Now this Blog may sound a bit "geeky" but it is an icon on the North Wales Coast currently between Rhyl & Chester, but I have written it as it holds memories from past and any post I write about which involves North Wales will always be special.
Described by some as one of Britain's best bus journeys at the time from an interest and scenic point of view, it also linked many communities along it's vast lengthy route.
It was in 1965 that Crosville introduced the Cymru Coastliner between Chester and Caernarfon, anticipating the closure of many British Rail stations along the route.
The established Cymru Coastliner service was launched on Sunday 5th of January 1986 with a fleet of Leyland Olympians with Eastern Coachworks bodies, they had dual purpose seating and an eye-catching livery based on the colours of the Welsh flag, the red element of which was provided by a giant cartoon dragon.
Crosville had sped up their Cymru Coastliner limited stop service between Chester and Caernarfon by about thirty minutes to a three-hour trip end-to-end, taking advantage of new by-passes along the route.
The brand which is still very much intact to this day albeit not to the exact same route as with the Crosville days, it is however quite a long distance route in it's own with a 120 minute journey from Chester to Rhyl via Holywell, on services 11, 11A, 11C, 11F, 11X and X11 and even the evening service provided by G.H.A. Coaches of Wrexham use the Cymru Coastliner name on their digital destination displays in the evening.
The official launch of Arriva Buses Wales' £2 million investment in 10 state of the art Wright Gemini DL's was at the Marine Lake in Rhyl which are as follows, CX61 CCY (4479), CX61 CCZ (4480), CX61 CDE (4481), CX61 CDF (4482), CX61 CDK (4483), CX61 CDN (4484),CX61 CDO (4485), CX61 CDU (4486), CX61 CDV (4487) and CX61 CDY (4488).
The Wright Gemini DL's have now displaced Dennis Dart SLF's with Plaxton Pointer and Pointer 2 bodies of varying age from 1997 through to 1999 on the Cymru Coastliner services.
The new buses are fitted out with many extras which set them apart from previous orders of the type, with the inclusion of leather seating, full rear LED destination displays and on-board WiFi connections too, as well as being branded externally for the Cymru Coastliner service, the buses also have the name embroidered into the tops of the seats.
They are the first vehicles in the Arriva Buses Wales fleet to have bilingual interior notices for passengers including branding with the Cymru Coastliner name, as well as the bilingual destination displays too, with obligations under the Welsh Language Act.
It was in 1965 that Crosville introduced the Cymru Coastliner between Chester and Caernarfon, anticipating the closure of many British Rail stations along the route.
The original route would take you on a scenic journey from Caernarfon it made it's way through Bangor, Conwy, Llandudno, Rhyl and Prestatyn and along the North Wales Coast then following the Dee estuary and on to Chester City Centre.
The established Cymru Coastliner service was launched on Sunday 5th of January 1986 with a fleet of Leyland Olympians with Eastern Coachworks bodies, they had dual purpose seating and an eye-catching livery based on the colours of the Welsh flag, the red element of which was provided by a giant cartoon dragon.Crosville had sped up their Cymru Coastliner limited stop service between Chester and Caernarfon by about thirty minutes to a three-hour trip end-to-end, taking advantage of new by-passes along the route.
The official launch of Arriva Buses Wales' £2 million investment in 10 state of the art Wright Gemini DL's was at the Marine Lake in Rhyl which are as follows, CX61 CCY (4479), CX61 CCZ (4480), CX61 CDE (4481), CX61 CDF (4482), CX61 CDK (4483), CX61 CDN (4484),CX61 CDO (4485), CX61 CDU (4486), CX61 CDV (4487) and CX61 CDY (4488).
The Wright Gemini DL's have now displaced Dennis Dart SLF's with Plaxton Pointer and Pointer 2 bodies of varying age from 1997 through to 1999 on the Cymru Coastliner services.
The new buses are fitted out with many extras which set them apart from previous orders of the type, with the inclusion of leather seating, full rear LED destination displays and on-board WiFi connections too, as well as being branded externally for the Cymru Coastliner service, the buses also have the name embroidered into the tops of the seats.
They are the first vehicles in the Arriva Buses Wales fleet to have bilingual interior notices for passengers including branding with the Cymru Coastliner name, as well as the bilingual destination displays too, with obligations under the Welsh Language Act.
