Blackpool 590

The Metrorider was developed by MCW - supplier of PD2 and PD3 bodies to Blackpool - as a competitor to the stylish Optare City Pacer in the late 1980s. MCW was disbanded by its owners in 1989 and the bus side of the business was sold off product by product. Optare duly acquired the Metrorider and re-engineered it under the subtly different MetroRider name.

Blackpool's first generation minibus fleet was at its maximum at the time and despite trying demonstrators it was not until 1995 that Blackpool bought its first MetroRiders. Optare provided a stock built bus (584) as a seed vehicle for the company to evaluate in March 1995, it transferring into Blackpool Transport ownership after three months. Duly impressed eight were ordered as City Pacer replacements arriving in October and November 1995 (585-92). Four more came in May 1996 (593-96), another four in September 1996 (501-504). By this time Fylde had been absorbed and the rationalised network used fewer minibuses with 18 City Pacers and 17 MetroRiders in use in early 1997 compared to a combined minibus fleet of 58 in 1989.

The remainder of the City Pacers were expected to be replaced by 14 more MetroRiders in 1998 but in the end a complex cascading programme saw elderly Atlanteans ousted instead with a batch of third generation minibuses - the low floor Optare Solo - seeing off the City Pacers in January 2000.

MetroRiders were introduced to routes 2/2A/2B (Poulton-Bispham) with occasional appearances on the 23/24/25 (Hospital-Mereside). Squires Gate depot use them on route 33 (Cleveleys-Mereside) and 193 (St. Annes to Wesham) while routes 12A (Blackpool-Lindale Gardens) and 26 (Blackpool to South Pier) were later converted. The Metro network of 2001 saw MetroRiders dedicated to Lines 2 and 26 - later merged to run Poulton - South Pier.

Our example, 590, was new in November 1995. It had a brief spell at Squires Gate Depot in 1998/9 but relocated back to Rigby Road when the former Fylde depot closed. Initially painted in the established black with a yellow skirt livery, a reversed style was adopted in 1998 and applied to 590 in August 2000. This was quickly replaced by the initial mustard, yellow and grey generic Metro livery in December 2001 before the final black and yellow 'pool' livery was applied in January 2006.

590 was briefly stored as surplus to requirements during 2004, but was reinstated and became one of three MetroRiders which went on loan to Arriva in Darlington in June 2005 to cover replacement services for a defunct operator but returned to service in Blackpool afterwards. It was withdrawn in November 2007 after the arrival of several new Solos earlier in the year but reinstated in January. Yet more new Solos saw it delicensed in May 2008 but a further reinstatement took place within a few weeks. Sadly this activity came to an inglorious end later in the year when a ceased axle prompted final withdrawal.

With a replacement axle available, 590 was acquired for preservation by LTT in February 2009 and awaits restoration to the 2001 'pool fleet' livery.