KendalKing
Established Member
Ex Stagecoach 17498It's An applegates ALX400. Roof has come cleanly off.
Ex Stagecoach 17498It's An applegates ALX400. Roof has come cleanly off.
I have used them twice since they started. They have run a few minutes late but I have otherwise found them OK.Has anyone else here been using these rail replacement services? Are your experiences of them as bad as mine?
The only thing I don't like about the Parkway shuttles, are the ones that come from Bristol TM which call at Filton seem to wait for ages. One I was on waited around 8 minutes for time...I have used them twice since they started. They have run a few minutes late but I have otherwise found them OK.
Dave
Looking at Realtime Trains, BRI to FIT buses are allowed 20 minutes SO and 25 minutes SX. 25 minutes off-peak does seem a bit generous, even with Bristol's traffic.The only thing I don't like about the Parkway shuttles, are the ones that come from Bristol TM which call at Filton seem to wait for ages. One I was on waited around 8 minutes for time...
For me, the rail replacement bus services were surprisingly OK on Wednesday and Thursday, all the services I boarded actually turned up on time! Though on the 0835 Clifton Down-Bristol Temple Meads service on Thursday, it appears I was the only person onboard during the whole journey - unless anyone boarded at the final intermediate stop Lawrence Hill.
Yesterday though, it was unfortunately back to being a pretty bad experience again with these rail replacement buses.
I was concerned that because I was the only person on that 0835 Clifton Down-Bristol Temple Meads service on Thursday, that I thought GWR wouldn't bother running this service yesterday because of lack of passengers. And guess what, I waited for it and it didn't turn up!
And my journey home last night was horrendous. I got to the Stapleton Road bus stop at a few minutes before the 1759 service. And the same problem as Monday and Tuesday but a bit worst. The 1759 didn't turn up, the 1814 didn't turn up, and the 1829 didn't turn up on time. Just as I was about to give up and get two normal First Bus services home instead, a bus finally turned up at 1840. After being stuck at that bus stop waiting for 45 minutes! Incidentally, I noticed that the 1805 Bristol Parkway service still hadn't turned up by then! What happened to that? - service cancelled altogether or the driver went completely the wrong way again?!
These services are absolutely hopeless!
As mentioned I have complained in particular about that lousy driver on Tuesday morning that just shook his head at me and failed to stop for me to board. And I'll have to wait nearly 2 weeks for a reply! My gut feeling though is that because the Rail Replacement Bus Service bus stop toward Clifton Down is now in Redland Grove, rather than South Road where it used to be located - is that that driver probably thought that the Rail Replacement Bus Service bus stop towards Bristol Temple Meads was the nearest bus stop on the other side of Redland Grove, and wasn't informed that it's actually in South Road where the Rail Replacement Bus Service bus stop is clearly marked. It's very clear by the looks of it that a lot of drivers have not been fully trained of the routes to take and the bus stops to stop at for these services. This should have been done well in advance of these 3 weeks of Rail Replacement Bus Services! Either way, I'm still mad that that driver just shook his head at me and failed to stop.
I know. I've emailed GWR to complain
Sn65zgt was on the 4 this afternoon. Bit of a unusual allocation
Good choice of day! The traffic in Bristol is hideous today (however that'll be First's fault as well!). Out of the 9 Unibuses 5 were stuck on the Portway waiting to turn into Shirehampton at 8.30 with a sixth on the way up the Portway to join the queue. And one of the A1s today was running via the Cumberland Basin. The main reason being that it was a Streetlite!I don't think that there has been a day without First being in the local news during the last few weeks! Anyway, today the Bristol Post has a live blog on "what it's really like to get a bus in Bristol".
Spoiler alert: it involves photos of packed buses and people ranting on Twitter.
That it has. I think it's now at a point which is way beyond their control. I was on the 48A this morning, from Fishponds Road up to UWE. For a journey that should take twenty minutes, I was on there for an hour! And that was just the first leg of my journey. The drivers deserve medals.Good choice of day! The traffic in Bristol is hideous today (however that'll be First's fault as well!). Out of the 9 Unibuses 5 were stuck on the Portway waiting to turn into Shirehampton at 8.30 with a sixth on the way up the Portway to join the queue. And one of the A1s today was running via the Cumberland Basin. The main reason being that it was a Streetlite!
