate, moving to Rigby Road on its closure. A Friday and Saturday evening journey was added (1753 from Kirkham and 2230 from Blackpool) but the entire service passed to Stagecoach in 2000. In 2004 it was absorbed into the Fylde Villager network as today's service 76 operated hourly by Coastal Coaches.

754/8 Blackpool to Liverpool

Blackpool Transport's longest service was this unusual Sunday operation. It stemmed from Ribble's long established Blackpool to Preston service 154/8. The evening and Sunday service had been operated by Fylde from 1987 to 1989 and again from 1990. In 1991 the Sunday daytime service was revised to that every 2 hours it was replaced by the 754/8 operated by ABC Travel which operated through to Liverpool via Ormskirk. This replaced the Preston-Liverpool service 101 - an evening service which Blackpool once successfully bid for but pulled out prior to its introduction. The full route was Blackpool via Whitegate Drive, Preston New Road, Weeton (daytime 758) or Wrea Green (evening 754), Kirkham, Clifton, Lea, Ashton, Fylde Road (758) or Garstang Road (754), Preston Bus Station, Penwortham, Longton, Tarleton, Burscough, Ormskirk, Aintree and Liverpool.

Blackpool surprisingly won the contract from ABC in October 1994 - the first departures were at 1000 from Blackpool and 0923 from Liverpool. This meant that Blackpool introduced an X54 at 0730 and 0930 from Blackpool and a 2230 from Liverpool missing out Clifton Village and Ashton. Three Deltas were required and the six hour round trip was accommodated in the driver's schedules thanks to a 49 minute layover at Liverpool which was considered their break. From May 1997 to April 1999 the service ran from Squires Gate, and in October 1999 the contract passed to Ribble.

Fylde continued to provide the 154/158 providing a half hourly Monday to Saturday evening service, a 2 hourly Sunday daytime and evening service on the 154 and a hourly Sunday evening service on the 158. In April 2000 the evening service was reduced to hourly and the Sunday service to two hourly still co-ordinated with the 758. All journeys ran via Wrea Green and were now numbered 158 - following the pattern of the daytime service which had been revised in 1992!

In October 2003 the daily evening service was extended to Knott End to replace Stagecoach service 85. The Sunday service was increased to hourly with the end of the 758 though the daytime journeys terminated in Blackpool. MetroRiders replaced Deltas and in October 2004 the service was renumbered 58 to match Stagecoach's revised numbering. The service was withdrawn in October 2005 with limited Stagecoach replacement from Blackpool to Preston and Blackpool's 2C covering the Knott End section.

Blackpool had briefly operated on route 85 with a single weekday morning journey at 0808 from Hambleton to Blackpool from 1987 to 1992 and a 0655 from Knott End to Blackpool from around 2000 to 2005 - latterly under the 58 number.

88 Fleetwood to Lancaster
If Preston and Liverpool were not far enough, route 88 to Blackpool Transport into Lancaster. This was effectively two linked services. The Fleetwood to Knott End section began life as a temporaryKnott End Ferry during the winter and its periodic service interruptions. It must have proven useful as it became a fully fledged service running from the Marine Hall and Ferry via Amounderness Way, Hambleton, Preesall to Knott End. The bus took 14 miles and 46 minutes to cover the equivalent of a 5 minute ferry journey. After a spin round the Links Road housing estate in Knott End the bus returned to Preesall and then via Pilling and Cockerham - a double run to Glasson Dock passing the Royal Albert Hospital to terminate at Lancaster Bus Station adding 19 miles and 55 minutes to the journey time.

Journeys from Lancaster ran at 0845 1045, 1245, 1445 with an extra at 1735 as far as Hambleton and then onto Poulton. There was also a 1721 Knott End to Fleetwood bus. Fleetwood to Lancaster journeys were 0810 ST, 0840SSH, 1038, 1233 and 1533 with a 1633 to Knott End only. An 0730 Poulton to Lancaster working avoiding Knott End completed the roster. Two minibuses were used. Flickr link to photo of 594 in Lancaster

April 2002 saw the 88 replaced by the 89 from Lancaster to Knott End. Five journeys were provided, one morning journey starting from Poulton, one afternoon journey extending to and from Hambleton and the final journey being the only one to continue right through to Fleetwood via Poulton and Cleveleys. Those journeys that extended beyond Knott End now showed 86 which was the number Stagecoach used for its replacement Knott End to Poulton and Cleveleys service. Stagecoach took-over in full in July and still operate the 86 (Fleetwood to Knott End) and the 89 (Knott End to Lancaster) as the Wyre Villagers.

198 Moorfield to Kirkham
The 198 was a Thursday only market day service which started at the barely recongnisable 'Moorfield' (here roughly) near Treales to Kirkham via Wharles and Roseacre - where the bus reversed into a farm track before heading back to Wharles and Moorside then off to Kirkham. The route dated back to the early 1980s when Granville Coaches provided school contracts from Treales to Kirkham (195 morning) Kirkham-Roseacre-Salwick-Kirkham (196 morning/afternoon) and 197 Kirkham - Salwick - Elswick (afternoon) plus this market day service. The operation survived deregulation and passed through various operators landing with Fylde in December 1995. Normally it was operated by a coach with Leopard 36 being the regular but Tiger 27 took-over for a month or so prior to withdrawal in 1997 with Tiger 21 then taking over - the only one of five ex Shearings coaches to be equipped with a ticket machine. The service passed to Phoenix North West in April 1998 and has since been incorporated into the Fylde Villager.

