(07 Aug 2016, 8:23 pm)South Tyne Lad wrote
South Tyne Service 88/88A South Shields - Chichester - South Tyneside Hospital - Simonside - South Leam - Jarrow - Jarrow Estates - Hebburn - Monkton Lane - Lukes Lane
Current Versa + 1 Solar allocation is replaced with a 11x Optare Versa Allocation off the Citylink 58, A extra Versa is allocated to allow more running time.
Next Stop Announcements will also be provided to make use of the NSA's inside these Versa's, Free Wifi is also provided, Upgrading the spec on this route.
Section between Jarrow and Lukes Lane is downgraded to every 30 Mins, Due to the less passengers using this section. A quicker and already present alternative is via the 27, Which serves Hebburn and Monkton Lane estates.
The Section between Jarrow and South Shields is upgraded to every 10 mins ( 88 Every 20 Mins and 88A the Same ) Competing with Stagecoach's Service 18 between Brockely Whins and South Shields and erasing capacity issues at Peak Times.
I can’t see the point in reducing the frequency of the 88/88A to every 30mins between Jarrow and Lukes Lane Estate. That proposal will leave massive sections of Hebburn with buses running to a reduced one per hour frequency in each direction. The same reduced service would affect areas of employment in Jarrow.
Contrary to your view that the 27 will provide an alternative this is clearly not the case as the Crusader goes nowhere near vast sections of Hebburn. Here are my concerns:
One of South Tyneside’s employment hotspots is served by the 88A at locations on both sides of Blackett Street consisting of Jarrow Business Centre and Viking Business Park. People employed at those locations would see a significant reduction in travel opportunities with the current two buses per hour service reduced to one per hour frequency in each direction. Wagonway Road Industrial Estate in Hebburn is another area of employment served by the 88A although I accept that customers could walk from the 88 route to get there. Indeed the post code NE31 1SP on the 88A route has a very high density of employment mainly around the A&P Docks area.
New social housing has recently been built at School Street with more development due on Argyle Street hopefully increasing demand for bus use on the 88. Lyon Street, Ellison Street and the surrounding area all with a low car ownership ratio will suffer a significant service frequency reduction as will the remainder of the Hebburn Quay Village. Victoria Road West, Crawley Avenue, Toner Avenue, Hartleburn Avenue and part of the Lakes Estates will have their connections to the remainder of South Tyneside reduced in frequency.
The current 88 serves the Hebburn Cemetery and Reyrolle Sports Ground on a half hour each direction service. With your proposal this would be reduced to once an hour each way and when you see elderly people (as I have) that have had to wait up to half an hour after attending a funeral getting on the bus I would not want to be the person proposing a once per hour service on the 88 (supplement by the 515).
The unique selling point of the South Tyne 88/88A is that it offers a through service at Lukes Lane. The through service provides a clock and anti-clock circle around the southern part of Hebburn on a half hour each way frequency. This circle around Hebburn is an essential service used by people to get to the shops, doctors surgeries and the medical centre. The circle route currently also allows students from the town’s main Comprehensive School on Campbell Park Road to travel in both directions on a half hour frequency. The Lakes School is served in a similar way. This through service has been developed and improved over the years by Go North East with the input of other stakeholders and to cut such a service would undermine all of that hard work.
Lukes Lane would still have two buses per hour with your proposal and it could probably survive with that service. However being an area of low car ownership Lukes Lane is likely to generate enough revenue to justify the current service.
You say that passenger numbers on the Jarrow to Lukes Lane section is lower than the section from Jarrow to South Shields. It is not just numbers of passengers that needs to be taken into account it is revenue that matters and in my experience the 88/88A benefits from a lot of short hop customers in Hebburn such as Crawley Avenue or Marine Drive to the local ASDA. Short hop fares are a good revenue stream. I have seen many photos from a local bus enthusiast showing good loadings at Hebburn ASDA on the 88/88A.
I will never object to the frequency reduction of a service when it fails to meet revenue targets. The bus operators Commercial Team should be left to make such decisions on service reductions with the enthusiast community constructively suggesting new and enhanced services. If a reasonable profit can be achieved with 4 buses per hour and if the frequency is then reduced to 2 per hour there is a risk that a competitor could see an opportunity to step in. Alternatively Nexus could tender out some of your proposed withdrawn runs which might benefit a competitor. In any event I believe that some journeys on the 88/88A are supported by Nexus so proposing service reductions might not be as simple as your suggestion.
I do like your idea on having a standard type of vehicle on the 88/88A route. Any proposal to go all Versa working would require an alternative utilisation for the Solar that runs the morning 92 & 856 if it is no longer going to deployed on the ( 88) 88A. Perhaps suggesting a new route for the Solar or finding an existing route where it can earn its keep during the day would help.
RE: Go North East: Service Suggestions v2