Diamonds problem

[JoNi]

An ex Brighton and Hove Marshall bodied Dart still exists nearer to home on the 11 "Outer Circle" worked by Joe's Travel. He also has two ex Brighton Blue Bus Plaxton bodied Darts. They still have Brighton & Hove adverts inside!

[PM]

An ex Brighton and Hove Marshall bodied Dart still exists nearer to home on the 11 "Outer Circle" worked by Joe's Travel. He also has two ex Brighton Blue Bus Plaxton bodied Darts. They still have Brighton & Hove adverts inside!

Thanks for the information and I might give them a try soon-Joe's travel is an operator no-one really mentions on the forum like say NatEx, Diamond, VIP, Claribels or Travel Express. What are they actually like as I confess to never having used them

[andy]

An ex Brighton and Hove Marshall bodied Dart still exists nearer to home on the 11 "Outer Circle" worked by Joe's Travel. He also has two ex Brighton Blue Bus Plaxton bodied Darts. They still have Brighton & Hove adverts inside!

Thanks for the information and I might give them a try soon-Joe's travel is an operator no-one really mentions on the forum like say NatEx, Diamond, VIP, Claribels or Travel Express. What are they actually like as I confess to never having used them

They are a pain in the arse, abandoning their vehicles at the side of the road at random points on the A4040, belching out dreadful black smoke and operating to a fictional timetable. If AG weren't making such a dog's dinner of the 11 at the moment Joe's Travel would be nowhere to be seen.

[andy]

The average of the fleet is only one factor, it's also how well it's looked after and also treated by passengers.

It will be interesting to see the condition of the large number of new NX buses in five years time.
4836 in Coventry has large dents in lower panels on both sides of the bus which it received several months ago.....

I travelled on one of the N reg darts in Brighton recently which puts the state of many NX buses to shame especially the Mercs. These N reg Darts started life serving the notorious Moulescomb estate in Brighton, two remain with seats trimmed in the latest style appearing to the passenger as good as new. 

The size of the NX fleet is a red herring as the resources and culture should exist to keep any fleet of vehicles in excellent condition.

This post sums it up for me. I get fed up of NX being excused the state of its fleet by the fact it has so many vehicles. I'm afraid that just doesn't wash for me. People need to get about more and see what it's like in other major cities. And as pointed out here, even the newer vehicles are allowed to deteriorate.

Compare the Omnicities here to those in Brighton, exactly the same age but unrecognisable.

[Discodave]

The average of the fleet is only one factor, it's also how well it's looked after and also treated by passengers.

It will be interesting to see the condition of the large number of new NX buses in five years time.
4836 in Coventry has large dents in lower panels on both sides of the bus which it received several months ago.....

I travelled on one of the N reg darts in Brighton recently which puts the state of many NX buses to shame especially the Mercs. These N reg Darts started life serving the notorious Moulescomb estate in Brighton, two remain with seats trimmed in the latest style appearing to the passenger as good as new. 

The size of the NX fleet is a red herring as the resources and culture should exist to keep any fleet of vehicles in excellent condition.

This post sums it up for me. I get fed up of NX being excused the state of its fleet by the fact it has so many vehicles. I'm afraid that just doesn't wash for me. People need to get about more and see what it's like in other major cities. And as pointed out here, even the newer vehicles are allowed to deteriorate.

Compare the Omnicities here to those in Brighton, exactly the same age but unrecognisable.

There are lot lot of other places large operators run and the fleet is superb just the state of NX vehicles in any depot shows to any person from outside the people of the Midlands are dirty, scuzzballs and do not take pride of the area.  By the way I was born in Birmingham and I am apalled of the state of the buses which run on the not so nice areas of the city.

[Tony]

The average of the fleet is only one factor, it's also how well it's looked after and also treated by passengers.

It will be interesting to see the condition of the large number of new NX buses in five years time.
4836 in Coventry has large dents in lower panels on both sides of the bus which it received several months ago.....

I travelled on one of the N reg darts in Brighton recently which puts the state of many NX buses to shame especially the Mercs. These N reg Darts started life serving the notorious Moulescomb estate in Brighton, two remain with seats trimmed in the latest style appearing to the passenger as good as new. 

The size of the NX fleet is a red herring as the resources and culture should exist to keep any fleet of vehicles in excellent condition.

This post sums it up for me. I get fed up of NX being excused the state of its fleet by the fact it has so many vehicles. I'm afraid that just doesn't wash for me. People need to get about more and see what it's like in other major cities. And as pointed out here, even the newer vehicles are allowed to deteriorate.

Compare the Omnicities here to those in Brighton, exactly the same age but unrecognisable.

There are lot lot of other places large operators run and the fleet is superb just the state of NX vehicles in any depot shows to any person from outside the people of the Midlands are dirty, scuzzballs and do not take pride of the area.  By the way I was born in Birmingham and I am apalled of the state of the buses which run on the not so nice areas of the city.

Hi Dave

Have a look at the buses on the Outer Circle nowadays. AG have started to make a massive improvement in presentation. Even though they have a large fleet of some of the oldest double decks, the presidents, they have virtually eradicated window etching. Extra cleaners have been employed and the vehicles are getting a full clean more often, not just a sweep out.

The recently retrimmed presidents are in excellent condition internally and are certainly as good as any other 12 year old buses anywhere in the country (and a lot newer) when they leave the garage in the morning. Shame about what is allover the fllor when they arrive back in!

