Two new night owls will be starting in East Frisia this weekend.

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District of Aurich – The time has come: Starting next Saturday, September 28th, two more “night owls” will be starting up on their routes in the Aurich district. They will stop at the “Thun” discotheques in Moorhusen and “Aurum” in Middels. Due to the pandemic, they were discontinued due to lack of demand. The introduction of the two new night owls has already received praise on social networks, but also occasional criticism. “How do I get from Moordorf to ‘Aurum’? So now I always have to go to ‘Thun’,” reads the “Nachteule Ostfriesland” Facebook page. In fact, the new N20 line runs from the Aurich central bus station via Walle and Moordorf to Moorhusen. It then goes north via Rechtsupweg, Marienhafe, Osteel and Nadörst. The whole thing works the same in the opposite direction, of course. The second new night owl N10 connects Wallinghausen, Aurich, Sandhorst and Middels, including a stop at the “Aurum”, with Heglitz, Willen and Wittmund. Since the stops of the N10 and N20 cross at the Aurich central bus station, it should be possible to get from Moordorf to both “Thun” and “Aurum”.

Night owls should reach their destination safely

The “night owls” are being gradually reactivated to bring night owls safely to their destination and back home again on weekends. Some politicians would like to expand the service even further and not just focus on disco-goers. At the moment, however, this is wishful thinking, at least with regard to the entire East Frisian peninsula.

There are still big gaps in the night-time planning. The further expansion of the night owl will therefore depend crucially on how well the new lines are received. The two night owls N10 and N20 run from Saturday to Sunday between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m. A ticket costs a one-off fee of five euros and is valid for any number of trips on the weekend in question.

“And what about Esens, Großheide and Hage?”

“And what about Esens?” “Why not via Großheide and Hage?” Or is that still to come?” continues the Internet comments. Krummhörn, Großefehn, Ihlow and Dornum could also be added. However, as things currently stand, these regions are not served by a night owl. And this is something that politicians in the Aurich district are particularly concerned about. In the local transport committee and in the district council, members voted unanimously in their most recent meetings to further expand the timetables. This involves closing the gaps mentioned within the district. On the other hand, politicians believe that an attempt should be made not to exclusively target discotheque audiences. For example, anyone who wants to visit a folk festival in Leer from Aurich or Wittmund or vice versa could be just as willing to use public transport if the appropriate options were available.

Two “night owl” lines in Leer

Two “night owl” bus lines have been running in the Leer district since August. But they either come from the Rheiderland (N62) or go via Oldersum and Warsingsfehn to Emden (N61). Again, popular discotheques such as the “Limit” in Ihrhove and the “Airport” in Leer are served. Things are still looking bleak in the direction of Apen. According to information from the operators, the former N63 line, which served the “Tange” discotheque, among others, and the N39 Friesland/Wilhelmshaven will remain suspended for the time being because they were very rarely used even after the pandemic.

The plans will be announced later this week on the following website.