Stagecoach North West Discussion

[Dallamlad]

Major review of Allerdale bus services

Last updated at 20:16, Thursday, 07 October 2010

SUBSIDISED bus services across Allerdale are being reviewed by Cumbria County Council to save money.
(c) CN Group
Dianne Standen, of the West Cumbria Bus Users' Group

Passengers are being warned that they might have to make other transport arrangements.

The council is looking at all 108 bus services that it subsidises in the county as it seeks to save money in the face of Government spending cuts.

The 30 Allerdale services affected by the review include:

* 60 Maryport to Skinburness, operated by Reay’s Coaches
* 36 Cockermouth to Workington via Brigham, operated by John Hoban Travel
* 46 Workington to Salterbeck (Mon-Sat after 8pm and all day Sundays), operated by Stagecoach
* 47 Workington to Seaton (Mon-Sat after 8pm and all-day Sundays), operated by Stagecoach
* 50 Workington to Moorclose (Mon-Sat after 8pm and all-day Sundays), operated by Stagecoach
* X5 Workington to Penrith (all journeys after 7.15pm from Workington and 9.35pm from Penrith), operated by Stagecoach
* 300 Carlisle to Whitehaven via Maryport and Workington (10.45pm service from Carlisle only), operated by Stagecoach
* 36 Cockermouth to Workington via Brigham, operated by Reay’s Coaches
* 35 Cockermouth to Workington via Great Broughton, operated by Reay’s Coaches
* 35 Cockermouth to Workington via Great Broughton, operated by AA Travel
* 222 Workington to Whitehaven via Pica and Gilgarran, operated by John Hoban Travel
* 218 Frizington to Workington via Dean (Fridays), operated by J B Pickthall
* 39 Aspatria to Carlisle via Fletchertown (Tuesday and Friday), operated by Reay’s Coaches
* 56 Maryport Town Service, operated by Stagecoach
* 57 Maryport Town Service (late afternoons), which calls at Victoria Cottage Hospital, operated by Stagecoach
* 58 Maryport to Cockermouth via Dearham and Broughton Moor, operated by Stagecoach
* 101 Cockermouth to Rose Lane, operated by Ken Routledge
* 949 Buttermere to Cockermouth Dial a Ride, operated by Ken Routledge
* 34 Cockermouth to Slatefell, operated by Reay’s Coaches
* 36 Cockermouth to Workington via Brigham, operated by Reay’s Coaches
* 217 Cockermouth to Cleator Moor via Eaglesfield and Dean, operated by Rosie’s Travel
* 77/77A Keswick to Buttermere Honister Rambler (summer only), operated by Stagecoach
* 78 Keswick to Seatoller Borrowdale Bus (winter Sundays), operated by Stagecoach
* 554 Carlisle to Keswick via Wigton and Bothel (daily in winter), operated by Stagecoach
* X5 Workington to Penrith via Cockermouth and Keswick (all journeys after 7.15pm from Workington and 9.35pm from Penrith), operated by Stagecoach

County council leader Eddie Martin said that if cuts were made, passengers in rural areas would have to make alternative arrangements such as using Rural Wheels community transport scheme and car sharing.

He said: “If there are going to be cuts to subsidised services, and we don’t know for certain that this will happen, although it is definitely a possibility, people will have to look into alternative methods of transport.”

He added that it may be possible for the county council or another agency to put on an alternative service.

“What we don’t want to do is compromise people getting to work and if cuts were made we would do everything we can to minimise impact,” he added.

Trevor Fee, county, Allerdale and Seaton parish councillor, said the number 47 bus was a lifeline for many people in Seaton, especially with the closure of Workington Bridge.

He said: “It is not just the elderly that will be affected but people of all ages, including young families who are often seen waiting at the stops.

“I can understand where the county council are coming from asking people to car share, but a lot of people don’t have them.”

Lillian Baldry, Salterbeck Residents Association chairman, said: “If the number 46 bus was cut it would affect the whole community.

“I would like assurances from the county council that people will be catered for.”

Carole Armstrong, Allerdale councillor for Salterbeck, said: “I would have a lot of concerns if the number 46 service was cut because it is our main route to town.

“There are a lot of school kids who use it to travel to St Joseph’s School.

“If it was cut some people would have to walk up to a mile back to their houses and that is not easy when you are carrying heavy shopping.

“The council shouldn’t be telling us to car share; they should be looking to provide an alternative service if the bus was taken away.”

Allerdale and town councillor Peter Bales said: “If the bus through Moorclose is cut then quite simply those people who haven’t got a car are stuck in their houses.

“A lot of them would be reliant on somebody to get their food and pay their rent.

“I hope that councillors and more importantly residents and regular bus users are consulted before anything is done.”

