Classic Derbyshire, Essex and London bus & transport nostalgia from Penn Lane Publications

Penn Lane Publications produces limited edition transport histories and enthusiast titles, mostly relating to

North-East Derbyshire although titles covering other areas and subjects are being planned.

The writer, photographer and transport enthusiast Paul Smith, who grew up in Bolsover, was inspired by

the local transport operators he encountered from an early age and has been a regular contributor to

various transport and heritage related periodicals including, Classic Bus, Bus & Coach Preservation, Best

of British and most recently, in what is probably a ‘first’ for a public transport writer, Classic Massey

tractor magazine!

The first book from Penn Lane, Castle Coaches Remembered, was published in 2003 and told the early

story of Bolsover’s well known coach operation. The book is now out of print but, following a number of

requests and the discovery of more information relating to the operation, a further ‘up-dated’ edition is

planned for the near future.

The latest book, Bolsover by Bus, due out in May 2010, tells the story of a century of passenger

transport in and around the well known former colliery town. Combining historical reference with reflective

nostalgia, the book charts the development of passenger transport in the Bolsover area, from early horse

carts to powerful Twenty-first Century technology and includes such fondly remembered operators as

East Midland Motor Services, Chesterfield Corporation and of course, Castle Coaches, in addition to some

of the early, now almost forgotten, businesses which pioneered passenger services across the region.

It’s a story which may be found in many similar places across Britain, shaped only by the people,

organisations and events which have made the town and its transport unique. The growth of Bolsover as

a significant mining community throughout the last century was both influenced by and responsible for its

transport provision and, with an interesting selection of photographs, some previously unpublished and

collected by the author over the years, as well as many taken by Paul Smith himself, Bolsover by Bus

provides an ideal companion for anybody interested in the town’s recent history and transport operations

in the area generally.