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Yes that was an unfortunate error!!! Even so, when I lived in the area I often caught the 10 as it was quicker than the 103. It was only about 10 years ago that Metros were still regularly used on it and yet it used to pick up people along the more affleunt parts of the route, especially in the peaks. I guess though the profit margins were never there compared to the 103. The 103/24 has been decreased in frequency too as used to be every 7/8 mins so I guess this area has seen a real downturn in bus usage over the last decade.

Going back to a earlier comment about possible buses being purchased I would think that Redditch's Enviros will be transferred to Worcester before takeover to replace Lances and Darts there. Worcester already has a lot of these buses so it would make sense. They arent bad buses to drive most of the time, good heaters and excellent in snowy weather because they are light for a full sized single decker.

I think NXWM should reintroduce the saver bus branding and use this on a new 10 route that ran between Quinton and the Town Hall. In this way an older vehicle could be used as it wouldnt be affected by the emission rules. Also, the time needed for the route would be less than 30 minutes each way throughout the day so a 30 minute frequency could be maintained by just using 1 vehicle.
If a flat fare of £1 was charged I am sure it would attract people along the Augustus road area as well as the Quinton areas not served by the 24. With justy 1 vehicle needed the overheads wpould be pretty low too.

It is quite residential around Yardley Wood grage but that seems to be ok. Shame Selly Oak was closed as I have always thought that garage was in the ideal spot for both a number of Brum routes and the outer circle.

I read recently in a local paper that the planned new Bromsgrove train station is being jointly funded by Worcestershire County Council and Centro. As the Bromsgrove area is currently outside the Centro area, except Rubery, is Bromsgrove going to come under Centro control in the future or is this just a one off partnership for this project?

The top paragraph was meant to have been a quotation!!! Apologies

 And diamond arent constantly chopping and changing their network-the vast majority of it stays the same each year and yes of course there are changes but that is because, unless you have failed to notice, many of their routes are tendered operations and yes centro do change these at regular intervals.

I have to disagree with this point. Yes they have operated alot of tendered work and of course contract changes happen in this area but they have also registered on alot of routes commercially and then withdrawn. In the last 10 years through various ownerships they have been on and then withdrawn from the 9,22, 37, 74, 87,97,120, 246, 448,529 and others . No other independent in the area has done this as often as they stick to a core few routes which is how you build up passenger loyalty.

Some rather odd suggestions! How is the travel card unfair? It has been developed over decades to gain the loyalty it has. Nat Ex are a private company and have used it to their advantage. I cannot see the point of an Nbus pass as pretty much every area has a decent Nat Ex service so that is why most people buy a travelcard. Why would you spend more simply on the off chance that a clapped out dart from another operator turns up 3 minutes before a Nat Ex? The joint train, metro and bus pass is a different matter as it has a useful function.
Another reason why people are loyal to Nat Ex may be to do with the fact they know that pretty much all their routes will still be in existence next year and the year after etc whereas companies like Diamond etc chop and change their routes so often that no loyalty can be built up (except the 16, 50,56 etc).

But WMPTE ran Standards until some were 25 years old too. Also, if new buses had to be bought every 12 years what astronomical cost would that have been to the tax payer (if wmpte had not been deregulated) as large numbers of new buses would have been required every year from the early 1990s onwards to replace the Metros and then these 1990s buses would have again had to be replaced in the early 2000s - that surely is not cost effective!
I would also suggest that had there been a realistic and cost effective way of converting the Metrobuses to Low floor spec then they would still be going now. Good buses maintained fantastically well to keep going for so long.

If they offered good value fares this would likely be successful. Even on longer journies such as an express to Worcester, Derby, Leicester etc.

I think there is scope for some sort of partnership in the West Mids between these two. The 144 is ideal as it could easily be interlinked with the 63 to provide a link to Bromsgrove every 15 mins - the train station in Bromsgrove is not in the town centre and is inconvienently situated so the scope for attracting bus passengers is high. First could operated the full length to Worcester with Nat Ex going to Bromsgrove (The frequency is already every 15 mins in the daytime between Bromsgrove and Worcester). The 146 could work too.

The way London Midland are going I would think quite a few of their passengers will be swapping back to the bus!

1. Joined up network  - You can travel from Leamington to Cannock on a cheap one operator ticket - easy for passengers to understand - even people who rarely go on the bus know that in the West Midlands the buses are run by 'West Midlands', not stagecoach etc - a local connection.
2. A lot of companies, including mine, have staff share buy schemes so that the staff can buy a stake in the company - therefore it encourages staff retention and a general strive to ensure the company is a success - this benefits passengers.
3. Long term stability encourages investment - what is the point of investing in a route (not just in vehicles but staff training, CPC etc) if after 3 years a new company gets to run it, even if the buses aren't owned by the company as may happen in London.
4. Cheap fares - regulation would likely mean a need for 1800+ new buses in the area if that is what the 'quality contracts' required - who would pay for this?
5. From an enthusiasts point of view, as buses would be getting replaced every few years you wouldn't get the variety of the past and present - No Spectras, B10s, B7s and in the past Metros would have not stayed in service for 27+ years. This would make it a lot less interesting.

Perhaps it is for Birmingham but what about Wolverhampton, Coventry, Walsall etc etc - If regulation got introduced here it would affect all the West Mids, not just Birmingham routes so unless every town gets a charging zone it wont work.

Agree with Peter. Regulation is not the answer in the West Midlands area. London is different because of its size and how many people live live there. Also, and this is the important thing, using public transport is a necessity in London for many people not a choice so the volume of passengers will support whatever system in place. Out of London the situation is completely different - you can drive into Birmingham City Centre or any other large city easily and park fairly cheaply so public transport is not a necessity for most people - you simply cant in London so people use the train, bus, underground.
The only way regulation could work for everyone, passengers and companies, is if every city/ town had a congestion charging zone as this would then make more people use public transport so profit levels could be guaranteed for the bus companies, otherwise there would be no investment and certainly no 'quality'.