(30 Jan 2015, 5:32 pm)Dan wrote I often wonder whether Bridget Phillipson is a bus user herself. I know a number of members of this forum support and share her views, but I cannot help but feel that this attack is completely unnecessary and the points she has made are largely exaggerated. I have previously said that I personally feel The Chronicle regularly (unnecessarily) portrays bus operators in a bad light, so it comes as no surprise that they have supported Bridget by publishing this article.
There are very few links which are lost, as the majority of the service changes see a replacement service provided in some form. Whilst South Shields has lost its direct bus to Sunderland Royal Hospital, it has previously been established that there are a huge number of services per hour from Sunderland City Centre up to Chester Road.
I don't think there have been fifteen changes to the route since 2011, and I think that this has been purposely worded in such a way to come across as striking. I think Bridget may consider 35/35A/35B/35C to be four variations; whilst this is true, the route has not been altered four times to achieve this. Indeed, the old 35B/35C services were used on early mornings/nights/Sundays only, and the main day time services were just the 35/35A.
Silly story.
Of course, further clarity could easily be provided by Nexus, if bus stop timetables could be updated!
We're almost a week into the service changes now, and I'm still having to use my mobile phone to find out when the bus is due, because timetables at bus stops haven't yet been updated.
It is, silly story and i notice she hasn't criticized NEXUS for not changing the timetables at the bus stops... i wonder why...........