(26 Aug 2014, 7:55 pm)aureolin wrote Was an issue as far back as the days of the X90 too. The drivers should be serving the estate as they don't know whether or not someone is waiting for the bus. Arriva got a telling off about doing this on the M2/M3, as they were having a quick glance rather than serve the 'Savacentre' stops in the car park. Two occasions I had one go straight past me without doing the loop, which resulted in a complaint direct to Nexus.

Aye, x90, x3, x4 and if I remember right, the x5 all served the estate at one point or another - missing the stops out.
A lot of people gave up waiting because of it. Whether complaints were made, is another thing.

This bloke did seem apologetic - will see if it happens again.
It is out in the public domain now, Nexus insiders could see the comments on here. Will make it official next time.

On a slightly different note, does anyone know why the 37 doesn't call at the same stand as the 4/x1?
Never been able to work out, why it calls at the stand it does.

Bit of a story here, make a cup of tea before enjoying.

I had it dead set in my mind that I was going to get the 73 from Concord to Sunderland the other day.

I had a bit of time to kill, you see, and was already at Washington Galleries. Two birds, one stone I thought. Let's give the 37 a go from here to Concord. Service arrived three minutes late, operated by the Enviro 200. Lovely bus I might add. The interior was nice and bright with Urban 90 seating. I'm quite fond of Urban 90s I might add too. Anyhow, it pulled onto stand... well not quite, it pulled near the vacant stand - And then it started. Brrrrrrrrvrrrrrrrrrrgrrrrrrrbrrrrrrrrrrrrhrrrrrrqrrrrrrwrrrrrerrrrrrrrrrrrrtrrrrryrrrrrurrrrrrrrirrrrrrorrrrrrrrrrrrprrrrrrrrrrarrrrrrrrrrrrsrrrrrrrdrrrrrrrrrfrrrrrgrhrrrrrrrrrrrjrrrrrrrrkrrrrrrrrrlrrrrrrrrzrrrrrrrrrrrxrrrrrrrrrrcrrrrrrrrrvrrrrrrrrrrbrrrrrrrrrrnrrrrrrrrrrmrrrrr.
Oh (enter swearword here) I thought! The vibration was uncomfortable and deafening. Particularly around the emergency exit area... where I sat. Pulled away... silence...
Sometimes I see the bus enter the Teal Farm Estate, today we didn't... Bad driver! Driver then missed stop when passenger pressed bell before A1231 slip road, passenger had to stay on to next slip road due to driver error as he was "fully committed to entering the motorway with no safe, suitable, or sizeable location to stop the vehicle in a safe manner for the passengers or other road users". Got to Concord and was thrilled to be off...

What bus next I thought as I waited at the bus stand... Enviro 200 comes back around the corner... same driver, same racket, this time its on 73s... I swore mentally. Bus went straight past the stand. I went chasing after it, one for myself, and two for a woman on crutches. Got on the bus... driver began to drive as my first foot touched the floor of the vehicle. I asked him where he was going, he asked me where I was going. I said Sunderland, he said not this bus, that bus is coming round now. I said you're blind is wrong then. I got off, went back to original stand.

Driver pulled out of Concord, turned right, then right again, pulled onto stand, now blinded 73 Concord. Drivers changed. I was pleased. We departed. Turned left out of Concord, genuinely nearly knocked previous driver over... Missed Teal Farm again. Got to Sunderland... just...

We had a few paying customers on both journeys, maybe five, each paying £2.80 in three £1 coins to drivers incredibly short of change...

I will be sending Nexus a complaint regarding most aspects of my journey, they are really not doing a good job. Also I saw the Versa the other day... with a massive gash on the left side, looked rather worrying!!

(27 Aug 2014, 9:02 pm)56everyday wrote Bit of a story here, make a cup of tea before enjoying.

I had it dead set in my mind that I was going to get the 73 from Concord to Sunderland the other day.