Dianne Standen, of the West Cumbria Bus Users’ Group, said: “People need to rally together and talk about how best to tackle the situation and put their views to the council to stop cuts from happening.

“The county council holds the resources and I think they are saying it is going to get bad to scare people. I think there are other areas of spending it could look into cutting before it gets rid of those services that are vital to people’s lives.”

The look at bus services is part of an overall review of all the county council’s 800 services as it prepares to deal with an expected cut to its funding from the Government.




as for the B10M fleet cut, it certainly will make things a bit tight! 1 for 48, 2 for 600 (they start rather late on, and finish early on, so i suppose there'd be time for the buses on there to do B10M school work as well). that'd only leave 2 B10M's + 52628 to cover as spares for those 3 buses, plus covering the useless MAN E300's on 30 and 31, plus covering town services. hopefully we'll see more LF's come in! constant use of B10Ms on local town services is just what Reays are looking for to expand here!!!

I do hope Cumbria's public transport system isn't made even worse by these cuts. It would be a disaster is vital lifeline services were cut.

 

[cainebj]

one of the big things i've noticed with what people are saying in the article, is they havn't read it properly! one goes on about the 46 being used for kids getting to St Josephs School etc, but, the service is only subsidised after 8pm monday - saturday, and all day sunday, as stated in the article, so the school times wouldn't be affected at all, as they're operated commercially! if the bus says "Harrington 46" or "Harrington 46A" on the displays, it is operated commercially. if it says "Brierydale 46B", it is a Cumbria CC subsidised service. there is some full time services though that are a vital link, and subsidised. the 218 (operated by JB Pickthall) being one of those. it only runs once each direction on a friday morning, and is rather well used by older residents in the small, very rural villages, going to do their shopping (it serves Workington Town Centre, Workington Tesco, and Workington Morrisons, where it parks up until the return journey).
I have to admit that quite a few subsidised bus services in Cumbria are rather very well used, and could most likely be operated commercially if they were cut by the council.

 

[Ado 16]

Par for the course really. Councils always seem to take cut out on bus services. In the last 'downturn' - you know - the one that was the Tories fault - Whilst the Liberal Democrat leadership (Paddy Pantsdown) was talking about the importance of integrated transport and how they would aim to get more people on public transport - LibDem controlled councils across the country were slashing bus services. The small village I lived in at the time lost half of it's daily services at a stoke.

In regards to the above - what another great example of how those 'in power' - even those at a local level are out of touch. To suggest so casually that people will just have to make alternative arrangements is pretty insulting really.

 

[cainebj]

20962 and 47023 on Moorclose Circulars.
34079 on Seaton. i think the other bus on there is a B10M.
47617 on Harrington.
20901 on 30 and 31.
16652/3, 16447, 16714 and 20994 been on annexe. it looked as though 16447 has been on 600, but i'm not sure. 16652 done 1325 48. 20994 left as a staff shuttle at the same time. 16447 turned up on there later on.
47059 on short 300.
only saw 15684 on normal 300's.

 

[jonesy3001]

Things always happen when you dont have your camera with you;
16331 has gone to preston and wigleys have taken 16655 to the scrapyard.

 

[Dallamlad]

Been in Blackpool today and I must say Blackpool transports new 60 plate buses are very nice indeed, you can barely hear them when they sail past!

Normal Tridents on the 68.

And so 16655 finely leaves, been a good donor that one!

Also some new from Yorkshire for those that are interested:

Scania have been to stonegravels to adjust the power settings of the enviro 400s. They were the batch delivered before ME's last 4 and apparently they have been having a lot of issues with them. Also:


Stagecoach Yorks' initiative



Stagecoach Yorkshire is set to launch a major initiative that will

lead to three new routes across Sheffield including a second

Supertram Link service, 80 new jobs and a 30% increase in

operations. The move is in response to customer demand for

more choice in bus transport in the city and more affordable fares.

The new high frequency services are due to start in November and to be given an official send-off by Chief Executive, Brian Souter. The routes are intended to create new and easier journey opportunities. The three new services are: Number 79

(Ecclesfield-City Centre-Batemoor) which will operate up to every ten minutes during the day from Monday to Friday and up to every 12 minutes on Saturdays; Number 87 (High Green-City Centre-Lowedges) which will replace the current 88 and will run up to every ten minutes on Monday to Saturdays during the day, with a 20 minute frequency during the early evening; and the Supertram Link 2 (Malin Bridge-Stannington).

From 31 October, smaller changes are scheduled for services 78 and 88, with many other routes having timetable changes to improve punctuality.

MD of Stagecoach Yorkshire, Paul Lynch, said, 'This is confirmation of our desire to be at the heart of bus transport in the Sheffield area and comes about after phenomenal growth on our current services and months of listening to passengers who want a Stagecoach service and who are looking for easier, convenient, value-for-money travel. With three new routes covering many areas new to us and ten minute frequencies, this long-term investment will connect more people in the city and offer more choice. The new routes have been specifically chosen because we believe there is a demand there and we hope that travellers will see a real improvement in the way they are able to get about for work and leisure.'



