Stagecoach East 15953 (YN14 OXD) in Kentford - 3 Oct 2022 (P1130607)

Monday 3 October 2022 (1122) – Stagecoach East 15953 (YN14 OXD) seen rolling through Kentford when working the 1105 service 11 from Bury St. Edmunds to Newmarket and Cambridge. It is an Alexander Dennis N230UD bodied Scania N230UD that was new in April 2014 and wears Stagecoach Gold livery with branding for the Cambridge-Haverhill service 13.

Kentford, being only 4.5 miles distant from Newmarket, has links past and present with horse racing and training. One of the past links to horse ownership at Kentford is associated with actress and socialite Lily Langtry (1853-1929) (‘The Jersey Lily’) who had lived at Regal Lodge just around the corner from here. I surmise the new housing built on adjacent land and named Jersey Meadow are so named from that connection.

During mid-September 2022 Stagecoach East announced its intention to withdraw quite a number of bus services which it said were no longer commercially sustainable. Their services 11/X11 ceased after operation on Saturday 29 October 2022 along with the Cambridge-Newmarket-Ely service 12. Replacement services were introduced by Stephensons of Essex from Monday 31 October 2022.

Using the tracker on the Bus Times website this bus was shown as running the following trips today:

0650 Haverhill-Cambridge 0811 (13B)
0850 Cambridge-Newmarket 1007 (11)
1024 Newmarket-Bury St. Edmunds 1049 (11)
1105 Bury St. Edmunds-Cambridge 1259 (11)
1420 Cambridge-Pampisford 1503 (7)
1513 Pampisford-Cambridge 1600 (7)
1620 Cambridge-Pampisford 1703 (7)
1713 Pampisford-Cambridge 1800 (7)
1820 Cambridge-Pampisford 1903 (7)