24.12.13

X77: Glasgow - Ayr

*UPDATED 22nd May 2022*

The X77 is a coach/bus hybrid connecting Scotland's biggest city with Robbie Burns' hometown by the sea. It runs generally hourly with extra journeys provided at rush hours. Click here to discover other bus routes in Scotland.


The X77 is operated by Stagecoach.



Ayr

Scotland's first parliament was held in Ayr. But it is probably even better known for being the birthplace of the poet Robert Burns. You can even visit the cottage where he was born.

Creative commons, via Wikipedia

There's not just a cottage, but also a museum nearby.


To get to the museum, use Stagecoach 97 from Ayr Bus Station, and alight at the Alloway, Murdoch's Lone stop. On Mondays to Saturdays, occasional journeys on the X77 extend to run all the way to the bus stop right outside the Burns Birthplace Museum.

Click for other things to see and do in Ayr. The X77's journeys from Ayr start from stance 9 at the bus station:


The X77 is limited stop. See a full list of stops served on each journey here.


Prestwick

Prestwick was once a separate town but is now a suburb of Ayr. It's best known for its airport, which goes by the name of Glasgow Prestwick, and which is best known for being the sole place where Elvis Presley set foot on Scottish soil (or tarmac).

In the town, the X77 stops at Station Road towards Glasgow and Saunterne Road towards Ayr.

At the airport, the X77 uses this stop towards Glasgow and this stop towards Ayr on the A79 beneath the covered footbridge that connects the airport terminal with the airport's railway station:


Aldi supermarket Prestwick, use the Heathfield, Lilybank Road and Pleasantfield Road stops
Sainsbury's supermarket Prestwick, use the Heathfield, Lilybank Road and Pleasantfield Road stops



Kilmarnock

The X77 only serves Kilmarnock in the evenings, with daytime journeys whizzing past on the by-pass. To get to Kilmarnock in the daytime, use the 4 from Ayr and the X76 from Glasgow.


Fenwick

Fenwick is a tiny village, famous for its Weavers' Society, regarded by many as the world's first co-operative. It's a lot prettier than Rochdale, I'll give it that! It lies just before the end of the M77 motorway, which the X77 takes all the way to Glasgow.


The X77 stops not in the village centre, but at unmarked stops right by the motorway...


Southbound journeys stop on this slip road directly off the M77:


... and northbound journeys stop on the other side of the bridge and right at the roundabout on the A77:


As an alternative, Stagecoach route 4 runs through the village centre, but it takes longer to get to Glasgow than the X77 does.

Glasgow

Glasgow City Chambers. Image by Kim Traynor, published on Wikipedia and used under creative commons.

Those with taste regard Glasgow as Scotland's real capital. You won't be bored here: here's three to see:




Click here for more ideas of things to see and do in Glasgow. The X77's route in the city centre runs like this:


The blue arrows mark the route of the few journeys in the weekday peaks that terminate at the university of Glasgow.

Virtually all journeys serve Buchanan Bus Station, one of the biggest in the country. The X77 leaves from stance 6.


If you'd rather not negotiate the bus station, you can also catch the X77 from the stops on Wellington Street:


... and Waterloo Street:




Times

You can see the full timetable for the X77 on the following websites:

Here are your links for live scheduled departure boards at major stops towards Glasgow:



...and back towards Ayr:



Fares


An adult single between Glasgow and Ayr is currently £7.30. The journey planner on Stagecoach's website gives details of all available fares and tickets.

The cheapest day ticket valid throughout the route, which also functions as a return ticket, is the Stagecoach West Scotland Connect DayRider at £12.60, which is valid on all Stagecoach buses in the region, but not on buses of other operators.

For shorter journeys between Ayr and Prestwick, the Stagecoach Ayr Dayrider at £4.20 is for you.


Ayr Plusbus tickets are valid on the X77 between Ayr and Prestwick Airport.


Connections


Major connections from Ayr with Stagecoach:

  • 97 to Murdoch's Lone for the Burns Museum
  • 14 to Troon and Irvine
  • 358/360 to Girvan and Stranraer
  • 585 to Largs
  • X16 to Kilmarnock


Major bus connections from Glasgow:



The X77 passes by the following railway stations. Click the station name for live departures:


It also passes near to Buchanan Street station on the Glasgow Subway.


Alternatives

Between Ayr and Kilmarnock, you can also use routes X16, and 4.
Between Kilmarnock and Glasgow, you can also use routes X76 and 4.
The 4 serves all stops along the full length of the X77's route, but with some variations and it doesn't use the motorway, so a journey to or from Glasgow will take a lot longer and won't cost you any less. All of these buses are operated by Stagecoach.

The other alternative is the train. Find timetables here and fares here. An anytime adult single between Ayr and Glasgow is currently £9.80, an off-peak (after 0900 weekdays) adult day return is £11.70 and an anytime adult day return is £17.70.


Long Distance Footpaths





Discover more Great Scottish Bus Routes here.

 All of the information in this post is correct at the time of writing, but please check the relevant links before travelling.






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20.11.13

10: Newcastle - Hexham

*UPDATED: 22nd May 2022*


Route 10 connects the city of what feels like a thousand bridges with a pretty town not far from Hadrian's Wall. Buses run every half an hour Monday to Saturday daytimes and hourly evenings and Sundays, but parts of the route nearer to Newcastle have a more frequent service. It's operated by Go North East and is one of their flagship routes. Click here to discover other bus routes in the North East.





