Description

Full description from the producer:

There has always been an interest for the bus enthusiast in the buses that run in the historic City of Chester and along the Wirral peninsular at Ellesmere Port and the port town of Birkenhead.  In Chester it was home to Crosville’s head office and the streets were also graced with the Massey-bodied Guy Arab buses of Chester Corporation from the late 1940s to the 1970s mingling with the Bristol/ECW vehicles of Crosville.  Birkenhead had a smart corporation fleet of mostly Leyland double-deckers, again mainly with Massey bodywork, in a smart mid-blue and cream livery lined out in back. All that has now changed almost beyond recognition. In the twenty-first century the main operators in the area are Arriva (North West) and Stagecoach (Merseyside and South Lancs).  A number of independent operators are also seen on this programme, including Arrowebrook Coaches, Aintree Coachlines, Happy Al’s Coaches, D&G Bus and M&H Coaches. 

This DVD programme was filmed over a period of six years.  Beginning in 2017 through to 2022 the independent transport videos cameras have covered Chester, Ellesmere Port and Birkenhead concluding with some shots taken in Liverpool showing two very special liveried buses belonging to Stagecoach!  Locations in Chester include Pepper Street, Little St John Street, Foregate Street, Frodsham Street and George Street.  In our 2018 scenes we witness the closure of the former Crosville bus depot in Chester, known as ‘The Rink’ and the closure of the ‘Bus Exchange’ situated behind the Town Hall.  The ‘Bus Exchange’ and the former bus station in Delamere Street have been replaced by a superb new ‘Chester Bus Interchange’ situated on Gorse Stacks where a good deal of filming takes place in this programme. More filming features Cow Lane Bridge, Love Street, Station Road and City Road.  At Ellesmere Port our location is Civic Way and at Birkenhead the bus station and Conway Street.  As the filming takes place over a six-year period we see a good number of changes to the bus liveries and of course the vehicles themselves.  Most striking is the painting of one of Aintree Coachlines former London ADL Enviro400 double-deckers into Chester Corporation’s maroon and cream livery complete with CCT style fleet names and fleet numbers.  This bus operates the link service from the railway station to the city centre.  There are also a number of other equally interesting vehicles operated by this independent bus company featured in this programme.  Stagecoach have also celebrated their heritage by painting one of their ADL Enviro400 Scania double-deckers in their current livery style but substituting the modern colours with Tilling green and cream to mark 90 years of the Rock Ferry former Crosville bus depot.  They have also painted in a similar livery another Enviro400, but dark red and cream to celebrate Ribble since 1919.  Both these vehicles are filmed in Liverpool – just across the Mersey from Birkenhead.

Additional information