This would be reasonably accurate, but there are 61 routes on the list on their
bustimes entry. Presumably the other 59 routes are also 'terrible'?
Pretty much all the Cheshire routes are worse frequency then they were a few years ago.
6 of the D&G Solo SRs were originally for a Crewe 'onelink' service. The 85 extension to Nantwich (just hourly) is the main replacement. That's effectively 4 vehicles being withdrawn.
There's plenty of infrequent services too - the routes with a 3 digit number starting with a 3 are pretty much all infrequent. The 319 being the worst.
D&G's website is making reference to a 'new 94 service on Saturdays' but that's reinstating a service they previously withdrew, at a lower frequency.
The 130 was once a half-hourly Macclesfield-Wilmslow-Cheadle-Manchester service.
Pre-COVID Northwich to Weaverham was every 15 minutes. That reduced to half-hourly while still under Arriva and it's become hourly under D&G - in the form of the 49. Hourly under D&G means the frequency is as bad as the (lower usage) Barnton service that wasn't picked up commercially and went out to tender - now the N4 under Warrington's Own Buses.
Looking, as you suggest at the 88/89. The 89 doesn't 'appear' to have a specific vehicle working the route - given the frequency of the service and the 88 provides a broadly hourly frequency across the bulk of the route. I can see it drops to two hourly between Knutsford and Macclesfield. Why would that be? What service was provided before they came along?
The 88 service, as it now, is the remains of the old 88, 27, 289 and 300.
At the point where GHA Coaches collapsed the frequency of the routes were:
27 Knutsford to Macclesfield hourly with missing hours due to second vehicle being used on school route. (GHA)
88 Knutsford to Altrincham half-hourly with alternate services via Morley Green. (GHA)
289 Northwich to Altrincham via Knutsford. Single vehicle service providing a non-clockface service. (GHA)
300 Knutsford to Longridge circular. Half-hourly but gaps in timetable due to no relief driver to cover breaks. (D&G)
Now the 88 route is the combination of the 27, 88 and 300. While the 89 is the Northwich-Knutsford part of the 289. It's also one place where vehicles off the 88 route disappear to, the other being the 188 school service (which is displayed in the 88 timetable on the D&G website).
I'll take your word for it that the original tender called for those additional peak trips - but if the council accepted the alternative bid offered by D&G I'm not sure what the problem would be from the council's perspective.
The council didn't accept an alternative bid from D&G. D&G's bid was to run the contracted timetables as per the bidding process, alongside a commercial 88A Knutsford-Wilmslow-Colshaw Farm and a return commericial Knutsford to Macclesfield journey on the 88. (The 300 was withdrawn at that point with the 88A providing the alternative). A few weeks later D&G realised they were losing significant money on their commercial attempt of a new Macclesfield to Manchester Airport service (that was competiting with Arriva's service and providing a commercial replacement for a very low usage route for the withdrawn 200 Wilmslow to Manchester Airport) and withdrew almost all their commercial services in Cheshire East.
As the result of D&G withdrawing the 88A, the council accepted a proposal to let them re-route the 88 via Longridge.
A commercial afternoon return working on the 88 Knutsford to Macclesfield section was possible as D&G used a vehicle off the 288 to run the afternoon 188. When they lost the 288 contract, the council allowed them to withdraw an afternoon 89 return working, to retain the return Knutsford to Macclesfield working.
The timetable certainly isn't how the council planned it. It's been adapted to suit a combination of demand and D&G's desires.
The residents of my native part of Somerset would love someone like D&G to turn up and start running the bus services. They're utterly sick of First!
I've used buses in Somerset and the only real issue I had was the confusion caused by First operating some buses under the "Buses of Somerset" brand but accepting First Bus tickets on them.
I find it laughable that people would want to get rid of First Bus who provide rural services late into the evening, in favour of an operator who runs very few commercial services after 6pm or at the weekend. The idea of a bus leaving Bristol at 22:30 and running all the way through rural villages to Street, with a 00:12 arrival wouldn't exist in D&G's plans.
Middlewich is slightly larger than Street and Middlewich doesn't have a station, so needs buses to connect to towns with stations too. The last weekday arrival from Winsford station in Middlewich is 22:47 on weekdays and that's a late bus by D&G Bus standards!