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'Don't wait at the bus stop'

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yorkie

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Be warned that some bus drivers will only stop if passengers are in the shelter, not at the 'Bus stop' signs.

At some stops the shelter is not immediately adjacent to the bus stop sign, but you must not stop at the Bus Stop sign.

The 'Bus stop' sign indicates where the bus stops but not where you must wait.

If you hold your hand while at the Bus Stop the bus may drive right past you. When you start making a fuss and grab the driver's attention he may stop several metres in advance of the stop, expect you to run for the bus and grovel to be let on. He will then tell you off for waiting in the shelter.

A work of fiction? No, this is not the story forum. This is fact, and it happened today.

The Cuprits? First Group.
 
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Lewisham2221

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Ahh yes, First, doesn't surprise me in the slightest tbh.

We have a similar situation on my local route and previously (when the route was operated by a different depot) the drivers were very fussy but each had their own opinion, ie some would only stop at the stop sign, others only at the shelter etc. Since a closer depot took over the route however we seem to have recieved a friendlier bunch of drivers with some common sense, they will stop if you are waiting roughly near the stop (in the shelter rather than at the sign, sitting on the a bench/wall/steps near the stop) and if they see you making an effort (ie running) to get teh bus whilst not being at the stop they will stop at the nearest safe place and wait for you to catch up and let you on.
 

Ben

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nothing suprises me with First

First are the company who causes me to be late too school nearly every morning :(
 

Simming

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If a Bus Driver did that to me, if I ever go on a bus, I would personally Break all records, by making him the first Bus driver ever to have a Steering wheel stuck up his....

Thats just Pants though, Its taking the Rule book too far
 

yorkie

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Simming said:
Thats just Pants though, Its taking the Rule book too far

I've asked them to clarify if this is a rule (I doubt it), and to tell me where passengers should stand. I await their response!

I personally think that passengers should be able to wait at either the shelter or the 'Bus stop' sign.

But as it was a warm day and the buses will always stop at the Stop sign I thought it was better to wait there rather than wait at the shelter and walk a few metres to the stop.

It's probably about 20 metres between the shelter and the actual stop sign, and the reason for the gap is a hotel entrance.
 

Simming

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But if its a concrete Bus Shelter, how do they know you are there? Thats why im never keen on Bus Shelters, As you Im positive the bus will just drive by, as no one is waiting at the stop.
 

Gareth Hale

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Thats no suprise either, I was waiting for the X43 in the cold, the stupid bus drove right by me. I was angry as it was a X43 designated stop and I was wating at the sign. Inversol :roll: :roll:
 

yorkie

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Simming said:
But if its a concrete Bus Shelter, how do they know you are there? Thats why im never keen on Bus Shelters, As you Im positive the bus will just drive by, as no one is waiting at the stop.
Well it is glass, but I doubt they'd see you so well unless you go in front of it. We don't have concrete shelters here.
 

DLA365

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Gareth Hale said:
Thats no suprise either, I was waiting for the X43 in the cold, the stupid bus drove right by me. I was angry as it was a X43 designated stop and I was wating at the sign. Inversol :roll: :roll:
Did you:

1.) Show your hand clearly well before the bus reached the stop sign (hold it out for about 30 seconds - never mind if your arms ache by the time you board the bus)

2.) Ensure that if there was a bus in front of it, run behind the bus in front and make yourself visible to the X43 driver

3.) Stand in one place (usually the stop sign not the shelter) and not move back & forth.

If you did all the above, and the bus still didn't stop, it's time to get the registration number, route number, company, running number (if there is one) and the time. Then complain to the relevant transport authority.
 

Jim

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We have this type of problem on FSA's X4s + X5s as they have Shelters Then Raised Pavement. At Westbury You have to wait on raised Pavement but at a stop in Bradford they stop at the shelter. I am someone devoted to FSA but I think FY overstepped the mark a bit. Does it really matter where your waiting :?: :?: :?: :?:
 

Max

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What :?: :?: :?: :?:

That's mad! Hull drivers are certainly not that pedantic. What's the world coming too - these drivers are pathetic :?
 

jonb

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:!: Well thats buses for you all a pile of rubbish.

A similar thing happened on my local Arriva route (501) because the bus was running late the driver was not hanging about. Now there is a bus stop along the route where it is just round a corner, hard to see. When we rounded the corner a lady waved the bus down but the bus driver drove straight past having not seen her :!:
 

Diagmato

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It seems to be the opposite here - if you wait in the bus shelter, the bus will drive past, assuming you are waiting for another bus - unless you get up and walk towards the bus stopping area.
 

Guinness

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Where I live the shelter is the Bus Stop. :P

No problems in Arriva land. (Unless you have moaning bus drivers jabering on about 'correct change').
 

DLA365

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Diagmato said:
It seems to be the opposite here - if you wait in the bus shelter, the bus will drive past, assuming you are waiting for another bus - unless you get up and walk towards the bus stopping area.
Same in London - if you want to signal a bus to stop (even if it is a compulsory bus stop!), you have to get out of the shelter and show your hand well in advance (and preferably again when the bus gets closer).

