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The Public Transport Thread

You've just sparked my interest. I googled how I would get there from my home via vile public transport.

A less than 3 hour - majoritly motorway journey - would turn into a half hour train ride to Bristol Temple Meads, 11 mins to get a connection to Stoke (a 2 hour 17 min train ride), a 16 min connection to Uttoxeter 24 min train ride), the get a bus to the park. Would still struggle to get there for 11 having first got on the train at 6:20.

Believe it or not, that's not as bad as I thought it would be!

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It is frustrating that it arrives after opening (perhaps not so bad on weekdays but at weekends...). If Towers could publish the days they wish to extend opening in advance, so the bus service could run later, that would be perfect
 
It is frustrating that it arrives after opening (perhaps not so bad on weekdays but at weekends...). If Towers could publish the days they wish to extend opening in advance, so the bus service could run later, that would be perfect
You could be in with half a chance if it was only serving Alton Towers.
 
A new bus service is being brought in from the 4th April 2020 provided by D&G Bus on their 32x Route, This links Newcastle, Stoke, Hanley and Alton Towers via Werrington and Cheadle.

The bus will depart Newcastle at 08:30 and Stoke Railway Station at 08:55 and arrive at the Alton Towers Resort Plaza at 09:59. The return journey departs the Alton Towers Resort Plaza at 17:30, however an extra journey will run on Scarefest/Fireworks departing at 21:00 on Scarefest days and 20:00 on Firework days. The return arrives at Stoke Ralway station at 18:28 normal days, 20:58 on Firework days and 21:58 on Scarefest days.

Full details available here: https://www.dgbus.co.uk/assets/32x_2020-04-04.pdf
 
First Bus have excluded themselves from the Wayback Machine so I can't see what their service was last year.

Good to see there's at least some PT running to Towers again. So we now have a link to Chesterfield and Sheffield but nothing to Stoke which will make reaching Towers from the West Coast Mainline a lot harder. Sheffield and Chesterfield are also quite a bit further away by road than Stoke is.
 
Turning up at Stoke, over the last few years Taxis have proved cheaper (and more reliable) than the first bus offering.
 
Turning up at Stoke, over the last few years Taxis have proved cheaper (and more reliable) than the first bus offering.
I went with a friend and we had planned to take the bus. We very quickly found another group outside the railway station and we split a taxi instead. It was a bit more expensive but it got us there before opening rather than 45 minutes after. It would have been too expensive to use the taxi by myself though.
 
I went with a friend and we had planned to take the bus. We very quickly found another group outside the railway station and we split a taxi instead. It was a bit more expensive but it got us there before opening rather than 45 minutes after. It would have been too expensive to use the taxi by myself though.
The situation with public transport is why it's cheaper for me to get the bus from derby to Leicester, coach down to London then a few buses to THORPE then it is to go to alton...

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As I said on another thread unless I can combine going to towers with something else then it’s not worthwhile for me going. It takes just about 6 hours on public transport where I live to get to uttoxeter so if I’m travelling that far I’d rather do something else. So I normally go to towers then go to the evening races at the racecourse then to me that’s been a worthwhile trip. In my personal opinion Alton towers is up there with the worst to get to on public transport I think the only other worst ones I’ve encountered are Oakwood and Lightwater Valley.
 
As I said on another thread unless I can combine going to towers with something else then it’s not worthwhile for me going. It takes just about 6 hours on public transport where I live to get to uttoxeter so if I’m travelling that far I’d rather do something else. So I normally go to towers then go to the evening races at the racecourse then to me that’s been a worthwhile trip. In my personal opinion Alton towers is up there with the worst to get to on public transport I think the only other worst ones I’ve encountered are Oakwood and Lightwater Valley.
Oakwood you need a taxi from Narberth railway station or walk 5 miles. I did write to the council after my visit to suggest they diverted the bus and they said they didn't want to do that because it would mess up the consistent hourly departures (IDK why people can't just use the timetable) and they said Oakwood have shown no interest in helping them find a solution.

Lightwater Valley has a bus. I don't think it's quite on park opening but let's face it you're not exactly pushed for time there unlike Alton Towers.

As for Towers I would need a day of travelling to get there anyway so I feel I'm better of exploring other parks (which are hopefully easier to reach than Towers) rather than dropping £70 on a taxi or missing a chunk of my day using the bus.
 
Oakwood you need a taxi from Narberth railway station or walk 5 miles. I did write to the council after my visit to suggest they diverted the bus and they said they didn't want to do that because it would mess up the consistent hourly departures (IDK why people can't just use the timetable) and they said Oakwood have shown no interest in helping them find a solution.

Lightwater Valley has a bus. I don't think it's quite on park opening but let's face it you're not exactly pushed for time there unlike Alton Towers.

As for Towers I would need a day of travelling to get there anyway so I feel I'm better of exploring other parks (which are hopefully easier to reach than Towers) rather than dropping £70 on a taxi or missing a chunk of my day using the bus.
I live only 65 miles from Oakwood but it still takes atleast 2/3 hours by public transport. The best park I ever come across for easy transport is Blackpool pleasure beach which is quite weird as it’s about 100 Miles further then towers but I can get there quicker.
 
I live only 65 miles from Oakwood but it still takes atleast 2/3 hours by public transport. The best park I ever come across for easy transport is Blackpool pleasure beach which is quite weird as it’s about 100 Miles further then towers but I can get there quicker.
Not that weird ;) it has a motorway leading almost the whole way to it, 2 railway stations easily walkable and a third with easy and regular tram and bus connections.

Blackpool is definitely the easier journey, even driving from Nottingham (via Uttoxeter!).
 
Yup, I can get to the Beach, door to door, in 25 minutes off peak.
Thirty miles.
But to get to an occasional ex punter just up the coast, a quarter of the distance, can take an hour sometimes.
A lot of the cars above Blackpool only know slow and slower.
Frequently see cars stopping on the main road to let cars out of side roads!
 
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