30 Years of Deregulation: The Blackpool Fleet

30 years ago, in October 1986 local bus services were deregulated. Blackpool Transport Services Ltd took over Blackpool Council's Transport Department. It remained (and still does) owned by the council but was now run commercially as an arms length company. It inherited 110 buses.

61 Leyland Atlanteans (301-309, 311-334, 336-341, 343-364)

A blast of colour was presented by the occasional advert - here is 312 in summer 1986 leaving the Airport on service 12 while advertising Tussauds. (Brian Turner)

61 Atlanteans formed the core of the new fleet out of 64 delivered between 1977 and 1984. Three further examples were owned, 310, 335 and 342 but they were awaiting disposal following a disastrous fire in the depot yard on 1 October. Dramatic photos are on flickr.

2 November - the sad remains of Atlanteans 342, 310 and 335 await their fate. The fire is believe to have started on 310 and spread to its sisters (Brian Turner). 

3 Leyland Olympians (365-367)
The replacements for the fire damaged Atlanteans were replaced by a trio of 1982 Leyland Olympians purchased from West Yorkshire PTE. They were not required by the new Yorkshire Rider operation and arrived in late October. They entered service in WYPTE green livery and were repainted in the new fleet livery in Spring 1987.

Two of the trio of West Yorkshire Olympians being prepared for service - 365 and 367 (Brian Turner)

9 Leyland Titan PD3s (503, 507, 511-3, 515, 518, 538 and 540)
The iconic half cab PD3 continued in the Blackpool fleet with 9 of the 90 PD3s built from 1962-1968 still in service. Regularly used on the 14 and 22/22A, with some appearances on route 12, they would continue in use until 1988.

PD3 507 carried this pre 1933 inspired red and white livery to celebrate the 1985 Tramway Centenary - it is seen in Talbot Road Bus Station awaiting departure for Fleetwood on service 14 (Brian Turner)

6 AEC Routemasters (521-526)
Blackpool Transport acquired six Routemasters in spring 1986 following a demonstration from RM1583 earlier in the year. All six gained the pre 1933 red and white livery and after a period of use on the 5/5A, moved onto service 12 from deregulation.

Routemasters 524 and 521 alonside younger AEC Swift 595 in Rigby Road Depot in November (Brian Turner)

8 Leyland Nationals (541-548)
The eight Nationals, were formed of two batches. 541-544 were mark 2s bought new by Blackpool in 1984 while 545-548 were older Mark 1s bought from Crosville in 1986. 

Ex Crosville 546 - one of four retrofitted with Gardner engines shortly before purchase - is seen on route 26 cresting Waterloo Road bridge (Brian Turner)

19 AEC Swifts (570-577, 583-5, 587-592, 594/5)
Of the 55 Swifts bought from 1969 to 1975, 19 joined the BTS fleet, but were on borrowed times, with withdrawals commencing in December 1986 and accelerated by the purchase of 11 secondhand Leyland Nationals enabling the last to be withdrawn in February 1988.

Although a pre deregulation shot - this could have been timeless as neither 572 or route 26 changed much at deregulation. It is seen here at the Clifton Street terminus (Brian Turner)

4 Dennis Lancets (596-9)
Probably the most eccentric vehicles in the fleet were four 1982 Marshall bodied Dennis Lancets. Not surprisingly they were sold at just six years old in 1988.

Lancet 599 departs Preston Bus Station on a former Ribble service 180 to Poulton (Brian Turner)

Excel End Approaches

This week is likely to be the last for Optare Excel 225, the final example of the batch to operate in Blackpool.The other Reading examples have now left the fleet. 226 departed with Olympian 375 both for conversion to non psvs in early October, 224 went for scrap on 20 October and 223 on 1 November. 222 left in July. 

Overlooked on this blog was the disposal of 277-279 and 284 in August, with 277-9 since scrapped. The penultimate Volvo B7RLE to be refurbished, 532, has now returned with 526 heading to Bus and Coach World in its place. 

Several double deckers have received rear end adverts for Blackpool Transport's 'Love your Bus' campaign with Tridents 344, 345, 351 and DAFs 354, 356, 361, 363, 366 and 368 making nine with two more to follow.

30 Years of Blackpool Transport

332 on a test run prior to return to service (Photos: Mark Penney)

On 20 October 1986 Blackpool Transport Services Ltd started trading on the Monday prior to deregulation. Part of the Transport Act 1985 which led to deregulation, local authorities who ran bus companies needed to set up 'arms length' companies to take over the operation and provide a degree of separation from the council. This led to most being privatised, or closed, but Blackpool Transport survives today as one of small handful still in council ownership. The company is 100% owned by Blackpool Council, and indeed in 1994 bought out Keeltone Ltd - the holding company of the then newly privatised Fylde Transport Ltd and thus brought it into a different council ownership! The previous year a bid for Lancaster City Transport had failed.

