Stagecoach West Scotland

[Glasgowbusguy]

I know that, my speculation was where new electric might go also where Euro 6 upgrades would be allocated.
Am I right in thinking Buchannon Street bus station can accessed without going into LEZ/CAZ?

I think so but you have to come off the M8 on to A804 then north Hanover st

 

[InOban]

Not according to the map. You enter the zone as you leave the M8.

 

[Scotrail314209]

Just seen on the Government website that the X16 and X36 have been listed as cancelled?

Stagecoach starting more cuts?

Whatever it is, it isn’t going to go down well as the X16 is a popular commuter service, along with the X36 which is the popular for people going to Glasgow for both day trips and commuting.

Images show routes X34,X36 and X16 cancelled from July 17th 2022.
Site: https://www.vehicle-operator-licensing.service.gov.uk/search/find-registered-local-bus-services

 

[GusB]

Just seen on the Government website that the X16 and X36 have been listed as cancelled?

Stagecoach starting more cuts?

Whatever it is, it isn’t going to go down well as the X16 is a popular commuter service, along with the X36 which is the popular for people going to Glasgow for both day trips and commuting.

Images show routes X34,X36 and X16 cancelled from July 17th 2022.

Could you post the link to this site please? Thanks.

 

[overthewater]

Find registered local bus services - Vehicle Operator Licensing - GOV.UK

www.vehicle-operator-licensing.service.gov.uk

There is a few other changes planned, I think we might need to wait a few days to see the full picture.

 

[Scotrail314209]

Could you post the link to this site please? Thanks.

Have put it in the original post! ☺

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 7 Jun 2022 ==

Find registered local bus services - Vehicle Operator Licensing - GOV.UK

www.vehicle-operator-licensing.service.gov.uk

There is a few other changes planned, I think we might need to wait a few days to see the full picture.

Is this for the routes mentioned or other routes too?

I really hope they are only changing it instead of a full on cancellation as all services do have decent numbers.

 

[Sprinter156]

Vehicle Operator Licensing - GOV.UK

www.vehicle-operator-licensing.service.gov.uk

The website says the part that's cancelled is the section from Kilmarnock to Hamilton (which hasn't ran since pandemic I think)

Hopefully this means the ayr to kilmarnock part is okay

 

[RomeoCharlie71]

Full details of the changes are available on the Stagecoach website (at various links, for each individual service).

In summary:
Service 1 (Hayhill to Masonhill): revised to operate hourly
Service 11 (Kilmarnock to Ardrossan): cut to operate every 12 minutes school days, and every 15 minutes Monday to Friday school holidays and Saturday
Service X16 (Kilmarnock to Ayr): withdrawn
Service X28 (Glasgow to Seafar): withdrawn
Services X34/X36 (Glasgow to Ardrossan): withdrawn
Service X76 (Glasgow to Irvine): section between Kilmarnock and Irvine permanently withdrawn, but hasn't operated since March 2020
Service X76B (Kilmarnock to Cumnock): minor alterations

 

[Scotrail314209]

Full details of the changes are available on the Stagecoach website (at various links, for each individual service).

In summary:
Service 1 (Hayhill to Masonhill): revised to operate hourly
Service 11 (Kilmarnock to Ardrossan): cut to operate every 12 minutes school days, and every 15 minutes Monday to Friday school holidays and Saturday
Service X16 (Kilmarnock to Ayr): withdrawn
Service X28 (Glasgow to Seafar): withdrawn
Services X34/X36 (Glasgow to Ardrossan): withdrawn
Service X76 (Glasgow to Irvine): section between Kilmarnock and Irvine permanently withdrawn, but hasn't operated since March 2020
Service X76B (Kilmarnock to Cumnock): minor alterations

What a joke.

Ayrshire Daily News picked up on it on Facebook, and the comments about the X34/X36 withdrawal really spoke for itself.

It's an absolute shame how many people from the Garnock Valley rely on the X36 to get to Glasgow and the Three Towns.

I really hope Stagecoach rethink it, or that McGills try to snatch it.

 

[overthewater]

WOW, that is bad. I'm surprised the X16 is coming off; surely the college students will pick up again from August? I dread to think what might be coming to Bluebird or East Scotland.

 

[PaulMc7]

SPT stepping in with funding is the only thing that could help here but I highly doubt it. If driver shortages weren't an issue everywhere McGills would be slightly possible but I don't see that either sadly

 

[Scotrail314209]

WOW, that is bad. I'm surprised the X16 is coming off; surely the college students will pick up again from August? I dread to think what might be coming to Bluebird or East Scotland.

Not to mention students from Beith and the Garnock Valley who would use the bus to get to college/university in Glasgow with their bus passes. Now they have been basically told to use the much more expensive train.

