Messages

I'm with John on this one. I will always say thanks if someone asks for a ticket and will always say goodbye/thanks to anyone who is getting off and says thanks. The problem is it is a viscous circle as the public has the general perception of drivers that they are rude and do therefore not acknowledge them which in turn leads drivers to deem passengers as rude and not acknowledge them as they think why should I bother. As has been said, in reality, most drivers are top blokes who would acknowledge someone who spoke to them.

What you also have to realise is that we can't (or at least shouldn't) have a chat with someone whilst driving as if you have a DQM and they see you being distracted whilst you are driving then it will be a chat with the boss at the very least.

Pity it wont be on the 35 again tomorrow :( got to love YW for making the effort every year!

Out and about on the six today.

http://wmbusphotos.com/NXWM/4225-4474/4341.html Funnily enough I've just stumbled across a pic on the main site, (Third from the bottom) of a YW Christmas bus.

That's great, the one out on the 35 last week was a Scania and it had tinsel and decorations up inside. I remember last year it went onto nearly all of our routes.

Santa was driving a 98 today

He was out on the 35 on Thursday (it may have been Friday thinking about it) , it was quite a shock to see him coming towards me haha !

It was at Yardley Wood this morning, managed to have a look around it and I must say it is pretty smart.

It isn't done by us, only the 863 and 849 are ours.

Yep, ours weren't doing much better. Lost count of how many sixes I saw leaving at around the same time. It took me one hour to go from Solihull college going into Solihull to the college coming out of town.

Made me around 30 mins down on the 49 and I know at least a couple of them got adjusted.

Slightly off topic,but do the bus station supervisors keep an eye on certain stands so there are no queue jumpers?

My other sister, who also lives in West Bromwich, was waiting for a 4 to Walsall the other day &, according to her, the driver was aware she was first in the queue, followed by another few behind her, when someone queue jumped in front.

My sister & a few other people had a go at this passenger for jumping, but they ignored my sister & the other passengers('cocking a deaf un').

What rights does a driver have to tell this passenger what's what, as it was an adult passenger, not a kid?

What rights does have a passenger have, as it's bloody rude?

Unfortunately it is less about 'rights' and more about common courtesy which sadly seems to be lacking in today's society. You may get a driver who will take a stand and say something but in reality it is not going to achieve anything. I personally only get involved if people start piling on when there are elderly people/pushchairs still trying to get off. Everyone is in a rush these days!

Also, has there been consideration of the longer dwell times - as everyone will have to put their pass on the reader it will slow things down when loading.

If people would simply place their card flat on the reader, instead of sliding it all over the place (as I've seen done!), that might help matters!

Also, I hope drivers are going to start pulling people up when you hear the dull 'failure' beep, instead of just waving them on.

That is true! I see all sorts, some just literally tap the reader and keep walking and you have to call them back to do it properly. The first scan of the day is usually the longest, it is ridiculous sometimes how long the card has to be left on the scanner. Subsequent scans are usually a lot quicker though.
  It is the same with any new technology/procedure, once the teething problems are sorted and people become used to it, it should provide a better experience for customers.

It's a good idea if the relief point is at a very busy stop (such as those in town). Wouldn't be much point in having it at any of our relief points though, and I don't believe it is programmed in.

 

Any of you NX drivers had it sang or hummed to you yet while traveling arround town hehe

Haha, I haven't had that but I did have someone comment on the fact that the very last shot of the advert is the coach hogging the middle lane of the motorway. I said he was just overtaking the camera car  :D

Button on the wayfarer to report the smoking which is then collected to look for any particular hotspots. Apart from that, there is not much we can do unfortunately.

Incorrect..You can do something about it. It can be reported to safer travel by text, they gather information and theoretically then target specific areas. In order for something to be done people need to complain and report it (drivers and passengers), problem is most 'can't be bothered' Pressing buttons on the wayfarer does absolutely nothing! its unacceptable in this day and age that passengers have to put up with other peoples smoking especially children and the elderly and as for the 'that's how it is attitude' don't start me.... >:( >:( >:(

I completely agree with you. The button on the wayfarer is basically doing the same function as the safer travel text number in that it is passing along the information to the company which is then in turn passed on to the safer travel team.
     If the smoker is at the back of the top deck (which they almost certainly will be), then without getting out of the cab to challenge them (which we shouldn't do) or turning the engine off and disrupting the service, the driver themselves cannot do anything which is what I meant by saying we cannot do much about it.

What about vaping?

Officially it is also not allowed but it is obviously a lot harder to report unless you actually see someone doing it.

Button on the wayfarer to report the smoking which is then collected to look for any particular hotspots. Apart from that, there is not much we can do unfortunately.

Just wondering if there are any staff shortages at AG; today I made two trips on the 1 (both on 1932) and both times the drivers were both I see normally only ever driving the 37. The chap this morning seemed a bit unsure of the route to take from Five Ways to turn around as he stopped one of his off-duty Polish buddies to ask for directions before setting off, and spent ages trying to set the destination display correctly, and ended up leaving it showing 1E Five Ways!

The other chap who was driving me back on 1932 this evening, was 15 minutes late leaving Sheepcote Street, but must have become a bit more familiar with the route by this time, as he was only 10 minutes late when he got us to Acocks Green.

Could just be a bit of overtime. There is usually a bit more at this time of year with drivers off on their two weeks holidays. Pretty much the same for us at the moment.