David Slater (Spoddendale)'s photos

Tuesday 6 October 2026 (1200) – As I was taking an impromptu shot of Don’s Coaches DH21 DON near Fiveways, Barton Mills, the Flixbus service coach I had timed my walk to see came up on the outside rather surprisingly! Prospect Coaches, Lye, Stourbridge YS75 AYB, an Irizar i6S new in December 2025, was working the 0840 Flixbus service 083 from Birmingham to Norwich. Don’s Coaches of Dunmow DH21 DON is a Mercedes-Benz Tourismo new in March 2021.

Tuesday 6 October 2026 (1200) – As I was taking an impromptu shot of Don’s Coaches of Dunmow DH21 DON, a Mercedes-Benz Tourismo new in March 2021, near Fiveways, Barton Mills, the Flixbus service coach I had timed my walk to see came up on the outside rather surprisingly! The Flixbus coach was Prospect Coaches, Lye, Stourbridge YS75 AYB, an Irizar i6S new in December 2025, working the 0840 Flixbus service 083 from Birmingham to Norwich.

Tuesday 6 October 2026 (1200) – Prospect Coaches, Lye, Stourbridge YS75 AYB, an Irizar i6S new in December 2025, seen approaching Fiveways, Barton Mills when working the 0840 Flixbus service 083 from Birmingham to Norwich. Departing Birmingham at 0840 it travels via Coventry (0920-0925) and Cambridge (1120-1125) arriving in Norwich at 1255. The westbound journey departs Norwich at 1450 travelling via Cambridge (1620-1625) and Coventry (1820-1825) arriving in Birmingham at 1905. In an article featured in the July 2026 issue of ‘Buses’ magazine it stated that all Flixbus branded Irizar coaches in the UK were in the fleet of Prospect Coaches.

Tuesday 6 October 2026 (1200) – Don’s Coaches of Dunmow DH21 DON, a Mercedes-Benz Tourismo new in March 2021, approaching Fiveways, Barton Mills In the background is the 0840 Flixbus service 083 from Birmingham to Norwich worked by Prospect Coaches, Lye, Stourbridge YS75 AYB, an Irizar i6S new in December 2025.

Tuesday 6 October 2026 (1716) - Mulleys Motorways LW51 ZHJ seen in High Street, Mildenhall arriving on the 1555 schooldays only service 956 from Bury St. Edmunds Schools via Risby, Cavenham, Tuddenham, Herringswell, Red Lodge, Freckenham and Worlington. It is an Alexander ALX400 bodied Volvo B7TL new to Dublin Bus in January 2002 as their AV215 (01 D 10215).

Tuesday 6 October 2026 (1716) - Mulleys Motorways LW51 ZHJ seen in High Street, Mildenhall arriving on the 1555 schooldays only service 956 from Bury St. Edmunds Schools via Risby, Cavenham, Tuddenham, Herringswell, Red Lodge, Freckenham and Worlington. It is an Alexander ALX400 bodied Volvo B7TL new to Dublin Bus in January 2002 as their AV215 (01 D 10215).

