Arriva Midlands

[joieman]

.....and often get ever nearer Derby - on 127 to Loughborough and Shepshed.

And sometimes even the 29s between Leicester and Swadlincote, where at the latter place Arriva's Leicestershire and Derby networks actually meet.

 

[Robertj21a]

Every time anyone seems to ask Arriva Midlands about a missing bus, they always get the same answer. I guess over time they give up asking

But your reference was to ANY Arriva operation, not just Midlands.

 

[duncombec]

But your reference was to ANY Arriva operation, not just Midlands.

"Operational Difficulties" is a standard Arriva customer service response on social media - we have it in Kent (& Surrey), I've also seen it in Essex and Herts and Beds... which isn't surprising, given it's one social media team, covering the whole country. Along with "we're sorry to hear this, please fill in a form so we can investigate further" (or words to that effect), it's really not difficult to find!

 

[Trainman40083]

"Operational Difficulties" is a standard Arriva customer service response on social media - we have it in Kent (& Surrey), I've also seen it in Essex and Herts and Beds... which isn't surprising, given it's one social media team, covering the whole country. Along with "we're sorry to hear this, please fill in a form so we can investigate further" (or words to that effect), it's really not difficult to find!

I did suspect that there was one social media team.... I wonder if anyone gets a satisfactory answer if they fill in that form? Comments I have seen, suggest not. I've seen posts that start "Can you tell me where your X6 service is (assume any route)...A couple of days later, the response "we are sorry we were not there for you". And they wonder why people go by car

 

[joieman]

I wonder if 4439 has been repainted recently. It looks quite shiny at the moment, and Bustimes suggests it was off the road from August until a few days ago.

 

[43055]

Arriva are changing the X65/765 to go head on with Buslink's X66 on the 26th. As a result the X65 will be every 30 mins and follow the same route as the X66. The 765 will continue to be hourly on weekdays and drop to every 80 mins on Saturdays.

Arriva Bus

www.arrivabus.co.uk

From Saturday 26th October 2024, we’ll be making some big changes on routes X65/765 between Tamworth and Lichfield.

X65 Tamworth – Lichfield fast and direct
We’re running more buses on this route, offering customers a more regular and reliable service between Tamworth and Lichfield. Buses will run up to every 30 minutes on Mondays to Saturdays throughout the day. An evening service will continue to be provided on the 765.

Buses on the x65 will no longer serve Boley Park but will run direct along Tamworth Road and Upper St. John Street.

765 Tamworth – Whittington – Boley Park - Lichfield
A revised timetable and route are being introduced.

There will be a slight reduction in the number of journeys serving Whittington. On Mondays to Fridays, and Saturdays there will be around 2 or 3 journeys less in each direction, with buses running approximately every 1 hour 20 minutes.

The route will be changed to provide a link with Boley Park, replacing the service currently provided on the x65. The route through Boley Park is the same as the current x65, serving all bus stops along Ryknild Street and Roman Way.

The 0800 from Tamworth to Lichfield and the 1535 from Lichfield to Tamworth on Mondays to Fridays, will operate along Tamworth Road and Upper St. John Street to maintain the link with King Edward VI School in Lichfield.

We will continue to offer an evening service on Mondays to Saturdays with the last bus leaving Tamworth at 2130 and Lichfield at 2205.

 

[joieman]

I wonder if 4439 has been repainted recently. It looks quite shiny at the moment, and Bustimes suggests it was off the road from August until a few days ago.

To answer my own question: it looks fairly obvious. Those scratches on the corners of the roof are gone.

 

[busspotter1]

I had the (unfortunate) opportunity to spend some time in Derby City Centre waiting for somebody.
It seems that the Arriva X38 operations has slightly more passengers on average than TB, though the TB ones are much nicer!
Would be interesting to see what happens once the price cap expires since TB is usually pricier than Arriva - will the passengers switch to the cheaper Arriva option?

