October 2003

First Leicester.
* Another round of service revisions took place w/c 7th september resulting in some Falcons gaining route branding on their various liveries.
* Accident damaged Dominator No.151 has been repaired using parts salvaged from fire damaged No.149 and has returned to service.
* The final Vehicles stored here on behalf of Volvo Truck & Bus P338ROO, P339ROO, P345ROO, P348ROO, R358XVX have all now departed though there are still several vehicles stored here for the Go-Ahead group.

Arriva Fox County.
* 1001 - BU53AWP & 1002 - BU53AWR are two fifteen seat Mercedes-Benz sprinters for rural work around Market Harborough. Delivery of which keeps getting delayed due to one reason or another.
* Recent transfers have been Olympian 4559 from Southgates back to Hinckley; Scania saloon 3402 from Southgates back to Derby; Varios 1118 & 1119 have gone to Hinckley from Coalville, 1147 has moved To Coalville from Wigston whilst Wigston has also gained 1159, 1162, 1165 & 1166 from Thurmaston to replace earlier examples, 1173 has ended up at Southgates from Thurmaston; Thurmaston has gained Darts 2045 & 2047 from Stamford & Southgates.
* Vehicles recently de-licenced are Olympian 4477; Tigers 3002, 3009, 3019; Varios 1116, 1121, 1123.
* Vehicles withdrawn during the past few months are The final Greenways 3148, 3149, 3156 and 3164; Tiger 3021; Volvo - Van Hool 3214; The last Mercedes-Benz 709's 1326, 1345 & 1354; Another large batch of Vario's inc 1103, 1106, 1107, 1110, 1115, 1117, 1120, 1122
* The latest DAF - Van Hool coach for National Express work is YJ53VFY.

Arriva Derby.
* It is Confirmed that 1163 & 1164 are the Two Vario's here.
* Scania 3402 has recently returned here from Southgates.

First Northampton.
* Another Volvo B10L to follow No.116 here from wales is No.117 - M394MRW which was again new as a Demonstrator. Both these vehicles are said to be in poor mechanical condition and It is strange that these two vehicles have turned up here when Similar vehicles new to Northampton were transferred away !
* The final Atlantean No.339 - XSS339Y has been taken out of service.
* Gas powered Volvo No.49 is back in service again along with Volvo saloon No.113 which currently wears an allover Cream livery.

General.
* Centrebus ---> Yet another Dennis Dart to arrive from London is K863LGN.
* Nigel Jackson ---> It has been established that Bristol VRT VVV958W was last operated by Rodgers of Weldon, it was new to United Counties then went to Milton Keynes and thence on to Brighton & Hove who's livery it still carries.
* KinchBus ---> Another Volvo B10B to come from Trent is L113LRA which is in the New Blue Livery. L112LRA is expected next.
* KinchBus ---> Dart's 895 - P407BNR & 898 - P410BNR have passed to Trent.
* KinchBus ---> An additional Optare Solo has arrived from trent for use on service 3 and is No.436 - FP51GYE, It might have replaced Mercedes No.819 in this fleet.
* BeaverBus ---> The latest addition to the Beaver fleet is S582VOB a Volvo B10BLE with Wright bodywork complete with the latest dot matrix destination display.
* Ausden Clark ---> A sixth Scania N113 decker is J819HMC from Metroline London Northern which joins J820HMC here.
* Confidence ---> The latest ECW bodied Olympian here is CUD221Y which has come from the Oxford Bus Co thus rejoining VJO205X.
* Paul Winson ---> Yet another Olympian here is C651VMX which again started life in london (as C72CHM) before spending time on the isle of Man (as EMN209U). It joins similar C69CHM here whilst sister C71CHM is with Confidence.

September 2003

First Leicester.
* September 11th was a bad day for the remaining Dominators, in the first incident No.151 hit a road planing machine in Glenfield which smashed the upper saloon front window and first nearside window and front upper pillar, then shortly afterwards No.149 caught fire (RE: 145 & 147) outside the waterworks on anstey lane and damage to the rear of the bus is very serious. So that looks like the end of at least one career.
* Volvo B7TL No.249 was on loan to First Eastern Counties for a few days in August.
* More Northampton Volvo's to be transferred here are 292, 296 & 297

Arriva Fox County.
* Scania 4182 has been treated to a repaint and looks very smart too.
* Stamford Depot is to close on September 28th.
* A strange arrival at Hinkley for schools work is F55ENF an Alexander Belfast bodied Leyland Tiger that was latterly at Burton with Arriva Mids North.
* Olympian 4508 has moved again and is now working out of Wigston.

Arriva Derby.
* A demonstrator currently on loan is BX03OVZ a Volvo B7L with Hispano Habit bodywork that carries a grey and silver livery with a blue cityscape skyline on the sides.
* Volvo Citybuses 4379 & 4384 are/were thought to be operating out of Burton !