To celebrate their birthday, BTS has outshopped Trident 332 in the 1987 double deck livery introduced on Atlantean 316 and Olympians 365-7 in March 1987. This complements Volvo B7RLE in the 1990 Delta livery.

332 has entered service this morning on service 2C.

332 nearing completion in the paint shop

332 nearing completion in the paint shop

Fully lettered including a commemorative logo in the side window

Test run on Clifton Drive

November Service Change Update

Full timetables are now on the Blackpool Transport website for the November service changes. It looks like six fewer buses will be required compared to the present network, excluding summer service 20.

• Service 1 from Starr Gate to Fleetwood is reduced to every 30 minutes all day, daily needing 5 buses daytimes and 4 evenings. This is a reduction of 3 PVR
• Service 2C - the two empty runs to Knott End in the morning are replaced by an 0520 and 0550 trip from Blackpool to Knott End. An extra round trip is added at 1950 from Blackpool returning from Knott End at 2105 - this is one hour later than the current last bus
• Services 3, 4 and 5 continue unchanged except for the Saturday service returning to its pre-Illuminations timetables
• New Service 6 will run Corporation Street to Grange Park via the current 11 route with a 15 minute daytime (4 buses) and 30 minute evening and Sunday service (2 buses)
• The 7 is reduced to every 20 minutes using 10 buses - a reduction of 2 v the current service. Evening services run every 30 minutes using 5 buses, the Sunday daytime service is also every 30 minutes but will interwork with the 9 sharing ten buses - probably Palladium Citaros and Centros
• The new service 8 runs 5 trips per day, daily at 0643, 0825, 1215, 1625, 1950 from Cleveleys and 0745, 1315, 1545, 1710 and 2115. 
• The 9 will run every 12 minutes using nine buses - this reverts to its established resource as the 2 extra buses added to sustain the 10 minute service during the recent roadworks are no longer needed.
• The 10 and 17 although not serving Victoria Hospital main entrance retain their existing timetables
• The 11 runs Blackpool to Lytham every 15 minutes with 8 buses, reducing to every 30 minutes with 4 buses
• The 14 will use 17 buses with an extra one in the peaks to serve Peel Park. It will run every 12 minutes. The evening service remains every 30 minutes using 5 buses, the Sunday daytimes every 20 minutes using 10 buses
• The 15 and 16 run hourly using four buses, but with extra trips at peak times using an extra 3 buses

These changes mean that for the first time since 1987 there will be no single bus service operating every 10 minutes or better in Blackpool.

Catch 22 Bus Update

A second Alexander bodied Dennis Trident double decker has joined the Catch 22 fleet as LX03BVJ new to Stagecoach London. It has entered service on service 21. The 21 will be continuing on a reduced frequency during the winter, operating every 30 minutes Tuesday to Saturday inclusive. Presently the summer timetable is operating five days per week for October with no service on Mondays and Fridays.

12 December will see services 23 and 24 revised. The 23 will be revised to run every hour and will be extended from Pheasants Wood via Thornton, Norcross, Castle Gardens, Poulton, Carr Head Road, Longhouse Lane and Newton Drive to Victoria Hospital. The 24 will serve School Road in Thornton off peak and no longer extend to The Highcross.

From the Archive: 2 and 15 Since Deregulation



National 2 542 unloads at Bispham Hotel having arrived from Poulton on the extended 2A on 15 August 1987

Deregulation on 26 October 1986 saw several changes to the Blackpool bus network to ensure it ran on a commercial footing. The Poulton and Staining routes 2, 2A, 15, 15A and 15B were revised with most journeys running across Blackpool to Bispham replacing the Bispham circulars 7/7A.

The 15A and 15B variants were discontinued - except for a single Sunday morning 15A from Bispham to Victoria Hospital which managed to last until the Metro era! Along Newton Drive a basic 15 minute frequency was provided from the Town Centre to Staining Road with the 2 running to Poulton via Hardhorn every 30 minutes; the 2A to Poulton via Highcross hourly and the 15 to Staining also hourly.

Between Blackpool and Bispham the 2 ran via Talbot Road, Devonshire Road and Red Bank Road to terminate at Bispham Hotel (though buses ran onto Cavendish Road to turn). The 2A and 15 ran via Dickson Road, Gynn Square, Warbreck Drive and Red Bank Road to Bispham Library where they turned on the roundabout. They made a 15 minute frequency with service 3 (Mereside to Bispham) over this section. The resulting services were:

• 2 Poulton - Hardhorn - Newton Drive - Town Centre - Devonshire Road - Bispham Hotel every 30 minutes using 3 double deckers
• 2A Poulton - Highcross Road - Newton Drive - Town Centre - Gynn Square - Bispham Library every 60 minutes sharing 3 single deckers with the 15
• 15 Staining - Newton Drive - Hospital - Town Centre - Gynn Square - Bispham Library every 60 minutes sharing 3 single deckers with the 2A.

