Suzy, Drinker Of Coffee

Today, another One-Ticket to bash the Burntisland Highland Games Service 21. These games are a one-day event, and IIRC is the oldest established games still going. The bus service runs from Cowdenbeath to Bernards Smithy via the old 18 route (now the 16), then onto Burntisland via usually unserved roads. This year was one bus only - last year was two - to leave from Cowdenbeath Kelty Junction at 45 past the hour from 1045 to 1845, and returning from Burntisland Harbour Place thirty minutes later. Good crowds are usually taken on this route, despite the uniqueness, and buses have it on the blinds all year round, so no boards or bits of paper, even for one day a year (First please note!) An Aberhill-based Trident 18093 was used departing at 1035, almost full, but it appears this was on duplicates, as Volvo Olympian 16401 was the main bus, and it left at 1045. At 1115, the Olympian left Burntisland, with Trident 18093 (driven by an Aberhil inspector) shortly behind.

So I took Stagecoach 52478 on the X54 from Dundee to Halbeath Lauder College, 22273 on the 19 to Cowdenbeath depot, 22274 on the 19 to Cowdenbeath Kelty Junction, 16401 on the 21 to Burntisland Harbour Place, 18097 on the 7 to Dunfermline - until the bus developed a defect at Hillend By-Pass, we continued to Inverkething High School and got put onto 16045 on the 79, then 52474 on the X26 to Kincardine, First Scania 60203 on the 15 to Alloa, First Scania 62310 on the 60 to Stirling town centre, First Scania 62303 on the 62 to Stirling Bus Station, First Dart 40942 on the 16 to Caron, then I joined "the original Falkirk Wheel" - the Falkirk Circular 10/11/12 services. These routes have recently been "upgraded" using Bus Route Development Grant funding, and now run up to six times an hour instead of four (they used to be six times an hour per direction before the 1999 service cuts/changes). So, First Scania 61233 on the 11 to Stenhousmuir, First Scania 60192 on the 10 to Stenhousemuir shops, First Scania 61233 to Larbert, First Scania 60192 on the 12 to Falkirk Asda, then walked to Falkirk Bus Station where Stagecoach Fife 20327 took me on the 74 back to Dunfermline, then 52366 on an X54 as far as Glenrothes. To take up the time, went for a run on the 46A within Glenrothes - to Caskieberran and back - and since the three new "diet" Solo's got put on the 13 (meaning the older, "fat" Solo's got put on the 46/46A instead), Aberhill have tried to keep the 46/46A all low-floor, and I've heard a few reports of Tridents turning up, as it's the next thing low floor that thye have... so, 18094 took me out and back, before I went for 52460 on the X24 to Guardbridge, and then 22406 on the 99A to Dundee.

You can see all the pictures here. The Dunfermline bus swapping is more than usual (although branded buses have been known to wander at that depot) because of capacity needs on the 78 exceeding that of a Solo, so the D5/D6 is getting the Solo's from the 78, and the Dart's are going onto the 78. As a result, this evening, Darts that worked the 78 during the day then continued to the 76 and the 80.