Ormskirk station is a proper old English train station. It makes me think of the Narnia books--yes,…read morethe books, not the films. I grew up on the books, and that's probably partly why I fell in love with England and eventually moved here. Naturally it's been done up to modern standards, but it still has the feel of an old railway station, making one almost wonder if at any second Miss Marple might hop off the train. Definitely a favourite station of mine in the North West.

And when he eat the cookie he got good Formby…read more This is a super cute little station that is located on Merseyside on the way to Southport, and it's part of the Liverpool area and one of the nice stations that you'll see. It's an impressive and resplendent site (and sight) as it looks brand new, even though it's actually really old. And this station does a great job connecting Formby to the other parts of the greatest city in the UK. Liverpool.

This station looks like it's big, but it really isn't. You get off the train and think--wow, surely…read moreup those stairs inside that big brick building there's a cafe and a shop! But the only thing up there is a ticket booth, a vending machine, and some loos. There are two massive, enclosed shelters either side of the tracks for waiting in, which is great--but I can't help thinking they could have used the space better. There's not a whole lot around here, but there is a park on Duke Street and the local library branch is across the street from the park.

Stagecoach Bus Merseyside is arguably the largest bus operator in the Merseyside region which…read moreincludes Lancashire, Cheshire, North Wales, Wirral - some bus routes even go between these boroughs including the X2 which connects Liverpool to Preston, via Southport, at 2 hours and 16 minutes this is one of the largest bus journeys's I've come across, this, by comparison, is about the same length of time as a train into London and enough to get the train from Liverpool to Preston and back, with time to spare via Transpennine Express or even the slow Northern train! It amazes me how Stagecoach Bus in Merseyside hasn't been reviewed since July 2010, which is nearly ten whole years. In that time, so much has changed and it seems Stagecoach have got worse, perhaps that is through the complacency of being ahead in the region for too long with little competition. Due to how big Stagecoach is, if you're planning to use public transport around Liverpool you're pretty much going to have to use either Merseyrail or this. They do run train services to Anfield on a match-day, however because of traffic around the ground and the fact the bus has a further route to go after the stadium, they are forced to divert however despite having signs around Queens Square Bus Station and telling the bus driver where I was going, no one told me about the diversion and even other match-goers on the bus didn't seem to know, this was after a long wait for the bus which seemed to suffer delays as well to make it even worse (luckily I didn't miss kick-off!) Buses are typical Stagecoach across the UK, not too modern in most regards. Despite the growth of Arriva in Liverpool, Stagecoach are still the main players and it really does seem that from service, time-keeping and overall condition of buses they are taking that too granted, yet still anything beats First Manchester which caused me trouble for a great number of years closer to home and I do think they make their routes a little clearer than other operators, even if they don't factor diversions into it. 2*

Since my last review, I now have a negative comment about Stagecoach much to my annoyance and shall…read moretherefore drop not 1 but 2 stars in its rating. More recently if you take the 21 route or any other Stagecoach bus that travels along London Road, the driver tends to change driver which could sometimes mean a 10 minute wait which is obviously not good if you're in a hurry to get somewhere. If you're lucky, the switch of driver will take place instantly but on one occasion, I had to wait nearly 15 minutes with other disgruntled passengers because the driver did not turn up, so I had to watch the original driver take a cigarette break whilst I was waiting to get to work on time but ended up late all because of poor service and an arrogant driver who did not even apologise to anybody. Other fed up passengers actually got off and waited for another bus and when that occurred, the driver immediately got back on and started driving; I not only felt sorry for those passengers but thought this was rude and felt as though he was playing games. I requested if he could let me off at the traffic lights as I was already late for work but he simply replied "no" with no apology and without realising that he kept everyone waiting longer than expected. I applaud the group of girls who pressed the stop button several times as they got off. It was obvious that most people were annoyed by the driver's actions. Even though it may not be entirely the driver's fault, Stagecoach should sort out their poor timing when switching drivers (very much unlike them); this took me by surprise. I aim to lodge a formal complaint if this happens more than once and I will suggest others also do so if they experience the same.

Had to get a replacement bus pass which required the woman working( forgot her name but was working…read moretoday) to ring multiple people but she sorted it as quickly as she could and I got my pass. I should of had to go to Manchester but she sorted it there in Wigan. Was very friendly and I'm very grateful!

Arriva North West is one of the largest bus operators in Merseyside and Cheshire while operating…read moreother services around the North West in areas such as Greater Manchester and Lancashire - although most of their services do involve the Merseyside however, where they operate most bus services. I used Arriva North West on a recent trip to Goodison Park as they offer services from Queens Square Bus Station going to the stadium, they might not offer the most services on that particular route but I found the buses to be nicer, better priced and quieter than their main Stagecoach competitors. The buses seem nice enough and the wi-fi onboard is probably amongst the best wi-fi I've ever received on a bus, especially compared to the days of First Manchester who restrict your use to just a few MB (fair usage - meaning it goes in minutes) Both services I used did seem to run a couple of minutes late and there was confusion to whether the bus would actually come as it disappeared from the screen on the bus station - but this is probably an issue with the bus station of how they displayed the buses, rather than Arriva's - but the lateness issue with them still remains. The drivers seemed A-OK. There still remains a lack of consistency between buses both new and old, double and single decker. Not a bad bus company - they served the route I needed to go at a reasonable price, albeit a slight delay - It is a real shame Arriva North West didn't expand into the Manchester market when they had the chance (First recently sold two of their largest depots in the region to Go-Ahead Group, forming Go North West and Rotala joining Diamond North-West - here's hoping they might consider taking over the Oldham depot!) 3* - Consistency between buses, adding more buses on to popular routes at peak times and improving timekeeping is a must.