In the evening Blackpool used two buses to provide an hourly service 2A from Poulton to Bispham where buses continued back to Blackpool as service 2, terminating at the Bus Station. Lancashire County Council chose to buy back several services which had dropped below previous levels and awarded contracts to Fylde Borough Transport to run:

• 2 Bus Station to Poulton every hour Monday to Saturday evenings only
• 7/7A Blackpool to Bispham Circulars, each every hour Monday to Saturday evenings only
• 15 Blackpool to Staining every hour Monday to Saturday morning peak, afternoon peak, evenings and on Sundays. 

Fylde RE 37 works a tendered journey on the 15 to Staining in 1989 shortly before a repaint into the new livery, having lost the lettering on its former Blue Bus Rambler allover advert

 This resulted in a 20 minute evening and 30 minute Sunday service along Newton Drive; a near 30 minute peak frequency to/from Staining and a near 30 minute evening service to Bispham via both Warbreck Drive and Devonshire Road.

The service pattern became quite stable with only minor tweaks. Most notable was the re-routing of the 15 to regain its former route via Warbreck Hill Road and Bispham Road to Bispham Library from July 1987. Route 2A was also now interworked with the 180/182 from Poulton to Preston - five single deckers (usually Nationals) were now deployed on a five hour cycle which worked a 15 to Staining and back, a 2A to Poulton, a round trip to Preston and then back to Bispham as a 2A.

In November 1987 Fylde introduced commercial daytime services on the 2 (Blackpool to Poulton) and 15 (Blackpool to Staining) running 3 to 5 minutes in front of a Blackpool 2 and six minutes in front of their 15. Initially they ran from the Bus Station, but from June the terminus moved to Market Street, and in November 1988 again moved to Abingdon Street. The 2s were reduced to school holidays and Saturdays only from May and the commercial services ended on 15th April 1989. Blackpool took over the evening and Sunday 15s in October 1989, with the peak workings and evening 2s withdrawn without replacement. This ended Fylde's presence on the corridor - for now.

The 7/7A evening services was taken over by Blackpool Transport on 4 January and in December 1988 a new daytime minibus service was started on the routes on a 15 minute frequency as a response to competition from Fylde's 11, 11A and 11B and the evening service ended in 1989. Blackpool later improved the 7/7A to replace the 3 and it became apparent that the Bispham end of the 2/2A was no longer necessary.  




Delta 104 heads for Poulton on Abingdon Street in September 1991 (Donald MacRae)

As a result on 10 June 1991, the 2/2A were revised to provide a 20 minute frequency service between Blackpool and Poulton only with one bus per hour via the 2A route. 5 single deckers were now used as the routes remained interworked with the 180/2. Deltas were now the usual allocation. The 15 was extended from Bispham via All Hallows Road, Fleetwood Road, Cleveleys Victoria Square to a new Safeway Store off Victoria Road West in Cleveleys. 2 buses were used - again normally Deltas. The 2A ran hourly evenings/Sundays as did the 15 but only from Staining to Bus Station as before.
30 March 1992 saw a reallocation of the company's minibus fleet and the Poulton service was doubled to every 10 minutes. Five out of the six hourly departures ran via Highcross Road as the 2A and used City Pacers (5 required) while the sixth ran as a 2 via Hardhorn and was linked to the 180/2 to Preston using three Deltas. The evening 2A continued using 1 minibus. The 15 was also converted to minibuses. For the first time the 2/2A now ventured to the Hospital, making the diversion off Newton Drive to get passengers much closer to this obvious traffic objective.


City Pacer 577 heads down Church Street from Devonshire Squire on a Poulton to Bispham 2 working, passing a Dart demonstrator on the 26 in 1998.

The contract for the evening and Sunday services on the 15 passed to Fylde in April 1992 and later in the year Fylde also won a contract for the first 2 from Poulton at 0730 Mondays to Fridays. October 1992 saw the 180/2 end and the 2 workings now became minibus operated. Single deckers took over the 15 in January 1993 but in April the service was curtailed to Gynn Square.

November 1994 saw a major recast of the Blackpool and Fylde networks as Blackpool now owned the latter. Changes saw the 2/2A and 7/7A merged as they had been eight years earlier. A 7/8 minute service was introduced with six buses per hour via Highcross (as 2A or 2B) and two via Hardhorn (as 2). From Blackpool (Odeon Cinema) the 2 and 2B ran every 15 minutes via Claremont, Devonshire Road, Red Bank Road, Warbreck Drive, Gynn Square and Claremont back to the Bus Station and onto Poulton. The 2A ran every 15 minutes in the opposite direction. Evening and Sunday buses ran every 30 minutes alternating between the 2A and 2B. 11 City Pacers were used, though reliability problems saw a 12th soon added.

The 15 continued, though the Gynn to Blackpool section was withdrawn. Fylde retained the evening service and the early morning 0730 trip. However with such a high frequency on Newton Drive, the 15 was becoming less popular and Blackpool withdrew the service in April 1995 with Fylde winning a contract for a replacement daytime service to maintain links to Staining. This was only a temporary measure as independent Town Bus took over in April 1995 using ex London and West Midlands Fleetlines amongst others. This too was short lived as Fylde registered the daytime 15s commercially in April - throughout this episode it retained the contracted evening/Sunday operations.

