Ironically, a very similar position in Bristol with huge gaps in service and increased workloads for the buses that do run. And of course more loadings mean more time and more buses being late.
This very problem is causing more drivers to leave - it really is a catch 22.
Most passengers here do not take it out on the driver however, but it is making the job harder, as is tap on tap off, which should make things easier! It’s too time consuming.
Tap on tap off has been a bit of a mess up here to be honest. It's made journeys so much longer because most of the machines either don't work or barely work so it then adds more time as the driver has to ask people to use the main ticket machine to tap off and then a lot of people can't hear through the driver's screen so it becomes frustrating on both sides.
As for the previous posts regarding splitting services and prioritising others, I think that would be an almost impossible task. The 7A for example, is only hourly on a Sunday and massively cut in route yet it's cancelled for seemingly a fair chunk of today going by the app as the next 2 are still cancelled and the previous runs had been too.
As for the 60, I think too many people use the Maryhill to Drumchapel end of it to prioritise the 60A over it. If anything off peak the 60A should probably go hourly and adopt a setup like the 4/4A have where the common part of the route is every 20 mins. The other option would be to extend some M60s to Maryhill but the problem is that then makes Scotstoun need to put more resources in just to save Caledonia some.
The one I think you could cut and shake up massively is the 38s. The main way I'd do it is cut all lettered variants except the 38As to operating between the City Centre and their terminus at Baillieston and Chryston and as part of this extend the 38B to Baillieston all week instead of just a Sunday. On the southside, make the 38s that go to Eastwood Toll into 38As and make them go to Rouken Glen keeping the Newton Mearns ones every 30 mins to Glasgow Fort from there.
For the 21, I'd argue that you could get rid of the Cathkin ones in the evening and just make it the Gardenhall ones. Most of the route of the short runs has the 267 anyway and then Cathkin has the 18 too.
The 61 is a tricky one because Summerston also has the 7/7A and 8 but the east end also has a lot of cover. It's only really Sandyhills that doesn't and even at that it's sandwiched in between 2 main roads with plenty of buses. I would say make the 64 hourly but it's mostly older people who are less mobile that use it so it's a tricky one.
I'd even argue you could make the 7A Osborne Street to Westburn permanently every 30 mins instead of the 24 mins then 36 mins gap we have now and make the 7 every 15 mins between Summerston and Rutherglen. The only issue is that would probably need a few double deckers as the north side of the 7 route can be absolutely loaded with people a lot of the time.
I'd not be surprised if the 16 went hourly off peak at some point. When Simplicity occurred, the bottom of Crow Road was supposed to be cut off anyway but got reversed last minute and other than peak times it carries so few passengers. I'd even cut the 8 back to Partick off peak too to save a bus or two as well.
I do wonder if the 2 could gain a variant to take the 81 off and cover Duntocher for it. It may result in a situation where it's a 12 minute frequency with 3 to Faifley and 2 to Duntocher but it save more resources.
