Friday 8 January 2010

Cross country bus ride

Went into Atherstone yesterday to get some supplies - wow what a ride that was! The bus route was the number 7 from Ashby De La Zouch to Nuneaton. waited patiently in the snow and ice for said bus... it arrived! "You're lucky I came this way" said the driver. Apparently the other bus drivers of this route had decided that the roads were too icy to traverse so were taking diversions. I'd like to explain this route: It picked us up on a side road just on the outskirts of Snarestone (great), it then veered off the B4116 down a single track lane and went into Twycross Zoo. Fine, somewhere to visit later. From there we were onto the A444, great. After a couple of miles, that was obviously enough on a two lane road and we veered off again down single lane tracks, all ungritted and extremely icy. Through Sheepy Magna, Sheepy Parva, and onto a 'proper' road again, horay. A straight run into Atherstone now ... oh no ... the driver found another one track lane and managed to eke the journey out another 10 minutes. Past King Dicks Hole (Eh! not joking - look it up) and eventually arrived in Atherstone. Only 9 miles but 40 minutes later. I'd just like say that I am extremely glad that bus routes like this exist, linking rural communities to a town. We passed an upturned 4X4 who didn't make one of the bends in the ice. The return journey was like a private taxi ride. The (different) driver avoiding all the icy roads, keeping to the main roads purely to deposit the existing passengers. Hope no-one was waiting to get on .....

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