In this next post, I’m back in Leeds for the final instalment of my five-part series from Leeds and West Yorkshire. This was all part of my recent trip to Leeds, travelling from Chester using Northern’s £2 Flash Sale, which also gave me the opportunity to visit Blackpool as part of this little mini-series. I’ll also be heading to Sheffield on Monday 14th September for another station adventure, which will be the final trip in this three-part mini-series. But for now, it’s time to return to Leeds and focus on something a little different. Rather than concentrating on the railway this time, I wanted to spend some time exploring the local buses around Leeds City Centre and, in particular, the bus stops and local bus hubs close to Leeds City Station.

There is, of course, a dedicated Bus Station in Leeds, but I’ve decided to save that for another adventure in the future, as there is plenty to explore there on its own. For this post, I’m focusing on the main streets around the city centre near Leeds City Station, where I noticed several groups of bus stops serving a wide range of local services. From what I could see during my visit, there were three main streets lined with numerous bus stops, effectively creating what I would describe as a local bus hub rather than a traditional Bus Station. With different operators, routes and destinations all using these stops, it was interesting to see just how busy this area can be and how important these streets are for connecting people around Leeds and the surrounding areas.

I spent around an hour here exploring the local area, taking plenty of photographs and documenting the different types of buses operating throughout Leeds City Centre. It was interesting to see the variety of vehicles passing through, with several Alexander Dennis E400MMCs making an appearance, although the majority of what I spotted were First Bus vehicles, particularly the familiar Wright Gemini and Wright StreetDeck models. I also noticed a few MCV Evora buses during my time here, although unfortunately I don’t think I managed to capture any photographs of them. Nevertheless, it was a really enjoyable hour of bus spotting and gave me a great opportunity to see just how varied the local bus network around Leeds can be.

I spent around an hour here taking photographs, having a look around the local area and documenting all the different types of buses that operate around Leeds City Centre. It was quite interesting to stand around for a while and see the variety of vehicles coming through, especially with so many different services using the streets around this local bus hub. During my time here, I managed to see some Alexander Dennis E400MMCs, along with mostly Wright Gemini and Wright StreetDecks operated by First Bus. There was a good mixture of buses coming and going, so I found it quite enjoyable just taking some time to see what would turn up next.

I also spotted a few MCV Evora buses during my time in the area, although unfortunately I don’t think I managed to capture any photographs of them. It’s one of those things that can easily happen when you’re trying to keep up with everything passing through, especially when several buses arrive around the same time! Nevertheless, I really enjoyed spending the hour here and getting a better idea of the buses that operate around Leeds. It was also a nice change from focusing solely on the railway and gave me the opportunity to explore another part of Leeds’ transport network before moving on with the rest of my adventure.

Compared to some of the Bus Hubs I have visited previously, I found this one in Leeds to have a lot more facilities and it also looked much more modern and well looked after. If you compare this to places such as Sir Thomas Street in Liverpool or Liscard over on the Wirral Peninsula, they are more like traditional bus stops with timetables and not much else in the way of information about when the next bus is due. In New Ferry, however, the local bus stops do have displays showing when the next bus is due and how long you have to wait, which I find really useful when travelling by bus. But going back to Leeds, I really liked the way the streets around the city centre have been laid out, with priority being given to buses rather than cars. It makes the area feel much more focused on public transport and, from what I saw during my visit, it seems to work really well for the number of buses using these streets throughout the day.

I do rather enjoy visiting various different Bus Hubs, Bus Stations and Interchanges around the country, as it gives me a glimpse into the different bus networks that operate outside of Merseyside and even Manchester, which is my nearest big city. Every area seems to have its own way of organising local bus services, with different operators, vehicles, layouts and facilities, so I always find it interesting to see how they compare with what I am used to back home. I have plenty more Bus Stations, Hubs and Interchanges that I want to visit and document here on my Blog, so this certainly won’t be the last time you see me exploring the bus network in different parts of the country.

However, my time here in Leeds was starting to come to a close, so before leaving I decided to have one final look around the town centre. I wanted to take a quick look at some of the local bus stops, particularly to see what the timetables looked like and whether there was any additional information available for passengers. I was also interested to see if I could spot any of the familiar spider diagrams that you tend to find at many Bus Stops around the UK, showing the different routes and destinations that can be reached from that particular location. These can be really useful when trying to understand a local bus network, especially when you are visiting somewhere new, so I thought it would be worth having one final look around Leeds before bringing this part of my adventure to an end.

Well, that’s it for this final instalment here in Leeds City Centre, focusing on the Local Bus Hub and taking some time to explore the buses operating around the city. This has been a really enjoyable trip overall, from visiting Bradford Interchange and exploring the local buses there, to travelling along the Ilkley branch from Leeds and visiting some of the stations along the way. If you haven’t already read my previous posts from Leeds and West Yorkshire, I would really appreciate you taking the time to go back and have a read through them. If you’ve enjoyed this series, please do leave a comment below and let me know which part of the adventure you enjoyed the most, or tell me about your own experiences travelling around Leeds and West Yorkshire. Your comments and feedback really do mean a lot to me, especially as they have been a little lacking in recent months, and they’re a great way of helping me know what you’d like to see more of here on the Blog.

I’m really pleased to be back enjoying writing about my adventures and sharing my thoughts on both local and wider public transport from across the United Kingdom. There is still plenty more to come here on the Blog, with one more Rail Journey taking place from Manchester Piccadilly to Sheffield, which will be the final instalment of my £2 Flash Sale mini-series. After that, I’ll be heading back out to visit stations between Sheffield and Leeds as I continue my Every Station adventure.

So, if you’ve been following along, why not stick around for the next adventure, check out the previous Leeds posts you may have missed, and let me know in the comments what you think? I’d genuinely love to hear from you. I do hope you’ve enjoyed following along with these posts from Leeds and West Yorkshire, and as always, thank you for taking the time to read them and join me on another adventure!