(06 Sep 2024, 6:19 pm)Adrian wrote Geoff Marshall doesn't make it clear, but I'm suspecting it's a commissioned piece, given it's got the 10 Percent Club branding all over it, plus an extra helping of Ray Stenning?
It's a good video I think, but I'd said the same thing when I watched it last night. It's very much Britain's Buses with rose-tinted spectacles. If someone unassuming watched that, decided to go and try out a 21 on Durham Road, they'd be in for a real treat. The best they could hope for is an unloved Angel Streetdeck, normally with an interior left like it's been in a fight. The worst? An ex-London B9, with seats providing a comfort level of sitting on a cold stone slab. They're hardly going to run back!
An evident 'them versus us' relationship between operators and councils, probably since the QCS stuff, has inevitably held us back. Add an uninspiring set of leadership teams across operators and a backward thinking Transport Authority, then you really have got the recipe for disaster. He has his faults, but someone like Gilbert is probably what is missing, bringing all of this supposed-partnership working together.
It still very much does fall down. You only have to look as far as the Q3 fiasco for a modern example of that. Or even the 85/2A, both leaving the Galleries for Biddick on an evening, within 2 minutes of each other, leaving almost an hour gap until the next.
I don't think that'll change either, not until networks start being designed for customers, not for operational convenience.
Funny you used the 21 as an example, as I had to do just that on Monday afternoon as a boobie prize after missing both the X12 & X21 at Gateshead owing to late running 93 and traffic around Gateshead Interchange - sure enough, ex London B9TL, seats were okay but felt completely cold and depressing with litter everywhere and windows scratched and naturally ran late (not helped by having a driver changeover at Gateshead) meaning my gamble at catching the 18:00 7 off Durham failed, so had to wait half an hour for next one, an ex Manchester Sapphire E300, slightly better experience although exterior looked a mess, was on time at least on this occasion.
Communication is incredibly poor amongst passengers, over the next fortnight, there's overnight closures at Rushyford, meaning the 7 is unable to serve the stops between Rushyford and Aycliffe Town Centre, this started on Wednesday, on Monday afternoon, I saw no notices on my local bus stop at least, so either it was done on Tuesday at earliest or some stops were missed (wasn't any notices at Aycliffe Town Centre tonight) and for info online, nothing at all from Arriva, in fact, the only post seemingly made was in a local Facebook group... by myself!
My experiences sound much akin to Andreos1's, usually minimal issues elsewhere, but if I try to use local buses (especially if a connection is required), if often goes wrong, often a result of poor timetabling.