(31 Aug 2021, 12:56 pm)Adrian wrote They seem to jump straight to eliminating the activity, rather than controlling the risk. There are several examples of this:That wouldnt of helped towards the shortage of bus drivers either atm cus of the pandemic,and i bet the poor souls were just told 'use sanitiser',so i guess Four Lane Ends will be out of use to drivers aswell?
- Timetable racks (as you mention) have been removed since the uncertainty around the start of COVID-19. This is excessive, as I imagine very few people pick up and put back timetables. An even smaller percentage of those people are likely to have COVID.
- Toilets have been removed from use at Nexus managed bus stations; Gateshead and South Shields spring to mind, but I believe it is also the case at Park Lane. My understanding is that at South Shields, they're not even available for bus driver use, given that there's a portable welfare room in place at Shields Bus Station. This out of the four makes the least sense, because at a time we were all told to wash our hands more frequently, Nexus decide to close off access to do that...
- Seating has been removed en-mass at some locations. Gateshead springs to mind. Again, this is excessive and far beyond reasonable controlling of risk. The seating is yet to be replaced.
- Travel Shops may have been in decline over the past couple of years, but Nexus made the decision during a pandemic to close the remaining ones, including the South Shields bus station that opened just a year previous. Again excessive, and at a point that they're probably needed more than ever, to get people back out and using public transport.
I really worry about the future under an enhanced partnership and a world of bus service improvement plans, when we have a PTE that is so backward thinking.
RE: September Service Changes
Kind Regards
Tez
Tez