BRITAIN’S BREATHING SPACES — NATIONAL PARKS BY BUS
For the fifth of his rides around the national parks*, former Arriva regional managing director BOB HIND spends a day sampling Stagecoach’s heavily promoted services in the scenic and busy English Lakes where traffic congestion disturbs the rural idyll
The largest of the national parks is probably the most polluted. Its popularity attracts carloads by the thousands, particularly during the holiday season, and congestion on some of the main roads is frequent.
Which is a shame, as the landscape of the Lakes is dramatic yet welcoming, stunning and colourful. And Stagecoach offers good all-year-round services that genuinely offer an attractive alternative for the car borne visitors.
Its Lakes Connection brochure, published twice a year, is the complete guide to the area with timetables, suggested excursions and places to visit, money-off vouchers and detailed maps.
Over 17million visitors a year descend on the area flanked by the M6 in the east and the Irish Sea in the west but accessibility by bus is concentrated towards the east and most popular tourist areas.
The region also is the wettest area in the UK, hence all the lakes, but it still attracts walkers…
