My bus broke down for the first time

Three weeks ago today, I went to Coalville for the first time in more than five years. I had no idea what would happen to me on the way back!

I missed the 15:37 16 service to Loughborough, which was run by Arriva's Alexander-Dennis Enviro400MMC 4519 (YX16 OJU), so instead, an hour later, boarded the other bus on the 16, 4503 (YX16 OJC), also an E400MMC.

4503 arrives at the Memorial Square in Coalville just before its fateful journey. Note the route branding it carries, for the services 50 and 51 in Leicester. With Arriva Midlands, route branding means nothing.

We set off towards Loughborough; the driver seemed to be driving alarmingly fast through Thringstone and the countryside; I couldn't remember the bus being quite so fast when going the other way!

Then we entered Shepshed. At about five o'clock, the bus came to a halt at the bus stop opposite Domont Close. Now this type of bus has a stop-start system where the engine automatically turns off while the bus is stopping; however, I noticed that the engine seemed to have stopped running while the bus was still in motion. I then overheard someone downstairs say that the engine had stopped after someone had pressed the bell!

I got off and headed towards the town centre to catch a 127 home. The breakdown didn't bother me too much; after all, we were in Shepshed, where an onwards bus could easily be caught, rather than in the middle of nowhere.

The stricken 4503 in Shepshed.

Shortly afterwards, the other number 16 bus and the one which I had ridden on previously to get to Coalville earlier in the day, 4519, passed by on its way to Coalville once again.

After missing a bus for poking around in the Asda (because there isn't an Asda in Loughborough) and getting some chips, I finally boarded a 127 bus to get back home. The end.

P. S. I have ridden 4503 two or three times since without incident. Due to the arrival of 28 newer ADL E400MMCs (numbered 4552-4579), some buses will be leaving Leicester for Yorkshire and Kent; these were initially expected to be the thirteen remaining Volvo B9TL Darwen Olympuses (4100-15, excluding 4106, 4111 and 4112 which are in Oswestry) and the ten Alexander-Dennis Enviro400s (4416-25), but it has transpired that the first 28 ADL E400MMCs (4501-28) will be moved away instead, which means that 4503 will also be moving away. This is one bus I'll never forget.