Cross city routes ~ speculation and suggestions

[Owen]

[Owen]

Looks as if the 62 is making a comeback. Likely this orderly sequences  61/2/3 will remain the service numbers? I think so. This will probably replace the 20A imo.

[GoldenSquid]

Personally I'm not a fan of cross city routes as I feel like they don't work so well. But combining the 74 with the 97 is the worst idea imo.

[Owen]

Personally I'm not a fan of cross city routes as I feel like they don't work so well. But combining the 74 with the 97 is the worst idea imo.

I can imagine the vandalism due to stuff like postcode wars. Etchings in the window getting scratched over and over again. 
I don't think any amount of money will be able to solve issues with parked cars, some drivers are insufferable on these routes. Some roads aren't big enough for bus lanes regardless. I think they should use that money to connect skeleton corridors, destination with beneficial links, bus lanes (fast travel). 

[Rachvince53]

Personally I'm not a fan of cross city routes as I feel like they don't work so well. But combining the 74 with the 97 is the worst idea imo.

Agreed. Both services suffer with congestion and timekeeping is awful as a result. Combining them will just make matters worse.

[Owen]

I feel like routes with bus lanes (or room for bus lanes) would work fine. 63&67, sounds reasonable. 

[Stu]

Agreed. Both services suffer with congestion and timekeeping is awful as a result. Combining them will just make matters worse.

Some of these cross-city routes are some years away from happening, because of works that will need to be done in order to install bus lanes and priority measures, as is being done along the 50 and 82/87 corridors at present.

Indicative timescales can be found from page 33 onwards in the following document available to download from the TfWM website:
https://www.tfwm.org.uk/media/zuhdzhqk/wm-enhanced-partnership-v002-v7-6-final.pdf

The 50/82/87 cross city service isn't expected to be operational until December 2024, with others not until 2026.

[MW]

It's all in the infrastructure. Proper bus lanes and priority at lights similar to the A45/Small Heath ASDA junction coming out of City.

I've driven the "Metrobus" in Bristol, which is a cross city service (North to South). And the majority of it is bus lanes, and it works. The other thing is Dual Door vehicles. They don't seem to be favoured out of London, but for a project like this they are far superior than conventional single door vehicles. The third thing they've done in Bristol is made the Metrobus cashless. Tap&Go and QR code multi use tickets. Loading and unloading is very quick. By having dual door vehicles, you find that passengers don't hang around the bottom of the stairs blocking passengers boarding, because the exit door is further back.

[monkeyjoe]

So is the washwood heath ie 23 - 94 actually happening because the latest road of consultations is only asking about 3 options ?


Ie the soho rd / Dudley rd / Sutton routes. Couldn't paste the link but is on goggle etc.

https://www.wmca.org.uk/news/public-consultation-launched-over-bus-route-improvements-across-birmingham/

[ellspurs]

So is the washwood heath ie 23 - 94 actually happening because the latest road of consultations is only asking about 3 options ?


Ie the soho rd / Dudley rd / Sutton routes. Couldn't paste the link but is on goggle etc.

https://www.wmca.org.uk/news/public-consultation-launched-over-bus-route-improvements-across-birmingham/

I think that as they're already putting the bus lanes in, the 23-94 one is slightly further along than the Sutton one.

One of the Sutton proposals has them putting a bus lane on the Aston Expressway (I think at the Gravelly Hill end). 

I got inundated with adverts on instagram for it, randomly.

[monkeyjoe]

Omg a bus lane on the Aston expressway heard it all now. 

[Tony]

Omg a bus lane on the Aston expressway heard it all now.

Nothing wrong with that on the exit slip road to Gravelly Hill, actually sounds sensibly 

[GoldenSquid]

Personally I don't think cross city routes will work, even with the bus lanes. As if there is one issue at one terminus, or one side of the route, then the other side will be screwed. 

[Steve3229vp]

To make cross city routes work properly you would need buses on stand by in the city centre (yes I know that's expensive) to plug large gaps which will appear on either side of the City

[ellspurs]

They want to put the bus lanes back in on part of the Tyburn Road, but this time create a new lane from the central reservation so there are still two lanes of traffic. I don't remember the original bus lanes lasting that long because of congestion caused by the m6 smart motorway works.