Having done the morning X36 services, they are popular with commuters. The day ones are popular with people going to Glasgow too.

I'd settle for the off-peak being reduced to every two hours, to me that's a fair compromise rather than a full cancellation.

I think Stagecoach really need to rethink some of these.

 

[gnolife]

Not to mention students from Beith and the Garnock Valley who would use the bus to get to college/university in Glasgow with their bus passes. Now they have been basically told to use the much more expensive train.

I wonder if that's what's killed it off - they know what sort of reimbursement they get from the Elderly/Disabled passes, and know that if they get similar from young people, they're stuffed

 

[Scotrail314209]

I wonder if that's what's killed it off - they know what sort of reimbursement they get from the Elderly/Disabled passes, and know that if they get similar from young people, they're stuffed

Might've been, the morning and evening X16's are very popular with students going to Ayr College or UWS, but the X34/36 caught all the Beith and Garnock Valley commuters of all ages. Combined the services provide a 15 minute service from Garnock Valley to Glasgow in the morning peak...

Now they are being shafted with the 25, which runs to Irvine and goes around just about every estate in Beith, Kilbirnie and Dalry.

 

[PaulMc7]

The X28 cut I actually get although it just hands customers to First if you are going to Condorrat and Mollinsburn but it seems really bizarre to cut services from Glasgow to seaside towns with beaches especially in the middle of summer when the trains are having all sorts of issues

 

[Scotrail314209]

Stagecoach also appear to be losing a number of Dumfries & Galloway services too:

Stagecoach West Scotland would like to advise customers of timetable changes to some tendered services operating around the Dumfries and Galloway area.

From the 7th August 2022, the following tendered services will no longer be operated by Stagecoach West Scotland.

Service 221/222 Sanquhar - Kirkconnell

The contract for this service has been awarded to Brownrigg’s Coaches.



Service 502A Dumfries – Castle Douglas – Kirkcudbright

The contract for this service has been awarded to McCalls Coaches.



Service 501A Dumfries – Castle Douglas



We will continue to operate the 501 journeys within this service. However, the 501A journeys have been awarded to McCalls Coaches.

Stagecoach West Scotland changes to bus services from 17th July 2022

Changes to bus services operating in Ayrshire, Cumbernauld and Dumfries and Galloway

www.stagecoachbus.com

 

[Jordan Adam]

The X28 cut I actually get although it just hands customers to First if you are going to Condorrat and Mollinsburn but it seems really bizarre to cut services from Glasgow to seaside towns with beaches especially in the middle of summer when the trains are having all sorts of issues

First could quite easily reroute the X3 via Greenfaulds to cover for the loss of the Stagecoach X28 without actually needing to increase vehicle requirements as the X3 gets nearly 30 minutes of layover combined per round trip. I highly doubt they will, but it just seems such a glaringly obvious opportunity for them.

I'm more surprised that Stagecoach didn't try to combine the X25 and X28 together and have instead opted to axe the X28 entirely.

 

[sannox]

Surprised at the X34/x36 complete withdrawal. I do wonder if McGill's might try a run here. Seems unlikely SPT would consider stepping in there given pressures on supported network.

The X16 was always a strange route- sometimes needed duplicates on sunny summer days, other times empty.

 

[Scotrail314209]

Surprised at the X34/x36 complete withdrawal. I do wonder if McGill's might try a run here. Seems unlikely SPT would consider stepping in there given pressures on supported network.

The X16 was always a strange route- sometimes needed duplicates on sunny summer days, other times empty.

I think the same re McGills.

It is a bit out of their way, but it's not too far from Largs by all accounts. A few people on social media were mentioning that they hoped McGills would step in.

It'd fit quite nicely as a ClydeFlyer service.

 

[col197]

Any one else think Stagecoach could be ‘cancelling the service’, so that drastic cuts that they wanted to make, don’t seem so bad when they save the day and ‘reinstate it’? May be I’m too cynical.

 

[markymark2000]

I think the same re McGills.

It is a bit out of their way, but it's not too far from Largs by all accounts. A few people on social media were mentioning that they hoped McGills would step in.

It'd fit quite nicely as a ClydeFlyer service.

One thing that I think and hope McGills would change is for the X34/36 to stop somewhere helpful like Johnstone. I think they would make the change because they do quite like having driver changeovers close to the depot where they can manage it but also I think it would make a huge difference to the loadings.

Johnstone has no fast bus into Glasgow City Centre. It also seems daft that there is no proper link from the area heading west with the exception of the 904 to Largs. Anywhere else requires a change. I think a diversion into Braehead too could be very, very popular as well. While Stagecoach may have done it years ago, passenger demand may have changed since then and so it could become more viable now as part of a bigger network. Also bearing in mind McGills have the network from Braehead, there may be people connecting between buses.

