New Xelabus route from Monday... or is it?

Xelabus have registered a new route, the X5, to run from Monday. A look at their website for more details gives you just this message:

No timetable or even details of the route other than that it serves "Chandlers Ford Business Park".

Luckily, Traveline has more information. So if the route is launching on Monday, we should assume that it will look like this:

It links Southampton Airport Parkway railway station with Chandlers Ford railway station via part of Chestnut Avenue and some business parks. It'll provide some useful new links for people connecting at Parkway with the X4 to Hedge End, Unilink U1 into Southampton or even with the trains.

Here is a list of all stops that will be served:

...and here is the timetable:

Hopefully it will indeed launch on Monday and Xelabus will remember to put details of it on their website.

Here's a summary of all changes happening in the next couple of days. It looks like Wheelers WA is not now going to launch, due to the Velvet revival, but one early morning journey on the W1 will start from Hedge End:

31st August:

Stagecoach 69, Unilink U1, U2, U6, U9: Timetable changes.

1st September:
Wheelers W1, More X1/X2, Bluestar 5: Route & timetable change.
Xelabus X5: New route launches between Airport Parkway Station and Chandlers Ford.

2nd September:
More 112: Summer route & timetable ends, normal service resumes.

First 12 rerouted / Unilink U2 frequency boost / Wheelers W2 withdrawn

First 12 will be rerouted from Sunday 17th August to serve Kingsway instead of the New Road/Palmerston Road junction.

All Unilink routes get new timetables from 31st August. The U2 is rerouted in the city centre to now serve the new Mayflower Halls instead of the Civic Centre and is doubled in frequency to every 10 minutes on weekdays during university terms between the City Centre and the University Interchange. Details here.

Stagecoach 69 and some of their other Winchester routes have timetable changes on 31st August. Details here.

Wheelers launched their WA briefly before Velvet's relaunch, but it launches properly from 1st September providing a direct alternative to the new Velvet's A. We'll let you know once the WA's timetable has been released.

Staying with Wheelers, the W2 is to be withdrawn after 27th September. It has run since last November and provides a direct link from Southampton City Centre to Hill Lane, Valley Park and Hiltingbury. Most direct journeys that can be done on the W2 will require two buses after it stops running.

Velvet buyer revealed

The Echo has confirmed that the buyer of Velvet is Adam Smith. Who, you may ask? The Echo doesn't say. Some might be left thinking that the 18th Century economist and philosopher has posthumously saved Velvet.

But no, the Adam Smith in question is indeed the man behind Buses Excetera of Surrey.

On this page of their website is some information about the man himself:

The yellow highlights are mine. One hopes that the standard of English used on the Buses Excetera website is not a sign of things to come at Velvet.