First Northampton.
* Atlantean No.540 - URS330X has moved to Leicester and is now preserved in the custody of Alan Parker (First Bus Engineering Director).
* Leyland Lynx's 1136 & 1137 have returned to First Midland Red.
* An interesting arrival here is No.116 - M10ULF a Volvo B10L similar to Gas buses 44 - 49, It arrived from First Cymru though has also worked for First Glasgow and was originally a Volvo Demonstrator.
* Volvo citybuses 292, 296 & 297 have gone to Leicester.

General.
* Roberts ---> Another Metrobus to arrive in the County is KYV716X which came from Arriva London North.
* C & N Travel ---> More additions to this rapidly expanding fleet are GSB146Y an Alexander bodied Dennis Dominator that started life with Western SMT and Atlanteans RTV439X & LRR690W from Ralphbus.
* Thurmaston Bus ---> 'Jumbo' Atlantean AVK170V is now a Mobile Diabetes bus.
* Nigel Jackson ---> VVV958W is a Bristol VRT that has joined the fleet, Similar SJI6571 is currently delicenced.
* Centrebus ---> Two more short Dennis Dart's to turn up here are K854LGN & K865LGN both of which came from London General.
* Ausden Clark ---> Two more Alexander bodied Scania N113's are H202LOM which is another from West Midlands and J820HMC from Metroline London Northern.
* Centrebus ---> Another Metrobus here is A708UOE which is again from the West Midlands fleet.
* Paul Winson ---> Another Olympian to join the fleet is C69CHM which started life in london before spending time on the isle of Man (the livery it currently carries) as EMN209U.
* Paul James ---> Optare Solo's W10PJC & W20PJC have gained blue "cross-country" livery for use on service 8 - Loughborough to Grantham.

August 2003

First Leicester.
* Dennis Falcons 620 & 623-6 have returned home from Northampton and also making the move from north are Volvo B6 No.426 and Volvo B10M Deckers 121, 210 & 285.
* Odd-Man out, Dart 693 has gone to Midland Red at Redditch.
* New arrivals here on behalf of VOLVO Bus & Coach are East Lancs Bodied Volvo Olympians P340ROO, P344ROO, P345ROO & P348ROO. P340ROO & P344ROO departed again after only a few days here to join others of the Batch with UK Northern which also appears to have been the destination of P351ROO & P352ROO.

Arriva Fox County.
* Wigston Scania 4161 was being used by Southgates on 15th aug.
* P201 HRY has been re-branded for route 59, and is very different from 2203. 2201 has the "destinations" in purple right at the top across the right side of the bus (on top of the windows), while on the left side, it displays "up to 2 buses per hour", and other offers like this, again in purple, on the left side, (under the windows.)
* Southgates appears to have gained a thirst for Olympians ! as it is now home to 4508 ex Wigston, 4519 ex Thurmaston and 4559 & 4561 ex Hinckley.
* Volvo 4613 appears to be coming a regular performer on the X67 service, possibly due to the fact that this is the newest Tacho fitted "standard" decker at Southgates.
* Mercedes minibus 1119 has moved from Wigston to Coalville to help out with former County Hopper routes.
* Scania 4162 is back from loan to Arriva Midlands North.

Arriva Derby.
*

First Northampton.
* Dennis Falcons 620 & 623-6 have returned to Leicester together with Volvo B6 No.426 and Volvo B10M Deckers 121, 210 & 285.
* Gas Bus No.49 - P506MVV is currently in store with Volvo where it is presumably suffering from Gastric problems again :-)
* Volvo B10M saloons 112 & 114 have gone to Midland Red at Worcester though it is thought their ultimate destination is Evesham.

General.
* Ausden Clark ---> Information that has recently come to light about this fleet has seen Atlantean SCN285S & Skyliner HIL6578 Stripped for spares, Bedford MDG231V Scrapped, Skyliner NIL8991 & Atlantean AVK169V Sold June, Skyliner A100MWT Sold August.
* Thurmaston Bus ---> Two more Metrobuses to arrive here are GYE532W and KYV795X which both started life with London Transport.
* Centrebus ---> Dart P27MLE has been noted back at work in Leicester after spending time with LQT in Luton. It would appear that vehicles come and go between the fleets ad-hoc !
* Country Hopper ---> Two more Dennis Dart's M389KVR & P696HND have Joined M829RCP and various members of the Centrebus fleet with the fleet of LQT in Dunstable.

July 2003

First Leicester.
* News on the VOLVO Bus & Coach front see's East Lancs bodied Olympians R354XVX, R356XVX & R357XVX heading to UK North at Warrington, new arrivals at Leicester are P338ROO & P339ROO from East Thames buses Whilst P351ROO & P352ROO both returned from hire to PMT but departed again destination unknown after a couple of days.
* Dominator No.89 has departed the fleet to join First PMT on the Wirral, Not too sure if it's to be used for spares or service but it departed under it's own steam.
* It looks like the career of Dominator No.78 (last of the servicable LCT vehicles) has finally come to the end of the road. It has been taken out of service with Engine problems and looks unlikely to return to service.
* Volvo B7TL's 213-19/21-5 have lost their route branding for "Blue Line 22" and have been replaced by similar 251-60 which carry new style Overground Route 22 branding.
* It would appear that Mercedes mini No.722 has ended up in Leeds instead of Worcester!
* Volvo B10BLE V424GGD has finally entered service and is carrying fleet number 005
* Mercedes Minibus No.727 has left the fleet and was last heard of heading for......... Glasgow !

