Lothian Buses and ECB Discussion

[overthewater]

Agree, people forget it's not just commercial passengers at the Airport. There's also freight aircraft etc and plenty of staff, many of whom don't drive.

Of course, that side is kept very quiet but it seems passengers from most other places bar along A8 no longer have any service, ( you would think peak service would still run on certain routes)

 

[CN04NRJ]

Of course, that side is kept very quiet but it seems passengers from most other places bar along A8 no longer have any service, ( you would think peak service would still run on certain routes)

There isn't really any peak at the moment from my experience. It's about the same no matter what time of day.

 

[Lothian_Bus]

XLB's now being used on the 3,5, 22, 33 and 49. Will it be Longstone and Marine drivers operating these?

 

[overthewater]

There isn't really any peak at the moment from my experience. It's about the same no matter what time of day.

What I mean with peak time is when shifts change over happens,

 

[buslad1988]

XLB's now being used on the 3,5, 22, 33 and 49. Will it be Longstone and Marine drivers operating these?

All drivers who volunteered to continue working are having/had training familiarisation with the XLB’s. You can just about see any driver from any garage on any route atm.

 

[buslad1988]

What I mean with peak time is when shifts change over happens,

You’re still only talking a hand full of people at the most! Peak is non existent and the level of service is perfectly adequate at this time. It’s being constantly reviewed and will be increased/decreased as and when deemed appropriate and necessary.

They’re doing a stirling job under difficult circumstances. They’re professionals and they know what they’re doing.

 

[Lothian_Bus]

All drivers who volunteered to continue working are having/had training familiarisation with the XLB’s. You can just about see any driver from any garage on any route atm.

Thanks. Was wondering how that worked.

 

[CN04NRJ]

You’re still only talking a hand full of people at the most! Peak is non existent and the level of service is perfectly adequate at this time. It’s being constantly reviewed and will be increased/decreased as and when deemed appropriate and necessary.

They’re doing a stirling job under difficult circumstances. They’re professionals and they know what they’re doing.

Well said , with the latest changes they've even more closely matched demand to the level of service. The reintroduction of the 2 is very welcome as alot of the 30s between the bridges and Niddrie have been uncomfortably busy .

 

[TheEastCoaster]

Well said , with the latest changes they've even more closely matched demand to the level of service. The reintroduction of the 2 is very welcome as alot of the 30s between the bridges and Niddrie have been uncomfortably busy .

Which again makes me wonder what service they will bring back or cut down on, bar the services that serve the hospital obviously.

I already stated before they should of extended the 300 to the Royal in the past, but many areas that are missing links now such as the 42 (Duddingston) or 36 (Greenbank/Bonnington)

Also just for curious sake, how is the 106 service doing? The entire run between Granton and Dunbar must be exhausting

 

[overthewater]

I have no idea why two people are making a storm in a tea cup ?! if the Airlinks are empty all day expect when Shift changes happen even if its 4 passengers that is still classed at peak ( peak mean its busiest)

 

[CN04NRJ]

I have no idea why two people are making a storm in a tea cup ?! if the Airlinks are empty all day expect when Shift changes happen even if its 4 passengers that is still classed at peak ( peak mean its busiest)

Your original comment was suggesting certain areas should have a better service during the 'peak'.
If you'd have clarified that you defined a 'peak' as potentially only being 4 people rather than the more widely accepted interpretation of peak time travel it might have been better.

Not sure why you think anyone is trying to cause a storm in a teacup??

 

[Siemens Trains]

What I do wonder is will the 19 show ‘West End’ as it’s destination from Granton, especially if it will serve all of its normal stops Eastbound certainly as far as the end of Princes St and then close to normal stops (some normal too) as far as Abbeyhill. Westbound from the 4 to 19 might be tricky though.

Well what's the verdict on the destinations shown on the 4 and 19? West End, Leith Street, City Centre, Granton or Jewel? Something completely different? Or maybe nothing at all!
And I suppose the other question is if there were any passengers making essential journeys to benefit who would otherwise have been stuck? I find both routes a bit niche on top of the existing services, but it's not as if I've actually been out to see what the demand is like nowadays.

 

[buslad1988]

Nice to see Lothian rolling back its cut back and introducing some improvements, not sure what its take this long. No2 should have been kept as it goes to Supermarkets at either end. Why the 100 is still running is anyone gusse.

I agree with CN04NRJ... no one is trying to cause a storm in a teacup.

However OTW, sometimes the way you word things can be interpreted that you’re implying those running Lothian do not know what they are doing and aren’t reacting quick enough (example quoted msg).

It’s also already been widely discussed recently about why airlink is still running just a page or two back.