In Liverpool there are a few bus services to choose from, howver Arriva is the most expensive. They…read morecharge a flat fee of £1.70 to go anywhere within the Liverpool area which seems pretty reasonable if you're going on a longer journey, however if you just want to pop to into town or only go a few stops it's quite expensive, especially as a return journey will double the price at £3.40. A day ticket is £3.30 which is decent if you're planning to make a few trips throughout the day, and a weeky pass is £12 - £13 as of Sunday. The routes aren't bad but not really very reliable, the buses are hardly ever on time, especially the less frequent ones such as the 78. The regular "every 5 minutes" buses are as the saying goes "just like buses" - there's none for an hour then three at once. If I had my choice, I'd probably pick a different provider if it had a similar route to the one I was after.

Birkenhead Bus Station is actually one of the best things about Birkenhead! For a start, it gets…read moreyou out of there as soon as you like, secondly it's nice to look at as it's a huge glass frame, thirdly it's warm, and finally it's secure so you won't get mugged here. I remember when it first got built and people would marvel at its sheer beauty.. Well that's a lie, people would just bicker and sigh that their buses were late, much as they still do today. But it's a great sheltered space with bus routes leading over to Liverpool and all over the Wirral as far as New Brighton, Heswall and West Kirby. They have two help desks in case you're not too sure what bus to take, or you need a bus pass or a TRIO or Saveaway. They also have a machine that vends cans of pop, and one with hot drinks. What more could you want?

It's not too bad as bus stations go. But all the announcements are proceeded with a very loud…read moredoorbell. Incredibly cheap and quite a shock if you're not deaf. Spend any length of time waiting there and you will end up with post traumatic stress. It's actually quite close to Conway Park station. However for buses; considering it's the nearly the last stop before Liverpool there's actually a large gap between Liverpool buses if you don't have the right ticket. Merseytravel couldn't even sort out a shared ticket arrangement whilst the rail tunnel is closed. It really should do better in terms of providing a shuttle link between Birkenhead and Liverpool.. considering this link is completely covered by a Merseytravel Monopoly (Tolls, ferries, buses, train .. all ultimately accountable and paid to Merseytravel). There's no cycle way in the Birkenhead tunnel's lower deck for example. It terms of some buses it's built in the wrong place... most notably peak time 471,472 bypass the bus station and go straight to Liverpool. The ding-dong doorbell announcements say it all ... an expensive project .. but couldn't be bothered going the extra mile.

As stations on Northern Rail go, this is a nice quiet stop. Approximately 1 mile form…read moreAinsdale-On-Sea(the Beach) and less than a stones throw from Ainsdale town centre it is perfectly situated. Toilet facilities, as expected are for customers only, but they rarely seem to be open.

Less cuddly, friendly and architecturally interesting than Formby station but then this little stop…read moreoff has even less traffic. The kiosk is located on the Pancho's side of the bridge so it's perfectly located for grabbing a late night bite and catching the last train home/on into Liverpool or Southport. Like all Merseyrail stations, Freshfield has been handily fitted with electronic schedule boards which tell you exactly how long you're going to be waiting for a train but with the kind of excellent service running on the Northern Line (between Southport and Hunts Cross) it's rarely more than fifteen minutes.

I guess the only reason to stop off here is if you are visiting the beach and squirrel reserve. But…read moreit's a lovely area, so even if you just want to explore or have a walk in a new place, this station might be a good dropping off point. It's a small station, though, so you won't find any shops or toilets here. I suggest that if you're the type to buy cold drinks or chocolate bars while you are out, buy them before you leave if you're heading this way.

This little hub has a mere four bus stops, and connects the little Wirral village of Heswall to the…read morerest of the wide world. It's adorable, and conveniently located on Telegraph Road which is lined with shops, cafes, restaurants, and more. Take a right out of the station and walk up just a little way and you will come to a Costa, a pizza place, and a small book shop, Linghams (which also has a café inside!) Who could ask for anything more? Or, if you want the library, take a left and walk down. The fire station is also there in case you start a fire on the way (ha ha), and the police station only a little further down beyond those.

This is a cute little bus depot, with just four stops connecting the folks of Heswall with the rest…read moreof the Wirral Peninsula. You can get as far as Chester as you depart from to the left of this station, and as far as Liverpool if you depart from the right. The buses are frequent and clean, and the drivers.. Well they're miserable, like all bus drivers! There is a great little cafe connected to the bus station called Gill's Cafe, it's cheap, great quality and incredibly friendly. Aside from the cafe, there's a charity shop and a pub. So if you miss the bus you can go and buy a tatty old book a then go for a pint to peruse your newfound novella! The station is very safe as it's in a big open space in the centre of Heswall, just five minutes away from the local police station! It's one of the best kept stations that I've seen on the Wirral!

This bus interchange is conveniently located right beside Old Roan train station. You can get the…read moretrain directly to Ormskirk or Liverpool from this station. It's a fairly small bus station but it will get you pretty much anywhere you need to go. It's also a very short walk to Asda up the road if you need something, and fairly close to a shopping centre including some shops like M&S, Mothercare, and some restaurants.