Suzy, Drinker Of Coffee

Stagecoach Perth are providing a town tour of Perth this year - not using the open top buses used until now, but using "vintage" vehicles instead, and running on Sundays only. The service is being crewed with veteran driver Brian Johnson at the wheel, and publisher/writer Alan Condie doing conducting and tour guiding. This was an interesting combination worth sampling, and today's bus was the ex-Fife Bristol Lodekka BXA 464B. The tour passes Balhousie Castle, back to the City Centre, over the Queens Bridge, passing the Isle Of Skye Hotel lights, Bridgend, A93/A94 junction, Gannochy, Kinnoull Hill (timing point), down past the monestry, back to Bridgend, A93/A94 junction, Isla Road to Scone Palace - watch out for the peacocks! - before back on the bus, and heading back to town...

... On the way there took 33439 on the 16 from Dundee to Perth (the ex-Inverness one), where the bus then continued as a 15 to Comrie. The tour charges normal Perth city service fares i.e. £1.25 point-to-point, but also offers a £2.50 all day "open" ticket, which can then be used all day on any Perth city service, so I also squeezed in a bash on Solo 47053 on both the 11 Kinnoull Hill and 3 Scone/Old Scone circle - giving the opportunity to compare the old bus with the new, on similar roads. On the way home, Solo 47225 on the 16 - both 16's very busy throughout, and the one coming in had a huge load for the Errol Car Boot Sale.

Next week, the Perth Tour sees the A1 Service-liveried Routemaster...