The 15 was finally withdrawn in August 1996 as services 23/23A were extended from Victoria Hospital to provide a half hourly service to Staining with the same resources as deployed on the hourly 15. April 1998 saw the 2 reduced to every 10 minutes with alternate buses over the 2 and 2A route but the evening/Sunday service was increased to every 15 minutes - this time with alternate 2A and 2B workings as Hardhorn was not served. Nine minibuses were required (six evenings/Sundays) and Metroriders were now common.

The evening/Sunday service dropped back to half hourly in May 2000 but the Metro network saw a complete revision. The Bispham link ended again and the all buses now ran over the former 2A route via Highcross but showed service 2. A 10 minute daytime service and 30 minute evening service ran from Blackpool to Poulton. Metroriders continued to feature, but Double Deckers took over some of the daytime only buses from September as the minibus fleet underwent a major repaint programme into Metro liveries. Hardhorn was served by an off peak tendered service 52/54 (Poulton-Hardhorn-Hospital-Carleton-Poulton) run by an independent.


508 in the Line 2 Metrorider era in 2004 waiting time on a Cleveleys working at Poulton Church

8 April 2002 saw the 2 extended over the 26 route to South Pier and the evening/Sunday service increased to every 20 minutes. Three weeks later, one bus per hour was diverted via Hardhorn Road (ironically as 2A) to replace the 52/54 and was also extended to Cleveleys via Carelton, Thornton and Pheasants Wood. Every hour one bus was extended from South Pier to Mereside alternately as a 2B or 2C via different routes in South Shore, though these were quickly replaced by extending the 2A over a consolidated route.

There then followed a period of expansion by extending the 2 over several legs, often replacing other operators services:

• 6 January 2003 - 2 buses per hour extended from South Pier to Lytham Square incorporating Blackpool's 77 St. Annes Roamer (16 buses needed)
• October 2003 - 1 evening bus per hour linked to tendered service 88 (Poulton to Cleveleys
• November 2003 - Lytham to Poulton workings extended to Thornton (Hillylaid Crossing) to replace Stagecoach 167/8 workings (17 buses needed)
• November 2004 - Thornton workings extended to Cleveleys but 2A curtailed at Poulton (still 17 buses)
• 30 October 2005 - two buses per hour (one evenings/Sundays) extended Poulton to Knott End as service 2C replacing Stagecoach 85
• 5 December 2005 - 2A withdrawn (10 replaces in South Shore) with 2C workings now serving Hardhorn instead
• 4 September 2006 - Cleveleys-Lytham workings extend to Wesham replacing Kirkham Roamer 70 (20 buses needed)
• June 2007 - evening 88 incorporated into 2 route (one bus per hour each to Poulton, Cleveleys, Knott End)
• July 2009 - one Sunday bus per hour extended to Cleveleys as per evening service

Meanwhile on 22 November 2004 service 15 resumed. Funding from Blackpool Council, Lancashire County Council and Tesco saw the new service run from Poulton via Castle Gardens, Norcross, Bispham College, Bispham, Warbreck Drive, Dickson Road, Town Centre, Hospital, Staining and Mythop Road to Mereside Tesco. This reinstated the Bispham to Hospital link, replaced the 5 to Staining (which had itself replaced the 23/23A) and provided new links to the expanded Tesco store. A half hourly service was provided using 4 minibuses, though in the evening and on Sunday this dropped to three as the service terminated at Bispham and the late evening service ran Gynn Square to Staining only.



Excel 226 passing through St John Square on the 2C, while still in Line 7 livery

September 2009 saw the end of the Tesco funding so the 15 was cut back to Staining using the time released to extend running times and improve reliability. The late evening buses now ran Staining to Blackpool only. Daytime trips to Poulton now served Faraday Way and Kincraig Avenue between Norcross and the College. At the same time route 2 was reduced to every 15 minutes over the South Pier to Poulton section and the Cleveleys journeys were withdrawn completely. Buses now ran Wesham to Lytham or South Pier to Knott End and 14 buses were now needed. The Hardhorn section was withdrawn completely in February 2010 and further changes in July 2010 saw the South Pier to Blackpool section withdrawn.

The 15 was diverted via Grange Road and Layton in February 2010 and again via Newton Drive and Devonshire Road in July 2010. February 2010 saw the evening service reduced to hourly (Blackpool to Staining only) It has since lost its evening service completely (May 2011) and its Sunday service has been reduced to hourly (Bispham to Staining)

The 2 had also seen minor reductions in service but October 2011 saw the 2C diverted away from Highcross Road and Newton Drive as it now runs via Blackpool Old Road, Collegiate School and Grange Park between Poulton and Hospital. Seven buses were still required normally five minibuses, one Trident and a single decker (Excel or Volvo) with the bigger buses intended for school time workings - though both stayed out to provide two of the three evening workings. The evening service on the 2 had ceased in May 2011, leaving just the 2C, but it was reinated in October following the diversion of the 2C.