Tuesday 22 September 2026 (0925) - My planned outing today was to ride on the autonomous bus from Trumpington Park and Ride (Cambridge) but a big traffic hold-up on my way there scuppered my carefully made plans. I was able to leave the A14 at Quy at the last moment and so decided to head to Newmarket Road Park and Ride for the ‘unplanned B’. Things didn’t get any better when I reached Trumpington because no autonomous bus appeared! So, to make the most of the outing these were the buses I rode: Bus 1: Stagecoach East 86022 (BV23 NTD) – Newmarket Park & Ride to Drummer Street service PR2 (0910) Bus 2: Stagecoach East 86024 (BV23 NTF) – Downing Street to Trumpington Park & Ride service PR3 (0935) Bus 3: Stagecoach East 86024 (BV23 NTF) – Trumpington Park & Ride to Trumpington Street service PR3 (1050) Bus 4: Whippet Coaches WG115 (MX73 GBY) - Trumpington Street to Addenbrooke’s Hospital service U1 (1123) Bus 5: Stagecoach East 10791 (SN66 VZO) - Addenbrooke’s Hospital to Emmanuel Street service 7 (1155) Bus 6: Stagecoach East 86028 (BV23 NRO) – Drummer Street to Newmarket Park & Ride service PR2 (1230) My first ride was on Stagecoach East 86022 (BV23 NTD), one of the thirty MCV bodied Volvo BZL electric double deckers new in early 2023, seen at Drummer Street/Parker Street. From early 2026 some Stagecoach East buses in Cambridge started to carry a sort of QR code alongside the destination display as part of a trial being carried out in the city. The codes store simple numbers used by computer vision systems and provide information to traffic signals (to give buses priority) and to traffic cameras (which regulate entry to bus only areas). If the experiment is successful it could replace the older style transponder technology which is becoming increasingly expensive to maintain.

Tuesday 22 September 2026 (0932) - My planned outing today was to ride on the autonomous bus from Trumpington Park and Ride (Cambridge) but a big traffic hold-up on my way there scuppered my carefully made plans. I was able to leave the A14 at Quy at the last moment and so decided head to Newmarket Road Park and Ride for the ‘unplanned B’. Things didn’t get any better when I reached Trumpington because no autonomous bus appeared! So, to make the most of the outing these were the buses I rode: Bus 1: Stagecoach East 86022 (BV23 NTD) – Newmarket Park & Ride to Drummer Street service PR2 (0910) Bus 2: Stagecoach East 86024 (BV23 NTF) – Downing Street to Trumpington Park & Ride service PR3 (0935) Bus 3: Stagecoach East 86024 (BV23 NTF) – Trumpington Park & Ride to Trumpington Street service PR3 (1050) Bus 4: Whippet Coaches WG115 (MX73 GBY) - Trumpington Street to Addenbrooke’s Hospital service U1 (1123) Bus 5: Stagecoach East 10791 (SN66 VZO) - Addenbrooke’s Hospital to Emmanuel Street service 7 (1155) Bus 6: Stagecoach East 86028 (BV23 NRO) – Drummer Street to Newmarket Park & Ride service PR2 (1230) Stagecoach East 86024 (BV23 NTF) and 86027 (BV23 NTK) seen in Downing Street. Both are MCV bodied Volvo BZL electric double deckers new in early 2023. From early 2026 some Stagecoach East buses in Cambridge started to carry a sort of QR code alongside the destination display as part of a trial being carried out in the city. The codes store simple numbers used by computer vision systems and provide information to traffic signals (to give buses priority) and to traffic cameras (which regulate entry to bus only areas). If the experiment is successful it could replace the older style transponder technology which is becoming increasingly expensive to maintain.

Tuesday 22 September 2026 (1043) – Trumpington Park and Ride, Cambridge. Left is Cozy Travel of Sandy OY23 CYH), a Neoplan N2216 Tourliner new in July 2023 to Whippet Coaches, working the 1030 Flixbus service 066 from Cambridge (Parkside) to Brighton calling at Trumpington (1045-1050), Stratford (City Bus Station (1200-1210), Gatwick Airport (North Terminal (1330-1335 and South Terminal 1340-1345) arriving Brighton (Harrington Road 1420 and Railway Station 1430). Right is Stagecoach East 86024 (BV23 NTF), one of the thirty MCV bodied Volvo BZL electric double deckers new in early 2023, working service PR3 to the City Centre. On my outing today I happened to travel on 86024 twice some fifty minutes apart. These were the buses I travelled on: Bus 1: Stagecoach East 86022 (BV23 NTD) – Newmarket Park & Ride to Drummer Street service PR2 (0910) Bus 2: Stagecoach East 86024 (BV23 NTF) – Downing Street to Trumpington Park & Ride service PR3 (0935) Bus 3: Stagecoach East 86024 (BV23 NTF) – Trumpington Park & Ride to Trumpington Street service PR3 (1050) Bus 4: Whippet Coaches WG115 (MX73 GBY) - Trumpington Street to Addenbrooke’s Hospital service U1 (1123) Bus 5: Stagecoach East 10791 (SN66 VZO) - Addenbrooke’s Hospital to Emmanuel Street service 7 (1155) Bus 6: Stagecoach East 86028 (BV23 NRO) – Drummer Street to Newmarket Park & Ride service PR2 (1230)