That's because of the road works at Frenchay Park Road.That it has. I think it's now at a point which is way beyond their control. I was on the 48A this morning, from Fishponds Road up to UWE. For a journey that should take twenty minutes, I was on there for an hour! And that was just the first leg of my journey. The drivers deserve medals.
Two sets of roadworks!That's because of the road works at Frenchay Park Road.
The problem is if the team really know and understand what's happening they'd be diverted to dealing with the issue (if they can drive get them on the road, if they cant help the control room) not dealing with tweets. I've always found the Bristol real time screens to be fairly helpful (except when somebody forgets to update the timetables properly) and they're at least real time and not based on the timetable like a lot of other systems. However their sign off message yesterday 'We hope you have had a great day.' might have been ill advised!Another day, another article about First in the Bristol Post. How First responded after chaos on Bristol's buses.
Spoiler alert: It's another series of raging tweets with the addition of an apology from First.
Whilst First is clearly not responsible for the traffic choas in Bristol yesterday morning, I do find the copy+paste generic responses to customers on Twitter to be quite insulting. Customers deserve a meaningful response from a team that actually knows what is happening, and what is being done about it. I think satisfaction could be enormously improved if at least the information given out on social media, and on the real time screens, was relevant and insightful.
Finally, I would expect another morning of chaos, given that the traffic level in Bristol is currently 91%, compared with a typical morning of 46%!
Finally, I would expect another morning of chaos, given that the traffic level in Bristol is currently 91%, compared with a typical morning of 46%!
Plus the next 2 or 3 have now bunched straight behind them so (without a controller can step in) they'll spend the next few hours chasing each other around with the first in the queue being overloaded and the driver getting later and later as each passengers explains how long they've been waiting, how much they spend to get this poor service and how it's all the driver's fault!Then of course there’s on the next trip back into town there’s no delay - so the late running bus must be because First are useless (because the Bristol Post says so!).
I've always found the Bristol real time screens to be fairly helpful (except when somebody forgets to update the timetables properly) and they're at least real time and not based on the timetable like a lot of other systems.
I honestly don’t understand what the public expect buses to do when faced with gridlock? The P&R I was on the morning for example took 20 minutes to go from Arnos Vale to Temple Meads and there’s nothing First can do to counter that.
I don’t think people can grasp that a bus stuck in traffic like that on the way in will then be 20 minutes, if not more, late coming back out and returning.
Then of course there’s on the next trip back into town there’s no delay - so the late running bus must be because First are useless (because the Bristol Post says so!).
First Bus bosses have explained why their attempts to create a £2 ‘flat fare’ for all single journeys on the buses in Bristol is not quite as flat as it first seems.
A raft of changes to the bus fares across Bristol come into force on Sunday, with Monday the first day when commuters and school children experience the new fare set-up.
The price of a single ticket is being unified to what First Bus and Bristol Mayor Marvin Rees said was a ‘flat fare’ no matter how far you travel in Bristol on the bus.
Before the change on Monday, people were paying £1.50 for every single journey under three miles on the First Bus phone app, or £2.50 for every single journey over three miles.
The phone app will continue to sell those single tickets in ‘packs’ of five, for £10, but for the first time will introduce the availability of people buying just one single £2 ticket for one journey on their phone before they board.
Except that will cost £2.07, with the extra seven pence a booking fee imposed by the company that runs the app on behalf of First.
The same applies to Metrobus tickets - which the firm announced yesterday were also switching to a £2 flat fare.
One thought on the higher price for buying a single single. First has said that the extra 7p is to cover transaction fees; however, charging customers extra for transaction fees is illegal, so they might end up in hot water over this!Another day... Another news article slating First Bus...
https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/2-flat-fare-bristols-buses-2199640
The Bath Chronicle has reported 10162 broke down (?ran out of fuel) and blocked Bathwick Hill today apparently between approx noon and 1700 hours. Pictures show it jack knifed across the road with its rear end inches from parked vehicles. Another unfortunate incident for the Bath Uni service.
No, the law essentially is restricted to not charging extra for using a credit or debit card (see https://www.gov.uk/government/news/card-surcharge-ban-means-no-more-nasty-surprises-for-shoppers). Booking fees (i.e. transaction fees) are applied by Megabus and National Express, for example, as well as many entertainment venues.One thought on the higher price for buying a single single. First has said that the extra 7p is to cover transaction fees; however, charging customers extra for transaction fees is illegal, so they might end up in hot water over this!