Arriva Fox County.
* A new arrival for the National Express coach unit is 3204 - YJ03PFX a DAF SB4000 with Van Hool coachwork. Though despite this arrival and the recent return to service of 3212 Van Hool bodied Volvo 3214 still often appears on this work.
* Recent Allocation changes have seen Vario 1103 de licenced, Olympians 4514 & 4518 to Southgates ex Hinckley & Wigston, 4504 & 4509 back to Thurmaston ex Southgates.
* To confirm the Discover Leicester Tour Buses 4514 is part open top and 4518 is full open top.
* Scania saloon 3491 has joined 3489 at Southgates after being at Market Harborough for a while.
* Vario 1118 has moved from Wigston to Coalville whilst 1160 & 1164 are thought to have moved to Derby from Southgates and Wigston respectivley.
* Scania 4162 has gone on loan to the former Midlands North depot at Burton for use on School services on which a high level of disruption is occuring during the journeys. Former Crosville Olympian 4547 - B150TRN has gone to Wigston in Exchange.
* A couple more vehicles renumbered are Scania K93 from 2188 to 3402 though the training buses retain their old numbers at present and the Remaining Greenways are now in the 3xxx series.

Arriva Derby.
* The last Scania saloon in normal service, 2183 has been renumbered 3401.

First Northampton.
* Interesting arrivals here are 1136 - G136HNP & 1137 - G137HNP, Leyland Lynx's from First Wyvern that retain Red & Cream livery at present.
* Another interesting arrival here is L259PAH a Mercedes-Benz 609 with Frank Guy bodywork which is in use as an engineers runabout. It came from First Midland Red.
* Atlanteans 541, 545 & 546 have gone to PVS for scrap (straight from service).
* Volvo B6 No.426 has returned to service.

General.
* Hylton & Dawson ---> A forth Plaxton Derwent bodied Bedford has joined the fleet in the shape of D136XVW which was latterly with Fowlers of Holbeach Drove. It still retains Fowlers (broadly similar) livery at present.
* Centrebus ---> The forteenth Metrobus to arrive here and the seventh from West Midlands is D944NDA a coach seated example originally employed on limited stop Timesaver routes around the West Midlands. It is currently operating in TWM livery
* Woods ---> Another couple of Mercedes minibuses have arrived bringing the total of the type up to 20, M371EFD & M373EFD have come from Arriva Midlands North. Both have been re registered, one being XIL1448.
* Centrebus ---> A Third Dart has arrived from London General in the shape of M204EGF which joins M210EGF & M214EGF.
* Country Hopper ---> Dennis Dart M829RCP has Joined the fleet of LQT in Dunstable along with various members of the Centrebus fleet.
* Centrebus ---> It is reported that Olympians E913KYR & E926KYR together with Dart's P27MLE, P32MLE & P158MLE are all now working with LQT in Luton.
* Kinchbus ---> Optare Vecta No.808 is another of the type to leave the fleet.

June 2003

First Leicester.
* After being out of service for nearly a year Volvo B6 No.423 has finally returned to service.
* Minibus No.722 is another to head for a new life in Worcester.
* Dominator No.147 caught fire whilst in the Haymarket bus station on 11th June, the fire is thought to have been started deliberately at the rear of the upper deck. The future for this bus must now look grim as there are several other surplus examples in a better condition around Abbey Park Road. This is the second of the four former North Western Dominators to suffer fire damage the other being No.145.
* Former London Transport Dominator No.141 - B102WUW has finally gone to PVS for Scrap, This was the final one of the three to survive thus another part (albeit small) of Londons bus heritage has gone without trace.
* Dominator Driver Trainer FUT240V has now gained it's proper number of 914 after continuing to run around as No.240 long after the other No.240 - KP51WBT had entered service.
* Further former Go-Ahead Olympians for Storage are N533LHG, N536LHG & N542LHG.
* Another Alexander bodied Volvo B10BLE in storage here is T510APS.
* Volvo B6LE No.004 - R630GSC has departed for somewhere in Scotland.
* There has been a further twist to the saga of Volvo B10BLE - V424GGD. It has now returned from "Booootiful" Norfolk and has been on Driver Training duties around Leicester, However former East London Volvo Olympian R355XVX that was stored at Abbey Park Road has now been noted in Norwich !
* Another East Lancs Pyoneer bodied Volvo Olympian to arrive here for Storage is R357XVX though similar R355XVX has gone to Norwich (see above), P351/2ROO are on Loan from Volvo to PMT and P353ROO is now with Marshall, Sutton on Trent.