I had a bit of time to kill, you see, and was already at Washington Galleries. Two birds, one stone I thought. Let's give the 37 a go from here to Concord. Service arrived three minutes late, operated by the Enviro 200. Lovely bus I might add. The interior was nice and bright with Urban 90 seating. I'm quite fond of Urban 90s I might add too. Anyhow, it pulled onto stand... well not quite, it pulled near the vacant stand - And then it started. Brrrrrrrrvrrrrrrrrrrgrrrrrrrbrrrrrrrrrrrrhrrrrrrqrrrrrrwrrrrrerrrrrrrrrrrrrtrrrrryrrrrrurrrrrrrrirrrrrrorrrrrrrrrrrrprrrrrrrrrrarrrrrrrrrrrrsrrrrrrrdrrrrrrrrrfrrrrrgrhrrrrrrrrrrrjrrrrrrrrkrrrrrrrrrlrrrrrrrrzrrrrrrrrrrrxrrrrrrrrrrcrrrrrrrrrvrrrrrrrrrrbrrrrrrrrrrnrrrrrrrrrrmrrrrr.
Oh (enter swearword here) I thought! The vibration was uncomfortable and deafening. Particularly around the emergency exit area... where I sat. Pulled away... silence...
Sometimes I see the bus enter the Teal Farm Estate, today we didn't... Bad driver! Driver then missed stop when passenger pressed bell before A1231 slip road, passenger had to stay on to next slip road due to driver error as he was "fully committed to entering the motorway with no safe, suitable, or sizeable location to stop the vehicle in a safe manner for the passengers or other road users". Got to Concord and was thrilled to be off...

What bus next I thought as I waited at the bus stand... Enviro 200 comes back around the corner... same driver, same racket, this time its on 73s... I swore mentally. Bus went straight past the stand. I went chasing after it, one for myself, and two for a woman on crutches. Got on the bus... driver began to drive as my first foot touched the floor of the vehicle. I asked him where he was going, he asked me where I was going. I said Sunderland, he said not this bus, that bus is coming round now. I said you're blind is wrong then. I got off, went back to original stand.

Driver pulled out of Concord, turned right, then right again, pulled onto stand, now blinded 73 Concord. Drivers changed. I was pleased. We departed. Turned left out of Concord, genuinely nearly knocked previous driver over... Missed Teal Farm again. Got to Sunderland... just...

We had a few paying customers on both journeys, maybe five, each paying £2.80 in three £1 coins to drivers incredibly short of change...

I will be sending Nexus a complaint regarding most aspects of my journey, they are really not doing a good job. Also I saw the Versa the other day... with a massive gash on the left side, looked rather worrying!!

Have you met Davey Bowyer?

(27 Aug 2014, 9:03 pm)aureolin wrote Have you met Davey Bowyer?

Who?

looks like the GCT have started to acquire buses for the the school contracts that they will be starting next week. LR52KVW is in their yard today.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/gpr_bus_ph...886478378/

(29 Aug 2014, 2:31 pm)GuyParkRoyal wrote looks like the GCT have started to acquire buses for the the school contracts that they will be starting next week. LR52KVW is in their yard today.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/gpr_bus_ph...886478378/

Which scholars contracts have these cowboys got?

I believe it was:

542: Low Simonside to Boldon Colliery
803: West Boldon Bank Top to Whitburn CofE School
820: Low Simonside to St Josephs School
821: Fellgate Estate to St Josephs School
824: South Shields Market to St Josephs School
874: Kibblesworth Square to Lord Lawson of Beamish School
877: Greenside to Thorp Academy
878: Wardley Kirkwood Gardens to Cardinal Hume School

(29 Aug 2014, 11:58 pm)Tom wrote I believe it was:

542: Low Simonside to Boldon Colliery
803: West Boldon Bank Top to Whitburn CofE School
820: Low Simonside to St Josephs School
821: Fellgate Estate to St Josephs School
824: South Shields Market to St Josephs School
874: Kibblesworth Square to Lord Lawson of Beamish School
877: Greenside to Thorp Academy
878: Wardley Kirkwood Gardens to Cardinal Hume School

542 will be afternoon runs only (Jim Hughes will do morning runs).
820 will be morning runs only (Jim Hughes will do afternoon runs).
821 will be afternoon runs only (Jim Hughes will do morning runs).

(27 Aug 2014, 9:02 pm)56everyday wrote Also I saw the Versa the other day... with a massive gash on the left side, looked rather worrying!!

Yeah, I've seen that too. Looks pretty nasty, and I've got no idea what it's gone and scraped against to leave that much of a mark!

(29 Aug 2014, 11:58 pm)Tom wrote I believe it was:

542: Low Simonside to Boldon Colliery
803: West Boldon Bank Top to Whitburn CofE School
820: Low Simonside to St Josephs School
821: Fellgate Estate to St Josephs School
824: South Shields Market to St Josephs School
874: Kibblesworth Square to Lord Lawson of Beamish School
877: Greenside to Thorp Academy
878: Wardley Kirkwood Gardens to Cardinal Hume School

They'll not manage the 878, no operator has yet.

Saw the Solo a few mins back with the driver looking like it was an ex Philli/Washington pilot.
Quick look up to the bus stop at Biddick Woods and he missed it again.

Obviously not a one off...