From Bus & Coach Buyer October 8th 2010.

 

[Gez.SCNW]

Supertram Link 2 look out for some ex PB Solos

 

[cainebj]

Supertram Link 2 look out for some ex PB Solos

explains why they left Carlisle plain white!

 

[Dallamlad]

May be of some interest in relation to the ex PB solos that were at CE for paint. The two that were painted into white have been painted again (lol) and been given retrims.

http://www.focustransport.org.uk/sightem04.aspx#em40

 

[jonesy3001]

Added a new collection to my fotopic site.

 

[Class20]

May be of some interest in relation to the ex PB solos that were at CE for paint. The two that were painted into white have been painted again (lol) and been given retrims.

http://www.focustransport.org.uk/sightem04.aspx#em40

If these Solos are for Supertram Link services then they could be gaining Supertram livery, shown here on 47464 http://transportbyjohn.fotopic.net/p52845889.html

Nice to see that 47756 still has the Preston Bus "Elderly Person" and "Buggy" roundels ether side of the display box.

David.c

 

[cainebj]

20962 on Moorclose Circular 50.
47024 on Moorclose Circular 51.
47006 has been sat on the annexe since before 3. dunno how long it had sat on there, but it was there just before 3 when i went out.

 

[madannie77]

15683 was pulled off the 1010 300 from Carlisle due to a little diesel leak. it was attended to by Carlisle fitters, and returned to 300 on the 1410 when Carlisle got their 16870 back, which went on loan to Lillyhall to do the run. there was still a little bit of diesel / oil dripping out of the back end while it was sat at the stand before departing (it left 5 minutes late, despite 16870 getting to Carlisle before 1500, wasn't that many passengers either really). the LED displays had been turned off by the time i got to the bus station, i did see the P&R related stuff though when it was going to the bus station from Willowholme.

Got my old fashioned film photos back yesterday: here is 15683, with the wrong destination on Lowther Streeet.

http://caroline-mathews.fotopic.net/p67589554.html

 

[Mattdw92]

A ride on Stagecoach North East's Alexander Dennis Enviro 300 05 reg (27059 - Metrocentre Shuttle) really does show how rubbish West Cumbria E300 MAN's are! They can really fly sounding really healthy for 5 years old compared to the 2 year old MAN's at Lillyhall. Going about 50 up the A1 and still sounding great, the ride was really smooth and pretty rapido off from idle! The ride back on a MAN ALX300 53 reg (22049) proved to be better than the LL's MAN's as well!! - in conclusion, buy more Dennis Enviro 300's Stagecoach NW

 

[cainebj]

NEW 87 Cockermouth - Bridgefoot - Clifton - Moorclose - Harrington - Distington - Parton - Hensingham - Bigrigg - Sellafield *STARTS 18th OCTOBER 2010*

This is a new commercial service, timed for Sellafield workers, operating one return journey per day, Monday to Friday - see our new 86 timetable which can be downloaded now from the timetables section.

timetables for Sellafield services. new 87 on page 3.


18364 on 555 today, looking like it could do with repanel and repaint rather soon!
nothing else of interest really. just a few Tridents on 555, and 16329 on 78's.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
52408 and 52409 on 685. Both Joncks off surprise surprise!
33076 on short 685
34048 on 67 and 68
20895 and 20909 on 66

 

[mbonwick]

ex-Manchester Magic Bus Olympian 16124, R124 EVX apparently over the pits at Carlisle today. Supposedly due for Preston...


20457 on the 556 this morning, doing it's best impression of a draughty icecube with no heat! I have to say, it sounded like the fuel rack wasn't too keen on the cold either.
The sooner these are replaced, the better.

 

[Dallamlad]

ex-Manchester Magic Bus Olympian 16124, R124 EVX apparently over the pits at Carlisle today. Supposedly due for Preston...


20457 on the 556 this morning, doing it's best impression of a draughty icecube with no heat! I have to say, it sounded like the fuel rack wasn't too keen on the cold either.
The sooner these are replaced, the better.

Hopefully some more will come up as well!!

 

[Paul Mcgill]

Not seen much odd recently but today the Healthy Heart bus in Barrow pic on flickr soon and also passed on my way to barrow 18138 doing X35 It was still out on the 1905 off Kendal tonight. Didnt think the barrow 04 Tridents had a taco fitted

 

[mbonwick]

Forgot to post this, but the Heart Bus was going south out of Kendal Saturday morning...

 

[ALX400]

ex-Manchester Magic Bus Olympian 16124, R124 EVX apparently over the pits at Carlisle today. Supposedly due for Preston...


