Green Line 797

[Mr Manager]

The details on the proposed 700 are now published in N&P'S link below on page 11

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploa...data/file/404957/np-2199-18-february-2015.pdf

 

[Mutant Lemming]

I can't see the missus using it now - no weekend service and it doesn't serve The Galleria. It has also lost it's Greenness to the Purple Peril.

 

[jon0844]

Anyone know how things are going now Uno is running the 797? Seen some Tweets from people asking if there's a timetable, and general confusion about when it runs, the route it takes etc.

I've not seen it yet, but of course it now looks just like an ordinary bus (the coach was easy to spot going through the business park). I wonder what bus(es) they're using too.

 

[Busaholic]

Anyone know how things are going now Uno is running the 797? Seen some Tweets from people asking if there's a timetable, and general confusion about when it runs, the route it takes etc.

I've not seen it yet, but of course it now looks just like an ordinary bus (the coach was easy to spot going through the business park). I wonder what bus(es) they're using too.

I'd have thought if UNO have any chance of pulling this one off they will have to adopt a special livery, even if the buses/coaches are used on other routes as well; not routebranding as such,but something, as you say, to differentiate them from the horde.

 

[jon0844]

I can't think of any bus in Uno's rather varied fleet that I'd wish to be on from Stevenage to London. Even if it is cheaper (and that's debatable) I'm sure people may eventually think it's worth the extra for a train. It's not that hard to get a seat even in the peaks to Hatfield, Welwyn Garden City or Stevenage.

 

[TerminalJunkie]

You want reference....

Under the Regulation, vehicles travelling for more than 50km on a route were required to be fitted with tachographs by 31 December 2007. [...]

This behaviour goes back way further than this, though - in the early 1980s I was working for Red Bus in Barnstaple, and long routes were being split then; the old X77 from Ilfracombe to Exeter had a timing point at Nymet Bridge, which used to annoy an old boy in Copplestone because we wouldn't let it stop there. Drumbridges Roundabout served the same purpose for the X38 Exeter-Plymouth.

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

This behaviour goes back way further than this, though - in the early 1980s I was working for Red Bus in Barnstaple, and long routes were being split then; the old X77 from Ilfracombe to Exeter had a timing point at Nymet Bridge, which used to annoy an old boy in Copplestone because we wouldn't let it stop there. Drumbridges Roundabout served the same purpose for the X38 Exeter-Plymouth.

Indeed, the 2007 legislation builds on something that was introduced c.1984 - the Catterick Garrison to Darlington express had a stop introduced at Scotch Corner - something like >15 or 20 km or non stop running meant a tacho had to be used

 

[spuddie]

I've seen a couple of photos so far of the new Uno 797 in Victoria and it is indeed a bog standard unbranded (not even with Uno fleetnames) Citaro

 

[causton]

I've seen a couple of photos so far of the new Uno 797 in Victoria and it is indeed a bog standard unbranded (not even with Uno fleetnames) Citaro

A lot of Uno's fleet are unbranded as they have been vinyled up for various routes, then changed, routes changed, services cancelled etc! I think due to the LEZ you won't see much different than those Citaros. Definitely not coaches anymore, but to be honest I commute to and from work for an hour each day plus on a Citaro and they're the best bus I've been on for comfort by far. I have done both the old 797 and the new one and prefer a bus, the coach was too dark and stuffy for me...
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I can't see the missus using it now - no weekend service and it doesn't serve The Galleria.

It serves a stop about ten metres away from the Galleria bus stops, on the side of the roundabout adjacent to it. Alternatively you can go to the Forum and back connecting to the 635 and soon it will be on the same vehicle. So it does serve the Galleria. Only place not served that was is Welwyn and the Stevenage estates. Might be 5 minutes longer going via the Uni campus and back, but it might even introduce more passengers to the route!
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I'm sure people may eventually think it's worth the extra for a train. It's not that hard to get a seat even in the peaks to Hatfield, Welwyn Garden City or Stevenage.

Obviously depends where you want to go to and from in London and Herts! I find it hard to find a seat on a GN train any time of the day, the last time I got a seat was on the 0135 last train and even then it broke down so I got home at half 4 in the morning!

The only way to increase your chances of a seat is to get a frustratingly slow train, which is a little annoying but then again, it is still faster than the coach

 

[jon0844]

Uno appears to be committed to installing displays on all buses and fixing the broken ones (Based on a Twitter conversation, not a press release so could be untrue) but they're still running even fairly new buses with bits of paper in the window and stopped painting/vinyling some time ago as if they ran out of money or plan a rebrand at some point.

The latest bus I saw wasn't even a print out, but literally the number written with what would appear to have been a thin biro - with multiple strokes to try and make it more readable. It was a 59 plate bus and had a dot matrix display that was off.

Totally pathetic. I do hope the 797 never runs like that as it should be refused permission to leave the county!!!

 

[spuddie]

Whilst on the subject of Uno just seen on the latest Intalink service updates that they have lost/given up the S8/9 to Metroline. After losing the S4/5 the other year they have lost all of their S services, especially since they turned the S2 and S3 in to the 652/3 and extended to Welwyn Garden City.

Are they now suffering from trying to expand too quickly?