Arriva Fox County.
* News of this summers open top service is that Both buses have their roof's removed, new seats and floor fitted upstairs and are almost ready for the road. The buses will be coloured completely red this year and will have transfers of Leicestershire objects such as the clock tower and space centre put on to them. Bus 1: Open top with 1/3 covered. This bus also recently had to have its whole downstairs floor replaced as it was deemed unsafe for use. Bus 2: Open top. The discover leicester tour will run hourly this year between the 28th of June to the end of August. If you want to see the buses before, they will be on display outside the tourist info centre until 2:30pm on the 20th June. When the tour is runing, the bus used will be chosen depending on the weather (ie, bright sunny, no cloud in the sky; bus 2 will be used). The 2nd bus is being used for private hire and Bookings have already been taken for a wedding! The Identity of the buses involved is still unclear though one is 4514 but am not too sure if this is Bus 1 or Bus 2.
* Scania 4171 has been treated to a repaint as has minibus 1169 which formally carried Space Centre shuttle livery.
* Volvo citybuses 4354 & 4355 have gone back to Derby.
* Recent movements have seen Dart's 2048 & 2050 move from Southgates to Thurmaston, Mercedes minibuses 1147 from Southgates to Wigston & 1158 Thurmaston - Wigston.
* New Dart MPD's for Braunstone network service 301 are 2209 - SN03LGC, 2210 - SN03LGD, 2211 - SN03LGE & 2212 - SN03LGE. It is interesting to note that these buses have Edinburgh registrations. And these are the first vehicles in the fleet fitted with Orange LED destination equipment.
* Several saloons have been renumbered with single deck Scanias 2166-79/89-91 becoming 3466-79/89-91: Volvo B10BLE's 2601-3/7-12 becoming 3601-3/7-12 & DAF's 2701-4 becoming 3701-4.
* Dart SLF 2201 been Route Branded for service 59 on the driver's side only and this is done in Red whereas 2203 has been branded in Orange and carries it on both sides.
* Mercedes minibus 1352 is now with Cresswells.

Arriva Derby.
* Volvo citybuses 4354 & 4355 have returned from Fox County.
* Several saloons have been renumbered with single deck Scanias 2192/3 becoming 3492/3 & Volvo B10BLE's 2604-6 becoming 3604-6.

First Northampton.
*

General.
* Thurmaston Bus ---> Atlantean MRJ403W has moved to C & N Travel.
* Paul James ---> The fleet has gained fleet numbers 1 to 33 (but there is no number 13) which are carried on a disc in the windscreen.
* Kinchbus ---> Four Optare Excel's have been transferred from Trent in the shape of 226 - X226WRA, 227 - X227WRA, 228 - X228WRA & 229 - X229WRA, They are for routes 11,12 & 25.
* Thurmaston Bus ---> Atlantean YJI1317 has lost Yellow Schoolbus livery in favour of the new Fleet livery of Dark Blue but without the "go faster" silver stripes initally.
* Thurmaston Bus ---> Two more Metrobuses have joined this fleet in the shape of BOK53V & LOA342X which were both new to West Midlands but came via Bluebird of Liverpool. they rejoin similar LOA346X.
* Confidence ---> It is thought that the former No.25 - KSA183P recently sold to Routemaster of Towcester has been destroyed in an arson attack.
* Centrebus ---> Another dart currently being prepared by Teamdeck in Honley is former London General M214EGF which will join similar M210EGF here.
* Beaverbus ---> The first double decker for this fleet is LUI5603 an ECW coach bodied Leyland Olympian that started life with Maidstone & District as C449BKM.

May 2003

First Leicester.
* An interesting twist to the story of Volvo B10BLE - V424GGD is that it is now being used by Bernard Matthews Foods for Staff transport and is leased directly from Volvo Truck & Bus Leasing.
* Minibus No.725 has gone to First Midland Red at Worcester with Nos.722 & 727 expected to be the next to go.
* More Volvo Olympians to arrive for storage are Alexander bodied M84MYM, M87MYM, M91MYM & N419JBV from London Central and Northern Counties bodied M404RVU & N537LHG from Metrobus.
* Fire damaged volvo B6 No.433 has gone to PVS for Scrap along with Minibus No.718.
* Another Dominator to Return Home from Northampton is No.95 which has replaced similar No.98 which having reached the end of it's PCV ticket has been delicenced.
* Huntingdon & District Dennis Javelin L146BFV has returned home after being fitted with a replacement Engine at Abbey Park Road.
* Mercedes mini No.726 has gone to Worcester and next to follow will be similar No.727.
* Volvo Coach No.2 and Saloon No.112 have been transferred to Northampton.
* Volvo B10L V424GGD has departed Leicester for Norwich and never did enter service here.
* An exchange of minibuses has seen Vario 720 return to Nothampton again in exchange for No.725.
* Currently in storage here for Go-Ahead company London Central are Alexander bodied Volvo Olympians M81MYM & M82MYM & M83MYM & M85MYM.
* Currently in storage here for Go-Ahead company Metrobus of Orpington are Northern Counties bodied Volvo Olympians M401RVU & M402RVU & M403RVU & M405RVU & M406RVU & N411JBV & N528LHG & N535 LHG & WLT688 (ex N538LHG) & N539 LHG.
* A visitor here for maintenance is P.M.T Olympian A168VFM.