20457 on the 556 this morning, doing it's best impression of a draughty icecube with no heat! I have to say, it sounded like the fuel rack wasn't too keen on the cold either.
The sooner these are replaced, the better.

I think there will be a few more of these ex-man vehicles coming to NW soonish, the oly's required at Chorley will be sourced from NW and not from Manchester as first thought...hang on to ur hats its oly swap time ...

 

[mbonwick]

Well we can safely say that they won't be older than R reg (I think), and I don't think Chorley are losing any (?)

So fair to assume that ex-MAc/PVR drops are cascading Olys to Chorley...?

 

[Dallamlad]

I think there will be a few more of these ex-man vehicles coming to NW soonish, the oly's required at Chorley will be sourced from NW and not from Manchester as first thought...hang on to ur hats its oly swap time ...

So not from Manc, Oly swap which implies Chorley may be swapping Olys with another depot? ...

 

[ALX400]

So not from Manc, Oly swap which implies Chorley may be swapping Olys with another depot? ...

No not swapping gaining......4 with a poss 5th spare...

 

[mbonwick]

4 conveniently hapens to be the number of 1665x Olys Lillyhall would like to ditch...nah, that's too simple!

 

[Dallamlad]

4 conveniently hapens to be the number of 1665x Olys Lillyhall would like to ditch...nah, that's too simple!

Yeah thats what I thought when it was first mentioned, could be a possibility!

 

[cainebj]

please please please 16651/2/3/4 chuck in an N-LTN for good measure plenty of new style high back seats from K reg B10M's (and 16655) lying around throughout the region to refurb up one of the N-LTN's to make them look the same

 

[rosswatson]

4 conveniently hapens to be the number of 1665x Olys Lillyhall would like to ditch...nah, that's too simple!

The 1665x vOlys at LL are suitable for further service....... a one way trip to Barnsley, Joking aside, Volvo's with a tacho, high backed seats and a refurbed interior are a bit too nice for schools work. Some ex MagicBus Volvo Olympians would be far more suitable,

 

[cainebj]

The 1665x vOlys at LL are suitable for further service....... a one way trip to Barnsley, Joking aside, Volvo's with a tacho, high backed seats and a refurbed interior are a bit too nice for schools work. Some ex MagicBus Volvo Olympians would be far more suitable,

one way trip to Barnsley would be good, but i have to say, since the Scania's have been on 300, them Volvo's have started to improve a little bit after a rest! i'd still rather have 16447 out of the 8 Volvo's at Lillyhall currently though!

another thing that would make me think it could be these going, is 16654! it was only fully refurbed in April 2010 ish. wouldn't have thought it'd be worth refurbing it completely with brand new high back seating for it to end up demoted to school work, seeing as 15683/4/5/6 were known about then!

 

[rosswatson]

one way trip to Barnsley would be good, but i have to say, since the Scania's have been on 300, them Volvo's have started to improve a little bit after a rest! i'd still rather have 16447 out of the 8 Volvo's at Lillyhall currently though!

another thing that would make me think it could be these going, is 16654! it was only fully refurbed in April 2010 ish. wouldn't have thought it'd be worth refurbing it completely with brand new high back seating for it to end up demoted to school work, seeing as 15683/4/5/6 were known about then!

Can also be noted that they are getting their arse ends re-painted,

 

[cainebj]

Can also be noted that they are getting their arse ends re-painted,

16651 desperately needed it!!!

doing some 2+2=5 here, but:
Stagecoach are taking route 11 from Preston Bus.
PVR for 11 = 4 buses
Preston Bus only have 4 51 reg Solo's left.
Stagecoach have 11 Darts in Preston (and Fleetwood), with a PVR of 6 apparently (4 on Moor Nook 9, and 2 for 86/89), leaving 5 spare Darts.
Preston were rumoured to lose their 3 remaining Marshalls, but they've stayed, so some of those spares could work the 11 when it transfers over.
that should then mean that if the 4 51 reg Solo's move over to Stagecoach along with route 11, those 4 Solo's could be available for service at Lillyhall, where they're much much needed! seeing as 11 Solo's are needed and there's only 11 of them, and the single Vario is needed for 58, leaving 34079 as the only "minibus" spare, which isn't properly accessible! even if only 2 of them came as extra spares, it'd be better for local bus users! and residents on Moorclose Circular bus routes, and Seaton 47 bus route! i'm pretty sure residents don't appreciate their vehicles being scraped by a B10M trying to get down the roads and around poor corners!

if some of / all of them Solo's did come (just speculation really, but you never know! 2 + 2 could equal 5, just like at Uni of Cumbria 24 + 24 = 36! ), then they could in theory withdraw 42025 and 34079, and have 2 extra spare's, making a total of 3 spare minibuses, which with the uselessness of some Solo's, would be greatly beneficial!