Any artics fans out here?

[HST Power]

Good liveries on Scotlee

http://www.search-impex.co.uk/stock/products/item_1188_00.jpg

Another one of my favourites. Bold and impressive. I've started collecting model trucks from Diecast. So far, I've only got the Prestons of Potto HGV (DAF) and an Eddie Stobart MAN, but I'll try to keep up the collection!

 

[bb21]

... three of these are W-reg and the other six are 55-reg. They are used on routes 18, SPA1 and SPA2.

The W-reg ones are ex-First Southampton Citybus iirc. Is that correct?

There are literally thousands of Artics in service in Europe with no significant issues. There are also now hundreds if not thousands of 15m citybuses. There are thousands of double decks, in the UK. I happen to much prefer the latter just for the upper-deck view. But I won't pay a penny for the privilege, and travel regularly on bendies on my home routes.

I agree. They're great crowd shifters, however London chose to reject them far too easily to satisfy someone's selfish political point-scoring exercise.

 

[Ivo]

The W-reg ones are ex-First Southampton Citybus iirc. Is that correct?

Given their WR location identifiers in the registration plate, I had been under the impression they had come from Yorkshire, and sure enough pictures I have found on Google Images certainly suggest as much.

[Picture of one of the three from its younger days]

They may have come from Southampton, I can't say for certain; if they had, it could not have been for very long (would have been York first). The other six were new to First S&A.

 

[bb21]

Given their WR location identifiers in the registration plate, I had been under the impression they had come from Yorkshire, and sure enough pictures I have found on Google Images certainly suggest as much.

[Picture of one of the three from its younger days]

They may have come from Southampton, I can't say for certain; if they had, it could not have been for very long (would have been York first). The other six were new to First S&A.

You're right. Southampton had B7LA's.

Came across this on Google - a First Glasgow fleet list. It's fairly recent as the newest vehicle seems to be 60-reg. That's where Southampton B7LA's (101XX) are these days.

 

[route101]

You're right. Southampton had B7LA's.

Came across this on Google - a First Glasgow fleet list. It's fairly recent as the newest vehicle seems to be 60-reg. That's where Southampton B7LA's (101XX) are these days.

The newest First Glasgow bus would be the E300 s for the Airport Bus .First Glasgow has a few bendis for mostly service 9 Linwood to Drumchapel and a peak Busby only 66 . They are pretty awful .

 

[bb21]

The newest First Glasgow bus would be the E300 s for the Airport Bus .First Glasgow has a few bendis for mostly service 9 Linwood to Drumchapel and a peak Busby only 66 . They are pretty awful .

Thanks for the info.

 

[Ivo]

You're right. Southampton had B7LA's.

Came across this on Google - a First Glasgow fleet list. It's fairly recent as the newest vehicle seems to be 60-reg. That's where Southampton B7LA's (101XX) are these days.

Thank you for the link; I've learned something else... Bath (or at least First S&A) used to have even more artics?! There are a couple in that list - 10033 and 10034 - that came from here apparently! And they would match the three you asked about! And there are many others in that list also...

...including some normal Volvos from as recently as last year! I had been told that some of our Volvos were Glasgow-bound, only the guy who told me suggested the artics that went to FCC were the vehicles involved.

Between the Scots and the other Uni, they are ruining our services!

 

[route101]

Thank you for the link; I've learned something else... Bath (or at least First S&A) used to have even more artics?! There are a couple in that list - 10033 and 10034 - that came from here apparently! And they would match the three you asked about! And there are many others in that list also...

...including some normal Volvos from as recently as last year! I had been told that some of our Volvos were Glasgow-bound, only the guy who told me suggested the artics that went to FCC were the vehicles involved.

Between the Scots and the other Uni, they are ruining our services!

First Glasgow seem to have Wx54xx reg eclipses which have a strange bump on top . They are at Blantyre or Overtoun depot.

 

[Ivo]

First Glasgow seem to have Wx54xx reg eclipses which have a strange bump on top . They are at Blantyre or Overtoun depot.

That "strange bump" is the aircon

 

[route101]

That "strange bump" is the aircon

Cheers , do look odd though!

 

[Railguy220]

What does FTR actually mean?

 

[HST Power]

What does FTR actually mean?

FTR is an example of bus rapid transit, currently in operation in Great Britain in York in North Yorkshire, Leeds in West Yorkshire, Luton in Bedfordshire and in Swansea in South Wales.

 

[bb21]

What does FTR actually mean?

I think it is text-speak for 'future',

and technically they are all in lower-case, so it should be 'ftr'.