Tuesday 22 September 2026 (1123) – Whippet Coaches WG115 (MX73 GBY), a Mellor Sigma 12 electric single decker new in September 2023 (initially registered MX23 LRU), seen in Trumpington Street, Cambridge working the 1055 Universal service U1 from Girton Road to Addenbrookes Hospital/Biomedical Campus. The University of Cambridge sponsors the ‘Universal’ bus service running between Girton/Eddington and the Biomedical Campus/Addenbrooke’s Hospital. This was one of the buses I travelled on today: Bus 1: Stagecoach East 86022 (BV23 NTD) – Newmarket Park & Ride to Drummer Street service PR2 (0910) Bus 2: Stagecoach East 86024 (BV23 NTF) – Downing Street to Trumpington Park & Ride service PR3 (0935) Bus 3: Stagecoach East 86024 (BV23 NTF) – Trumpington Park & Ride to Trumpington Street service PR3 (1050) Bus 4: Whippet Coaches WG115 (MX73 GBY) - Trumpington Street to Addenbrooke’s Hospital service U1 (1123) Bus 5: Stagecoach East 10791 (SN66 VZO) - Addenbrooke’s Hospital to Emmanuel Street service 7 (1155) Bus 6: Stagecoach East 86028 (BV23 NRO) – Drummer Street to Newmarket Park & Ride service PR2 (1230)

Tuesday 22 September 2026 (1156) – Stagecoach East buses at Addenbrooke’s Hospital Bus Station, Cambridge. 10791 (SN66 VZO), an Alexander Dennis (ADL) Enviro400 MMC new in December 2016, working the 1125 service 7 from Pampisford to Emmanuel Street (on which I travelled from here). 36936 (SN63 KFR), an Alexander Dennis (ADL) Enviro200D new in September 2013, working the 1101 cross city service 1 from Kings Hedges to Cherry Hinton. 86020 (BV23 NSY), one of the thirty MCV bodied Volvo BZL electric double deckers new May 2023, which would work the 1210 cross city service 2 to Milton. The buses I travelled on today were: Bus 1: Stagecoach East 86022 (BV23 NTD) – Newmarket Park & Ride to Drummer Street service PR2 (0910) Bus 2: Stagecoach East 86024 (BV23 NTF) – Downing Street to Trumpington Park & Ride service PR3 (0935) Bus 3: Stagecoach East 86024 (BV23 NTF) – Trumpington Park & Ride to Trumpington Street service PR3 (1050) Bus 4: Whippet Coaches WG115 (MX73 GBY) - Trumpington Street to Addenbrooke’s Hospital service U1 (1123) Bus 5: Stagecoach East 10791 (SN66 VZO) - Addenbrooke’s Hospital to Emmanuel Street service 7 (1155) Bus 6: Stagecoach East 86028 (BV23 NRO) – Drummer Street to Newmarket Park & Ride service PR2 (1230)

