It’s properly miserable at the bus stop. The nice, sunny bus stop environment appears to be a thing of the past.
Category Archives: Transport
Benton Lane II
Benton Lane
I’ve been spending quite a lot of time at a bus stop on Benton Lane of late. It’s an average sort of bus stop, with a shelter and a timetable, but no litter bin. There’s one across the road though.
The area around the bus stop’s nice; well, if you don’t look back towards Quorum, or across the road to the industrial park (but even that’s pretty well hidden by greenery.
I quite like the well-used-but-neglected-remoteness of the bus stop. Even the cracked concrete floor looks nice. And the grass and weeds growing between paving stones. I sat there for fifteen minutes this evening. In the sunshine. It was lovely.
Accessibility
Daisy II
Daisy
Sadly, Daisy is deceased. She’s served us well for almost a year and, most importantly, has been reliable (and very cheap to run).
She currently lies at rest at a garage in Harrogate. A failed water pump, combined with a disregarded warning light, has resulted in a melted engine (or something like that). With repair costs higher than Daisy’s value (indeed, her purchase price), we’ve reluctantly decided against life saving surgery.
I’m sure there’ll soon be a Daisy II, but meanwhile I’m training my second in command in the use of public transport. Fortunately, Longbenton’s within easy reach by Metro.
Fire Mountain
Number 8
A bus ride home
Carlisle
Had almost an hour to kill between trains in Carlisle, so went for a bit of a wander (and a pint in the Howard Arms). I know I shouldn’t have been surprised, but the gorgeous old Victorian market hall is now a Wilkinson’s store, on the ground floor. A new upper floor accommodates TK Maxx. It’s good that a stunning old building is still in use. And I mean that. But, I have fond memories of that market (from the 80s); there was a great little wholefoods shop, at a time when such things were scarce in the North.
Anyway, the Howard Arms does a respectable pint of Stella (the real ale all contained fish).