In Manchester, if you're waiting opposite the coach station for the Metroshuttle 1, stand behind the Megabus and signal clearly otherwise those First drivers will shoot straight past. Sometimes they see you but overtake the Megabus and stop there (senseless IMO, as people will think the driver is a nutter and has skipped the stop).
 

jonb

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Chaz said:
No problems in Arriva land. (Unless you have moaning bus drivers jabering on about 'correct change').

I would'nt say that about the route that serves my area....
 

Guinness

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jonb said:
Chaz said:
No problems in Arriva land. (Unless you have moaning bus drivers jabering on about 'correct change').

I would'nt say that about the route that serves my area....

My depot has roughly 15 Buses now since it became an 'Outstation'. Quite a few job loses and they only kept the better drivers.
 

Harold

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yorkie said:
Be warned that some bus drivers will only stop if passengers are in the shelter, not at the 'Bus stop' signs.

At some stops the shelter is not immediately adjacent to the bus stop sign, but you must not stop at the Bus Stop sign.

The 'Bus stop' sign indicates where the bus stops but not where you must wait.

well I tend to find, that what ever bus stop your are at (as long as it's a stop where the bus is meant to stop at) i tend to find that putting your hand out when the bus comes isn't difficult as the bus should stop, so Yorkie i dunno where you got that info from that bus drivers only stop at bus stops with shelters only.

The only disadvantage with First and stagecoach for that matter is that i hated it when i was charged bloody adult fare even when i was 13 years of age. Total non-sense if you ask me.

Harold
 

Harold

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jonb said:
:!: Well thats buses for you all a pile of rubbish.

A similar thing happened on my local Arriva route (501) because the bus was running late the driver was not hanging about. Now there is a bus stop along the route where it is just round a corner, hard to see. When we rounded the corner a lady waved the bus down but the bus driver drove straight past having not seen her :!:

A: Buses arn't all that bad, they are only bad if you get f**kin rude grumpy drivers, like i often to on one of my stagecoach routes in portsmouth

B: If something this bad has happened to you, you should have made a complaint, or tried your best, cos as soon as drivers hear a complaint that they are not stopping at bus stops and are making stupid excuses saying that there is no shelter, then they will think twice and stop at any bus stop a passenger wishes to get on or off
 

Techniquest

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Right, let's tell of how things work here.

Outside my station we have a total of 3 bus stops. One serves the station in the direction of the city centre, the services heading north of the city and onwards to other destinations have 2 stops to serve them all.

The main problem we have is with those two is that you have to keep a close eye on your intended service, especially at peak times when buses can be right behind each other. The other problem, mainly in the evening, is that taxi drivers also use one of the stops to park in. This means buses have to stop in the road, which spells you have to move towards the road, into the bus stop and put a clear arm out to stop the bus. Not the safest thing to do, but essential sometimes. The drivers will stop unless the bus is full. Drivers will slow down before they reach the stop to ensure no-one is waiting for the service and hasn't quite seen it. Of course, it's better if you're ready for it before it is due.

Now, I've seen MORE anti-First Group postings here. That's the second thread it's happened in just today. Normally I would try and ignore it, however two members are posting their biased posts everywhere, more of it each day. I'm now getting very tired of this. I might be anti-GNER, but I certainly don't post this in 99% of my posts each day. I certainly don't purposely diss a new service by GNER on the basis that it is GNER. Those who were in attendance on the Rhymney meet on Saturday will know I do not like GNER at all, but I'm not so anti-GNER I will refuse to use their services, nor will I purposely post un-founded arguments that they suck. When I get around to it, I shall write up my anti-GNER essay, detailing why I do not like them. This will then be posted publically on the Internet. I mention this as those here that don't like First have no real reasoning in their argument, especially when it comes to First Group bus services. It's always 'Because it's First', which is gramatically incorrect anyway, but let's not go far with that.

I've already posted about my disagreeing with this stupid anti-First bias people have. This is the second thread in one day, as previously mentioned, that I've seen a thread with moaning about First Group. I'm unable to ignore it now. All those on my MSN contact list that are known anti-First Group people are being blocked and deleted from the list. That is just Step 1 of my efforts to detach myself from a First Group-hating lot. Step 2 and Step 3 will be going further, I do not wish for either of them to happen. However, they will be implemented if needs be. My sources of information can be sourced through other means.

I'll conclude with saying that it is a good thing I'm not a moderator...

That's my two cents.
 

Harold

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Well said FGW HST fan! and when you said "my two cents", it's nice to have another person who watches the simpsons using Kent Brockmans saying!

Very well done! :D
 

Techniquest

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Thank you for your support in what I said. Nice to know I'm not the only person on RailUK who likes First.

