Rossobus

[SCH117X]

and further tweeted new timetables booklets available from tomorrow

"Look out for these from tomorrow as we welcome @Rossobus to the @Transdev Blazefield family - more info, better communications happening from Day One

"

 

[83G/84D]

Some Rosso buses noted with 4 digit fleet numbers today at a windswept Bury. presume this is part of the Transdev takeover?

 

[Blackpudding]

Some Rosso buses noted with 4 digit fleet numbers today at a windswept Bury. presume this is part of the Transdev takeover?

Yes it is. For a full list see here:http://wyis.byethost17.com/index.html?i=1

 

[83G/84D]

That was quick thanks. Bleddy freezing at Bury at the moment.Little snow but the wind is really cold!!

 

[SCH117X]

All the Rosso fleet is to be renumbered.
Details are given on the WYIS fleetlist (link in posting above)
The Solos are to be renumbered 139-149 so immediately preceding Transdev Blazefields existing Solos
The Streetlights 612-617 and the Darts 721-725 so respectively following Transdev Blazefields existing Streetlights and Darts
The Scania Solars get a complete new numbering series 1600-1616
The B7RLEs become 1706-1735 following on from the few Transdev Blazefield B7RLEs in the 17xx series; the rest are in the 18xx series
The Presidents and Mylleniums 2727- 2746 following on from Transdev Blazefields Presidents
The Geminis 2781-2796 following from a batch of Transdev Blazefields Geminis (other are in the 4xx and 36xx series)

 

[Blackpudding]

That was quick thanks. Bleddy freezing at Bury at the moment.Little snow but the wind is really cold!!

I know I live there!!

 

[SCH117X]

A number are former Transdev Blazefield vehicles but do not regain their former numbers although they are available and cause odd gaps in the numbering particularly in respect of the B7RLEs 241-249 which were Lancs Utd 1816/22/4/6/9/32/3/5/6 (to be 1726-1734). Geminis 151-156 were originally Coastliner 411,412,414-417 (to be 2791-2796).

 

[83G/84D]

Thanks Black Pudding and SCH117X. Now stuck in Bury with nothing to do after Rochdale vs Plymouth was postponed late morning. No chance of getting back to Cornwall although I will try on Sunday!

 

[Lynford1976]

All the Rosso fleet is to be renumbered.
Details are given on the WYIS fleetlist (link in posting above)
The Solos are to be renumbered 139-149 so immediately preceding Transdev Blazefields existing Solos
The Streetlights 612-617 and the Darts 721-725 so respectively following Transdev Blazefields existing Streetlights and Darts
The Scania Solars get a complete new numbering series 1600-1616
The B7RLEs become 1706-1735 following on from the few Transdev Blazefield B7RLEs in the 17xx series; the rest are in the 18xx series
The Presidents and Mylleniums 2727- 2746 following on from Transdev Blazefields Presidents
The Geminis 2781-2796 following from a batch of Transdev Blazefields Geminis (other are in the 4xx and 36xx series)

So is there any sort of 'system' to Transdev Blazefield's fleet numbering?

D.

 

[Andyh82]

There is a system for recent new buses and acquisitions, just that on top of that until recently all Coastliner buses were always in the 400s and that continues even when the buses are cascaded. Also go back further and all the separate operators had their own numbering systems, and they also haven’t been changed.

So B10BLEs are either 300s if they were originally with Harrogate, 500s if originally with Keighley and 1000/1100s if originally with Lancashire.

 

[SCH117X]

So is there any sort of 'system' to Transdev Blazefield's fleet numbering?

D.

Sort of getting to be one, Blazefields used to be depot based and vehicles often had to be renumbered when moving depots. The B7RLEs are all in the 18xx series (between 1800 and 1878) bar the Rosso ones, the original demonstrator (1700 which recently moved from Harrogate to Blackburn), the five that were new to Harrogate (1701-1705) (and still there) and those that were new to Coastliner (450-455). The 18xx numbering arose when one was ordered for the 36 - (half of 36!) and then when further were ordered for Lancashire they followed in 18xx rather than using the 17xx series.

