Lincolnshire InterConnect


Lincolnshire InterConnect is a rural bus network in the county of Lincolnshire in the east of England.
A number of InterConnect-branded interurban bus routes with fixed timetables are complemented by demand-responsive, flexible CallConnect minibuses, on which journeys must be booked in advance. Many of the InterConnect services are provided by Stagecoach in Lincolnshire; CallConnect services are run by a variety of operators including TransportConnect Ltd who are a wholly owned company of Lincolnshire County Council.
InterConnect was first established in 1999, when the existing RoadCar "Connect 6" Lincoln–Skegness bus was rebranded and its service frequency increased. CallConnect was established in 2001. The network and its services are subsidised by Lincolnshire County Council. Some services were scaled back in 2011–2012, following cuts to local government funding, and reductions in the Bus Service Operators Grant fuel duty subsidy.

List of InterConnect routes

Current routes

Route nameMap colourDestinationsRoute variantsOperatorDate introducedTimetable linkDoes it run on Sundays and Bank Holidays?
InterConnect 1OrangeLincoln–Grantham—Stagecoach in LincolnshireNovember 2002Yes, 6 times each way between Lincoln and Grantham and hourly between Lincoln and Waddington.
InterConnect IC5Mid BlueLincoln–Woodhall Spa–Boston—Brylaine TravelJuly 2002No
InterConnect 37Pale PinkSpalding–Peterborough—Stagecoach in PeterboroughMay 2010Yes, 4 times each way.
InterConnect 51RedLouth–Grimsby51a; 51b; 51cStagecoach in LincolnshireApril 2006No
InterConnect 53GreenLincoln–Market Rasen /
Market Rasen–Grimsby		53a; 53bStagecoach in LincolnshireFebruary 2004No
InterConnect 56YellowLincoln–Horncastle /
Horncastle–Skegness		56aStagecoach in LincolnshireFebruary 1999Yes, 5 times each way for the InterConnect 56, and hourly for the 56a.
InterConnect 57/IC7Hot PinkSkegness–BostonX57Stagecoach in Lincolnshire / Brylaine TravelMarch 2005No
InterConnect 59PurpleSkegness–Mablethorpe /
Mablethorpe–Louth		59a; 59bStagecoach in LincolnshireMarch 2005Yes, 6 times each way between Skegness and Mablethorpe during the Summer season only.
InterConnect 100Light BlueLincoln–Gainsborough /
Gainsborough–Scunthorpe		—Stagecoach in LincolnshireApril 2006No
InterConnect 505Blue-greenSpalding–King's Lynn—Stagecoach in NorfolkFebruary 2002Yes, every 60 minutes.

The various models of double-decker bus used by Stagecoach in Lincolnshire for its InterConnect services are painted in a special purple-and-gold livery which is different from the standard Stagecoach colour scheme. Some buses have route-specific numbered branding, in particular the flagship InterConnect 6 service, and a "Coastal Connect" brand used on the routes serving towns and villages on the Lincolnshire coast. Buses from the other InterConnect operators tend to carry that operator's standard paint scheme. All the InterConnect branded bus routes have hourly services throughout the day Monday to Saturday with some services running on Sundays and Bank Holidays too.

Former routes

Route nameDestinationsOperatorDate introducedDate removed
InterConnect 5Boston–SpaldingBrylaine TravelJuly 2001?
InterConnect 18 Lincoln–Sleaford–Spalding–PeterboroughEast Midlands TrainsApril 2011?
InterConnect X3Lincoln–NewarkStagecoach in LincolnshireJune 2010April 2011
InterConnect 3Lincoln–CleethorpesStagecoach in LincolnshireFebruary 2004?
InterConnect 6xLincoln–Skegness Stagecoach in LincolnshireJuly 20122014

CallConnect services

There are two kinds of CallConnect services – entirely demand-responsive 'dial-a-ride' services which serve an area with no fixed route or timetable, and semi-flexible services which run to a timetable but which deviate off the route to serve smaller villages. Journeys on CallConnect must be booked in advance over the telephone, by text message or online. CallConnect buses are designed to meet the fixed InterConnect services at designated 'interchange' points in the larger towns and villages.
Through ticketing is available between some InterConnect routes and CallConnect services, and vice versa. Through ticketing is also available between CallConnect buses in the Sleaford & Metheringham area, and East Midlands Trains rail services from Sleaford and Metheringham railway stations on the Peterborough to Lincoln Line.
In 2011, Lincolnshire County Council reported a 23.5% increase in usage of CallConnect compared to the previous year.

CallConnect areas

CallConnect services operate in 14 named areas across Lincolnshire – only the city of Lincoln and its nearby villages, and the unitary authority of North East Lincolnshire are not covered by CallConnect. The areas covered are:
Route numberArea coveredOperatorDate introducedTimetable link
7BBostonTransportConnectApril 2011
15BBourneKierJuly 2008
53CBrigg, Caistor and RidgePC CoachesFebruary 2016
100GGainsboroughKierApril 2006
1G/1KGrantham, Newark & KestevenTransportConnectNovember 2002
July 2008
5C/6HHorncastle, Coningsby & Woodhall SpaKierApril 2001
July 2002
505H/505LHolbeach & Long SuttonTransportConnectFebruary 2002
51E/51N/51SLouthKier / TC MinicoachesMarch 2004
February 2005
July 2008
9MMablethorpe & AlfordKierMarch 2005
3C/3MMarket Rasen & CaistorTC MinicoachesFebruary 2004
18M/18SMetheringham & SleafordKierApril 2008
4P/4R/4SPeterborough, Rutland, Stamford & the Welland ValesTransportConnectSeptember 2009
April 2010
July 2010
9SSkegnessKierApril 2011
16SSpaldingKierMarch 2009
6S/7WSpilsby & WainfleetTC MinicoachesApril 2001
February 2005

Semi-flexible CallConnect services