 

[Trainman40083]

I had the (unfortunate) opportunity to spend some time in Derby City Centre waiting for somebody.
It seems that the Arriva X38 operations has slightly more passengers on average than TB, though the TB ones are much nicer!
Would be interesting to see what happens once the price cap expires since TB is usually pricier than Arriva - will the passengers switch to the cheaper Arriva option?

Yes, certainly be interesting when you compare the relative day tickets.

 

[busspotter1]

Yes, certainly be interesting when you compare the relative day tickets.

I remember when Yourbus competed with Arriva on the 1/1A routes.
Yourbus fares were cheaper but people usually got the first bus that came. Then, Arriva introduced the "Alvaston Weekly Ticket" for a discounted rate of £10 (ordinary one for the entire* network was around £12 for a child and around £18 for an adult). This weekly ticket worked out cheaper than Yourbus if you were using the service for commuting during the working week. After this you could see people with the special weekly ticket waiting for the Arriva to arrive and didn't both with the Yourbus.
If the passenger numbers get low for the X38, I wouldn't be at all surprised if Arriva released a discounted "X38 Only Weekly Ticket" to capture the market share.

Also, still waiting to see what happens with the remaining 24 Scania buses. Apparently according to an internal memo they are supposed to be all replaced by "newer" Pulsars by year end. No doubt this is going to be pushed back unless they start bringing in ~2 replacements each week. Makes me laugh that they get promised "newer" buses then get a 57 plate Pulsar when some of the Omnicities are 09 plate.

 

[Trainman40083]

I remember when Yourbus competed with Arriva on the 1/1A routes.
Yourbus fares were cheaper but people usually got the first bus that came. Then, Arriva introduced the "Alvaston Weekly Ticket" for a discounted rate of £10 (ordinary one for the entire* network was around £12 for a child and around £18 for an adult). This weekly ticket worked out cheaper than Yourbus if you were using the service for commuting during the working week. After this you could see people with the special weekly ticket waiting for the Arriva to arrive and didn't both with the Yourbus.
If the passenger numbers get low for the X38, I wouldn't be at all surprised if Arriva released a discounted "X38 Only Weekly Ticket" to capture the market share.

I doubt seven buses per hour is sustainable over a long period on the X38. Surprised they aren't all in the road works section on the X38.

 

[joieman]

Also, still waiting to see what happens with the remaining 24 Scania buses. Apparently according to an internal memo they are supposed to be all replaced by "newer" Pulsars by year end. No doubt this is going to be pushed back unless they start bringing in ~2 replacements each week. Makes me laugh that they get promised "newer" buses then get a 57 plate Pulsar when some of the Omnicities are 09 plate.

Having newer buses being replaced by older ones is always ironic. This is why Arriva had to send away Leicester's own E400s for older ones from Liverpool that are already crying for repainting.

 

[Robertj21a]

I had the (unfortunate) opportunity to spend some time in Derby City Centre waiting for somebody.
It seems that the Arriva X38 operations has slightly more passengers on average than TB, though the TB ones are much nicer!
Would be interesting to see what happens once the price cap expires since TB is usually pricier than Arriva - will the passengers switch to the cheaper Arriva option?

I'm expecting Arriva to usually win over more passengers. They have a better terminus in Derby and I'm sure some regular passengers will remember just how poor TrentBarton were on the X38 - which led directly to Arriva deciding to take on all 4 workings at that time.

 

[Trainman40083]

I suspect Arriva Derby are trying to think of a way of making older Pulsars look newer than 58/09 plated Scanias.

 

[APT618S]

I suspect Arriva Derby are trying to think of a way of making older Pulsars look newer than 58/09 plated Scanias.

Easy. Just do what Arriva Leicester did and put some Northern Ireland registrations on them.

 

[Trainman40083]

Easy. Just do what Arriva Leicester did and put some Northern Ireland registrations on them.

Laughed loudly. My thoughts exactly.

 

[joieman]

Laughed loudly. My thoughts exactly.

I mean, the 158 Pulsar 2s and Leicester's former B7TLs don't really need the Northern Irish plates anymore, given that Sapphire as a brand is fundamentally dead anyway!