I think if McGills took on the X36, it would be good for the route and I think could be the difference in viability.

 

[Clydeflyer]

Has there ever been an occasion when Stagecoach have walked away from a route and another operator has come in and run it commercially and made it viable again? If it was close to being commercially viable would Stagecoach not stick around and make the changes like frequency or smaller vehicle allocations? It does say "Following the pandemic passenger numbers still remain significantly lower, the X34 and X36 Service failed to cover its costs pre-pandemic and in order to protect the wider network, we can no longer operate unsustainable services."

It used to be if Stagecoach couldn't make a route work commercially, no one could?

 

[markymark2000]

Has there ever been an occasion when Stagecoach have walked away from a route and another operator has come in and run it commercially and made it viable again? If it was close to being commercially viable would Stagecoach not stick around and make the changes like frequency or smaller vehicle allocations? It does say "Following the pandemic passenger numbers still remain significantly lower, the X34 and X36 Service failed to cover its costs pre-pandemic and in order to protect the wider network, we can no longer operate unsustainable services."

It used to be if Stagecoach couldn't make a route work commercially, no one could?

Depends on their local wages and costs.

Operating costs for a route can increase massively if the company wants it to with smart accounting. It's how Arriva manages to get rid of so many routes. You push more of the depot overheads onto the route and suddenly anything can become unviable.


Not saying that what they are saying is false but it could be them twisting it and doing smart accounting.

 

[JModulo]

It used to be if Stagecoach couldn't make a route work commercially, no one could?

Stagecoach could barely run a raffle these days nevermind a service.

 

[Blindtraveler]

Dumfries and Galloway changes are quite interesting. I wonder if the timetables on some of these routes, particularly the 502 and the 501a will be like-for-like replacements by McColls or if they will do anything differently? I would have thought the 502 would have paid stagecoach commercially but apparently not and and the 501a makes sense although it can get quite busy at certain times and the last time I used it on a Sunday there were slightly ironically more fare paying passengers than there are on a weekday run at the same time

 

[Scotrail314209]

I think another thing that’s annoyed people about the cuts is the fact that it comes just a month after Stagecoach put their fares up.

I can see why, put the bus fares up then cut services down.

It does make me think that the Under 22 bus passes might’ve contributed to the apparent loss making as the younger people would just use their pass instead of paying.

 

[markymark2000]

I think another thing that’s annoyed people about the cuts is the fact that it comes just a month after Stagecoach put their fares up.

I can see why, put the bus fares up then cut services down.

It does make me think that the Under 22 bus passes might’ve contributed to the apparent loss making as the younger people would just use their pass instead of paying.

Depends what the reimbursement is on the U22 passes.

 

[Blindtraveler]

Not a subject for this thread really I suppose but I always said that the under 22s concession pass was a spectacular own goal. I might start a thread on it at some point actually although would probably get shut down very quickly by certain individuals on here


I fully expect sufficient political pressure even at a local level for some of the tourists and seaside aspects of these cuts to be reversed, at least during the season

 

[ClydeCoaster]

In terms of adjusting the services to lower frequency or make smaller vehicle allocations, the 18 3 towns local service is frequent operated by Scania dockers when Solos would suffice, I've seen E200s struggle with loadings on the 585, and I've literally just passed an X36 in Beith (Ardrossan bound) with about 15 passengers - a healthy enough off peak snapshot for an E300. Their vehicle allocations haven't made much sense recently.

 

[sannox]

One thing that I think and hope McGills would change is for the X34/36 to stop somewhere helpful like Johnstone. I think they would make the change because they do quite like having driver changeovers close to the depot where they can manage it but also I think it would make a huge difference to the loadings.

Indeed possible to route the services past the depot in Johnstone which used to the be old routing of the X34/36 and pick up some share in Johnstone as well as Braehead- comes at the cost of overall time.

Has there ever been an occasion when Stagecoach have walked away from a route and another operator has come in and run it commercially and made it viable again? If it was close to being commercially viable would Stagecoach not stick around and make the changes like frequency or smaller vehicle allocations? It does say "Following the pandemic passenger numbers still remain significantly lower, the X34 and X36 Service failed to cover its costs pre-pandemic and in order to protect the wider network, we can no longer operate unsustainable services."

It used to be if Stagecoach couldn't make a route work commercially, no one could?

I'd say it really depends on numerous factors including costs and operator dominance. Perhaps McGill's strength in Renfrewshire and experence in operating motorway expresses would help? I mean the 901/906 etc struggled for many years with various operators but McGill's have grown them.

I think the 3 towns section might not work, but Beith/Kilbirnie/Dalry might be where they run to.