Created 17-Sep-11
Modified 8-Mar-24
These services must have been the least well-publicised ones ever to run in Saddleworth. One of the reasons for this was probably that they were Wayfarer services, leisure transport in West Yorkshire which was sponsored by Metro (West Yorkshire PTE). It was necessary to cross the Pennines to get timetable information, but even then you had to know it existed!
Both services crossed the Pennines using the A635 (Isle of Skye road), but otherwise had little in common. The 903 served Oldham, having left Huddersfield through Holmfirth, using the route which was adopted for the subsequent summer extensions of the 180 and 429.
The 904 passed through Netherton and Meltham, climbing up to join the A635 at the Ford Inn. From Greenfield it went through bottom Mossley to Ashton.
The poor publicity led to predictably low loadings. However, the idea was clearly good in principle and for several subsequent years the Manchester to Greenfield service was extended to Huddersfield on summer Sundays.
It had one other problem apart from the publicity, which was the unrealistic running times leading to poor timekeeping as I recall. For example, the service was allowed just seven minutes to get from Ashton Bus Station to Mossley station.
In the one summer of operation the 903 and 904 were worked by Yorkshire Rider. That summer started on 1st May 1994 and extended to 25th September 1994, running on Sundays and also the Bank Holidays on 30th May and 29th August, giving a total of twenty-four days of operation.
© David Beilby