 

[kylemore]

Well First Glasgow has artics on no 9 route and they are awful . I like trucks but i like the trailers of European (partic eastern europe/ Turkey )Trucks as they look better than our trailers . Not a fan of DAF trucks

I regularly have to use these things and they are the pits!
Do they have any suspension?
I used to think that of the big three, Stagecoach was the least worse followed by First then Arriva, but regular travel on First Glasgow has changed that. They are an utterly low grade outfit.
Now that Arriva has been nationalised (albeit by the Germans!) maybe we can look forward to better standards there.

 

[tbtc]

FTR is an example of bus rapid transit, currently in operation in Great Britain in York in North Yorkshire, Leeds in West Yorkshire, Luton in Bedfordshire and in Swansea in South Wales.

ftr is an example of how gullible councils will throw millions at infrastructure to get a "bus that looks a bit like a tram". I can see ftr looking like a great idea to people in suits sat in meeting rooms, but its no better than a bus at street level - they look fine and pretty for the first couple of years on "flagship" routes, but will be no use at all in a few years time

 

[kylemore]

ftr is an example of how gullible councils will throw millions at infrastructure to get a "bus that looks a bit like a tram". I can see ftr looking like a great idea to people in suits sat in meeting rooms, but its no better than a bus at street level - they look fine and pretty for the first couple of years on "flagship" routes, but will be no use at all in a few years time

I remember upsetting one of the suits when the ftr was displayed at Edinburgh by suggesting it was simply a bus with a bit of fancy skirting which no doubt would eventually be removed because it was a damned nuisance for the fitters!
Alternative to proper transport infrastructure it was'nt.

 

[tbtc]

I remember upsetting one of the suits when the ftr was displayed at Edinburgh by suggesting it was simply a bus with a bit of fancy skirting which no doubt would eventually be removed because it was a damned nuisance for the fitters!
Alternative to proper transport infrastructure it was'nt.

Great description for it (and more polite than I'd have been)!

Artics have their place, but I wish firms would consider the whole ten/ fifteen/ twenty year "life" of a bus. At the moment a lot of double deckers start off on core urban routes, then at mid-life get cascaded to "lower profile" routes, then end up as school-buses at the end of their lives.

 

[Eng274]

Great description for it (and more polite than I'd have been)!

Artics have their place, but I wish firms would consider the whole ten/ fifteen/ twenty year "life" of a bus. At the moment a lot of double deckers start off on core urban routes, then at mid-life get cascaded to "lower profile" routes, then end up as school-buses at the end of their lives.

Or in the case of one of the big groups...they are entered into service, vandalised and driven into the ground, used on premium routes for 12 years of abuse, then after a harsh life and condemnation to the scrapyard..they are refurbed and sent to Glasgow :roll: seems to be the case with the older ex-London Tridents they have!

 

[HST Power]

ftr is an example of how gullible councils will throw millions at infrastructure to get a "bus that looks a bit like a tram". I can see ftr looking like a great idea to people in suits sat in meeting rooms, but its no better than a bus at street level - they look fine and pretty for the first couple of years on "flagship" routes, but will be no use at all in a few years time

I've never actually used it. Nonetheless, the councils that do use them might have no choice but to scrap them if they're considering making their savings.

 

[tbtc]

Or in the case of one of the big groups...they are entered into service, vandalised and driven into the ground, used on premium routes for 12 years of abuse, then after a harsh life and condemnation to the scrapyard..they are refurbed and sent to Glasgow :roll: seems to be the case with the older ex-London Tridents they have!

Talking of Glasgow, I saw a link to this today:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/stennybusman/5722043603/in/photostream/

There are lots of "step entrance" buses still running around (First have lots of Olympians still in Sheffield), yet these "X" reg low-floor machines are kaput. Frustrating, when you think about it...

We're getting more ex-London Tridents on the streets of Sheffield too - its a bit like "dog years" - ten years of scraping around London makes them feel as old as a twenty year old native bus

 

[Eng274]

Talking of Glasgow, I saw a link to this today:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/stennybusman/5722043603/in/photostream/

There are lots of "step entrance" buses still running around (First have lots of Olympians still in Sheffield), yet these "X" reg low-floor machines are kaput. Frustrating, when you think about it...

We're getting more ex-London Tridents on the streets of Sheffield too - its a bit like "dog years" - ten years of scraping around London makes them feel as old as a twenty year old native bus

Whoa, I thought that was fire-damaged at first, its just moss and mildew

Tell-tale sign of a recently towed President is when the back bumper is bent upwards from scraping the road - seen a few between Edinburgh and Glasgow. Plenty Olympians left in the central belt too, plus similarly aged P/R/S reg Darts, Scanias etc.