Any timetable/rota changes get carefully planned, need management and union approval before being implemented (and changes go live on Sundays). So sometimes it may take a week or two for things to go through. Staffing levels themselves are also a major factor with the volunteers they have left... there’s no point re-introducing services to then cancel them later on because of no drivers.

Hope that makes sense; and no animosity implied! This forum exists for discussion

 

[overthewater]

I still stand by that point, because people are still complaining, they can't get to work around the airport,( I had no idea what was still open in the area) However since we were talking about Airport area ( at that time, i did say " it seems passengers from most other places bar along A8 no longer have any service, ") I can see where some miscommunication has arose. Fife nor Queensferry workers are not able to get to the airport. Im also sure certain passengers from 300/400 would have liked to get few journeys.

I use peak because that would be shift change over period, Ie any company could run 2 journeys a day and it would still be classed at peak runs, since they would be taking place during peak hours. it just termaknowledge

With Lothian ( unlike them in the city network) they have been caught short here, should not have left themselves with so little wiggle room. Stagecoach did it faster and got plenty of feedback, so did first. They both made sure every time they cut the network there was room accommodate any passengers issues.

 

[Lothian285]

Quite a few Longstone B5LH Gemini 3's are now operating on Lothian Country routes.

 

[CN04NRJ]

With Lothian ( unlike them in the city network) they have been caught short here, should not have left themselves with so little wiggle room. Stagecoach did it faster and got plenty of feedback, so did first. They both made sure every time they cut the network there was room accommodate any passengers issues.

Caught short, how exactly?

 

[overthewater]

Any timetable/rota changes get carefully planned, need management and union approval before being implemented (and changes go live on Sundays). So sometimes it may take a week or two for things to go through. Staffing levels themselves are also a major factor with the volunteers they have left... there’s no point re-introducing services to then cancel them later on because of no drivers.

That would imply they have been caught short if they need carefully planning.

 

[CN04NRJ]

That would imply they have been caught short if they need carefully planning.

If I'm reading correctly you're suggesting that First/Stagecoach had global pandemic plans/duties already set up before the outbreak happened and Lothian were somehow 'behind'?

A good friend of mine is a duty scheduler for another company (230 buses/550 drivers) and I'm sure he'd tell you it's no easy task having to completely revamp the network with a whole new set of duties practically overnight! Nobody could or should have seen this situation coming and already had plans in place.

 

[overthewater]

Alas you are not reading correctly, Im not sure how you come to that conclusion:

Stagecoach did it faster and got plenty of feedback, so did first. They both made sure every time they cut the network there was room accommodate any passengers issues

 

[CN04NRJ]

Alas you are not reading correctly, Im not sure how you come to that conclusion:

You quite literally said they were "caught short" as changing the network with an entirely new set of duties 'required planning' and Stagecoach 'did it faster'. Not sure what other conclusion there is?

 

[SpeedbirdA350]

I don't think anyone was caught short so to speak with this. Something as big as this has NEVER happened in our lifetime before, and yes, while it could have been planned out and filed in the "just in case" box, routes change lots so that file would need to be edited each year.

The one area I think Lothian never thought about was the bandit screen shielding the driver on LCB/ECB but I would think a driver would speak out about that if they felt in danger and refuse to take out a non bandit screen vehicle plus I think this has now been sorted with B5s heading to Livi. I assume the same going to MB soon?

Lothian also COULD have put these plans in place faster, however it's not as easy when you have over 50 routes, and in excess of 700 buses on the road each day at the same time.

At least Lothian have a service, up and running and are listening to feedback from users and making changes (thus 2, 19, 35 etc were added back in).

Sure, other companies were first, so what? At least there is a service, as some companies have stopped altogether.

 

[Auld reekie]

This is a bus stop in Balerno.
A child drew this thanking bus drivers.
Very thoughtful and caring child.

 

[SpeedbirdA350]

it looks like all ECB are now running with main Lothian fleet vehicles now due to them having bandit screens. LCB done this a few days ago.

 

[OmniCity999]

it looks like all ECB are now running with main Lothian fleet vehicles now due to them having bandit screens. LCB done this a few days ago.

Surprisingly, this isnt the main reason why this has happened.

Buses are being rotated within the fleet. So those that have been operating for the last 2 weeks are being rotated with those that havent been used at Newbridge and Longstone.

So those vehicles that have been out during the pandemic have been removed from service. This will allow deep cleaning, repairs and rotation of fleet to maintain operation.

This has happened with the main fleet as well, not just East Coast and Lothian country, you'll notice a lot of 401-425 running from now on, we shifted a load of them a couple nights ago.

