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I recall Midland Red South operating service 23 to Allesley Park in the evenings & Sunday just after deregulation - mostly Leyland Nationals but double decks did occasionally appear. Did they cover the 7 [in its 1986 format] as well ?

Yes, Midland Red South operated the 7 on Sundays between 1989 and 1997.

At Deregulation MRS ran on 5/6 (Coundon), 14 (Fenside & Finham), 17 (Walsgrave Hospital) and 23 (Allesley Park).  Most were just on Sundays, but the 14 also ran evenings all week.  Leamington, Nuneaton and Rugby garages were all involved.

Other Coventry city services were operated on tender until the late 1990s.  Also, a number of minibus services were operated mostly commercially Mon-Sat between 1990 and 2001 - mostly from an outstation in Rowley Drive shared with Vanguard Coaches.

And quite a few changes are being made across Warwickshire from 31 December ...

https://www.stagecoachbus.com/service-updates/serviceupdatesarticle?SituationId=ID-05/12/2022-10:04:24:141

... although most of the new timetables have 1st, 2nd or 3rd Jan 2023 dates.  I wonder which date is correct, as Stagecoach are running a Saturday service on 31 December.

I know Midland Red used to run the Walsall to Dudley route back in 'prehistoric times', but did the old MR Dudley garage under WMPTE ever have any runs to Walsall themselves, or did Walsall always run the entire route after WMPTE took over MR in 1973?

Walsall ran the entire route after the WMPTE takeover.  Before then I believe MR Dudley and Stafford garages worked the 265/865 (Dudley - Walsall and Dudley - Stafford) alongside Walsall Corporation/WMPTE Walsall garage.

At the point of the WMPTE takeover Dudley garage took on other services from Bearwood (which closed) and Oldbury garages, and MR Stafford garage took on all of the shortened 865 Walsall - Stafford.

You are correct in stating that a company can't simply tell a local authority they will no longer run the tendered service. Instead they will not bid for it when it comes up for renewal. Unless the company is closing down or has lost their licence, they are contracted to run that service for the length of the contract.  They could of course ask another company to take over that contract but this would also need the local authority to be notified.

Are we sure this is the case?  I believe there have been many instances around the country of operators have giving up tenders for various reasons, even though doing so should really be an absolute last resort.

For all I know there could be clauses written into contracts regarding operators giving up tenders, covering minimum notice, financial penalties, barring from bidding for future tenders and maybe other matters.

Can anyone say for certain?

Bustimes isn't lying E086 genuinely is on the 85 all the way through to Rugby

It had to happen before long!   The 1425 from Coventry is double deck on schooldays.

Railways hmmm if only we had some sort of strategic steam reserve.


Tin hats at the ready

It's happened before!

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/8428097.stm

Diamond have deregistered the 94 from 1 Jan 2023 in N&P for 14 October.  See page 11: -

Looks like Stoke is following Coventry and planning a VLR.

If Coventry trams are going to be driverless vehicles like the DLR, surely the midland metro should look at driverless trams

As West Midlands Metro uses some public roads - unlike the DLR - I can't see that driverless trams would be possible.

I've looked at Omnibus Society Midland Branch Bulletins for the time to check.

Confirming what Mike K says, the 3 was rerouted in the city centre and marketed as "Centre Link" from 26 April 1992.

The 3 was renumbered to 103 three months later, on 27 July 1992.

It'd be either that or reverting the 20B to its pre-Primelines route and having it terminate on Oban Road. There isn't another Coventry service that requires low buses, right?

Are the 24 and 25 clear for double decks?  No low bridges, I think, but any overhanging trees?

Double decks on them would be an extravagance.

However, the bus tracker on Diamond's website is still working.

Found out today X20 route has changed in Stratford. Seemingly no longer goes into the Railway Station there like Johnsons/Diamond did and the bus towards Solihull now leaves from the opposite side of the road in Stratford, like it used to many years ago. Didn't realise it was the wrong side till I saw it come in.

People in Solihull gave up looking for X20 stop and timetable, not even on the flag of a single TFWM bus stop.

I always wondered why the X20 served Stratford Railway Station, as surely passengers from the X20 wouldn't want to catch Birmingham trains.  However, the last time I used an X20 someone did get off at the station, so what I do know ...

Did you notice that the X20 and 50 interwork on Sundays, and that the X20 does a loop in Solihull, only serving the Railway Station on the way out?

I agree it's frustrating that bus stops don't mention the X20.  I've reported this to TfWM; I wonder how long it will take for them to put this right.

I travelled on the Solihull - Coventry section of the X20 a week ago and saw that TfWM had changed all bus stops as far as Allesley to show 82 instead of X20 (the Allesley - Pool Meadow stops had not been changed).  Perhaps TfWM decided by the time thet did that to use the number 82.

I presume Leamington - or its Stratford outstation - will continue to operate the Solihull - Stratford X20.  Double decks still appear on it.

Today is the first day of Stagecoach running the Mon-Sat X20 between Stratford and Solihull.  Unfortunately the service is not tracking on bustimes.org, but two double decks have appeared today - ADL Enviro 400 10037 and Scania Enviro 400 15675 (the one in traditional Stratford Blue livery).

Stagecoach have also operated double decks on the X20 on the Sunday service since this started on 31 July.

As it happens, Diamond have also have double decks on its X20, which from today runs just between Solihull and Coventry.  The DDs today are ex-Johnsons Optare MetroDeckers 40844 and 40845.

Warwickshire County Council have announced today that Diamond will continue to operate the 76/76A and the 15 (to become 76B) in the Tamworth area, and the 247 Redditch - Evesham with a changed route to replace the 67.  Frequencies will be reduced: -

https://www.warwickshire.gov.uk/news/article/3180/alterations-to-bus-services-in-the-alcester-bidford-coleshill-and-kingsbury-areas-from-tuesday-30th-august-2022