Arriva Fox County.
* Mercedes Vario 1104 appears to have found it's way to Stamford.
* Olympian 4514 is confirmed as being converted to Open-top to work this years DiscoverLeicester tour. It is also thought that 4528 will also be converted.
* Former Midland Mainline RailLink minibus 1360 - P222MML has moved to Arriva Midlands North.
* Scania 4145 has had a recent repaint in Arriva livery.
* Former Park & Ride Dart 2203 has recieved route branding for service No. 59.
* Leyland Olympian 4514 has been reported converted to open top and painted red ! this may indicate possible use on the "city-sightseeing" Discover Leicester tour this summer.

Arriva Derby.
* Scania 2186 has turned up with Arriva Scotland !
* Minibus 1372 - N472XRC has been transferred to Arriva Midlands North.

First Northampton.
* Dominator No.95 has returned to Leicester.
* It would appear that Red & Blue Dominator No.79 has found a role for itself as the Northampton Training Bus though also appears on other work.
* Dominators 90 & 95 & 143 have been de-licenced along with Volvo B6 No.426 and Volvo Saloon No.113 which has been stripped of quite a few parts lately to keep other vehicles running.
* Volvo Coach No.2 has been transferred here and Saloon No.112 has returned from Leicester.
* Mercedes-Benz Vario No.720 has returned here again in exchange for No.725.

General.
* Confidence ---> Olympian No.39 has returned from loan to Midland Routemaster but Atlantean No.29 has gone on loan in exchange.
* Centrebus ---> M210EGF is another Dennis Dart to join the fleet and was latterly with London General.
* Paul James ---> The 4 new Optare Solo's are YN03ZXA, YN03ZXB, YN03ZXC & YN03ZXD. All of which wear Blue Cross Country livery.
* Centrebus ---> It is expected that 5 Optare solo's are on order to work the Outer Circle which is currently being opperated by Woods short term.
* G.H. Watts ---> A third Metrobus here is LOA400X and like several others locally came from Travel West Midlands.
* C & N Travel ---> is Leicestershire busman Neil Taylor's latest venture and currently has a trio of vehicles with... OTO562M which is a former Nottingham (via Confidence) Atlantean, IIL1317 a former Wallace Arnold Volvo-Paramount 3500 coach and WIL3624 a Berkhoff bodied Tiger that is thought to have started life with London Country bus on Airlinks work.
* Kinchbus ---> Due here are some Northern Counties bodied Volvo B10B's to replace Optare Vecta's on service No.2. The first of which is L114LRA and this should be followed shortly by similar L121LRA.
* Kinchbus ---> It would appear that after only a brief stay the days of the Optare Vecta's could be numbered as Nos. 810,811 & 815 are back at Langley Mill.
* Paul James ---> Currently on Hire from Optare are 26 seat Solo's YF02SKU & YN03NDX.
* Paul James ---> A new coach here is FN03DXJ which is a Volvo B7R with Jonckheere Modulo bodywork.
* Confidence ---> Another pair of Plaxton bodied Leyland Tigers has joined the fleet in the shape of DCZ2317 & DCZ2319 which started life as London Country Bus as A127EPA & A126EPA respectively.
* Confidence ---> Alexander bodied Atlantean No.25 - KSA183P has been sold to Routemaster Travel of Towcester who have taken on some of the work given up by First Northampton. Olympian No.39 - RBO510Y was also on loan to the same company for a short while.

April 2003

First Leicester.
* Continuing the strange arrivals theme is Plaxton bodied Dennis Javelin, L146 BFV. It has come from Huntigdon & District (Sovereign, Blazefield Holdings). Again why it is at Abbey Park Road is unclear.
* Volvo B10L V424GGD is now wearing a "Leicester CityBus" legal address so Perhaps this one is going to "hang around" not go to PMT now either!
* Further interesting arrivals at Abbey Park Road are a batch of Northern Counties Volvo Olympians from Metrobus of Orpington. The vehicles are: M403 RVU, N535 LHG & N539 LHG. Again, it is not known at present, why these are here. However the guess is that First Mainline are doing some sort of refurbishment on them, prior to going elsewhere in the Go-Ahead group, and so they are being laid over at Leicester as has happened in the past.
* It's all change on the Dominator front with Nos 92 & 146 - 149 returning from Northampton to relpace similar vehicles recently taken out of service.
* Further Dominators taken out of service are 81, 91, 96 & 97. 81 being of interest, Being the first proper bus new to Leicester CityBus, rather than Leicester City Transport, it would be a nice one for preservation. Especially, with its more unusual style of East Lancs bodywork.
* An interesting arrival here is 004 - R630GSC a Volvo B6LE with Alexander ALX200 body which was destined to go to PMT but looks like entering service here for a while.
* Another Olympian to stop off here en route from London to PMT is R358XVX.
* Dominators 89 & 93 have been de-licenced though 78 still keeps on rolling.
* Volvo Olympian No.185 made a brief re-appearence on schools services in april before Finaly departing (for good this time..... possibly) to First Essex.
* Three and a Half years after arriving from Eastern Counties Volvo B6 No.430 has finaly recieved a repaint and now carries corporate livery without the Pink fuzzy bit.
* Accident Damaged Volvo B10L No.42 has finally left Abbey park road for repairs by Yeates before heading further North. The similar Dublin Bus vehicle has also departed recently.

