diffywood
Member
am I right in saying that when the new bus station opened the 75 and 76 stopped in lewis mead and Rupert street for driver change overs - but this was quietly stopped after a few months - don't know why
Traveline shows the 76 moving to depart from stop B at Cribbs, with the 75.
Also, southbound, it has no sign of the Prince Street stop, has no stop on the Centre still, but shows the 75 and 76 stopping at HF on {I think} Sundays...?! But that may all be a mistake that will be updated on Traveline in due course, perhaps even today.
Stops E and F at the Mall are closing to become a new metrobus stop, which could explain these changes.
First have registered a new service 12 in Weymouth. Running from Weymouth to Blandford. I would assume this replaces X12 run by Damory. Change effective 24/7/17.
E and F currently serve the 2 and 1 respectively.
But they would have to move most likely to G or H most likely H with SE, 78 etc moving to A
Expect the legal lettering to be changed again on the buses from First Somerset and Avon Limited to First West of England Limited. Email signatures had to be changed today to First WoE, so roll out across the vehicles should happen soon enough.
First are offering special fares on the 90 from today with singles set at a maximum of £2 and returns capped at £2.50. The associated branding on the buses has also been changed to reflect this.
https://www.firstgroup.com/bristol-bath-and-west/more/offers-and-promotions/service-90-bristol
On another note both 37764 and 37771 both noted broken down this morning!
Amazing how First can justify both doubling the frequency & introducing special fares on the 90, all just to combat the appearance of Wessex, especially when most consider cheaper fares aren't successful in attracting passengers from the competition. On the plus side, at least the competition has resulted in First's passengers gaining a more frequent / cheaper journey.
I wonder how long that will last after the Wessex 90 is withdrawn??
You are right in your cynicism. This was a service that had the headway widened; now it is being upped and now has fare deals.
To be honest, this wouldn't be news if it were Stagecoach responding to an incursion. First were massively complacent nationally in not reacting to competitors.
I can't see it lasting to the end of the year as per the competitive 14 in Bath or the ONE/ONETWO in Bristol.
Yes, totally agree on First not responding to competitors enough nationally.
But in this instance, it seems a massive over reaction, no one had any confindence that the Wessex 90 would work / survive in the first instance, so why such a reaction from First?? Surely these extra resources would be better used elsewhere on their network.
First are offering special fares on the 90 from today with singles set at a maximum of £2 and returns capped at £2.50. The associated branding on the buses has also been changed to reflect this.
https://www.firstgroup.com/bristol-bath-and-west/more/offers-and-promotions/service-90-bristol
On another note both 37764 and 37771 both noted broken down this morning!
Yes, totally agree on First not responding to competitors enough nationally.
But in this instance, it seems a massive over reaction, no one had any confindence that the Wessex 90 would work / survive in the first instance, so why such a reaction from First?? Surely these extra resources would be better used elsewhere on their network.
The way I see it is that First invested quite heavily with new streetdecks for the 90 less than two years ago, arguably took a risk in doing so. This latest move is First simply trying to protect that investment. Promoting the £4 day rider is a good move as it obviously can be used on other services (which people will likely change in to), whereas Wessex customers are much more limited with where they can use theirs.Yes, totally agree on First not responding to competitors enough nationally.
But in this instance, it seems a massive over reaction, no one had any confindence that the Wessex 90 would work / survive in the first instance, so why such a reaction from First?? Surely these extra resources would be better used elsewhere on their network.
The way I see it is that First invested quite heavily with new streetdecks for the 90 less than two years ago, arguably took a risk in doing so. This latest move is First simply trying to protect that investment. Promoting the £4 day rider is a good move as it obviously can be used on other services (which people will likely change in to), whereas Wessex customers are much more limited with where they can use theirs.
Restrictions on bus operator First Bristol, put in place more than 25 years ago, could be removed.
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) applied them in 1989, after fears two merged firms, taken over by FirstGroup in 1996, could have too strong a bargaining position with the council.
First Bristol said it welcomed the intention to remove the restrictions.
The CMA said stakeholders had until 30 June to comment.
The restrictions were implemented following the 1989 merger of two local bus companies, Badgerline and Midland Red West.
Excess profit
The Monopolies and Mergers Commission (MMC) at the time ruled the merger would remove competition for bus services contracted by the former Avon County Council.
Restrictions imposed by the CMA had included a cap on the amount they could receive from the local authority for running a tendered service, and a requirement to return any excess profit from such services.
The CMA review, which started in January, found FirstGroup's "share of tendered bus services in the region has reduced significantly since the MMC report".
A CMA spokesperson said: "The CMA engaged with local stakeholders and no party that we spoke to argued that the undertakings were having a beneficial effect and should be retained."
A First Bristol spokesman said: "First Bristol welcomes the publication of a provisional decision by the Competition and Markets Authority to release the company from undertakings relating to a merger dating back more than 25 years ago.
"Neither the original undertakings themselves nor the consequences of this decision impact the way we continue to invest in bus services in Bristol and the wider West of England region."
Being reported that GSC have re-registered the X12 Weymouth to Blandford service; a repeat of the 347/387 episode?
Both the FHD 12 (PH0006159/450) and GSC X12 (PH1121126/22) starting on 24/7/17 are shown as being subsidised by the county council.
There must be an error there somewhere.
47439 is out on the 9 freshly painted in green. On the subject of the 9 and green, a lot of the green Streetlites have shown up on the 9 over the past week or so.