(30 Aug 2014, 2:38 pm)Andreos Constantopolous wrote Saw the Solo a few mins back with the driver looking like it was an ex Philli/Washington pilot.
Quick look up to the bus stop at Biddick Woods and he missed it again.

Obviously not a one off...

Have you wrote to Nexus? Really irritates me when they're running routes on public money and not doing it properly.

(30 Aug 2014, 8:49 pm)aureolin wrote Have you wrote to Nexus? Really irritates me when they're running routes on public money and not doing it properly.

Now that I know the other night was more than a one off, I will be getting in touch with Nexus.
Only a few hundred yards they're missing, but those few hundred yards are part of a route - which is taxpayer funded

(30 Aug 2014, 9:09 pm)Andreos Constantopolous wrote Now that I know the other night was more than a one off, I will be getting in touch with Nexus.
Only a few hundred yards they're missing, but those few hundred yards are part of a route - which is taxpayer funded

Is it only the one stop on Weymouth Drive which it is supposed to serve and isn't? I'm not saying it's acceptable to miss stops, I'm just not familiar with the area.

(30 Aug 2014, 9:15 pm)BJ10VUS wrote Is it only the one stop on Weymouth Drive which it is supposed to serve and isn't? I'm not saying it's acceptable to miss stops, I'm just not familiar with the area.

Yeah - the one stop serves both directions.
So drivers coming from the Galleries get to the bottom roundabout, look left - see the stop is empty (or hope the person walking towards it isn't wanting a bus) and continue on, without entering the estate.
Ditto drivers heading to the Galleries, who look right at the roundabout.

(30 Aug 2014, 9:28 pm)Andreos Constantopolous wrote Yeah - the one stop serves both directions.
So drivers coming from the Galleries get to the bottom roundabout, look left - see the stop is empty (or hope the person walking towards it isn't wanting a bus) and continue on, without entering the estate.
Ditto drivers heading to the Galleries, who look right at the roundabout.

More than what the X90 used to do then. Used to just fly straight up the highway and not even turn off.

Unsure if this has already been mentioned so apologies if so, but a link for the timetable for the R7 Winlaton Shuttle: http://www.nexus.org.uk/sites/default/fi...huttle.pdf

(30 Aug 2014, 2:38 pm)Andreos Constantopolous wrote Saw the Solo a few mins back with the driver looking like it was an ex Philli/Washington pilot.
Quick look up to the bus stop at Biddick Woods and he missed it again.

Obviously not a one off...

This has to be more than driver error. It has happened to you twice in less than a week, 56everyday reported Teal Farm being omitted twice in the same day despite a driver changeover and I posted an observation of the 515 route being cut short.
The responsibility must rest with the management of GCT who have either provided substandard route learning or introduced a means of saving on fuel and mileage without a contract variation to do so.
I look forward to hearing the response that you get from Nexus.

(31 Aug 2014, 8:33 am)GuyParkRoyal wrote This has to be more than driver error. It has happened to you twice in less than a week, 56everyday reported Teal Farm being omitted twice in the same day despite a driver changeover and I posted an observation of the 515 route being cut short.
The responsibility must rest with the management of GCT who have either provided substandard route learning or introduced a means of saving on fuel and mileage without a contract variation to do so.
I look forward to hearing the response that you get from Nexus.

Sent the email now.
Did you make a complaint re the 515?
Curious to see if 56everyday has heard anything.

Will post the response when I get it.

No idea if it is a driver decision relating to the 37 or a management one - the other two examples could be driver error (I would like to think so anyway), but you never know.
Management at both GCT and Nexus need to sort something out though. However minor it may appear to others or GCT staff, there is a contract to be fulfilled and they aren't doing it.

(30 Aug 2014, 10:08 pm)aureolin wrote More than what the X90 used to do then. Used to just fly straight up the highway and not even turn off.

It got the point where passengers would press the bell prior to the A182/Biddick Woods roundabout - just to ensure the x90 (or others that did the route commercially) diverted off and into the estate.

Quite often you would see kids standing at the stop on a morning, well after they should have been due away - all m because of a missing bus.

(31 Aug 2014, 8:33 am)GuyParkRoyal wrote This has to be more than driver error. It has happened to you twice in less than a week, 56everyday reported Teal Farm being omitted twice in the same day despite a driver changeover and I posted an observation of the 515 route being cut short.
The responsibility must rest with the management of GCT who have either provided substandard route learning or introduced a means of saving on fuel and mileage without a contract variation to do so.
I look forward to hearing the response that you get from Nexus.

