First West of England (Bristol, Bath & The West)

[Buses in Bath]

Do you reckon the Bath 9 or 18 will come back? I can honestly see both of them going, with the 18 possibly being replaced by a diverted 37 to allow deckers to be used on there!

I think the 9 will definately come back because theyve been planning to reroute it across the destructor bridge and into the new housing estate. Also it serves key areas of Weston and Newbridge.
The 18 I am less sure of but I think would also have to come back especially as then there would be no service between Bath and Keynsham.

 

[Class 33]

My understanding is there is 1 new stop to be built on the down exit side of Temple Meads approach for the A1. (This is listed as temporary but will have a shelter ect so think it will be fairly long term) that leaves the current flyer stop free, but not sure if it will be reused.
Then there are a few stops due to be built on the Friary (something I've always wanted to happen)
Also one/two stops are due to be built on Cattle Market Road for the new uni campus.

OK cheers for that info.

 

[ValleyLines142]

Thank you. For so long it was not a pretty welcoming sight for rail passengers newly arriving at Bristol Temple Meads!

Is that the building opposite platform 15?

 

[Class 33]

Is that the building opposite platform 15?

Yep.

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

The 18 I am less sure of but I think would also have to come back especially as then there would be no service between Bath and Keynsham.

The A4 is still running?

 

[ValleyLines142]

Ex-South Yorkshire X1 Steel Link Streetdecks 35131 (SM65 GGE) and 35137 (SM65 LNC) have just arrived at Hengrove. Another four Streetdecks due on the way.

Also, I did not realise that the 09-reg ex-Bath Geminis are literally ALL lime green! I thought it was just the fronts going green (in the style of 37319-37328) but no!

 

[Tommy Walters]

Ex-South Yorkshire X1 Steel Link Streetdecks 35131 (SM65 GGE) and 35137 (SM65 LNC) have just arrived at Hengrove. Another four Streetdecks due on the way.

Also, I did not realise that the 09-reg ex-Bath Geminis are literally ALL lime green! I thought it was just the fronts going green (in the style of 37319-37328) but no!

Do you have a photo to hand of one of these lime green repaints? I haven't seen one yet!

 

[Streamr_MXP]

The A4 is still running?

The A4 is indeed running. The 18 isn't a necessary route, as the A4 is what most locals in Keynesham use to go too and from Bath & First West of England tickets can be used on the A4 currently, having used the A4 between Keynesham & Bath the other day. It wouldn't surprise me however to see the 37 be re-routed to Keynesham, to allow the 18 to be scrapped.

 

[carlberry]

Ex-South Yorkshire X1 Steel Link Streetdecks 35131 (SM65 GGE) and 35137 (SM65 LNC) have just arrived at Hengrove. Another four Streetdecks due on the way.

Also, I did not realise that the 09-reg ex-Bath Geminis are literally ALL lime green! I thought it was just the fronts going green (in the style of 37319-37328) but no!

I thought they were 'Citylines' type livery like the 2/73/East Bristol?

 

[ValleyLines142]

I thought they were 'Citylines' type livery like the 2/73/East Bristol?

They are yes, but I thought it would just be the fronts.

Do you have a photo to hand of one of these lime green repaints? I haven't seen one yet!

Attempting to attach it!

Photo courtesy of Trai Glasspool on First Bus Enthusiasts group on Facebook.

 

[Tommy Walters]

They are yes, but I thought it would just be the fronts.



Attempting to attach it!

Photo courtesy of Trai Glasspool on First Bus Enthusiasts group on Facebook.

Oh my. That is absolutely hideous! I will now refer to this livery as day-glo or hi-vis!!

 

[Buses in Bath]

The A4 is still running?

The A4 is running but First seem to have a thing that they need to run a bus between Bath and Keynsham.

 

[Tommy Walters]

I think the 9 will definately come back because theyve been planning to reroute it across the destructor bridge and into the new housing estate. Also it serves key areas of Weston and Newbridge.
The 18 I am less sure of but I think would also have to come back especially as then there would be no service between Bath and Keynsham.

My worry on the 9 is that it's mainly concession fares that get taken on there. I can see the route surviving, but not necessarily being run by First. Maybe CT Coaches or BANES might take it on?

As mentioned, the A4 does provide a link between Bath & Keynsham twice an hour. I know First have some sort of ticket acceptance on there, but no idea how it works!

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

The A4 is running but First seem to have a thing that they need to run a bus between Bath and Keynsham.

The 18 has a number of different roles tbh They have joint ticketing with BBC on the A4 so you can use your day ticket. Can't recall on returns interavailability but I thought they were

 

[D2007wsm]

It's been mentioned before I know, but I think the use of an SGL gas bus is far more likely on those School diagrams!

I heard when the 37 comes back it will once more interwork with the 178 and will divert around the bridge in Bitton so B9s can be used.

I don’t think they want to routinely send a gas bus on the 178.

Perhaps a hybrid Mendip Explorer/Aquae livery could be developed for some B9s for these.

 

[Tommy Walters]

I heard when the 37 comes back it will once more interwork with the 178 and will divert around the bridge in Bitton so B9s can be used.

I don’t think they want to routinely send a gas bus on the 178.

Perhaps a hybrid Mendip Explorer/Aquae livery could be developed for some B9s for these.

The other option could be to use the 5 remaining diesel Scanias (36814-5/22-24) that haven't received either Aquae or m2 livery. I'm pretty certain the 37/178 PVR is normally 5, so that would be ideal!

 

[D2007wsm]

The other option could be to use the 5 remaining diesel Scanias (36814-5/22-24) that haven't received either Aquae or m2 livery. I'm pretty certain the 37/178 PVR is normally 5, so that would be ideal!

