This tour was organised by Tony Salmon, who is the Dewsbury Bus Museum webmaster and a driver at Arriva's Dewsbury Depot, and it took place on Sunday 17th May 2009. Arriva very kindly provided a bus - 1801 (YJ57 BEU), and The Dewsbury Reporter sponsored the event by covering our printing costs. All five Arriva-Yorkshire depots were visited - Heckmondwike, Dewsbury, Belle Isle, Castleford and Selby - as well as Wakefield Bus Station, and over 80 people took part. There were a few surprises, such as an Arriva London Routemaster! The Dewsbury Bus Museum's "Ethel" (EHL 344) came along for the whole tour and Gordon Brooke brought Yorkshire Woollen 622 (HD 7905) back to its old territory of 60 years ago! Also joining us were Paul Goldthorpe with Yorkshire Woollen Atlantean 768 (MUA 865P) and Adam Smith with West Riding Lynx 252 (C920 FMP).

A great time was had by all, and a total of £717.04 was raised for the SICK CHILDREN'S TRUST - a charity providing free accomodation for families of seriously ill children in hospitals around the UK. Our nearest is Eckersley House, in the grounds of St James' Hospital, Leeds, where there are specialist children's liver and oncology (cancer) units. (Click the Sick Children's Trust logo at the top of this page to see their website).

A special website (www.arrivatour.co.uk) was set up to promote the tour, and this now contains the links to several hundred photographs, published on various Fotopic websites plus details of the 2010 Arriva Tour.

Do you reckon it might be rallying again in 2011? Let's wait and see!