What Andreos said here tells me, at least in the case of the 37, that it appears deliberate that they miss Biddick Woods. I'm to the opinion that it's impossible to say for definite whether someone is waiting from the bus, by judging it from the main road roundabout. Drivers round here usually seem to miss me until the last minute, despite my hand being held out, as they over shoot the stop by a good 10-15 yards...

Whilst GCT management are ultimately responsible if their drivers aren't fulfilling the route in full, I reckon that it's equally down to Nexus to monitor new services. It'd be interesting to see their records of how regularly they've been monitored.

(31 Aug 2014, 11:26 am)aureolin wrote What Andreos said here tells me, at least in the case of the 37, that it appears deliberate that they miss Biddick Woods. I'm to the opinion that it's impossible to say for definite whether someone is waiting from the bus, by judging it from the main road roundabout. Drivers round here usually seem to miss me until the last minute, despite my hand being held out, as they over shoot the stop by a good 10-15 yards...

Whilst GCT management are ultimately responsible if their drivers aren't fulfilling the route in full, I reckon that it's equally down to Nexus to monitor new services. It'd be interesting to see their records of how regularly they've been monitored.

I just hope this is not another case of 'We can find no abnormalities with this service'.....!

(31 Aug 2014, 11:28 am)Dan wrote I just hope this is not another case of 'We can find no abnormalities with this service'.....!

They are also unreliable. The 558 the other week was 15 minutes late which is unacceptable for a Sunday. Were GNE like that or not?

(31 Aug 2014, 11:28 am)Dan wrote I just hope this is not another case of 'We can find no abnormalities with this service'.....!

More than likely. Might be worth an FOI if anyone fancies doing it...

(31 Aug 2014, 11:31 am)Tom wrote They are also unreliable. The 558 the other week was 15 minutes late which is unacceptable for a Sunday. Were GNE like that or not?

Report it to Nexus - customerservices@nexus.org.uk

(31 Aug 2014, 11:31 am)Tom wrote They are also unreliable. The 558 the other week was 15 minutes late which is unacceptable for a Sunday. Were GNE like that or not?

I'm fairly sure GNE's runs on the 558 managed to keep to time alright (at least on the occasions I've seen them near Seaburn, this has been the case).

Timings on Nexus-secured services are renowned for being optimistic though.

(31 Aug 2014, 11:26 am)aureolin wrote What Andreos said here tells me, at least in the case of the 37, that it appears deliberate that they miss Biddick Woods. I'm to the opinion that it's impossible to say for definite whether someone is waiting from the bus, by judging it from the main road roundabout. Drivers round here usually seem to miss me until the last minute, despite my hand being held out, as they over shoot the stop by a good 10-15 yards...

Whilst GCT management are ultimately responsible if their drivers aren't fulfilling the route in full, I reckon that it's equally down to Nexus to monitor new services. It'd be interesting to see their records of how regularly they've been monitored.

There is no way in the world, that the driver can determine if someone is wanting that bus, unless they are standing there and in a clear line of sight of the roundabout.
It is entirely feasible that someone will be walking towards the bus stop, crossing the road towards the bus stop - and wanting the bus, but how can the driver determine whether they want the bus or not?
The only way, is to enter the estate.

Tempted to stand at the stop on one or two occasions to see if the bus calls in.
Obviously I won't be wanting it and will just wave it past

(31 Aug 2014, 11:38 am)Andreos Constantopolous wrote There is no way in the world, that the driver can determine if someone is wanting that bus, unless they are standing there and in a clear line of sight of the roundabout.
It is entirely feasible that someone will be walking towards the bus stop, crossing the road towards the bus stop - and wanting the bus, but how can the driver determine whether they want the bus or not?
The only way, is to enter the estate.

Tempted to stand at the stop on one or two occasions to see if the bus calls in.
Obviously I won't be wanting it and will just wave it past

Does this sort of thing happen regularly in Fencehouses?!

(31 Aug 2014, 11:42 am)Dan wrote Does this sort of thing happen regularly in Fencehouses?!

Maybe if a 4 comes and someone is wanting a 71 - I imagine it happens most places :s

Joining orange base liveried President LR52KVW is white liveried examples LR52KVX/KVY.

(01 Sep 2014, 1:00 pm)Dan wrote Joining orange base liveried President LR52KVW is white liveried examples LR52KVX/KVY.

They still dont have enough though?

(01 Sep 2014, 2:11 pm)Tom wrote They still dont have enough though?

Assuming they're only doing the only doing the morning or afternoon for the services you mentioned, they'd need at least five (four plus one spare).

If no further vehicles arrive, or indeed if just one more arrives, I'd suggest that Go North East may have been awarded the contracts instead.