Bus service from LPY to John Lennon Airport finishing

[trainophile]

Just picked this up on the weekly Merseytravel bulletin:

501 Liverpool South Parkway – Liverpool John Lennon Airport
This service will be withdrawn. (The last day this bus will run will be Saturday, 2 February.)

Anyone know why? Is there going to be some sort of replacement service?

 

[Anon Mouse]

Just picked this up on the weekly Merseytravel bulletin:

501 Liverpool South Parkway – Liverpool John Lennon Airport
This service will be withdrawn. (The last day this bus will run will be Saturday, 2 February.)

Anyone know why? Is there going to be some sort of replacement service?

Thats a bit odd, I would imagine there would be a replacement or are there plenty of other buses that serve the station and Airport?

 

[trainophile]

I think there's one, but don't know how regular it is (I'd imagine nothing like as frequent as the 501), and it's a "normal" bus so doesn't have the double-level luggage areas, so not very user-friendly for people with large bags and cases.

I'm quite shocked actually. I've used that service on a few occasions and never imagined it might cease to exist.

 

[Anon Mouse]

sounds very odd, unless another operator is going to take over as a different number or if the Airport will be making thier own arrangements (maybe a number to dial to send a bus when they arrive?)

 

[Pumbaa]

501 is every 20mins.

86A is every 12mins, 80A is every 20mins...

 

[185]

86A is every few minutes, but I do think the operator of that offers a quite rubbish service.

Merseytravel should run one, as the long-route commercial service is really not a reliable one.

 

[Anvil1984]

According to Arriva website the service has a new operator

 

[trainophile]

501 is every 20mins.

86A is every 12mins, 80A is every 20mins...

Are those stoppers though? The advantage of the dedicated service is that it went directly to/from the airport/railway station.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

According to Arriva website the service has a new operator

Aha! That's better news. Assuming it is up to the same standards as the exiting service.

 

[Polarbear]

I know the Arriva site suggested that another operator was going to provide service 501, but the Merseytravel website just says the service is withdrawn with no information about any replacement.

I only used the 501 a couple of times but it was almost empty every time so I can see why Arriva wouldn't want it. They've also abandoned the evening service on the 500 Airport - Liverpool express, though that is covered by another operator.

 

[185]

Arriva are disgusting.

They forced Merseytravel to surrender the perfectly good City-Airport Selwyns 500 service, to run it themselves commercially.

Now they only want the busiest journeys, and caused the plug to be pulled on the 501, so passengers with luggage end up on their trashy 1-hour long 86A service via some of the least nice bits of Liverpool.

Utter rubbish, and a disgrace to Liverpool.

 

[ivanhoe]

The 501 was a product of good intentions by Merseytravel that was never going to work in commercial bus operations. It would have required many more people travelling towards Liverpool to actually get off at Liverpool South Parkway, to use it. Clearly if you were travelling from City Centre, then you would have used the 500.

It's a shame but with Local Authorities suffering huge cuts, you cannot justify any subsidy for this service.

 

[starrymarkb]

It seems that Airport-Station-City routes will always lose out to Direct Airport-City services...

 

[Polarbear]

Arriva are disgusting.

They forced Merseytravel to surrender the perfectly good City-Airport Selwyns 500 service, to run it themselves commercially.

Now they only want the busiest journeys, and caused the plug to be pulled on the 501, so passengers with luggage end up on their trashy 1-hour long 86A service via some of the least nice bits of Liverpool.

Utter rubbish, and a disgrace to Liverpool.

Off topic slightly, but I've certainly noticed a change with Arriva since their acquisition by DB. Quite a lot of routes have either been withdrawn, curtailed or rationalised and there has been much more emphasis on urban (profitable routes).

Shades of how First went about their bus operations about 10 years ago & look how that ended.

 

[Pumbaa]

Anyone witnessed a new operator on the 501? Merseytravel website isn't giving a lot away...

 

[Statto]

Arriva are disgusting.

They forced Merseytravel to surrender the perfectly good City-Airport Selwyns 500 service, to run it themselves commercially.

Now they only want the busiest journeys, and caused the plug to be pulled on the 501, so passengers with luggage end up on their trashy 1-hour long 86A service via some of the least nice bits of Liverpool.

Utter rubbish, and a disgrace to Liverpool.

Do wind your neck in, 501 was a White Elephant never carried more than fresh air, complete waste of a route. drivers & buses, Arriva have 80A/86A which only take a few minutes longer than the 501 did, only problem is at the mo there's major Roadworks on Smithdown Road affecting the reliability of the 80A & 86A, Arriva still operate the 500 allocating better buses than the dreadful Cadets Selwyns used[even if they are London cast offs], & i'm not an Arriva fanboy.

 

[northwichcat]

Off topic slightly, but I've certainly noticed a change with Arriva since their acquisition by DB. Quite a lot of routes have either been withdrawn, curtailed or rationalised and there has been much more emphasis on urban (profitable routes).

That started happening well before the DB takeover in my area. Bowers took over the daytime contract for the 300 Knutsford circular when Arriva didn't bother to renew it over 5 years ago - they'd terminated the less profitable evening contract before that.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

Do wind your neck in, 501 was a White Elephant never carried more than fresh air, complete waste of a route. drivers & buses, Arriva have 80A/86A which only take a few minutes longer than the 501 did

The problem with all Airport services (including Manchester Airport rail services) is if you don't have a frequent service then public transport is a lot less attractive. If public transport is every half hour you might run with luggage to the departure point, only to see it pull away as you arrive. Air passengers have no idea how long it will take from landing to getting to the public transport departure point - there are so many variables involved.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
Just noticed the 280 National Express service from Birkenhead to Liverpool Airport to Yorkshire seems to have gone as well.

 

[Pumbaa]

Anyone witnessed a new operator on the 501? Merseytravel website isn't giving a lot away...

Apparently it's been abandoned completely. All passengers for South Parkway have to take the 86A/80A.