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Quick visit to the NXWM Latest Changes page to see the latest official updates. Loads of nonsense about smashed windscreens, bicycle spaces, random vehicle removals. Won't be bothering with that again.

The route 27 will have a bit of an issue in the coming years. The bridge at Bourneville station is a triange 9' 9, in which a 10' 6(?) Omnilink can fit under nicely. However, since Omnilinks are getting replaced relatively fast (presumably all withdrawn by late-2025 ) and all new electrics seem to be too tall for that bridge. It may require a re-routing of that portion of the 27 because the adjacent Mary Vale Rd looks to be too impractical for any NX bus.

Absolutely correct. Kev's run short length E200s down Mary Vale and I have seen the very occasional double decker use it in the past (can't recall which operator this was). The junction with Pershore Road is very tight, probably too tight for a full length single decker to manage and I have seen the 27 take a lengthy diversion via Cotteridge when there are road works along Bournville Lane. A bit of a dilemma. 

re: E200MMC, is it still the case that they can't be used on the YW27? They were briefly used but but clearly had an issue and possibly one of the reasons they were transferred to WB. The route has been curtailed since then so maybe things have changed?. As has been mentioned before, it will be tricky to find a single deck electric bus to fit under Bournville Lane bridge

The next order, which is likely to start delivery later this year, that I cannot give details of yet, but it will not be BYD

A cynic might suggest the announcement will be timed so it can be made by a victorious mayor. 

I believe the only vehicles that have entered service since October 2019 are the Electrics and (whisper it) Hydrogens, if so it's only four garage's routes that "must" be done by this October, assuming it is enforced. 

I would expect that the requirement to display diversions will be a challenge, especially last minute ones taken to avoid congestion. 

On a slightly related matter, I assume that WMCA's mooted "early spring" implementation of journey cancellations being shown on real time displays at bus stops has slipped?

Yes! Looked up some tickets last night for B'ham to Cambridge for mid June.  Discounted with a certain type of railcard.  Came up at about £49 for a return.  Looked at National Rail website & you can book advance tickets for £24

I've sometimes found that when you click the link from the National Rail website to the website of the train operating company, the ticket they suggest is not actually available to buy!

I always check one of the split ticketing sites that seem to use the same algorithm (one of trainsplit, splityourticket etc.), then trainpal which uses a different algorithm and finally the train company's own ticket site. 

Of course booking fees and share-of-saving costs from split ticket sites also have to be taken into account.

I'm sure I remember some city routes had different other letters to signify where in the city centre they stopped.

"E" was the exception and then there were others like D, and F that would indicate other curtailments.

I'll stand corrected and bow to greater knowledge on this.

Yes, I recall 50K to Alcester Lanes End as a child in the seventies.

A list of the 50 variants on flickr from the sixties has some incredibly short journeys, such as 50A from City Centre to St. Martins Circus which can't have been more than a couple of stops

This Town also features an old WMT or BCC Liveried Bus 6567 or 6765 I think on the 27 I assume a fictional 27 as it picked up the Irish Character from Chelmsley Wood I believe

It is 6757 in WMPTE livery on Coventry route 27. Commendable by the TV production company but I'm not going into the minutiae of Sandy Lane/Harnell Lane accuracy.

I wonder if the decision to wrap rather than paint is because the 2009 E400s are leased rather than owned

I could of course be way off the mark.

https://www.expressandstar.com/news/local-hubs/walsall/2024/03/18/walsalls-bus-depot-sold-to-pave-way-for-future-franchise-bus-system-and-hydrogen-powered-buses/

I haven't seen this mentioned on here so for those who want to avoid pop-ups, videos and answering a survey for the privilege of reading the article, here is a summary

Hydrogen buses will be introduced with a hydrogen generation system sourcing water from the nearby canal. 

For those interested, 323202 and 323206 are due to leave WMR in the next month or so. Still got time for anyone who would want to capture them on cross city workings.

Probably wishful thinking but please not before they are replaced by new 730s, there's more than enough short length trains on there as it is.

. That's why in an accident hotspot areas like inner Birmingham they needs to be bus lane cameras, speed cameras and red lights cameras.

Unfortunately the government seems to disagree, for votes

One option being looked at, which would be particularly controversial, would be to cut off councils from access to the Driver Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA) database, which matches car registrations to their owners, to prevent them from fining drivers who pass through LTNs. 

Cutting DVLA access to stop LTNs could mean councils also being unable to use cameras for other means, such as enforcing parking outside schools, or on bus routes and cycle lanes........

This is expected to be the subject of a consultation, with a DfT source saying ministers were "still actively looking at the options" for doing this, albeit with a timetable given only as "at a future point".

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/mar/15/uk-government-seeks-to-limit-low-traffic-schemes-as-part-of-its-plan-for-drivers

If true, that's a major supplier of BRT artics (e.g. Belfast Glider) leaving the market. Sprint procurement implications?

https://www.sustainable-bus.com/news/van-hool-stop-production-buses/

Tony has previously stated that PB are having all their double-deck fleet replaced with new electrics, so there will be some Platinums and E400s that will be made use of. Probably unlikely that 5 vehicles of a type no other garage has operated would be deployed elsewhere.

It would depend on how long this hydrogen refuelling issue goes on for really.

It does seem unlikely but it depends on how different they are from a single decker Omnilink for maintenance and driver training perspective. Sadly while there is a single point of failure (Tyseley) I can see re-fuelling issues as being an on-going possibility.

At 16 years old, they'll probably be scrapped, unless NX gets some kind of offer for them. I doubt they'd be transferred elsewhere.

Or being Euro6 could they see out their days at Walsall as cover for hydrogens?