The 36xx was originally for the 36 Geminis but now includes all the recent Gemini 3s be they for the 36 or Coastliner. Other Geminis are numbered in the 4xx series (as they were for Coastliner) and in the 27xx series starting at 2750. The lower 27xx numbers being used for Presidents (and now the Rosso Mylleniums).

Of the other vehicles the Metro owned School BMC220s are 101-129, Solos are 139-160, Versas are the 2xx series, Streetlights in the 6xx series, Darts in the 7xx series (bar the withdrawn 665), Tridents are 20xx, Open Top Tridents (at York) 40xx and the two Electric Solos at Harrogate are EB01 and EB02 (EB01 is also numbered 998 and EB02 is consequently often referred to as 999). The two ex York Pullman Enviro 200s at York are 1107 and 1108.

The older vehicles are spread all over the place; Olympians being below 100 and in the 20xx series and B10BLEs in the 30x,5xx, 10xx and 11xx series.

 

[theblackwatch]

That's an interesting synopsis SCH117X - I'd never given thought as to why 1800 was numbered as such!

 

[SCH117X]

That's an interesting synopsis SCH117X - I'd never given thought as to why 1800 was numbered as such!

And most 36 commuters wished it never was acquired. Think the idea was to use it on low demand off peak rostas but it seemed all too often to appear on heavily used peak pm journeys

 

[Blackpudding]

Thanks Black Pudding and SCH117X. Now stuck in Bury with nothing to do after Rochdale vs Plymouth was postponed late morning. No chance of getting back to Cornwall although I will try on Sunday!

Off topic but it is the East Lancs Railway Spring Steam gala in Bury this weekend or catch the 135 to the Transport Museum on Boyle Street in Cheetham Hill.

 

[overthewater]

http://lancashirebus.co.uk/news.jsp?newsID=2250

There started to make changes, look at the bottom.

CHANGES TO SOME BUSES IN BLACKBURN FROM 8 APRIL
15-02-2018
Travelling patterns are changing all the time. Traffic conditions on our roads never stay the same for long, either.

So, it's important that we carry on understanding how and why people are travelling to ensure our timetables remain robust and trustworthy. As a result of our continued work behind the scenes, we have identified the following changes to be made to a few of our bus routes from Sunday 8 April.

New timetables will be available online soon.

Red Express X41
We have looked closely at what people use Red Express for – and why.

The vast majority of customers who use Red Express to travel between Blackburn and Accrington could – and often do – make their journey on our well-established, high-quality 6/7 routes which run every 7 mins. Couple this with the recently doubled rail service between Manchester and Blackburn, and Red Express is now being used for different things - so we need to change it.

We are going to focus on delivering a better service with new links between Accrington and Manchester. We have spoken to customers along the route and in nearby towns to create the best route for as many people as we can.

Red Express will start and finish at Accrington and will additionally serve Edenfield, Stubbins and Ramsbottom. These areas boast a combined population of nearly 20,000 and we get many requests for them to have a direct bus to Manchester, including a campaign by the local MP. Whilst we will welcome customers making local journeys, we are very keen that we don't slow down the journey too much and have been careful to stay running direct along main roads, so this change of route will only add around 10-15 mins to current journey times from Accrington and Haslingden. As many regular customers know, we sometimes use the A676 instead of the M66 when traffic is gridlocked on the motorway. We'll still run along the M66 and M60 as soon as we've left Ramsbottom, so we'll still be putting the express into Red Express!

Through tickets will be available for those who travel across Accrington, and remember that your Transdev tickets are now available on Rosso buses that serve the local area too.

The overall coverage of the timetable won't change – we'll still run every 30 mins, with evening and Sunday buses too.