 

[busspotter1]

Having newer buses being replaced by older ones is always ironic. This is why Arriva had to send away Leicester's own E400s for older ones from Liverpool that are already crying for repainting.

Wasn't that because buses that entered Liverpool City Centre could not be more than 15 years old?
So simple fix for Arriva - just swap some buses around!

 

[Qwerty133]

Wasn't that because buses that entered Liverpool City Centre could not be more than 15 years old?
So simple fix for Arriva - just swap some buses around!

Which is exactly why local councils shouldn’t have the power to impose such rules. Whilst there is an argument for an age cap nationwide such a local policy only serves to make public transport worse overall as resources are displaced from their most sensible use in order to meet arbitrary deadlines.

 

[joieman]

Wasn't that because buses that entered Liverpool City Centre could not be more than 15 years old?
So simple fix for Arriva - just swap some buses around!

Except we got older buses, so it's not really a fair exchange! Many of them look so shabby that one appears to have taken a trip to the paint shop!

Which is exactly why local councils shouldn’t have the power to impose such rules. Whilst there is an argument for an age cap nationwide such a local policy only serves to make public transport worse overall as resources are displaced from their most sensible use in order to meet arbitrary deadlines.

Precisely. Though I think if a bus is sufficiently reliable and in good condition then the age doesn't really matter.

 

[43055]

Except we got older buses, so it's not really a fair exchange! Many of them look so shabby that one appears to have taken a trip to the paint shop!

And Derby had to repaint all 3 of the Pulsars they received from Liverpool.

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

Which is exactly why local councils shouldn’t have the power to impose such rules. Whilst there is an argument for an age cap nationwide such a local policy only serves to make public transport worse overall as resources are displaced from their most sensible use in order to meet arbitrary deadlines.

Except that local councils are legally bound to manage and improve air pollution, and that is naturally an issue for urban areas. Also, if you were to have a nationwide age cap for vehicles (at an arbitrary figure of 15 years), then how do the economics stack up in more rural areas?

I'm not defending Arriva, BTW, in moving around vehicles to simply meet local requirements as a consequence of their failure to invest in vehicles in the last ten years.

Though I think if a bus is sufficiently reliable and in good condition then the age doesn't really matter.

A bus over 10 years old need not look unappealing and tired. I was recently in Sussex and disembarked from a Stagecoach e400 that wasn't the worst I've experienced but was looking all its 13 years internally. Then got on a Brighton and Hove Gemini that was 18 months newer but was immaculate.

I might add that aside from a brief period in the late 1970s/early 1980s when the bus grant was provided (in part) to support operators move away from crew operated vehicles, many fleets generally had some vehicles over 15 years old.

 

[Trainman40083]

And Derby had to repaint all 3 of the Pulsars they received from Liverpool.

Derby seems like one of those Cities that gets an Arriva bus in every livery variation..Still one Gemini said to be in the wrong shade of blue.

 

[joieman]

Derby seems like one of those Cities that gets an Arriva bus in every livery variation..Still one Gemini said to be in the wrong shade of blue.

Ahh, yes, that plain blue one...

A bus over 10 years old need not look unappealing and tired. I was recently in Sussex and disembarked from a Stagecoach e400 that wasn't the worst I've experienced but was looking all its 13 years internally. Then got on a Brighton and Hove Gemini that was 18 months newer but was immaculate.

I might add that aside from a brief period in the late 1970s/early 1980s when the bus grant was provided (in part) to support operators move away from crew operated vehicles, many fleets generally had some vehicles over 15 years old.

Kinchbus's 07-plate slimline Optare Solos still only feel half their actual age (testament to a thorough refurbishment and reupholstering about five years ago).
Mechanically, though, despite being quite reliable in general as far as I can tell, their age is probably catching up with them. One of them has been withdrawn as a result of an engine fire.

 

[Trainman40083]

Ahh, yes, that plain blue one...

