Messages

Shortening of 127/8/9?

City centre terminus amended to Colmore Row - will no longer serve markets area.

Night buses is always a funny one.  For the main routes the first buses are running at 4/5 in the morning which is the perfect time for the clubbers leaving town.

It would perhaps only need some additional early sunday morning services on the main corridors to satisfy demand.

Yes, back before deregulation the last daytime bus from City was 11pm and the first night service was 12 midnight (usually full especially Friday and Saturday).

After deregulation many services had their last bus pushed back to 12 midnight making the 1am bus the first night service. After that it was a downhill spiral to no night bus services!

Thanks for the links.........but I am still unsure where it says the 292/303 will be transferring to Diamond,although you are probably correct.
Conversely then Diamond buses will have a larger presence in Worcester with these routes.
I agree that First are not the best in the world,but I have even less faith in Diamond of any colour if their West Midland operations are any benchmark,pity Redditch never went to Stagecoach and Kidderminster to Whittle (though with any luck the latter could still happen).

Looking at the Worcestershire CC site ( http://www.worcestershire.gov.uk/cms/bus/timetables.aspx ) the following First routes are transferring to Diamond.

KR - 2,3,4,5,7,10,292,294,295,302,303,831,X3; RH - 26,51,55/A,56/A,57,58,142,143,145,146,247,S72,S75,S93

Didn't the old Midland Red West do night circular journeys at one point?

Somebody did!

Yes Midland Red West did run them briefly after deregulations.

Cannot remember the route number, my local one, at that time, was out via Alcester Rd South to Maypole then across to Kings Norton Green and back in on Pershore Rd

Looking on the Rotala website, it states the Black Diamonds fleet size is/was 112 buses, so has it been increased? Will some work transfer in from Blue Diamond & Long Acre be shut as an operational garage. It looks as though the 50 is moving to Redditch, will the 16 move back to Tividale along with other work from Long Acre?

Isn't 128 just the maximum number of vehicles authorized at the site and not necessarily the actual number.

take a look at this link
http://www.dft.gov.uk/vosa/
and go to n & P   and then westmidlands 2013  22/2/13
stuff on there about  Kidderminster and Redditch  diamond depots

Blimey the authorisation @ Tividale depot has dropped to 128

I saw this and wondered what it was before. The number 194 pops into mind but Im not sure-I might have just made this up

I think when they absorbed Hill Top's allocation under Go West Midlands 228 buses rings a bell......

You are correct. I have 228v recorded when they took over Go West Midlands.

As it says on their website:-

"Our company has always been a family run business and has successfully provided coach hire for over 80 years. "

For many years they provided duplicates for National Express. I can remember one journey to Bristol in an ex Midland Red HHA---L Leopard.

there is a leyland oly parked in miller st tonight  no id

Its 51.

What is 51?

Hybrid buses are only good for routes with start stop traffic so tgey would not be ideal for the 126 as that doesn't have lots of start-stop traffic

Whoops! Nobody told the Chicago Transit Authority that. They have 240 hybrid articulated buses the majority of which are used on limited stop routes north and south of the city on Lake Shore Drive. Traveling 5-10 miles non-stop (traffic permitting).

I would think what ever happens Kidderminster is going to Diamond as Diamond only have the 133 in Kidder with Whittles having alot more so Diamond having what First run wont be a great difference. Connecta Redditch scheme is interesting because First can make it a living hell for Diamond as they are still on the Connecta board.

Any way I think Going back to thread maybe a good idea so in future people can look back in threads to find all the info (It does help as im on another forum and it can go wayward but Its good to keep to thread)

If Diamond does not get Redditch they will not want Kidderminster. I think it would be both or nothing.

think it was mentioned on here that two of the PE Enviro 200s will be unbranded.

I know 823 is one, which is the other please, if there is one?

Looking at the Tony's photographs of them on the main site 823 is the only unbranded PE Enviro 200. 824-30 are all branded.

I have now now done the full refresh on all the Central Buses fleet
http://wmbusphotos.com/Central/fleetlist.html

I believe I have a photo of every vehicle ever operated by them. All vehicle histories have been put on, what I am missing is 8 of the body numbers if anyone can help?

Tony

I also have:-
G349GCK   Dn Dt 8.5SDL Dp B??F acq 9/03, sold 2/04
AHZ5196  MB 709D  RB B24F  acq 12/04 sold ? (J218KTT)
N356OBC   MB 709D   Ar B27F acq ? sold 1/05
S105LBL   Oe So M850   Oe N30F acq 1/09 sold `10

Alan

Selecting "Back to First Midland Red fleetlist" from 66976 to 66987 takes you to Diamond bus company fleet.

Were the L/NFA darts Derby/Burton buses? Don't ever recall them being Cannocks

Dennis Darts L300SBS and L301-305NFA were new to Stevensons (300-305).

Might of been. It started off with Stevensons, i used to think it had dead weird seat moquette it was same as what london transport used in DMS Fleetlines in the 70s! The L-NFA darts use to have the same

That is probably where they came from. Stevensons had a load of DMS vehicles in the early 80s including ones acquired for spares only.