The Blackburn Bus Company
1 Blackburn - Darwen - Bolton
There will be some timetable improvements to aid our timekeeping, and we will add more realistic timings at rush hour along certain sections of the route, particularly between Astley Bridge and Bolton. There will also be additional journeys between Blackburn and Bolton during the afternoon peak (Mon – Fri only).

Due to stand clashes in Bolton bus station, three departures a day will need to depart from stand B, with the vast majority of departures staying on Stand C.

4 & 24 Blackburn - Leyburn Road, Feniscowles & Chorley
We will merge these routes to become the 4, running every 20 mins between Blackburn and Green Lane through Mill Hill, with 2 buses an hour running to Leyburn Road and 1 bus an hour continuing to Feniscowles and Chorley.

Both these routes suffer from timekeeping issues and have seen a decline in custom. This change is the right thing to do to ensure we run an on-time service and reflect the costs of operation.

Rosso
244 Blackburn - Haslingden - Rawtenstall
This route, which currently runs between Blackburn and Rawtenstall, will be renumbered 481 and will be extended to Bury, offering a new link to this popular and bustling market town. It will offer a combined every 15 minutes frequency from Rawtenstall to Bury alongside Rosso 482 and 483. Transdev Lancashire, Gold and Daytripper tickets are available to use on this route, as well as Free Concessionary Bus Passes.

 

[83G/84D]

Off topic but it is the East Lancs Railway Spring Steam gala in Bury this weekend or catch the 135 to the Transport Museum on Boyle Street in Cheetham Hill.

Thanks going to visit the Transport museum this morning and maybe the East Lancs Railway later. Even if just for a few beers in the pub at Bolton Street.

 

[SCH117X]

The service changes from 8 April not only see the 244 Blackburn-Rawtenstall extended to Bury (and renumbered 481), but also extra journeys on the 467/468 between Bury and Jericho, extra journeys on 469 Bury-Tottingham with a new (Trent Barton like) brand of Tottington Line, and the 484 cut back top run between Bury and Ramsbottom (with the diverted/truncated Blackburn operated Red Express filling in on the Ramsbottom-Accrington section) http://www.rossobus.com/article.shtml?articleid=8064
Possibly means a PVR increase ?
The 11 Transdev Blazefield Streetlights currently at Burnley are listed on the WYIS fleetlist as moving to Rosso (their place at Burnley being taken by reinstated B10BLEs) while the changes at Blackburn http://lancashirebus.co.uk/news.jsp?newsID=2250 would indicate a PVR reduction there although the WYIS fleetlist indicates three withdrawn B7RLEs are to be reinstated at Blackburn so there may be more fleet changes across the board. Do wonder if they will keep the Scanias as they are a type alien to the Transdev Blazefield fleet and presumably they will move heavy maintenance of the Rosso fleet to Blackburn (Intack) so would have keep separate parts for those.

 

[Andyh82]

Something that seems to have been kept quite quiet, the main Rosso depot at Haslingden closes after service today.

 

[SCH117X]

They did tweet about a "new" depot in Blackburn a while back, no doubt sharing Intack - was it not part of the deal with the Council that they had to move out, no doubt on the basis that the Council still owned the depot and can then flog the land for housing

 

[Andyh82]

They did tweet about a "new" depot in Blackburn a while back, no doubt sharing Intack - was it not part of the deal with the Council that they had to move out, no doubt on the basis that the Council still owned the depot and can then flog the land for housing

I doubt it would be housing, it’s on the middle of an industrial estate!

I expect most expected a replacement depot in Rossendale though.

I wonder how long the current Rochdale depot will last, as looking at it it looks awful. A muddy yard surrounded by scrap yards.

 

[SCH117X]

I doubt it would be housing, it’s on the middle of an industrial estate!
I expect most expected a replacement depot in Rossendale though.

I wonder how long the current Rochdale depot will last, as looking at it it looks awful. A muddy yard surrounded by scrap yards.

