Arriva Midlands

[bringiton]

2928 - CK58 FZK (cotswold stone Pulsar) seems to be have entered service, currently on the 21

 

[Russel]

x38 being a route change. Ditching Derby bus station to go back to Victoria street?

Constant timetable and routing changes aren't really in the customers best interest, but they, that has never bothered Arriva in the past.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 24 Jul 2025 ==

2928 - CK58 FZK (cotswold stone Pulsar) seems to be have entered service, currently on the 21

Can't be much left in Cotswold Stone livery now which is a shame considering it's better than the current livery.

 

[Foxhound87]

Constant timetable and routing changes aren't really in the customers best interest, but they, that has never bothered Arriva in the past.

What are the X38 route and timetable changes? I didn’t think this had changed since August 2024, hardly constant changes.

 

[Russel]

What are the X38 route and timetable changes? I didn’t think this had changed since August 2024, hardly constant changes.

Post #958 mentions changes to the X38, amongst others, I don't know what the changes consist of.

I wasn't referring to the X38 specifically, more Arrivas fondness for tinkering with routes and timetables while their empire falls apart around them.

 

[joieman]

Post #958 mentions changes to the X38, amongst others, I don't know what the changes consist of.

I wasn't referring to the X38 specifically, more Arrivas fondness for tinkering with routes and timetables while their empire falls apart around them.

Well, if anything, the 127 certainly needs its timetable fixing. Spending nearly ten minutes dawdling about at Fennel Street or Lemyngton Street is no fun for through passengers.

In fact, perhaps they should run an express route to Shepshed avoiding the villages and maybe even curtail the 127 to run between *Leicester* and Loughborough. The 127 as it is now is a relic of the time before the Mountsorrel Bypass was built.

 

[SSmith2009]

Well, if anything, the 127 certainly needs its timetable fixing. Spending nearly ten minutes dawdling about at Fennel Street or Lemyngton Street is no fun for through passengers.

In fact, perhaps they should run an express route to Shepshed avoiding the villages and maybe even curtail the 127 to run between Shepshed and Loughborough. The 127 as it is now is a relic of the time before the Mountsorrel Bypass was built.

Agree with you on the 127 it's a shadow of its former self, no wonder Skylink takes most of the Leicester to Loughborough traffic nowadays, If anything the 127 needs to go back to how it used to be with some terminating at Pitsford Drive

They've done the same with the 50/51 padded in too much layover time into the timetables and they can be waiting on Narborough Road at Jaguar Garage and Gaul Street for anywhere upto 10 mins.

 

[43055]

I would have thought the X38 did reasonably well from/to the bus station.

They do get a few passengers from what I have seen but only really in the single figures. Most still seem to head to Victoria Street.

 

[Qwerty133]

Agree with you on the 127 it's a shadow of its former self, no wonder Skylink takes most of the Leicester to Loughborough traffic nowadays, If anything the 127 needs to go back to how it used to be with some terminating at Pitsford Drive

They've done the same with the 50/51 padded in too much layover time into the timetables and they can be waiting on Narborough Road at Jaguar Garage and Gaul Street for anywhere upto 10 mins.

Some of the elderly diesels that were being used on the 50/51 prior to the introduction of the electrics were struggling to keep up with the current timings. The transport commissioner should also take some blame for extreme padding given operators can be fined for late running but there is no punishment for excessive timings. In an ideal world there would either be more leeway to run early at the city end of routes or for late running to be ignored at all timing points other than the terminus (with all recovery time en route being put into the last few stops after the last timing point).

 

[derbybusdepot]

They do get a few passengers from what I have seen but only really in the single figures. Most still seem to head to Victoria Street.

I would hazard a guess Trent pick up more since they started waiting time at Victoria street. That is the long established starting point, and with both arriva and Trent going via that stop it is the obvious place to head to, especially if getting a £3 single and it does not matter who is operating the bus.

 

[Dwarfer1979]

Well, if anything, the 127 certainly needs its timetable fixing. Spending nearly ten minutes dawdling about at Fennel Street or Lemyngton Street is no fun for through passengers.

In fact, perhaps they should run an express route to Shepshed avoiding the villages and maybe even curtail the 127 to run between Shepshed and Loughborough. The 127 as it is now is a relic of the time before the Mountsorrel Bypass was built.

The 127 is still the only bus for Rothley & Mountsorrell and the main bus for Quorn to both Leicester & Loughborough (& a big link from Birstall to Leicester from the main road as the Skylink is limited stop and only serves a single stop on that section of route, I think still) and those are major flows so the Loughborough to Leicester section is still important. It has long been the case that most Leicester to Loughborough passengers use the Skylink unless, like me, they have a pass for travel on the Arriva that doesn't include the Skylink so that hasn't changed.

The 127 is one of those routes that comprises of two core flows either side of town but with a certain amount of traffic crossing between the two halves (particularly but not exclusively education flows) that mean that joining them up has a commercial advantage.

Timetable design is a complicated thing with modern traffic and sometimes you do just need to add some recovery time during the trip to deal with the unpredictability of traffic besides which, even leaving aside the legal matter of the TCs guidance and expectation on reliability which these days is often monitored via tracking data so much more extensive than the old roadside checks, you get far more complaints about unreliability and late running than buses running to time and having to wait time occasionally. It would probably help Arriva somewhat if they clearly showed that recovery time with arrival & departure times in Loughborough town centre rather than hiding it in the running time and confusing passengers.