Arriva Fox County.
* It is thought that Olympians 4504 & 4509 are only on loan to Southgates and will return to Thurmaston soon.
* Another vehicle to appear at Southgates is Scania saloon 2191 which was latterly at Market Harborough.
* Southgates Olymian 4516 appears to have had a partial repaint in Arriva Livery !
* Olympian 4509 appears to be another of it's type to venture back to Southgates the depot it was first allocated to nearly 20 Years ago !
* More Mercedes Vario minibuses have found their way to Pete's Travel in the west midlands wiz 1101/02/08/09/13 being the latest to be identified.
* Southgates based olympian 4645 seems to have taken up residence at Thurmaston.
* A shuffle of Minibuses has seen 1147 move to Southgates after a very brief stay at Thurmaston in exchange for 1173 whilst 1149 has moved from Coalville to Wigston.
* Volvo coach 3212 has returned to service following accident repairs and is currently back on National Express work in allover white.
* Midland Mainline liveried Mercedes minibus 1359 has been re-registered to P608JJU but still makes occasional appearences on the RailLink.
* Coalville Olympian 4514 has been parked up at Derby whilst similar "day-glo" Yellow liveried 4504 has moved to Southgates from Thurmaston.

Arriva Derby.
*

First Northampton.
* Following a reduction in the Peak Vehicle requirement, Dominators 92 & 146-9 have returned to Leicester.
* Volvo No.131 caught fire in Greyfriars bus station on 7th April and is now de-licenced.

General.
* Confidence ---> Two Plaxton bodied Leyland Tigers (new to London & Country) are expected here shortly from Thamesdown.
* Confidence ---> Plaxton bodied Leyland Leopard, No. 35 - LNU 569W, has been withdrawn.
* Thurmaston Bus ---> After a brief stay here former Confidence Atlantean OTO568M is moving down the road to C & N Travel.
* Centrebus ---> More info has come to light on the saga of vehicles appearing in Luton. Darts P27MLE & P32MLE have now also been recorded as operating/having been operated there alongside M829RCP which is a sister vehicle to that recently recieved by Centrebus.
* Paul James ---> Volvo B7 - T8PJC has been traded in for a New 03 reg coach and two Second Hand vehicles have joined the fleet for school work, details to follow.
* Paul James ---> Will not have all four Solos ready for the Nottingham - Stamford route on Tuesday22nd, so Optare are lending them one and also an Excel demonstator.
* KinchBus ---> Dart's 409/410 have lost their Leicester Flyer vinyls and also the pale blue lower stripe as they are back on Town Services 11 and 12.
* Centrebus ---> Two more Vehicles thought to be heading this way are Dennis Dart K828NKH and former Travel West Midlands Metrobus A766WVP.
* Thurmaston Bus ---> Yet another former West Midlands vehicle to hit the streets of Leicestershire is LOA346X.
* Paul Winson ---> Three more premiere bodied Volvo Coaches have arrived two of which are in National Holidays livery.
* Paul James ---> 4 more Optare Solo's are expected for use on the newly won service 2/2a Nottingham to Stamford.
* Woods ---> Have a New Optare Solo in the shape of MX03YCT.
* Centrebus ---> Another Dart to go a wondering is P158MLE which has been noted working in Luton !
* Ausden Clark ---> Has aquired a Trio of former West Midlands Scania N113 Double Deckers in the shape of H211LOM, H212LOM & H221LOM.

March 2003

First Leicester.
* Strange visitors to Abbey Park Road (though not for service in leicester) are East Lancs bodied Volvo Olympians P351/2/3 ROO & R354/5/6 XVX, from East Thames buses (new to Harris Bus), and Alexander ALX300 bodied Volvo B10L, V424 GGD. All of which were being prepared for service with PMT.
* Volvo Saloon No.115 has returned to Stansted in exchange for similar No.112.

Arriva Fox County.
* Another Greenway to depart is 2157 which is now with Tanat Valley in deepest darkest Wales (Llanrhaeadr-ym-Mochnant to be precise !)
* Greenway 2158 is now operating for an independant, either Aimees Luxury Coaches or Taxico which are based somewhere in the North Midlands area.
* It is thought that Vario minibuses 1105, 1112 & 1114 are now with Pete's travel in the West Midlands.
* Olympian 4516 has moved from Thurmaston to Southgates.
* Wigston Olympian 4608 was noted working from Thurmaston at the start of the month so may have been transferred to join 4601-4.
* Yet Another ex London Dart noted here is 2050 - P850PWW which is working from Southgates.

