Jurassic Coaster

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Jurassic Coaster
First Wessex Jurassic Coaster Logo.png
BF63 HDY (Route X53) at Axminster Station.jpg
First Weymouth's BF63 HDY at Axminster Station in 2019.
Overview
OperatorFirst Weymouth
VehicleClosed and Open top Volvo-bodied ALX400, Wright Eclipse Gemini's and integral ADL Enviro400.
Began serviceNovember 1998
Former operator(s)Southern National
Service
FrequencyEvery two hours

The Jurassic Coaster is an open top bus service operated by the Weymouth branch of First Hampshire & Dorset, running around the Jurassic coastline of the county of Dorset.[1] It features five unique routes, stretching from Axminster in the west to Poole in the east, with one of the routes in TripAdvisor's 2018 poll of most scenic bus routes coming in 12th place.[2]

History[]

See also: First Hampshire & Dorset

The X53 route was introduced in November 1998 by Southern National, and operated at a frequency of one bus every three hours between Exeter and Dorchester via Seaton, Lyme Regis, and Bridport. In May 2001, the route was changed east of Bridport to instead serve Abbotsbury and Weymouth. In May 2003, the frequency of the route was increased to two-hourly, the Sunday service became year-round, and some summer services were extended beyond Weymouth to Wareham.[3]

In April 2004, the route was branded as CoastLinX53. The following month, the route was extended to Poole, with some buses continuing to Bournemouth. While the existing service was council-funded, the extensions to Poole and Bournemouth were operated on a commercial basis.[4] However, the Bournemouth extensions were cut in April 2008.[3]

After fifteen years of financial support from Devon County Council and Dorset County Council,[5] in March 2013 the route began being operated entirely on a commercial basis for the first time. A new livery was launched, together with the Jurassic Coaster branding.[3] By the following year, the route was running at an hourly frequency between Lyme Regis and Weymouth.[6]

Split-up of the X53 and rebranding by First Wessex[]

In 2016, the X53 was split into multiple routes, with the X53 itself being shortened to only run between Axminster and Weymouth. Two new service were introduced numbered X52 and X54. The X52 ran between Exeter and Lyme Regis, avoiding Axminster,[7] while the X54 ran between Weymouth and Poole. The X52 service was reduced in frequency, and withdrawn in 2018, marking the end of First bus services in Exeter.[3][8]

During the COVID-19 pandemic[]

Sunday services were cancelled during the COVID-19 pandemic, but were reinstated in July 2020.[9] The Sunday service continued to run during the winter, unlike in previous years.[10]

In 2021, the logo and livery for the routes was updated. Route 501 was brought into the network with "Portland Coaster" branded open top buses and the X52 number was relaunched and reworked for a new route running between Bridport and Monkey World.[1][11][12]

Routes[]

In the network there are five routes, with four officially being branded with the "Jurassic Coaster" branding and one going under the "Portland Coaster" branding.[12] All of the routes are served on a two-hourly basis and have no specific vehicle allocation with the exception of the 501.

Route X51[]

The X51 runs from Weymouth to Axminster and calls at Dorchester, Poundbury, Bridport and Lyme Regis. The start of the route follows route 10 until Manor Roundabout where it splits off and uses the Weymouth relief road to get into Dorchester. The route then heads west on Bridport road to Poundbury, turning onto Peverell avenue to Bridport via Winterbourne Abbas along Dorchester road. It continues left to Charmouth and Lyme Regis along the A35 before heading upwards to Axminster on the B3165. The route is normally served with closed top Wright Eclipse Gemini 2 bodied Volvo B9TL, open top Wright Eclipse Gemini bodied Volvo B7TL or an ADL Enviro400 in a yellow and orange "Jurassic Coaster" branding.

Route X52[]

The X52 runs from Bridport to Monkey World and calls at Abbotsbury, Weymouth, West Lulworth and Wool. From Bridport, the route heads to West Bay using West Bay road and continues its journey from there to Abbotsbury via the B3157, passing Swyre. It then goes into Weymouth and heads to West Lulworth using Preston road and passing the town of Warmwell. After leaving West Lulworth, the route heads upwards to Wool and terminates at the Monkey World Ape Rescue Centre. The route is normally served with closed top Wright Eclipse Gemini 2 bodied Volvo B9TL, open top Wright Eclipse Gemini bodied Volvo B7TL or an ADL Enviro400 in a yellow and orange "Jurassic Coaster" branding, though sometimes you can find "Portland Coaster" buses on the route. The route runs only between mid-May and mid-September.