 

[markymark2000]

It would probably help Arriva somewhat if they clearly showed that recovery time with arrival & departure times in Loughborough town centre rather than hiding it in the running time and confusing passengers.

Not specifically Arriva Midlands but what is the thoughts on this practice? Does the TC enforce against this if buses end up late arriving or would they just look at the departure time and appreciate this is padding in the timetable? I ask because I know a firm who has gotten rid of arrival/departure times but has kept the same departure times from the relevant stop, so now it just looks like an extremely slow bus journeys but in reality the bus tends to arrive 5-10 minutes early regularly (which were the original arrival times before they got removed).

 

[Qwerty133]

Reports on a local Facebook page that 8023 hit a stationary car and immediately drove off without trying to find the owner this morning.

 

[joieman]

Well, the 127 is included in the next round of bus service changes, so we shall have to see what that entails.

According to Bustimes, Arriva Merseyside's Mercedes-Benz Sprinter/Mellor Stratas 4701 and 4702 have been transferred to Thurmaston.

 

[Stan Drews]

Not specifically Arriva Midlands but what is the thoughts on this practice? Does the TC enforce against this if buses end up late arriving or would they just look at the departure time and appreciate this is padding in the timetable? I ask because I know a firm who has gotten rid of arrival/departure times but has kept the same departure times from the relevant stop, so now it just looks like an extremely slow bus journeys but in reality the bus tends to arrive 5-10 minutes early regularly (which were the original arrival times before they got removed).

Only the departure times from timing points are measured, so whether a separate arrival time and layover is shown in a timetable or not, won’t impact the punctuality figure.

 

[SSmith2009]

Well, the 127is included in the next round of bus service changes, so we shall have to see what that entails.

According to Bustimes, Arriva Merseyside's Mercedes-Benz Sprinter/Mellor Stratas 4701 and 4702 have been transferred to Thurmaston.

Interesting moves wonder what they'll be used on.

 

[Qwerty133]

Interesting moves wonder what they'll be used on.

Probably the X6 given the current quality of allocation choices half the time.

 

[joieman]

Probably the X6 given the current quality of allocation choices half the time.

Very funny

 

[SSmith2009]

Probably the X6 given the current quality of allocation choices half the time.

I've noticed the PM dupe from Leicester has been one of the WF streetlites this week.

One of the coaches is long term VOR awaiting a new engine hence the use of singles.

 

[busspotter1]

Is there one more 58 plate E400 in Derby that isn't on bustimes?
Heard 3 got transferred but bustimes only lists 2.

 

[Qwerty133]

Is there one more 58 plate E400 in Derby that isn't on bustimes?
Heard 3 got transferred but bustimes only lists 2.

4422 is definitely still in Leicester as it was towed back to the depot on the back of a Crouch transporter this afternoon.

 

[busspotter1]

4422 is definitely still in Leicester as it was towed back to the depot on the back of a Crouch transporter this afternoon.

Haha your reply made me chuckle. Of course that happened.

 

[derbybusdepot]

Is there one more 58 plate E400 in Derby that isn't on bustimes?
Heard 3 got transferred but bustimes only lists 2.

4421 (FHG) is in use at Derby, 4421. Freshly painted. Has been tracking as 3747. A number of buses also tracking with spare ticket machine, namely three vdls carrying old Merseyside numbers and not yet received new midlands ids.

 

[Trainman40083]

Is there one more 58 plate E400 in Derby that isn't on bustimes?
Heard 3 got transferred but bustimes only lists 2.

4416, 4420 and 4421 are working at Derby

 

[ferry58]

3747 at Telford (the ex-Derby Pulsar) also appears to be tracking as 4416 (the ex-Telford E-400). See Bustimes tracking for 3747 on 25/7 & a few days before that.

 

[derbybusdepot]

3747 at Telford (the ex-Derby Pulsar) also appears to be tracking as 4416 (the ex-Telford E-400). See Bustimes tracking for 3747 on 25/7 & a few days before that.

4421 is tracking as 3747

 

[zkyx02]

So it seems after a year of competition on X38 Arriva are calling it quits.

With the new service changes X38 is now to run every 30 mins, with no Sunday service & is to interwork with the 20/21 services.

The 4 is also to see a frequency slash to every 30 mins & 4s will now also be interworked with the 26s…

I’m unable to share the post as it’s only been shared on blink, but I can’t see it being long before Arriva share the news

 

[43055]

So it seems after a year of competition on X38 Arriva are calling it quits.

With the new service changes X38 is now to run every 30 mins, with no Sunday service & is to interwork with the 20/21 services.

The 4 is also to see a frequency slash to every 30 mins & 4s will now also be interworked with the 26s…

I’m unable to share the post as it’s only been shared on blink, but I can’t see it being long before Arriva share the news

Not surprised with the x38, but I can't see it lasting long at every 30 mins when trent are every 15 mins.

 

[Trainman40083]

Not surprised with the x38, but I can't see it lasting long at every 30 mins when trent are every 15 mins.

I can't see the Trentbarton service staying every 15 minutes either.

 

[43055]

I can't see the Trentbarton service staying every 15 minutes either.

Back in the day it was every 15 but on a hourly round trip with 4 buses before the previous 20 min frequency on a 80 min round trip to make the service reliable.

 

[Trainman40083]

Back in the day it was every 15 but on a hourly round trip with 4 buses before the previous 20 min frequency on a 80 min round trip to make the service reliable.

Yes, but back in the day, certain tickets were valid on both buses.