Newmarket bus station - 9 Jun 2021 (P1080507)

Wednesday 9 June 2021 (0749) – Students boarding Bury St. Edmunds bound services in Newmarket bus station.

Left is Stephensons of Essex 647 (YN55 NKL), an East Lancs Omnidekka bodied Scania N94 that had been new to London Sovereign as their SLE42 in October 2005, which was working the 0750 service 310 which originates at Elizabeth Avenue, a residential area to the north of the town centre.

Mulleys Motorways YY63 WCO was working the 0750 service 311X. It is a 15 metre long Plaxton Elite bodied B13RT which had been new to Park’s of Hamilton in January 2014 for National Express service work. With Park’s it carried registration LSK 819.

There are a number of main secondary schools located in Bury St. Edmunds and, along with the West Suffolk College, they collectively generate daily traffic. The services are also available to the general public.

Until January 2021 the school related services 310/311 to Bury St. Edmunds from the Newmarket area had mainly been worked by Suffolk Norse and Suffolk County Council before that. In 2013 the County Council entered a working partnership with Norse, a facilities company owned by Norfolk County Council, to create Suffolk Norse owned 20% by SCC and 80% by Norse. In September 2021 the partnership will be dissolved.

Towards the end of 2020 Suffolk Norse relinquished the contracts for the 310/311 services. Replacement service licences were obtained by both Mulleys Motorways and Stephensons of Essex effective from 4 January 2021.