Doomed bus, doomed route. With hours of its service life left, Excel stands at Poulton on route 2 on 31 May a few weeks before the entire service was withdrawn (Paul Turner)

So now the established route via Newton Drive and Hardhorn had just a half hour service once more - having been as frequent as every 7/8 minutes in 1998. In July 2012 the 15 was withdrawn with the 2 diverted to do a double run to Staining and back which it had done in the 1920s. This was no doubt to the detriment of customers making through journeys. By 5 November the 2 and 2C lost their interworking so now needed 3 and 5 buses respectively with full size buses prefered to Solos -though the latter particularly appeared on Sundays.

June 2015 saw the end of service 2 after 88 years with its Blackpool-Staining-Poulton leg incorporated into new Northern Circulars 12/13. This only lasted until the following April when routes 10/17 were extended from Blackpool to Poulton, but omitted Staining which was served by revised southern circulars 15/16 - reinstating the traditional number but via a vastly different route. The 2C continued but lost its evening service whle the Sunday daytime service was curtailed to run Blackpool to Poulton only.  

Metro Buses

When the Metro network was launched the 2 was given a black and yellow identity. Metroriders 505-510 received Line 2 stickers in July 2010, but these were soon removed as up to four Atlanteans would appear from September to release minibuses for repainting in route branded liveries. The merger of the 2 and 26 in April 2002 saw Line 2 adopt the light green colour of the 26, before any buses had received the black route livery. This was later adopted for pool buses. 511-516 were the six buses allocated to the 26 and this immediately received Line 2 branding. Sisters 504-510 were treated between May and August 2002 with 517 following in December making 14 buses for the 16 workings from January 2003.

As the route expanded several more Metroriders were repainted:

• 518 March 2003
• 503 December 2003 (for Thornton extension)
• 502 November 2004 (to replace 511 which was out of use for nearly two years with accident damage)
• 501 December 2004 (total 17 buses for 17 workings)
• 595 November 2005 (for Knott End)
• (511 returned Aug 2006 after repaint in March) 

The Solo era started in June 2006 when 249 was painted out of Line 5 red to provide a larger capacity bus for particular workings and 285 followed in August. This had been the dedicated bus supplied by Lancashire County Council for the Kirkham Roamer which was now merged into the 2.
 


Solo 281 on Newton Drive during 2008.

Further Solos entered service in June/July 2007 when 279, 281-284 were transferred from the Lifestyle Line. These replaced 514-517 which were repainted into the pink Line 15 colours and replaced 584-587 which had been so attired since the route stated in 2004. 518 had also been painted into Line 10 colours earlier in the year. There were now seven Solos and 14 Metroriders in Line 2 colours. May 2008 saw the first new Solo to arrive in Line 2 colours as 247 and this replaced 595, while 240-246 arrived in May 2009 replacing 501/2/4/5/7 while 513 had moved to Line 15 earlier in the year after 516 had been withdrawn.


585 shortly before withdrawal in 2007 on the rural section of the 15 from Staining towards Tesco

The September 2009 services reduced the requirement to 14 buses and the service now became mainly Solo operated. 240-247 were joined by fellow long Solos 286/7, 294 from Lines 3 and 16 and these allowed 279/81-83 to receive pool livery with 249, 284 and 285 making up the 14 buses as Metroriders 506, 508-512 were withdrawn.



December 2007 and 353 works the regular double deck duty on the 2C to Knott End

From 2006 a double decker was allocated to the 0742 2C from Knott End as this experienced heavy loadings at school times and had outgrown 33 seat Solo 249 which was the regular bus. Initially it was swapped for a Metrorider in the Town Centre or at South Pier but this soon ceased and the bus would stay out all day - a duty which included a return trip on the 88 to Poulton. Atlanteans were commonly used, though Deltas became common as the Atlanteans were withdrawn.

First Trident Departs

318 in happier days entering St. Annes Square on a service 14 working from Fleetwood (Brian Turner)

Trident 318 departed for scrap yesterday (14 October 2006) at the age of just 13. It arrived in May 2003 entering service on 26th. It carried pool black and yellow and mainly ran on the 14, but when spare would also operate on the 11. With the end of the Metro network in 2010 it ran on most double deck routes. 

In June 2012 318 was the pilot for the replacement of the roller blinds with LED displays leading to most of the 2003/4/6 batches being treated. In November 2012 it had its sole repaint into the standard black and yellow livery having run in a rear end advert for a local health initative for much of the year. 

Sadly on 23 January 2016 vandals set fire to seats on the top deck causing roof damage. Its engine was donated to a sister bus and after stripping it has now gone for scrap.

From the Archives: Routes 2 and 15 1920s to the 1980s

Abingdon Street Bus Stop shows services 2, 2A, 15, 15A and 15C - all (with the 15B) part of the complex group of services which ran along Newton Drive

Part of Blackpool's bus network originated in private hands with William Smith running buses to Bispham, Poulton and in Fleetwood and South Shore. The routes started in the 1920s and included a bus from Talbot Mews Bus Station via Newton Drive to the Plough Inn at Staining from October 1923. This was later extended to Hardhorn and Poulton.

Smith sold out to Blackpool Council (as Smith was a Blackpool Councillor, today this move would probably be controversial!) and BCT progressively absorbed his services. The Poulton via Staining route became BCT route 2 from April 1927 but in September was split to provide two basic hourly services along Newton Drive to Staining Road End with route 2 continuing along Normoss Road, Longhouse Lane and Hardhorn Road to Poulton Market Square and the 15 taking Staining Road End to the Plough. 