Route X53[]

The X53 runs from Weymouth to Axminster and calls at Abbotsbury, Swyre, Bridport and Lyme Regis. The route is fairly similar with route X51, though instead of going to Dorchester, it goes to Chickerell Hill road to Portesham and Abbotsbury, then extends across the B3157 to Swyre before it meets with the X51 in Bridport. From there it continues along the A35 to Charmouth and Lyme Regis and terminates in Axminster. The route is normally served with closed top Wright Eclipse Gemini 2 bodied Volvo B9TL, open top Wright Eclipse Gemini bodied Volvo B7TL or an ADL Enviro400 in a yellow and orange "Jurassic Coaster" branding.

In 2019, the Sunday winter service was subsidised by a local resident.[13][14] The 2022 Sunday winter service was also due to be subsidised by the resident, however, in February 2022 First announced that the company would cover the costs of operating the service.[15]

Route X54[]

The X54 runs from Weymouth to Poole and calls at West Lulworth, Wool, Wareham, Sandford and Upton. The route begins from Weymouth and follows the Preston road to Warmwell. Depending on the time of day, the route can continue straight along Wareham road directly to Wool, or it can stop at West Lulworth near the Man o' War beach. After leaving Wool, the route heads eastwards to Wareham and continues along Wareham road past Sandford until it arrives at Upton where it heads to Poole via Blandford road. The route is normally served with closed top Wright Eclipse Gemini 2 bodied Volvo B9TL, open top Wright Eclipse Gemini bodied Volvo B7TL or an ADL Enviro400 in a yellow and orange "Jurassic Coaster" branding.

Route 501[]

"Portland Coaster" logo branding for route 501

The 501 runs from Weymouth to Portland and follows the majority of route 1 where it splits at Southwell street to head to Portland bill lighthouse. The route is served with open top Transbus ALX400 bodied Volvo B7TL's in a cream and blue "Portland Coaster" branding and runs only between mid-May and mid-September.[12]

Vehicles[]

Jurassic Coaster X53 service in 2017

When the original X53 was introduced in November 1998 by Southern National, the route was operated with three Plaxton Paramount coaches.[3]

After the takeover of the company the same year and the rebranding of the route in 2004, the route was served with Wright Eclipse Gemini bodied Volvos for the Coastlinx53. In May 2021, the route network and livery was revised and modified open top Transbus ALX400s and Wright Eclipse Geminis as well as closed top Enviro400s were put into its colours and used on the network.[11][12][16]

References[]

  1. ^ a b "New open-top bus route comes to Dorset in time for summer". Dorset Echo. Retrieved 2021-11-02.
  2. ^ "Most Scenic Bus Routes in Britain - United Kingdom Message Board - Tripadvisor". www.tripadvisor.co.uk. Retrieved 2021-11-02.
  3. ^ a b c d e "Cruising the Jurassic Coasters". Buses Magazine. 2019-08-15. Retrieved 2021-06-14.
  4. ^ "New look buses for X53 Jurassic Coaster". Dorset Transport and Travel. 2013-07-29. Archived from the original on 2013-11-03. Retrieved 2021-06-14.
  5. ^ "Extra journeys for X53 coastal bus service". Sidmouth Herald. 2010-05-14. Retrieved 2021-06-14.
  6. ^ "Annual Review" (PDF). Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site Partnership. p. 2. Retrieved 2021-06-14.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  7. ^ Carson, Chris (2016-04-18). "Jurassic Coaster bus to run six times a day". Sidmouth Herald. Retrieved 2021-06-14.
  8. ^ Lea, Martin (2017-11-30). "First Wessex to withdraw bus route 5 to Crossways and X52 Lyme Regis to Exeter". The Bolton News. Retrieved 2021-06-14.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  9. ^ Evans, Francesca (2020-07-30). "'Jurassic Coaster' Sunday service reinstated". LymeOnline. Retrieved 2021-06-14.
  10. ^ Whtie, Bradley (2020-11-21). "Changes made to Service 1, Service 10, X51 and X53 bus routes". Dorset Echo. Retrieved 2021-06-14.
  11. ^ a b Klein, Josie (2021-05-27). "Jurassic Coaster open top bus in Dorset". Bridport & Lyme Regis News. Retrieved 2021-06-14.
  12. ^ a b c d "Wayback Machine | Weymouth & the Jurassic Coast bus guide" (PDF). web.archive.org. 2021-06-14. Retrieved 2021-11-02.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  13. ^ "Pensioner funding 'lifeline' Bridport bus service from his own pocket". Bridport and Lyme Regis News. Retrieved 2022-02-06.
  14. ^ "Weymouth First Wessex bus route saved after pensioner's offer". BBC News. 2022-02-10. Retrieved 2022-02-10.
  15. ^ Greasley-Machin, Sam (2022-02-14). "Bus company reverses decision to axe service after pensioner offers to pay". Dorset Echo. Retrieved 2022-02-15.
  16. ^ Carter, Christopher (2021-06-03). "Jurassic Coast bus boost". Buses Magazine. Retrieved 2021-06-14.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
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