On Wednesday, 27 September 2017 19:47:23 UTC+1, Roland Perry wrote:
In message , at 15:41:42 on Wed, 27 Sep
2017, Michael R N Dolbear remarked:

However Stagecoach operate a lot of the services but there is also
First's X1 Excel service (Norwich - Peterborough) .

Thanks, I'd not noticed that service. I have seen (and used) the X1
(Norwich-Gt Yarmouth-Lowestoft), also run by First. Perhaps they think
X1 is good branding. Anyway, I'll try to pay careful attention at
Norwich bus station if I want to use a particular one of them in the
future

Interesting. As far as the law is concerned it would appear that ALL
bus services could be X1

Is it the case that "X" numbered bus services are excluded from
concessionary passes? (On account of it differentiating them from
being "local" buses).

Generally no they are not excluded. There are the occasional exceptions which tend to be short duration special services for holiday periods or events. Things like sightseeing tours tend to be excluded but it depends entirely on how they are registered.

The X1s are Norwich are normal bus routes so concessionary passes are valid.. Probably one of the more surprising "local buses" is the seasonal 888 Wrights Brothers service from Newcastle to Keswick. Only runs in the high summer season now (used to be daily when I was a child) but takes concessionary pass holders who rather enjoy a day out to the Lakes or to Alston. You get about 4.5 hours in Keswick so enough for a stroll to the Lakeside, round the town or to grab a coffee and cake. I did it a few years ago right at the end of the season - lots of people saying "goodbye" to each other and saying they'll see them next Summer for a day out. The are loads and loads of other "X" services or similar which accept concessionary permits and which have pretty exceptional loadings as a result - the X15 Newcastle to Berwick (the old 505), the 555 Keswick - Lancaster, Yorkshire Coastliner routes to Scarborough and Whitby, X93 Middlesbrough - Scarborough are just a few that I know of "up north" which now need double deck vehicles to cope with the loadings.

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Paul C
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