An InterConnect Alexander Dennis Enviro400 MMC operated by Stagecoach in Lincolnshire departing Scunthorpe bus station

Lincolnshire InterConnect is a rural bus network in the county of Lincolnshire in the east of England.

A number of InterConnect-branded interurban bus routes with fixed timetables are complemented by demand-responsive, flexible CallConnect minibuses, on which journeys must be booked in advance. Many of the InterConnect services are provided by Stagecoach in Lincolnshire; CallConnect services are run by a variety of operators including TransportConnect Ltd who are a wholly owned company of Lincolnshire County Council.

InterConnect was first established in 1999, when the existing Lincolnshire RoadCar "Connect 6" Lincoln–Skegness bus (introduced in 1998 as part of Route 6's rebrand) was rebranded and its service frequency increased.[1] CallConnect was established in 2001. The network and its services are subsidised by Lincolnshire County Council and Norfolk County Council. Some services were scaled back between 2011 and 2012, following cuts to local government funding and reductions in the Bus Service Operators Grant fuel duty subsidy.[2][3]

List of InterConnect routes

Current routes

Route nameMap colour[4]DestinationsRoute variantsOperatorDate introducedTimetable linkDoes it run on Sundays and Bank Holidays?
InterConnect 1OrangeLincoln–Grantham—Stagecoach in LincolnshireNovember 2002Yes, 6 times each way between Lincoln and Grantham and hourly between Lincoln and Waddington.
InterConnect B5UnlistedLincoln–Woodhall Spa–Boston[note 1]B5X[note 2]Brylaine TravelJuly 2002No
InterConnect 37UnlistedSpalding–Peterborough—Stagecoach in PeterboroughMay 2010Yes, 5 times each way.
InterConnect 51UnlistedLincoln-Louth-Mablethorpe51B[note 3]Stagecoach in LincolnshireApril 2006No
InterConnect 53[note 4]GreenLincoln–Market Rasen /
Market Rasen–Grimsby[note 5][note 6]		53a;[note 7] 53b[note 8]Stagecoach in LincolnshireFebruary 2004No
InterConnect 56YellowLincoln–Horncastle /
Horncastle–Skegness[note 5]		—Stagecoach in LincolnshireFebruary 1999Yes, 5 times each way for the InterConnect 56.
InterConnect 57/B7Hot PinkSkegness–BostonX57[note 9]Stagecoach in Lincolnshire / Brylaine TravelMarch 2005 No
InterConnect 59[note 10]PurpleSkegness–Mablethorpe /
Mablethorpe–Louth[note 5]		—Stagecoach in LincolnshireMarch 2005No
InterConnect 100Light BlueLincoln–Gainsborough /
Gainsborough–Scunthorpe[note 5]		101[note 11]Stagecoach in LincolnshireApril 2006No
InterConnect 505Blue-greenSpalding–King's Lynn—Stagecoach in LincolnshireFebruary 2002Yes, every 60 minutes.

The various models of double and single-decker buses used by Stagecoach in Lincolnshire for its InterConnect services are painted in a special purple livery with the strapline "Connecting people with places" and the logos of the network's council partners also applied.[5] Before the network was rebranded in 2023, buses formerly had a version of the previous Stagecoach livery in purple-and-gold branding, with some buses featuring route-specific numbered branding, in particular the flagship InterConnect 6 service,[6] and a "Coastal Connect" brand used on the routes serving towns and villages on the Lincolnshire coast. Buses from the other InterConnect operators tend to carry that operator's standard paint scheme.

Former routes

Route nameDestinationsOperatorDate introducedDate removed
InterConnect 5Boston–SpaldingBrylaine TravelJuly 2001Route Rebranded to B3 (not Newark). The directions stayed the same.
InterConnect 18 (Rail Link)Lincoln–Sleaford–Spalding–PeterboroughEast Midlands TrainsApril 2011 ?
InterConnect X3Lincoln–NewarkStagecoach in LincolnshireJune 2010April 2011
InterConnect 3 [note 12]Lincoln–CleethorpesStagecoach in LincolnshireFebruary 20042016/ present-day
InterConnect 6x [note 13]Lincoln–Skegness (the quick way)Stagecoach in LincolnshireJuly 20122014 [note 14]

CallConnect services

There are two kinds of CallConnect services – entirely demand-responsive 'dial-a-ride' services which serve an area with no fixed route or timetable, and semi-flexible services which run to a timetable but which deviate off the route to serve smaller villages. Journeys on CallConnect must be booked in advance on a mobile app, or on the CallConnect website or over the telephone in areas not served by the app. Fares are calculated in six radial 'zones' based from the pick-up point of the journey.[7]

In 2011, Lincolnshire County Council reported a 23.5% increase in usage of CallConnect compared to the previous year.[8]

CallConnect areas

CallConnect services operate in 14 named areas across Lincolnshire, including the north side of the city of Lincoln and its nearby villages, and extending into neighbouring counties) – only the remainder of Lincoln and the surrounding area, as well as the unitary authority of North East Lincolnshire, are not covered by CallConnect. The areas covered are:[7]