For about a year in 1933/4 the 2 became a circular, linked across Poulton with route 1 via Castle Gardens and Carleton to Blackpool. A minor route change saw buses leave the Bus Station via Talbot Road, Abingdon Street and Church St rather than the more direct Cookson Street. Route 2 appeared to have the higher profile and surviving accident records show new Leyland Tigers 102-113 as regulars on the 2 in 1935, while the 15 typically used 1928 vintage Lions 55 to 66.

From October 1936 extra short workings ran from Blackpool Bus Station to the brand new Victoria Hospital via Newton Drive displaying route 15A. Neither the 2 or 15 ventured off Newton Drive to the Hospital entrance. This used double deckers from the start and was soon extended from the Bus Station to Layton Station via Dickson Road and Warbreck Hill Road giving a cross town link to the Hospital. From June 1938 a second extra service, the 15B started running as far as Staining Road End and this made a ten minute service over the common sections with the 2 and 15. The 15A evolved as a separate service, though the section to Layton was dropped for the war.



PD2 334 approaches Talbot Road Bus Station to work a 15B working to Staining Road End in 1967

Double deckers were first introduced to the 2 and 15 in 1940 and 1942 saw the reversing point for the 15A at the Hospital gates replaced by a loop via Whinney Heys Road and Whinpark Avenue that is still followed by service buses today. Yet another service variation - the 2A - started in 1947 providing a winter service over route 2 as far as Hardhorn Road corner. With a variety of service numbers and individual timetables which didn't draw attention to the combined headway achieved along Newton Drive - the service pattern was never particularly clear to the casual observer. Analysis of the 1953 timetable reveals the following.

• A 10 minute frequency from Bus Station to Staining Road End (just beyond the Borough Boundary) as services 2, 15 and 15B.
• Service 2 continued every 40 minutes to Poulton via Hardhorn (into what is now Wyre Borough)
• Service 15 turned right every 40 minutes onto Staining Road to Staining Village (in what is now Fylde Borough)
• Service 15B terminated at Staining Road End every 20 minutes, buses reversing into Dobson Road to turn round.
• On Summer afternoons and evenings the 2 was increase to every 20 minutes, with the extra trips running in tandem with the 15s over the common section.
• In the winter an extra 40 minute service ran as the 2A as far as Hardhorn Corner from 1200 to 1900 Monday to Friday and 1000 to 1900 on Saturdays with two extra evening journeys.

On top of all this route 15A ran every 12 minutes from Layton to the Hospital in the winter and every 10 in the summer. The table below shows the afternoon departure pattern from Talbot Road in place in the late 1950s. A basic 5 minute summer service ran formed with either a 2 or 15B between each 15A. The 15 workings ran in tandem with the 2. Winter headways were at least every 10 minutes but with at least 12 per hour but much less even than in the winter.

		Winter 58/9			Summer 59
Time	Route	Destination	Time	Route	Destination
13:01	2	Poulton	13:01	2	Poulton
13:08	15A	Hospital	13:06	15A	Hospital
13:11	15B	Staining Rd End	13:11	15B	Staining Rd End
			13:16	15A	Hospital
13:20	15A	Hospital	13:21	2	Poulton
13:21	15	Staining	13:21	15	Staining
13:25	2	Hardhorn	13:26	15A	Hospital
13:31	15B	Staining Rd End	13:31	15B	Staining Rd End
13:32	15A	Hospital	13:36	15A	Hospital
13:41	2	Poulton	13:41	2	Poulton
13:44	15A	Hospital	13:46	15A	Hospital
13:51	15B	Staining Rd End	13:51	15B	Staining Rd End
13:56	15A	Hospital	13:56	15A	Hospital
14:01	15	Staining	14:01	2	Poulton
14:05	2A	Hardhorn	14:01	15	Staining
14:08	15A	Hospital	14:06	15A	Hospital
14:11	15B	Staining Rd End	14:11	15B	Staining Rd End
14:20	15A	Hospital	14:16	15A	Hospital
14:21	2	Poulton	14:21	2	Poulton
			14:26	15A	Hospital
14:31	15B	Staining Rd End	14:31	15B	Staining Rd End
14:32	15A	Hospital	14:36	15A	Hospital
14:41	15	Staining	14:41	2	Poulton
14:44	15A	Hospital	14:41	15	Staining
14:45	2A	Hardhorn	14:46	15A	Hospital
14:51	15B	Staining Rd End	14:51	15B	Staining Rd End
14:56	15A	Hospital	14:56	15A	Hospital

Minor changes saw an extension of route 15 from Staining Plough to the new Whalley Estate where the buses reversed into Bibby Drive. 1955 saw the 15A extended from Layton Station to Bispham Tram Depot via Bispham Road and Red Bank Road and it was increased to every 10 minutes for most of the day in the summer but still ran every 12 minutes in the winter.

An unusual operation in Summer 1956 was service 1A which ran from Castle Gardens over the 1 and 14 route to Blackpool and then via route 2 to Poulton running every 40 minutes to make a 20 minute frequency to Poulton with service 2 (which remained every 40 minutes). From 1957 the previous pattern with service 2 running every 20 minutes in the summer resumed.