Arriva Derby.
*

First Northampton.
*

General.
* Centrebus ---> Another Dart is K434OKH which started life in London with Metroline.
* Centrebus ---> Dennis Dart M821RCP came from Reliance who are based near Grantham though was prepared for service by Teamdeck Honley.
* Centrebus ---> A Dart MPD in a Metalic Blue/Green livery has been on loan from Transbus whilst the two MPD's are returned to the builder for mods.
* Woods ---> R419FWT & R421FWT are another pair of Plaxton Premiere 350 bodied Volvo's that have arrived from Wallace Arnold.
* GH Watts ---> The second Metrobus to enter this fleet is NOA466X which came from West Midlands and joins several from this batch in Leicestershire. It has replaced Bristol VRT LFJ865W which is now with Wide Horizon.
* Beaverbus ---> The identity of the Beaver-Bendi-Buz is confirmed as BBZ6818 which started life with South Yorkshire PTE as C113HDT before moving to the Bath Bus Co in June 2000.
* General ---> 'Beryl the Beast' the Leicestershire Diebetes Bus that has latterly resided at the Thurmaston Bus Yard returned to it's owners - The London Bus Company - on the 16th Feb having completed the hire contract. The Diebetes Team are hoping to purchase their own vehicle in the near future.
* Centrebus ---> A Dart registered M821RCP has been noted in Centrebus livery but without fleetnames so could or could not be part of this fleet.
* Centrebus ---> Dart P27MLE which has been "Missing" for a while has returned, It is in a variation of the standard 'new' livery with only a narrow orange band above the blue skirt and the rest white.
* Kinchbus ---> Optare Vecta 809 - M809PRA is now back in Trent livery and working as a Driver Trainer.
* Centrebus ---> Service revisions see Service 16 withdrawn from March 23rd, Service 54A route and timetable ammendments from March 24th and New service 104 Braunstone to City Centre from March 24th.
* Centrebus ---> More Dart's to recieve the new livery are P35MLE & P160MLE.

Febuary 2003

First Leicester.
* An Interesting arrival here is F141MBC a First PMT Dominator that started life right here at Abbey Park Road. It is here to have some work done.
* Volvo Saloon 112 has gone on loan to First Essex Buses at Stanstead for Rail Replacement work in Exchange for Northampton's 115 which needed a service and is currently working around Leicester.
* Mercedes minibus 720 has come back to Leicester whilst 725 has gone the other way.
* The saga of Dominator No.99 has taken a twist as the vehicle has now left Abbey Park Road and is now with First PMT at Adderley Green depot, it is not clear what the motive for this move is as although PMT has some Dominator inc some former Leicester examples these are all based on the Wirral !

Arriva Fox County.
* The company is to cease operating Nat Exp service 348 to Swansea but a service to Weymouth is being gained instead as is another London diagram both of which will be overnight stopovers for the vehicles. It is thought that Additional vehicles will also be aquired as 3211 & 3212 are due for replacement anyway.
* Merc's 1356-8 have moved to Cannock and it is thought that the rest of the batch could follow.
* Stored Vario's 1101 & 1102 have moved from Derby to Coalville.
* Vario 1148 has moved from Coalville to Southgates.
* It is thought that Vario's 1141-3 are now at Hinckley ex Thurmaston.
* As expected Former P & R Dart's 2201-4 have moved to Southgates.
* Wigston has gained Vario's 1104 & 1116 from Southgates & 1138 from Thurmaston.
* Scania 2179 has joined sisters 2176-8 at Coalville.
* Greenway 2158 has left Coalville - Destination unknown.
* Olympian 4509 has returned to Thurmaston from Wigston.
* The Dart's that have taken over workings on the Kettering to Corby Rail-Link are 2274 - FK52MML & 2275 - FL52MML and carry a Midland Mainline style livery.

Arriva Derby.
*

First Northampton.
* Volvo Saloon 115 which was on loan to First Essex buses is currently in service at Leicester having been replaced at Stanstead by 112.
* Mercedes minibus 720 has gone back to Leicester whilst 725 has come the other way.
* Volvo Saloon 115 - J115MRP is currently on loan to Essex buses at Stanstead to help out with Rail-Replacement work.
* Volvo coach No.12 - K924RGE has been noted parked in the Disposals line at Abbey Park Road.
* Missing Volvo B7L No.348 - MV02VBU has finally reached here.