Route numberArea coveredOperatorDate introducedTimetable link
7BBostonTransportConnectApril 2011
15BBourneKierJuly 2008
53CBrigg, Caistor and RidgePC CoachesFebruary 2016
100GGainsboroughKierApril 2006
1G/1KGrantham, Newark & KestevenTransportConnectNovember 2002 (1G)
July 2008 (1K)
5C/6HHorncastle, Coningsby & Woodhall SpaKierApril 2001 (6H)
July 2002 (5C)
505H/505LHolbeach & Long SuttonTransportConnectFebruary 2002
51E/51N/51SLouthKier / TC MinicoachesMarch 2004 (51N)
February 2005 (51S)
July 2008 (51E)
9MMablethorpe & AlfordKierMarch 2005
3C/3MMarket Rasen & CaistorTC MinicoachesFebruary 2004
18M/18SMetheringham & SleafordKierApril 2008
4P/4R/4SPeterborough, Rutland, Stamford & the Welland ValesTransportConnectSeptember 2009 (4S)
April 2010 (4P)
July 2010 (4R)
9SSkegnessKierApril 2011
16SSpaldingKierMarch 2009
6S/7WSpilsby & WainfleetTC MinicoachesApril 2001 (6S)
February 2005 (7W)

Timetabled CallConnect services

Route numberDestinationsOperatorDate introducedTimetable link
3L/3XLouth–Binbrook–Market RasenTC MinicoachesMay 2011
6CHorncastle–LouthKierApril 2001
51MLouth–ManbyKier ?
65/65ASleaford–Woodhall Spa–HorncastleKier / Sleafordian Coaches ? Archived 3 December 2013 at the Wayback Machine
635Sleaford-CranwellKierApril 2013
H1Horncastle town serviceKier ?

Notes

  1. ↑ This service formerly continued to Spalding.
  2. ↑ Serves Lincoln and Conigsby only, except for one schoolday service from Tattershall to Boston.
  3. ↑ Serve colleges and schools in Grimsby and Louth.
  4. ↑ This service was originally numbered InterConnect 3 and the route formerly continued to Cleethorpes.
  5. 1 2 3 4 This route is divided into two, in order "to comply with Department for Transport guidance". Connections are guaranteed at the route dividing point, and the journey often continues on the same vehicle.
  6. ↑ From 2010–2011, the InterConnect 3 service was extended to Newark-on-Trent as the 'executive' service X3, in order to meet East Coast Main Line trains at Newark North Gate railway station. This extended service was cancelled in March 2011, with the operator citing a lack of passenger demand. Archived 2 December 2013 at the Wayback Machine
  7. ↑ Serves Linwood.
  8. ↑ Does not serve any stops between Market Rasen and Grimsby.
  9. ↑ Continues from Skegness to Chapel St Leonards and back and also has Boston College as the start and end of route.
  10. ↑ This route originally only ran between Skegness and Mablethorpe, but in 2009, the route was extended to Louth on Monday to Saturday.
  11. ↑ Early-morning departures from Scunthorpe serving Queen Elizabeth High School in Gainsborough.
  12. ↑ This route still runs as Interconnect 53, but with it only running between Lincoln and Grimsby.
  13. ↑ Lincoln to Skegness "the quick way": first ran in the 2012 school summer holidays; added to the main timetable in March 2013. 20% faster than the basic number 6 service; does not serve Raithby, Spilsby, Partney or Burgh-le-Marsh.
  14. ↑ For unknown reasons, the 6x was withdrawn in 2014.

References

  1. ↑ Booth, Gavin (14 March 2006). "Making connections in Lincs". Bus & Coach Professional. Archived from the original on 28 May 2006. Retrieved 16 December 2023.
  2. ↑ "Number of bus services in North East Lincolnshire face axe over fuel duty cut". Grimsby Telegraph. Archived from the original on 22 February 2012. Retrieved 20 February 2012.
  3. ↑ "BREAKING NEWS: Six buses a day for Market Rasen says Stagecoach boss". Market Rasen Mail. 29 February 2012. Archived from the original on 29 June 2016. Retrieved 1 March 2012.
  4. ↑ "InterConnect Services". Stagecoach East Midlands. Retrieved 16 December 2023.
  5. ↑ "Stagecoach gives InterConnect a makeover". Coach & Bus Week. Peterborough: Emap. 5 September 2023. Retrieved 16 December 2023.
  6. ↑ "InterConnect 6 service fleet upgrade". Coach & Bus Week. Peterborough: Emap. 11 April 2012. Retrieved 16 December 2023.
  7. 1 2 "CallConnect: About the service". LincsBus. Retrieved 16 December 2023.
  8. ↑ "Lincolnshire's CallConnect bus usage increases by 23.5 per cent". Louth Target. 21 January 2012. Archived from the original on 5 May 2013. Retrieved 20 February 2012.
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