Friday 16 September 2011

Back to Original on the 11

Centro 528 passes the end of Seafield Road on diverted route 11 on Thursday
Warton Street in Lytham is currently closed for resurfacing and Blackpool Transport routes 7 and 11 - and Coastal 76 and 78 are subject to diversion. The 7, 76 and 78 divert at Lytham Hospital via East Beach and Station Road to reach Clifton Street and resume their normal route into Lytham. The reverse is observed on eastbound journeys. Route 11, however, has an unusual diversion which not only avoids the St John's Church terminus and Lytham Hospital, but also Church Road too in one direction. The temporary arrangements see the buses towards Lytham turn from Church Road into Fairlawn Road, left onto West Beach then East Beach, Station Road and Clifton Street to Lytham Square from where the established route is adopted back to Grange Park. This has shades of the original 1930s route of the 11 which used used Seafield Road (the other side of the playing fields to Fairlawn Road), West Beach and Dicconson Terrace to reach Lytham Square avoiding the single line section of the erstwhile tramway on Church Road.

While most long term diversions associated with regeneration and the tramway upgrade have ended, recent short term roadworks related diversions have created some interesting routings. Presently Norcross Lane is closed so route 15 is serving the narrow Bispham Road between Whiteholme and Castle Gardens - a road which once experienced a mini bus war between Archway Travel P11 and Fylde 6A between Poulton and Victoria Hospital! Route 16 has used Sevenoakes Drive and Amounderness Way instead of Norcross Lane and Fleetwood Road.

In late September Fleetwood Road will be closed between Norcross Lane and Castle Gardens in the evenings and the 15 will follow the same diversion as above. The 14 will need to run via Poulton, Breck Road and Amounderness Way.