This practice will now continue for the foreseeable future. On the tracker you'll see a lot more Lothian vehicles working for all subsidiaries and I believe the plan is to keep East Coast and Lothian Country vehicles out of service. So Lothian vehicles will keep rotating fleet wide.

Stay safe, stay at home, protect key workers.

We're seeing a lot of people just going for wee jaunts because their bored, surely this is not on... police are getting involved.

 

[Lothian_Bus]

Surprisingly, this isnt the main reason why this has happened.

Buses are being rotated within the fleet. So those that have been operating for the last 2 weeks are being rotated with those that havent been used at Newbridge and Longstone.

So those vehicles that have been out during the pandemic have been removed from service. This will allow deep cleaning, repairs and rotation of fleet to maintain operation.

This has happened with the main fleet as well, not just East Coast and Lothian country, you'll notice a lot of 401-425 running from now on, we shifted a load of them a couple nights ago.

This practice will now continue for the foreseeable future. On the tracker you'll see a lot more Lothian vehicles working for all subsidiaries and I believe the plan is to keep East Coast and Lothian Country vehicles out of service. So Lothian vehicles will keep rotating fleet wide.

Stay safe, stay at home, protect key workers.

We're seeing a lot of people just going for wee jaunts because their bored, surely this is not on... police are getting involved.

So out of interest if I was travelling on Service 113 today on Bus 445 would it be the Lothian City (capping) or ECB contactless method I would pay with?

 

[OmniCity999]

So out of interest if I was travelling on Service 113 today on Bus 445 would it be the Lothian City (capping) or ECB contactless method I would pay with?

East Coast Buses and Lothian Country ticketing still in place.

They are still the respective companies routes and services. The only difference is the colour of the bus.

The issue with ticketing and capping with ECB / LCB compared to Lothian isnt the vehicles. It's the infrastructure. Each company has it's own infrastructure.

Just like it would be if a Lothian service were to cover an LCB or ECB route out with the pandemic.

 

[ScotRail158725]

Surprisingly, this isnt the main reason why this has happened.

Buses are being rotated within the fleet. So those that have been operating for the last 2 weeks are being rotated with those that havent been used at Newbridge and Longstone.

So those vehicles that have been out during the pandemic have been removed from service. This will allow deep cleaning, repairs and rotation of fleet to maintain operation.

This has happened with the main fleet as well, not just East Coast and Lothian country, you'll notice a lot of 401-425 running from now on, we shifted a load of them a couple nights ago.

This practice will now continue for the foreseeable future. On the tracker you'll see a lot more Lothian vehicles working for all subsidiaries and I believe the plan is to keep East Coast and Lothian Country vehicles out of service. So Lothian vehicles will keep rotating fleet wide.

Stay safe, stay at home, protect key workers.

We're seeing a lot of people just going for wee jaunts because their bored, surely this is not on... police are getting involved.

i was thinking surely leaving Longstone/Marine vehicles out of service for a few weeks or even months on end would be a bad decision. id guess that the older 07 plate B9s etc.. will just be staying off the road or will all them get a spin aswell?

 

[SpeedbirdA350]

Surprisingly, this isnt the main reason why this has happened.

Buses are being rotated within the fleet. So those that have been operating for the last 2 weeks are being rotated with those that havent been used at Newbridge and Longstone.

Will the B7TLs be included in that rotation or are they now completly removed from service?

We're seeing a lot of people just going for wee jaunts because their bored, surely this is not on... police are getting involved.

Even if the police got involved, given you're allowed a trip to the shop, I assume they'd just give that as their excuse. Or are you talking about folk jumping on a bus and just staying on it for a ride from one end of the route to the other and back?

 

[scotrail158713]

East Coast Buses and Lothian Country ticketing still in place.

They are still the respective companies routes and services. The only difference is the colour of the bus.

The issue with ticketing and capping with ECB / LCB compared to Lothian isnt the vehicles. It's the infrastructure. Each company has it's own infrastructure.

Just like it would be if a Lothian service were to cover an LCB or ECB route out with the pandemic.

So, hypothetically, could I buy a CountyPlus day ticket on a Lothian City bus on the 113 today?

 

[CN04NRJ]

Will the B7TLs be included in that rotation or are they now completly removed from service?



Even if the police got involved, given you're allowed a trip to the shop, I assume they'd just give that as their excuse. Or are you talking about folk jumping on a bus and just staying on it for a ride from one end of the route to the other and back?

Had quite a few of those on my buses in the last two weeks, some of them multiple times a day on the same route. About time something (hopefully) gets done about them as they're putting the people who actually need the service at higher risk.