Just looked up the announcement of the sale referenced earlier in the thread
http://www.rossobus.co.uk/feature-article.shtml?articleid=7925
"As part of the proposed deal, the Council will retain the Haslingden depot in support of its commercial investment strategy." Pretty sure there was comment somewhere that both depots would be closed.

 

[158756]

I doubt it would be housing, it’s on the middle of an industrial estate!

I expect most expected a replacement depot in Rossendale though.

I wonder how long the current Rochdale depot will last, as looking at it it looks awful. A muddy yard surrounded by scrap yards.

No chance there was any thought of a replacement depot - I'm sure it was reported they had to leave Haslingden within the year. No idea what the council think they're going to do with it though in the middle of an industrial estate.

You would think Rochdale will have to stay - I would imagine a majority of Rosso's work is in Greater Manchester nowadays, and they surely aren't going to try to run it from Blackburn or Burnley. Talking of which, what are they going to run from those depots? 481/2/3, part of the 464, Lancashire tendered and school services?

 

[Dentonian]

No chance there was any thought of a replacement depot - I'm sure it was reported they had to leave Haslingden within the year. No idea what the council think they're going to do with it though in the middle of an industrial estate.

I think the clue is *commercial investment*. I heard they were relocating other Council functions there, and as its an Industrial estate, other light industries could move in.

 

[Andyh82]

Just looked up the announcement of the sale referenced earlier in the thread
http://www.rossobus.co.uk/feature-article.shtml?articleid=7925
"As part of the proposed deal, the Council will retain the Haslingden depot in support of its commercial investment strategy." Pretty sure there was comment somewhere that both depots would be closed.

Although I also took that to mean that they could have just received income by Rosso paying rent on the site. In any case now they can either move other council services in or sell it.

I can see a new depot in Greater Manchester appearing soon to replace the Rochdale yard, I expect it’d be better if it was more towards Bury than Rochdale as more of their work is that way.

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

I think the clue is *commercial investment*. I heard they were relocating other Council functions there, and as its an Industrial estate, other light industries could move in.

A lot of local authorities are investing in commercial properties as they provide a revenue stream and is lower risk than investing in an Icelandic bank. Rossendale own all sorts of properties including pubs as shown here https://www.rossendale.gov.uk/downloads/file/14151/commercial_property_register

 

[SCH117X]

Tweet this evening by Alex Hornby, Transdev Blazefield CEO, "Our team are doing a great job working around the clock tonight and tomorrow to rehouse the @Rossobus fleet into their new homes" retweeting photos of B7RLE YJ07PBY, a 51 reg double decker, and Solo YJ05JWD at the Burnley depot.

 

[Andyh82]

I wonder if there will be any sort of fixed allocation at each location, or routes being allocated to only one depot (in fact does that even happen now or is it all mixed up)

 

[158756]

A lot of local authorities are investing in commercial properties as they provide a revenue stream and is lower risk than investing in an Icelandic bank. Rossendale own all sorts of properties including pubs as shown here https://www.rossendale.gov.uk/downloads/file/14151/commercial_property_register

I don't think the council own them - that must be most of the available commercial property in Rossendale They might just be trying to attract occupants to the borough.

The one on Knowsley Road without a picture with the agent listed as the council wouldn't happen to be bus depot sized would it?

 

[Stan Drews]

The initial allocations are planned to be:
139-46, 1727-35, 2727-33/84-8/90 at Queensgate, Burnley
1706-14/23-6, 2781-3/9 at Intack, Blackburn
With the rest, including new Streetlites 618/9, at Rochdale.

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

I don't think the council own them - that must be most of the available commercial property in Rossendale They might just be trying to attract occupants to the borough.

The one on Knowsley Road without a picture with the agent listed as the council wouldn't happen to be bus depot sized would it?

You’re right. Wrong link https://www.rossendale.gov.uk/info/210170/business/10768/commercial_units

They do own properties but none available (but soon will do).