 

[Busaholic]

Whilst on the subject of Uno just seen on the latest Intalink service updates that they have lost/given up the S8/9 to Metroline. After losing the S4/5 the other year they have lost all of their S services, especially since they turned the S2 and S3 in to the 652/3 and extended to Welwyn Garden City.

Are they now suffering from trying to expand too quickly?

If so, they won't be the first or, indeed, the last.

 

[DelayRepay]

Totally pathetic. I do hope the 797 never runs like that as it should be refused permission to leave the county!!!

It should be allowed to leave the county, but not to come back in again!

 

[causton]

It should be allowed to leave the county, but not to come back in again!

At the moment they're running the best buses in the county, we're keeping them!

 

[jon0844]

Have you seen the white/green bus that Uno seems to be running at the moment. It's an N-reg!

I do hope it's a temporary loan to cover for one of the buses that they seem to crash or allow to catch fire, as that's a 20 year old bus!

So many buses they've acquired in recent years seem very old, and older than buses they got before. Must be some financial issues they're not letting on about, especially as they're still having staff problems.

Only this week I was on a bus that didn't have a member of staff to relieve our driver, so he was told to carry on and then come back to the depot and take it out of service. He wasn't best pleased!

 

[causton]

There are three of them I think, seen mostly on the park and ride and 650 I believe. No idea why or how they got them...!

I do wonder what is going on sometimes. I've seen one of the silver Scanias repainted and that's about it. They seem to be trying to improve, but one step forward and three steps back!

 

[Tetchytyke]

I do wonder what is going on sometimes. I've seen one of the silver Scanias repainted and that's about it. They seem to be trying to improve, but one step forward and three steps back!

It's the lack of basic maintenance that gets me, I've seen several of their Streetlites with huge dents and gouges in the back, going rusty, and they're not getting fixed. I can't imagine bodywork repairs are that difficult, just labour intensive, and it looks sloppy.

I also wonder about financial issues, but perhaps with the University as a whole.

 

[spuddie]

There are three of them I think, seen mostly on the park and ride and 650 I believe. No idea why or how they got them...!

I do wonder what is going on sometimes. I've seen one of the silver Scanias repainted and that's about it. They seem to be trying to improve, but one step forward and three steps back!

They are on loan from Stephensons for a while to help cover the vehicle shortage and should only be used on the 650....let's see how long it takes until one gets to go elsewhere

 

[jon0844]

I saw the 797 this week! It's one of the silver Scania buses they also appear to have temporarily. It now has a working display so at least people can see it.

 

[spuddie]

They may not be temporary, I saw on Flickr someone said one of them had now been painted into Uno livery, not seen any photo evidence of it yet though.

I had another thought last night, the 797 is being interworked with the 635, when I used to work in Letchworth you would quite often see one of the bendy Citaro's on the route, how ironic would it be if one of those still became allocated and made it back to London.

 

[jon0844]

Uno have enough problems with double deckers in London (slicing roofs off, tipping over) so God help everyone if they take a bendy back in - even if Boris doesn't get to hear about it.

 

[Martin1988]

I went up to London on Friday and despite spending a few hours in Victoria I didn't see hide nor hair of Uno's 797 service. Interestingly in the Greenline Ticket office Stevenage was still included on the poster listing all the different destinations served by the operator but another destination which I suspect was on the 797 route had been crossed out.

Do Uno still depart from the Greenline stops?

 

[spuddie]

Well it didn't take long for a Dart to appear on the route, I've seen photo evidence of one of the ex Isle of Mann Enviro's in the Capital, not quite the same comfort level as a Citaro.

 

[spuddie]

The 797 is back to being Greenline!

At least one of the Citaro's (315) has been repainted into Greenline livery with 797 branding.

 

[Busaholic]

The 797 is back to being Greenline!

At least one of the Citaro's (315) has been repainted into Greenline livery with 797 branding.

It's certainly listed on the GreenLine website. A note says to please expect a pink Uno bus rather than a GreenLine coach, so that will need to be amended.

 

[jon0844]

Given it's Uno, I'd write 'Keep a close eye out for anything that might resemble a bus, and be aware the number might be scribbled on a bit of paper somewhere in the front window. Also be sure to turn up to the stop at least 10 minutes before the due time, or else it might have already passed.' on the site just to be safe.

 

[Deerfold]

So presumably Uno are paying Arriva to use the Greenline branding?

 

[hassaanhc]

The 797 is back to being Greenline!

At least one of the Citaro's (315) has been repainted into Greenline livery with 797 branding.

Here you go


Uno Greenline 315 (BF59NHX) by hassaanhc, on Flickr

 

[jon0844]

Green 'line' on a lighter green?

But, I'm being picky now - it actually looks very good. In fact, it's probably the nicest bus in its fleet (and perhaps shows that its previous and current choice of purple doesn't do any bus much justice).

 

[Busaholic]

So presumably Uno are paying Arriva to use the Greenline branding?

Not necessarily. First also use the GreenLine identity for their coach routes from Bracknell and Windsor into London, as successors to London Country in those parts of Berkshire. I suspect GreenLine may now just be a marketing name available to any firm who conform to its ethos and certain basic standards, but I am happy to be corrected if wrong in that surmisal.