Tuesday 22 September 2026 (1226) – Stagecoach East 86008 (BV23 NRO), one of the thirty MCV bodied Volvo BZL electric double deckers new in May 2023. From early 2026 some Stagecoach East buses in Cambridge started to carry a sort of QR code alongside the destination display as part of a trial being carried out in the city. The codes store simple numbers used by computer vision systems and provide information to traffic signals (to give buses priority) and to traffic cameras (which regulate entry to bus only areas). If the experiment is successful it could replace the older style transponder technology which is becoming increasingly expensive to maintain. This was the last of the six bus rides made on this outing today: Bus 1: Stagecoach East 86022 (BV23 NTD) – Newmarket Park & Ride to Drummer Street service PR2 (0910) Bus 2: Stagecoach East 86024 (BV23 NTF) – Downing Street to Trumpington Park & Ride service PR3 (0935) Bus 3: Stagecoach East 86024 (BV23 NTF) – Trumpington Park & Ride to Trumpington Street service PR3 (1050) Bus 4: Whippet Coaches WG115 (MX73 GBY) - Trumpington Street to Addenbrooke’s Hospital service U1 (1123) Bus 5: Stagecoach East 10791 (SN66 VZO) - Addenbrooke’s Hospital to Emmanuel Street service 7 (1155) Bus 6: Stagecoach East 86028 (BV23 NRO) – Drummer Street to Newmarket Park & Ride service PR2 (1230) From early 2026 some Stagecoach East buses in Cambridge started to carry a sort of QR code alongside the destination display as part of a trial being carried out in the city. The codes store simple numbers used by computer vision systems and provide information to traffic signals (to give buses priority) and to traffic cameras (which regulate entry to bus only areas). If the experiment is successful it could replace the older style transponder technology which is becoming increasingly expensive to maintain.

Sunday 4 October 2026 (1813) – The evenings are starting to draw in and in fading light Sanders Coaches, Holt 931 (NW24 SAN) is seen at Fiveways, Barton Mills heading back to Norfolk. It is an MCV eVoTor bodied Volvo B8R that was new to REL Davian, Rayleigh in August 2024 registered AA24 REL later becoming AP24 DPY.

Sunday 4 October 2026 (1813) – The evenings are starting to draw in and in fading light Sanders Coaches, Holt 931 (NW24 SAN) is seen at Fiveways, Barton Mills heading back to Norfolk. It is an MCV eVoTor bodied Volvo B8R that was new to REL Davian, Rayleigh in August 2024 registered AA24 REL later becoming AP24 DPY.

Sunday 4 October 2026 (1813) – The evenings are starting to draw in and in fading light Sanders Coaches, Holt 931 (NW24 SAN) is seen at Fiveways, Barton Mills heading back to Norfolk. It is an MCV eVoTor bodied Volvo B8R that was new to REL Davian, Rayleigh in August 2024 registered AA24 REL later becoming AP24 DPY.

Sunday 4 October 2026 (1811) - The evenings are starting to draw in and in fading light Ambassador Travel 306 (BV72 XGK) seen at Fiveways, Barton Mills when working the 1405 National Express service 727 from Heathrow Airport to Great Yarmouth. A few minutes earlier it had called at Mildenhall bus station where it was due at 1755. It is a Caetano Levante III bodied Scania K410 new in February 2023. The rear end, rearmost windows and side panels on each side feature an advertisement for PayPal, the online payment system company. In these times of rising diesel fuel costs the sign for the Shell Filling Station is showing a price of 201.9 pence per litre (in reality £2.02 per litre).

Sunday 4 October 2026 (1811) - The evenings are starting to draw in and in fading light Ambassador Travel 306 (BV72 XGK) seen at Fiveways, Barton Mills when working the 1405 National Express service 727 from Heathrow Airport to Great Yarmouth. A few minutes earlier it had called at Mildenhall bus station where it was due at 1755. It is a Caetano Levante III bodied Scania K410 new in February 2023. The rear end, rearmost windows and side panels on each side feature an advertisement for PayPal, the online payment system company.

Sunday 4 October 2026 (1811) - The evenings are starting to draw in and in fading light Ambassador Travel 306 (BV72 XGK) seen at Fiveways, Barton Mills when working the 1405 National Express service 727 from Heathrow Airport to Great Yarmouth. A few minutes earlier it had called at Mildenhall bus station where it was due at 1755. It is a Caetano Levante III bodied Scania K410 new in February 2023. The rear end, rearmost windows and side panels on each side feature an advertisement for PayPal, the online payment system company.