In theory, the Scanias would be the perfect solution for the 37. I think however, there would be concerns over the length of these on the 178. I also think, these services are not lucrative enough to warrant such new, high quality vehicles.

I think it would be good to return these to Lawrence Hill for Marlborough Street to use on South Glos Lynx services to supplement the gas busses on some of the T2s or Y2-Y5s.

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

In theory, the Scanias would be the perfect solution for the 37. I think however, there would be concerns over the length of these on the 178. I also think, these services are not lucrative enough to warrant such new, high quality vehicles.

The latter point is probably very true. In terms of length, there's no real issues on the route.

 

[swifty]

The 18 (19a), 19 and 37 have seemingly been messed around too much in recent years. A return to normality and stability, as @freetoview33 would be welcomed

Yes they have been fiddled with too much. As we know the 37 has already been diverted via Keynsham and that was swiftly abandoned replaced with the 19A.

Running the 19 and 37 5 minutes apart through Kelston et al didn’t help when the 37 moved to Bristol and would’ve contributed to the 18 and 19 changes.

 

[AB93]

36823 is allocated to Hengrove because it is the spare guided bus.

 

[Tommy Walters]

36823 is allocated to Hengrove because it is the spare guided bus.

That is something I didn't know. I wonder if they might have fitted 814 with the guiding equipment too, as that's now there as well!

 

[AB93]

 

[freetoview33]

A few interesting bits there!

As regards the 9 in Bath I think it will be back, because as said the plans are in place to route via the Bath Riverside development and I was under the impression only the small solos could actually get around Penn Lea Road and hopefully the diversion will make it more profitable.

Interesting to hear that the 178 will remain double decker, and that the 37 will convert also. I do fear that will this it will mean the loss of the 19 but I think there will need to be a few peak 37 services.

Although looking it this it might make perfect sense!

Westbury closes D1/D2 transfers to Bath
So the 18 runs Cribbs Causeway - Keynsham (Ran from Lawrence Hill) with the Bath to Keynsham section either being left to the A4 or replaced and run from Bath
And the 19 totally withdrawn.

Those Lime Green buses are for the 24 or City Lines 24 they might be out next week when the 24 goes to every 7.5 mins between Lockleaze and the City Centre.

As regards to those Streetdecks at Hengrove it would take a PVR of 8 for those proposed 72/72A routes vs 6 buses so doubtful but I can't think of any other proposed changes that would require Hengrove to get 6 additional buses.

 

[Citistar]

The cynic in me says that First are somewhat uncomfortable with the number of buses operating east of Kingswood prior to service reductions, hence why the 42 is still hourly but there are eight buses an hour on 43 from next week. I wonder if this is being taken as an opportunity to enact the first part of WECA's Final Solution where everyone will be expected to change buses at Kingswood to smaller vehicles doing short journeys on 18, 35, 42 et cetera.

I struggle to see 37 coming back before Oldfield School requires it. The 18 looks ropey too, considering it constitutes much of the old 532/533 and a service where BBC offer a much higher frequency between Bath and Keynsham, i struggle to see it coming back between Bath and Kingswood. Perhaps a combination of 18 and 42 between Kingswood and Keynsham will come to pass as a longer term solution. Likewise, 19 could easily be replaced by extending occasional 43s to Bath (again, most likely at school time). The more lucrative service between Kingswood and Cribbs then becomes part of CityLines East?

As regards the 9 in Bath I think it will be back, because as said the plans are in place to route via the Bath Riverside development and I was under the impression only the small solos could actually get around Penn Lea Road and hopefully the diversion will make it more profitable.

I think the Western Riverside diversion is rather dead in the water now. I cannot see the Destructor Bridge ever being opened to any traffic and there has been no visible attempt to make either Elizabeth Parade or Stothert Avenue accessible to buses.

While we're on the subject of awful urban developments without any usable public transport, how many more dwellings can Bristol City Council allow to be built at Imperial Park without any usable public transport serving it? Despite having seen that 515 is due back on next week, they won't be able to serve Imperial Park as there are currently several huge excavations in the bus lane where the stops are.

While i'm here, here is a little advertising: New blogs this week - The Balancing Act - X5 Countdown - A Blueprint for Commercial Progress

 

[Whiteway215]

Pleased to see one oldie still running. 32006 tracking on Weston 20 this morning.

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

While we're on the subject of awful urban developments without any usable public transport, how many more dwellings can Bristol City Council allow to be built at Imperial Park without any usable public transport serving it? Despite having seen that 515 is due back on next week, they won't be able to serve Imperial Park as there are currently several huge excavations in the bus lane where the stops are.

While i'm here, here is a little advertising: New blogs this week - The Balancing Act - X5 Countdown - A Blueprint for Commercial Progress

Interesting views on those blogs (as always). I didn't appreciate how little NSC actually spend on supporting bus services in their own right.

As for Imperial Park, it never ceases to sadden me how large new developments are built with cursory or no acknowledgement of public transport access. It's a "bung a bus shelter at the end of the road, and we'll subsidise some buses for a year or two" and that's it. Nothing sustainable

 

[Whiteway215]

If anyone is following FWE tracker 37585 is really 36229. On Bath U2 this morning.

 

[Buses in Bath]

If anyone is following FWE tracker 37585 is really 36229.

Brilliant. Thanks for that. Was wondering but forgot to ask.

 

[ValleyLines142]

Pleased to see one oldie still running. 32006 tracking on Weston 20 this morning.

Saw it last week in Weston.

 

[37114]

Somerset live is reporting a bus fire on the M5, looks to be a buses of Somerset ELC bodied trident.