General.
* Roberts ---> Two Former Nottingham Atlanteans have been aquired from Kinchbus in the shape of Northern Counties bodied BAU674T and East Lancs Bodied BTV656T. These have replaced Atlantean OBN503R and recently arrived Metrobus BOK40V.
* BeaverBus ---> The identity of the Bendi-Bus is still a mystery as the vehicle is proving to be a bit elusive despite the fact it is a fairly noticable vehicle. Keep your eyes peeled it can't be difficult to loose somthing this size :-)
* Ralph Bus ---> Has K420CKH a Plaxton Premiere coach about which nothing else is currently known.
* Centrebus ---> Dart P160MLE has had a repaint into the new livery and has lost it's name.
* Ausden Clarke ---> This keen Scania collector now has its first Scania double decker bus with the arrival of H211LOM from Travel West Midlands. Four identical vehicles have recently entered service with Centrebus.
* Confidence ---> Another Olympian to arrive here is JFR5W which was one of the first Olympians being No.20 off the production line though was one of the first half a dozen to actually enter service which it did in July 1981 with Ribble.
* Confidence ---> Atlantean No.29 - MNU625P has been on loan to Fleetline Buses.
* Thurmaston Bus ---> Former Nottingham Atlanteans OTO562M & MNU632P have arrived here from Confidence.
* Confidence ---> Atlantean No.33 MNU632P has been sold to Thurmaston Bus along with similar No.28 OTO562M.
* Centrebus ---> Atlantean MVO424W which was withdrawn sometime ago has made it's way across to the RalphBus part of the yard.
* Ausden Clark ---> Scania coach KAZ4524 appeared to be in trouble on 30th Jan as it was spotted parked up on Abbey Park road with a large ammount of blue smoke coming out of the exhaust and most external vents !

January 2003

First Leicester.
* Minibuses 723, 729 & 730 have gone to First Midland Red at Redditch.

Arriva Fox County.
* Former East Midlands Airport Shuttle buses 1152, 1155 & 1161 are all now in Arrive livery and at least 1161 has been upseated back to 27. This is thought to leave Coalville with a surplus of mini's.
* Former Derby Scania K92 2185 - E25ECH has appeared at Coalville.
* Two new Dart MPD's are in use on the Kettering to Corby RailLink one of which is 2274 - FK52MML.
* Yet another Vehicle to come from Derby is Volvo Olympian 4668 - P168BTV which arrived in an oveall advert for Derbyshire Police Crimestoppers though recieved a repaint before entering service at Thurmaston.
* 2202 was the first of the Park & Ride Darts to be taken off the circuit and is expected to go to Southgates with 2201 & 2203 with 2204 staying at Thurmaston as a Park & Ride / Marks & Sparks shuttle cover vehicle.
* DAF operation of the Park & Ride started on Monday 13th With 2701 - FD52GGO being used as the Peak-Hour bus on this and the following two days it was then joined by 2702 - FD52GGP & 2704 - FD52GGV on Thursday 16th and 2703 - FD52GGU the following week.
* Scania 4150 has been traced to PC Coaches of Lincoln.
* Mercedes Vario's 1101, 1102, 1112, 1113, 1114, 1115, & 1117 are in Storage at Derby along with RailLink livered 1345 & 1360.
* Following the loss of the East Midlands Airport contract minibuses 1152/5/61 are expected to return to normal service and 1155 & 1161 have already been repainted into Arriva livery.
* Temporary loans recently were Scania 2174 From Southgates to Thurmaston and DAF 4727 from Southgates to Wigston.
* Another Derby vehicles to come to the Fox County is Alexander bodied Scania K93 2188 - F28JRC which has joined sister 2187 at Southgates and is being used in service.
* Much Travelled Olympian 4477 - TPD129X is now back at Southgates.
* New Wright Commander bodied DAF SB200's to replace Dart's 2201-4 on the Park & Ride are FD52GGO & FD52GGU with another pair expected. 2201-4 will then move to Southgates for Use on the Braunstone Route.

Arriva Derby.
* Scania 2185 has turned up with Fox County at Coalville.
* 4668 is another Vehicle to be Transferred to Fox County.
* Scania 2188 has gone to Fox County at Southgates.
* More DAF's delivered are 4737 - PN52XRW, 4744 - PN52XRV & 4745 - PN52XRM which leaves just 4743 which will presumably be PN52XRU. 4737 & 4745 should be the other way around !

First Northampton.
* Missing Volvo B7 348 - MV02VBU is gradually working it's way down from Manchester and is currently doing route trials with First Midland Red at Worcester.

General.
* General ---> A Former South Yorkshire Bendi-Bus in a sort of creamy/yellow livery with a reg somthing like BBZ---- has been noted in the Glen Pava & South Wigston area's, Could be with the Beaver Bus Fleet but not 100% sure at this moment in time. Any info ?
* Dunn-Line ---> New Dart MPD's for Car Park shuttles at East Midlands Airport are FM52GKF, FM52GKV & FM52GKX whilst larger Dart L6BOB is also in use here on Staff Shuttles.
* Centrebus ---> It would appear that P27MLE is the Dart that has left the fleet not P29MLE, It is also rumoured that some have also been working around Peterborough (P32MLE & P160MLE might be missing from Leicester can anyone confirm).
* Confidence ---> Former Nottingham Atlantean No.33 - MNU632P has been taken out of service and is to be used as a store shed ! This was the last of the Atlanteans to be aquired from Nottingham and this leaves 3 similar vehicles plus one former Grampian example.

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