At the moment one confirmed service change:
NXC have de-registered service 9C (Finham to Green Lane). Have Centro cancelled the funding due to not enough users?
I expect this date (Centro half yearly contract renewals) is when De Courcey's Outer Circle service will commence, Centro had suggested "Easter time". A review of tendered Hospital services, obviously services 801 701/3/4, and possibly the 1 and 778, the Lentons Lane 30 might even come into play.
Cov Telegraph purports service 2 towards Allesley Park will be moving to a departure stand inside Pool Meadow, this was requested by the mature passengers and the route certainly has spare time to do it. Fairfax Street stand V was rather congested before the other routes moved inside PM two weeks ago, will they return to stand V after the roadworks?
I expect the 3/3A service is also going to be amended, NXC have mentioned it's on the cards.
The current 3A route is essentially too long for the allocated running time and needs to be shortened, it cannot really be given extra running time otherwise it will not slot in where it combines with service 2 and 3 between Cheylesmore and City. So what could happen with the 3A route?, a loop for Willenhall which goes clockwise for one journey per hour and anti-clockwise for the other journey per hour, all roads would still be covered and the round trip will be about 2 miles less. Granted this will mean it'll just be hourly for passengers if their journey is within Willenhall or between Willenhall and Toll Bar End. Centro would probably consider this idea complex and wouldn't want it to happen.
Alternately the 3A could just shorten and turnaround by way of a/c loop of St James Lane/Middle Ride and an extension to service 13 on certain journeys via Yarningale Road to Toll Bar End, this option will involve an extra bus though.
The 9C was a sop to a specific need for Finham residents who lost their link to doctors when the 15C was withdrawn.
This happened as a result of a crucial flaw in the network reviews where proposals were not put forward for feedback from those directly affected. In actual fact it shows that those planning the routes hadn't got a clue about their customers needs were.
The original proposal was that the 3A was going to terminate at Whitley. Apparently Centro paid for the route to be extended to Willenhall and Toll Bar End. Centro subsidises some journeys on Sundays on seemingly commercial routes but but nothing is mentioned in timetables.
As someone who lives on the 2,3/A I witness first hand how badly the interworking between the routes operates in practice. This is not helped by the 3/A being on the new starters rota!
It would seem far more sensible for the Allesley Park end to revert to being the 23 to the City Centre only. When waiting in Allesley Park recently as a 701 approached I asked those waiting if they wanted to catch it and they replied they were waiting for the 23!
The Cheylesmore end which is affected by road traffic on schooldays could then be self contained and buses interworked between 2, 3 and 3A to provide a more reliable service with a drive straight round in the city centre avoiding Pool Meadow and still stopping outside Sainsburys in Trinity Street with meal reliefs moved to outside the swimming baths opposite the bus garage.
The 3 has more in common with the 2 and ought to be the 2A.
Well here's something happening six weeks afterwards (Sorry if I'm veering off topic)....
Central Buses (CEN group) have registered to operate Solihull's S2/S3 and the 82 service into Coventry, from 9th June, which presumably means Blue Diamond's Signature will sign off? :P
Quote from: JPC on March 01, 2013, 07:51:39 PM
Well here's something happening six weeks afterwards (Sorry if I'm veering off topic)....
Central Buses (CEN group) have registered to operate Solihull's S2/S3 and the 82 service into Coventry, from 9th June, which presumably means Blue Diamond's Signature will sign off? :P
So were will the signature buses go
Quote from: NathanJC on March 03, 2013, 05:59:19 PM
Quote from: JPC on March 01, 2013, 07:51:39 PM
Well here's something happening six weeks afterwards (Sorry if I'm veering off topic)....
Central Buses (CEN group) have registered to operate Solihull's S2/S3 and the 82 service into Coventry, from 9th June, which presumably means Blue Diamond's Signature will sign off? :P
So were will the signature buses go
At a guess,Preston
them signature buses brighten up Solihull an Blue Diamond :(
Opinions on current services will be taken again soon:
http://www.centro.org.uk/newsroom/PressReleases/PressRelease54256.aspx