I see you noticed my use of 'That's my two cents' has roots in The Simpsons. I must admit, there are part-quotes from all sorts of episodes of The Simpsons, Futurama and Family Guy. The other most recent one being in my post this evening talking about the VoloTV carriage, the opening line starting off like this: 'Good news everyone,...', which comes from Futurama, in that Professor Farnsworth says this a lot during the four seasons, an example of it being: 'Good news everyone! We were supposed to make a delivery to the planet Tweenis 12, but it's completely destroyed!'

I stand by what I said though, if I have to put Steps 2 and 3 into practise, I might not be too happy about having to do so, but I'm willing to let them be done if it means I'm not associated with First Group haters.[/i]
 

Lewisham2221

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FGWFan, if I was you I would certainly take back the "those here that don't like First have no real reasoning in their argument, especially when it comes to First Group bus services." comment unless you want to spend a few hours listening to me rant on about how utterly crap First bus services are!!!
 

DLA365

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I neither like First nor hate First - I just think they're an operator of bus and train services just like any other. My negative comments about any operator are always backed by a reason.

I can't speak for others who dislike First, but I personally feel that the operator's standards have slipped considerably since the late 1990s/early 2000's, hence they are losing out on routes in London. Even Peter Hendy of London Buses said that he would not give any more contracts to First Centrewest if he had his way.
 

Techniquest

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Marv said:
FGWFan, if I was you I would certainly take back the "those here that don't like First have no real reasoning in their argument, especially when it comes to First Group bus services." comment unless you want to spend a few hours listening to me rant on about how utterly crap First bus services are!!!

You'll have to shout quite loudly from where you are if I'm to listen to it... ;)

If you really must let me know how bad First bus services your way are, I wouldn't mind hearing them exactly, but PM them.
 

DLA365

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FGWFan said:
Marv said:
FGWFan, if I was you I would certainly take back the "those here that don't like First have no real reasoning in their argument, especially when it comes to First Group bus services." comment unless you want to spend a few hours listening to me rant on about how utterly crap First bus services are!!!

If you really must let me know how bad First bus services your way are, I wouldn't mind hearing them exactly, but PM them.
Not taking any sides here, but I would also like to hear about people's bad experiences on buses. If everyone sends you a PM, then how will bus enthusiasts like me get to know what's going on?

I agree that people should stop disrespecting First for no reason, but when there are clear-cut reasons, it would be informative to post them on the forum so everyone can see them.
 

Lewisham2221

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Well, a few of my reasons for my dislike of First, based on local happenings over the past couple of weeks.

# Waiting 30 minutes for my bus (should run every 20) whilst both buses allocated to the route for that day were sat on the bus stand.

# On a number of occasions waiting for over 20 minutes for a bus on route 101 to/from Stafford (should be every 20) whilst 2 buses then arrive at once and either take shortcuts/miss stops/let people on without checking/issuing tickets to save time.

# A bus on route 20 to/from Crewe issuing hand written tickets for the entire journey (timetabled to take just over an hour) due to faulty ticket machine.

# Gross mis-allocation of buses:
Merc Varios, Optare Metroriders, Standard Floor Darts, Optare Deltas and Leyland Olympians seen regularly operating on low-floor routes, including Metroriders and Darts on the 20 to Crewe (bang out of order for such a distance). Also things such as Leyland Olympians on small, fairly quiet local routes advertised as low-floor whilst Optare Solos run round on lengthy, busy, cross-city routes.

# Poor Maintenance:
A large number of vehicles have doors that do not open/close properly. many low-floor vehicles constantly raise/lower their suspension continuously for the entire journey. Stop bell's that do not work properly. Many drivers having to top buses up with water from a watering can when they pull into the bus station at the end of a journey or before they take a bus out on a journey.

Hopefully this clarifies just some of the reasons for my dislike of First, and if it helps, I have also spoken to people from other areas (including staff) who say that First are just as bad in those areas.
 

yorkie

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I got this reply today:

With reference to your E-mail of the 2nd July 2005, regarding the Bus Stop at Mount Vale.

I have spoken to the Route Manager regarding this, who informs me that because the stop is at a layby, and as long as the bus is safely parked in that layby with no protuding parts of the bus, then because each individual driver manouvres differently, then it is acceptable to wait at either of these places.

The route manager has also informed me that he will be informing all drivers of this.

I am sorry for any inconvenience this may have caused you.


So, it's official: It is fine to wait at the shelter or the Bus stop sign. The driver was wrong.

However can anyone explain the waffle in that reply?
 

Lewisham2221

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yorkie said:
However can anyone explain the waffle in that reply?
Typical corporate waffle in a vain attempt to confuse the passenger even more so that they remain unsure and don't complain again?

Either that or he wasn't sure exactly what he wanted to put in the email and didn't bother to read it through again before he sent it.
 

yorkie

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It seems they're suggesting there's a reason why it's acceptable to wait at either place, and that reason is a technical one.

I'd say that it should be common sense to build a shelter and put a bus stop sign at a place where it is 'acceptable' to wait.

A bus stop or a shelter in an unacceptable place to wait really shouldn't be there in the first place, and any waffling about manouvres is just irrelevant IMO.

Or, am I missing something?
 
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