13 August 1983: An elderly clientele clambers aboard Lancet 599 at Poulton Church

Also by 1956 a summer special service 15C was in operation linking Blackpool with the Newton Hall Holiday Camp on Staining Road. This did not appear in public timetables and is believed to run on a limited basis. 

The winter service 2A ended after 1959 and the 2 was increase to every 20 minutes from 1200 (1000 on Saturdays). Cut backs began in the 1960s with a reduction in evening and Sunday services from 1963. Residential developments in Poulton and Staining encouraged a simplification and enhancements of the 2 and 15. By Winter 1964 the 2 and 15 provided a 20 minute frequency from 1200-1900 (Winter M-F) and 1000-1900 (Sat and summer Mon-Fri) with a 40 minute service at other times. The 15B now provided a handful of morning trips to supplement the lower frequency of the 2 and 15 and by the end of the decade was no longer listed as a separate route but was still displayed on the bus blinds. 5 buses were required. The 15A was cut back in frequency during the late 1960s with a 12 minute summer and 20 minute winter frequency in place.


In February 1982 the 15/15A were revised again. The 15A no longer served the Zoo - its off peak journeys were diverted to Grange Park Estate (giving a link from there to the Hospital) showing 15B while peak journeys were extended to Staining to replace the short 15 journeys. The sole difference between the 15 and 15A was that only the latter served the Hospital.

Route 15B ran from 1982-1986 providing an off peak link from Grange Park to Victoria Hospital and onto Blackpool and Bispham. 353 runs through Grange Park in 1986.

The 2/2A continued on its 20/30 minute frequency, but the enhanced service was cut back to start at 1515 meaning only four round trips along Highcross Avenue.

National 548 leaves Poulton for Blackpool on route 2 in 1986

Deregulation in 1986 saw a simplification of the pattern with the 2 and 15 co-ordinated once more to make a 15 minute service along Newton Drive (2 every 30 minutes, 2A every hour and 15 every hour) with all buses continuing to Bispham via Devonshire Road (2) or Warbreck Drive (2A/15) replacing routes 7/7A (Bispham Circular). Evening/Sunday services ran every hour as 2A Poulton to Bispham and 2 Blackpool to Bispham only). Extra 2 (Poulton to Blackpool) evening services were provided under contract to Lancashire County Council by Fylde who also ran peak and evening/Sunday journeys on the 15.



Swift 580 leaves Talbot Road Bus Station on route 2A one afternoon in April 1980

21 December 1971 saw route 15A converted to OPO AEC Swifts which terminated at Bispham Clinic rather than the former Tram Depot, but were later extended to terminate at Warbreck Drive/Cavendish Road where buses turned in a triangular junction layout. The 15A now ran every 20 minutes (days) and 30 mins evenings but in the summer extra buses ran every 20 minutes from Hospital to Cornwall Avenue (near Gynn Square) on weekdays to make a 10 minute service while the Sunday service was doubled to every 15 minutes. The Winter 1971 timetable also saw some weekday afternoon journeys on route 2 diverted via Highcross Road instead of Longhouse Lane passing Baines School. These ran every 40 minutes from 1200-1840.  
February 1973 saw the Sunday 2 and 15 reduced to every 48 minutes so they could be operated with one bus each and summer 1973 saw the extra short 15A workings continue to Antrim Road (turning via Warbreck Hill Road/Devonshire Road roundabout). From the winter the 15A dropped to every 24 minutes (3 buses) on weekdays and the even more unusual 36 minute headway evenings and Sundays. 

6 May 1974 saw the 2 and 15 converted to OMO as the 15 could now turn via the Nook near Staining Plough - depriving Whalley Estate of its bus service until c1975 when Fylde council completed the construction of the present turning circle near Bibby Drive. Route 2 now ran every 20 minutes in the morning peak and afternoon (one per hour as 2A); every 30 minutes from 9am to 12 noon and again in the evening with a 60 minute Sunday service. The 15 ran 2-3 times per hour in the morning peak, every hour 0900-1200 and every 30 minutes until 1900 then hourly evenings and Sundays. This meant there was now no co-ordination between the 2 and 15 along Newton Drive.


The 2 was a common test bed for demonstrators - here Ipswich Dennis Falcon loads alongside one of Blackpool's traditional bus shelters on Newton Drive.

1977 saw route 15A reduced to every 30 minutes (45 Sundays and no evening service) and it was extended the short distance from Victoria Hospital to Blackpool Zoo. One way systems affected the services with outbound routes diverted via Caunce Street and Grosvenor Street in Blackpool in 1976 while Poulton Square was pedestrianised in the 1970s.


January 1980 saw a merger of routes 15 and 15A which now provided a standard 30 minute frequency service from Cavendish Road (Bispham) to Newton Drive with one per hour to Staining as service 15 and one per hour to the Hospital and Zoo as 15A. Some extra peak hour Blackpool to Staining runs were provided. Atlanteans were usually used, while the 2 retain its single deckers.

Atlantean 336 at the Cavendish Road terminus of the 15/15A in 1980