Go Whippet
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_2010_Volvo_B7RLE_Plaxton_Centro,_Cambridgeshire_busway_route_C,_7_August_2011.jpg) Go Whippet Plaxton Centro at the Cambridgeshire busway opening, 7 August 2011. |
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| Slogan | The community's local bus company. |
| Founded | 1919 |
| Headquarters | 2 Rowles Way, Buckingway Business Park, Swavesey, Cambs, CB24 4UG |
| Locale | Cambridgeshire |
| Service type | Bus |
| Destinations | Cambridge, Huntingdon |
| Fuel type | Diesel |
| Chief executive | Peter Lee |
| Website | Official website |
Go Whippet, also known as Whippet Coaches, is a bus operator based in Swavesey, Cambridgeshire. The company started as a family firm and steadily grew, today rising to 'fame' on the Cambridgeshire Guided Busway.
History
Whippet Coaches was founded in Huntingdonshire by Henry Lee in 1919 who had previously been a bicycle salesman in London. The first Whippet Coach was converted from an American ambulance.[1]
Cambrideshire Guided Busway
Whippet Coaches run service C on the busway, using three specially bought Plaxton Centro buses. They are doing it in conjunction with Stagecoach in Huntingdonshire (who run routes A & B) who collectively have exclusive use of the route for a period of five years—in exchange for providing a minimum service frequency between the times of 07:00 and 19:00 each week day.[2] The company operate Route C from Somersham to Cambridge centre using a mixture of rural roads, Cambridge city centre roads and the northern busway between the St Ives park and ride site and the outskirts of Cambridge. Journey time from Somersham to Cambridge city centre is scheduled to take 57 minutes, with no Sunday service.[3] Whippet spent a total of £420,000 on three buses (£140,000 each).[4]
In January 2010, the contractors and members of Cambridgeshire County Council were still in discussion about what required finishing.[5] During February 2010 the directors of both the signed up bus operators—Andy Campbell of Stagecoach in Cambridge, and Peter Lee of Whippet coaches—both expressed their companies' frustrations at the busway not being usable for the new buses they had bought to run on it.[4][6][7]
Services
| Route № | Description | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| A | Cambridge, Newmarket, Mildenhall, Norwich, Great Yarmouth | Summer only |
| B | Cambridge, Newmarket, Bury St Edmunds, Bressingham Gardens, Diss, Norwich, Sheringham, Cromer | Sun, Wed, and Fri only |
| C | Somersham - St Ives - The Busway - Cambridge | Busway route |
| C1 | Cambridge, Mildenhall, Ely, Kings Lynn, Hunstanton | Summer only |
| C2 | Newmarket, Cambridge, Milton, Streatham, Ely, Littleport, Southery, West Winch, Kings Lynn, Southgate, Hunstanton | Summer only |
| D | Cambridge, Newmarket, Bury St Edmunds, Stowmarket, Ipswich, Felixstowe | Summer only |
| E | Cambridge, Newmarket, Bury St Edmunds, Stowmarket, Sproughton, Ipswich, Ardleigh, Gt Bentley turn, Clacton | |
| F | Cambridge, Hinxton Hall, Stansted, Harlow, Harold Hill, Basildon, Southend | Summer only |
| G | Cambridge, Quy, Bottisham, Newmarket, Mildenhall, Elveden, Thetford, Bressingham Gardens, Diss, Billingford, Bungay, Beccles, Lowestoft, Great Yarmouth | Sundays in summer only |
| H | Cambridge, Newmarket, Bury St Edmunds, Stowmarket, Framlingham, Blythburgh, Lowestoft Pontins, Great Yarmouth | Tuesdays in summer only |
| 1 | St Ives – Hilton - Papworth – Cambourne – Cambridge | |
| 2 | Cambridge - Elsworth | |
| 3 | Huntingdon – Godmanchester – Papworth Everard | |
| 4 | Papworth – Hilton – Fenstanton – The Hemingfords – St Ives | |
| 5 | Cambridge – Bar Hill – St Ives – The Hemingfords – Huntingdon | |
| 7 | Huntingdon - Godmanchester | Circular |
| 8 | Cambridge bus station - Elsworth | |
| 12 | St Ives bus station - Marley Rd/Waveney Rd - Burleigh Road - Kings Hedges/Burstellars | Circular |
| 14 | Cambridge City Centre - King's Hedges - Arbury - City Centre | Circular |
| 16 | Huntingdon – Oxmoor | Metro |
| 19 | Ely | Circular |
| 22 | Ramsey Great Whyte - Bury High Street - Pidley | |
| 61 63 |
Eynesbury - St Neots - Eaton Socon | Circular |
| 114 | Addenbrookes - Beehive - Grafton - Cambridge | |
| 196 | Waterbeach - Fen Ditton - Cambridge | |
| 400 | Keyston - Kimbolton - Huntingdon | |
| 401 | Grafham - Huntingdon | |
| 403 | Huntingdon - Thrapston | |
| 404 | Huntingdon - Bedford | |
| 407 | Huntingdon - Peterborough | |
| 408 | Huntingdon - St Neots | |
| 409 | Huntingdon - Gt Gidding - Huntingdon | Circular |
References
- ^ "Go Whippet - About Us". Retrieved 18 August 2011.
- ^ Menzies, Bob (2008-11-26). "Guided Busway – Your Questions Answered". BBC Cambridgeshire (BBC Online). "companies have guaranteed a service for the Guided Busway for five years. They signed up to that in 2006. ... a guaranteed service from 7am to 7pm ... bus companies will pay the access charge ... They won't pay an access charge outside of the 7am to 7pm times"
- ^ Route C timetable. Whippet. Retrieved 19 November 2009.
- ^ a b Elliot, Chris (2010-02-01). "Operators hit out at costly hold-ups to guided busway". Cambridge News. Retrieved 2010-02-02. "director of Stagecoach, said: 'We have invested £3 million in specially adapted buses for the route...' .. Peter Lee, boss of Whippet, said 'We have bought three new buses at a cost of £140,000 each'"
- ^ Elliott, Chris (2010-01-06). "Parties meet but no date for busway yet". Cambridge News. Retrieved 2010-01-13.
- ^ "St Ives to Cambridge guided buses rebranded to show frustration at delays". Hunts Post. 2010-02-19. Retrieved 2010-02-21.
- ^ "Stagecoach expresses anger at Cambridgeshire busway delays" (Subscription required). New Transit (TransportXtra) (9). 2010-02-25. Retrieved 2010-02-25.
External links
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