Newcastle


In my mind Newcastle vies with only Bristol for the title of England's best looking city. To be honest Newcastle just about pips it on the strength of its bridges over the Tyne and the splendour of Grey Street.


While here, why not catch a film at the famous Tyneside Cinema or visit the Discovery Museum?



The 10 departs from stand C at Eldon Square Bus Station in the heart of the city.



Metrocentre


One of the biggest out-of-town shopping centres in the UK, check out Metrocentre's website to see what you can do there. The centre has its own bus and rail interchange, with the 10 using stand E towards Hexham and stands L (before 7pm) and K (after 7pm) towards Newcastle.


Asda hypermarket Gateshead, use the Derwenthaugh Bridge Approach stops
Aldi supermarket Metro Park, use the Derwenthaugh Bridge Approach stops






Blaydon

Blaydon is known for its races. The 10 stops at the bus station, stand B towards Hexham and stand C towards Newcastle.



Ryton

Ryton is a relatively wealthy commuter town. The main bus stop is on Main Road at Ryton Church. Buses towards Hexham stop by Coffee Johnny's. Why not stop for a cup?:


... and buses to Newcastle stop opposite the Post Office:


Co-op supermarket Ryton, use the Ryton, Social Club/Watermill stops




Crawcrook


Prudhoe

We've now left Tyne & Wear (for which Nexus no longer produce any bus route maps) and entered the county of Northumberland as we arrive in Prudhoe. If you fancy a splash then get off the bus here for Waterworld.


The 10 towards Hexham stops on Front Street outside The Chair Centre:


... and towards Newcastle it stops outside G&S Electricals:




Mickley

Tyne Valley Garden Centre, use the Mickley Square, Masonic Hall stops




Stocksfield

Photo by Jack Pearce, found on Wikipedia. Used under Creative Commons

Rowan Atkinson of Mr Bean fame used to live in Stocksfield and probably used the 10 a few times. He probably used to wait at this stop on the A695 opposite the railway station for buses towards Hexham:


... or over the road at this one for buses to Newcastle:


Corbridge

After passing through Riding Mill, we come to Corbridge, which was first settled by the Romans. You can still visit the remains of the Roman town, which are looked after by English Heritage.


The 10 pops north of the Tyne briefly to stop on a one-way loop outside the Off The Wall gallery on Hill Street in both directions:


Hexham

At long last we arrive in Hexham, where there is plenty to see and do. How about a look around the Abbey?


Hexham bus station is at the eastern end of Priestpopple, right in the centre of town. The 10 back to Newcastle goes from stand A.


Waitrose supermarket Hexham
Lidl supermarket Hexham
Tesco Extra hypermarket Hexham
Aldi supermarket Hexham



Times

See the full timetable for the 10 on one of these sites:
Here are your links to live timetable departure boards for major bus stops towards Hexham:


...and back towards Newcastle:


 Fares

See adult single fares here and adult return fares here. Newcastle to Hexham is £3.60 single and £6.00 return. After 7pm there's currently a maximum fare of £2.00 single and £3.50 return.


The cheapest day ticket that is valid throughout route 10 is the Go North East all zones Day Ticket at £6 for an adult. It is valid on all Go North East routes. Cheaper versions are also available, but they are limited to certain zones:


There is also a 24 hour ticket at £8.50, valid on all Go North East services.



If you also need to use buses of other operators, then you should ask for a North East Explorer ticket, which is £10.90 for an adult. It's valid on all Go North East, Stagecoach and Arriva buses across the North East from Scarborough to Berwick-upon-Tweed and as far west as Carlisle, plus on the Tyne & Wear Metro.


If you've only travelling within Tyne & Wear (Newcastle to Wylam on the 10) but also want to use other operators' buses, then use a Day Rover Ticket at £7.80.


If arriving in the region by train, then Plusbus tickets can be bought with your train ticket. See full details on the Plusbus website. The Newcastle Plusbus is valid on the 10 from Eldon Square to Stella Road/Stella Street. The Hexham Plusbus is not much use on the 10 as it's only valid for a few stops from the Bus Station.

Connections


From Newcastle City Centre you can connect with buses in all directions. These are just a few of the most major routes:


Eldon Square, where the 10 terminates in central Newcastle is not far from Monument station on the Tyne & Wear Metro.

The 10 then passes Newcastle Central station, which has trains in all directions (live departures, departure list, fares) in addition to being a station on the Metro.

From the Metrocentre Interchange, you can catch the following major bus routes:


The Interchange also contains a railway station on the Newcastle to Carlisle line. The 10 passes near to many stations on the line, including the one in Hexham. Here's a map of the train line with the stations on or near the 10's route highlighted:


See the full timetable for this rail line here. Details of rail fares to and from any station in Britain can be found here.

Use the following links for live railway departure boards:


Use these links for a full list of the day's scheduled rail departures from the following stations:


From Hexham Bus Station, connect with the 685 to Carlisle operated jointly by Arriva and Stagecoach.


Alternatives

As we've just seen, the train provides an alternative way of getting between Newcastle and Hexham.

There are two other bus services that also run between Newcastle and Hexham, but via a different route:


Long Distance Footpaths






 Click here to discover more exciting bus routes in the North East

 All of the information in this post is correct at the time of writing, but please check the relevant links before travelling.











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