Kinchbus's 07-plate slimline Optare Solos still only feel half their actual age (testament to a thorough refurbishment and reupholstering about five years ago).
Mechanically, though, despite being quite reliable in general as far as I can tell, their age is probably catching up with them. One of them has been withdrawn as a result of an engine fire.

I remember travelling on those slimline Solos when they entered service with Trentbarton, brand new, on the Allestree services in Derby in August 2007. They were covering whilst normal Allestree Solos 460 - 465 were given a facelift. Seem to recall a two tone bell.

 

[busspotter1]

Except that local councils are legally bound to manage and improve air pollution, and that is naturally an issue for urban areas. Also, if you were to have a nationwide age cap for vehicles (at an arbitrary figure of 15 years), then how do the economics stack up in more rural areas?

I'm not defending Arriva, BTW, in moving around vehicles to simply meet local requirements as a consequence of their failure to invest in vehicles in the last ten years.

A bus over 10 years old need not look unappealing and tired. I was recently in Sussex and disembarked from a Stagecoach e400 that wasn't the worst I've experienced but was looking all its 13 years internally. Then got on a Brighton and Hove Gemini that was 18 months newer but was immaculate.

I might add that aside from a brief period in the late 1970s/early 1980s when the bus grant was provided (in part) to support operators move away from crew operated vehicles, many fleets generally had some vehicles over 15 years old.

Then I think these councils should specify an "approved" specification of vehicles. Using the current logic, next year the 09 plate Pulsar 2 would be need to be withdrawn despite there being 11 plate Pulsar 2 buses with the same specification and those are alright to operate within the city centre.
Also, those hydrogen buses which seemingly have spent more time off-road than in service are a great investment. Another brilliant decision from the local authority.

 

[joieman]

Then I think these councils should specify an "approved" specification of vehicles. Using the current logic, next year the 09 plate Pulsar 2 would be need to be withdrawn despite there being 11 plate Pulsar 2 buses with the same specification and those are alright to operate within the city centre.

Sounds like a logical idea. Gets somewhat trickier when a particular model has been in production for a long time, though: for instance, the first generation Optare Solo was in production from 1998 to 2012, and its successor the Solo SR began production in 2008 and is still in production today.

Also, those hydrogen buses which seemingly have spent more time off-road than in service are a great investment. Another brilliant decision from the local authority.

Victims of an underdeveloped hydrogen fuelling system. Batteries are no longer considered an experimental fuel source merely by the scale at which the technology is being rolled out, which is not the case with hydrogen.

 

[Trainman40083]

Sounds like a logical idea. Gets somewhat trickier when a particular model has been in production for a long time, though: for instance, the first generation Optare Solo was in production from 1998 to 2012, and its successor the Solo SR began production in 2008 and is still in production today.

Victims of an underdeveloped hydrogen fuelling system. Batteries are no longer considered an experimental fuel source merely by the scale at which the technology is being rolled out, which is not the case with hydrogen.

Chicken and egg situation with hydrogen. Production will increase when demand increases, but demand won't increase until supply increases.

 

[busspotter1]

Sounds like a logical idea. Gets somewhat trickier when a particular model has been in production for a long time, though: for instance, the first generation Optare Solo was in production from 1998 to 2012, and its successor the Solo SR began production in 2008 and is still in production today.

Victims of an underdeveloped hydrogen fuelling system. Batteries are no longer considered an experimental fuel source merely by the scale at which the technology is being rolled out, which is not the case with hydrogen.

It would be interesting to know the different specifications of buses and what they are good/bad at. Do you know if a summary is available anywhere? Like, I can't really tell the difference between an Omnicity and an OmniLink that Arriva Derby operate when it comes to technicality.

 

[joieman]

It would be interesting to know the different specifications of buses and what they are good/bad at. Do you know if a summary is available anywhere? Like, I can't really tell the difference between an Omnicity and an OmniLink that Arriva Derby operate when it comes to technicality.

The Omnicity has a chassis with a transverse engine and thus a fully low floor whereas the Omnilink has a chassis with a longitudinal engine, resulting in a larger raised area at the rear of the saloon (and the Omnilink being noticeably taller than the Omnicity).