This 'other big cities' buses are better than ours as well is another fallacy. All big cities have dirty idle people who throw rubbish on the floor and others who vandalise buses. last time I was in manchester some of there very new Enviro 400s had window etching as bad as you see in Birmingham and the same spilt drinks, abandoned newspapers and odd nub ends lying about the same as in Birmingham.

[Discodave]

Yes the presidents are good ironically I went around the whole of the 11C on one yesterday and they are presented well.  My mom was cleaner at Wolverhampton and the buses that had not been out at all were still filthy, she still had to give them a sweep and a couple had supposed to have had deep cleans these were the 79 tridents at the time on old route.  Could you explain why?

[Dylan4579]

I think that Diamond's problem is that they tend to go for subsided routes and make them hourly, for example the 55 and the 122, they take lot's of school loadings, and a lot of people with concessionary passes, and with the amount of of us on the 123, shouldn't have withdrawn, because it made a lot of money from us, stopping outside 3 schools, and close to 1. Their current problem is they need to attract people to their daytime services, such as 4, 56 get rid of the solos, and do more town routes. 

[PM]

I think that Diamond's problem is that they tend to go for subsided routes and make them hourly, for example the 55 and the 122, they take lot's of school loadings, and a lot of people with concessionary passes, and with the amount of of us on the 123, shouldn't have withdrawn, because it made a lot of money from us, stopping outside 3 schools, and close to 1. Their current problem is they need to attract people to their daytime services, such as 4, 56 get rid of the solos, and do more town routes.

I doubt rotala decide what frequency to run subsidised routes at. But I agree they need to attract people to their daytime services and yes definitely get rid of solos or at least confine them to subsidised routes.

[Kevin_Brum12]

I think that Diamond's problem is that they tend to go for subsided routes

That is not sustainable for a bus operator these days.

With local authorities being cut to the bone, it is inevitable that subsidised bus routes will be put under the microscope.  Worcestershire have of course cut a number of services in recent years, and the 192 (once operated by Diamond) has been cut to run between Halesowen and Kidderminster only with another operator providing the remaining service.   Centro have got to save a substantial sum of money in the next few years and it is inevitable some tendered routes will go.

And Diamond of course have lost a number of Black Country routes, some to Arriva and others to NXWM (who then put out publicity in the Network Reviews claiming to be putting on new evening services - which in reality of course are those operated by a different operator under contract to Centro).   Add in a failure to compete with NXWM on a number of routes (even when NXWM's offer is tatty Tridents) and it is clear Diamond have a substantial problem.

Bar the minnows, we are effectively in most of the West Midlands heading back to a situation we had pre 1986 of the WMPTE monopoly - albeit now under private control and repackaged as National Express West Midlands.  NXWM running all local bus services is as ridiculous and anti-competitive as Tesco running every supermarket, Ford making all cars and telling you that you can "have any colour as long as it's black" or only the BBC providing television.   If the politicians and Centro were really serious about competition in the industry we would have route or area franchising with NXWM being under pressure to make improvements or lose the business to another provider.  The Nicholas Ridley model of competition is as broken as a clapped out Metrobus and it amazes me why Conservative politicians who are so keen to push the mantra of "competition in public services" into other areas of life are happy to continue propping the 1986 bus model in the West Midlands when it has failed to deliver what Ridley intended.

[Ash]

I think that Diamond's problem is that they tend to go for subsided routes and make them hourly, for example the 55 and the 122, they take lot's of school loadings, and a lot of people with concessionary passes, and with the amount of of us on the 123, shouldn't have withdrawn, because it made a lot of money from us, stopping outside 3 schools, and close to 1. Their current problem is they need to attract people to their daytime services, such as 4, 56 get rid of the solos, and do more town routes. 

DO you mean that they need to attract customers to use there 4 services or they need to get people using there commercial services like they do with their 4 service? I went on a WB president on the 5 last week it was 4048 and I was so impressed with how warm the bus was upstairs to be honest I was very shocked after traveling on numerous tridents which are absolutely freezing upstairs for me the presidents with may be  the enviro 400's are the best double deckers in the NXWM fleet.

[winston]

With Diamond now appearing to be introducing a new standard livery for all Diamond operations, Rotala should have taken the opportunity to introduce a totally new livery scheme similar in style to that recently introduced at Wessex, it looks far more superior / gives a better quality image than the drab allover blue Diamond have chosen. Even the Diamond logo looks pretty basic

Wessex red livery:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/rocknrave/7235953996/in/photostream
http://www.flickr.com/photos/rocknrave/7170812480/in/photostream
http://www.flickr.com/photos/rocknrave/7472878150/in/photostream

[Ash]

With Diamond now appearing to be introducing a new standard livery for all Diamond operations, Rotala should have taken the opportunity to introduce a totally new livery scheme similar in style to that recently introduced at Wessex, it looks far more superior / gives a better quality image than the drab allover blue Diamond have chosen. Even the Diamond logo looks pretty basic

Wessex red livery:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/rocknrave/7235953996/in/photostream
http://www.flickr.com/photos/rocknrave/7170812480/in/photostream
http://www.flickr.com/photos/rocknrave/7472878150/in/photostream

Winston, I couldn't agree more I think the Wessex Red livery is very professional looking and very smart but simple even the new Preston Bus livery isn't too bad even thought some people are critical of it.

[Cedric]

With Diamond now appearing to be introducing a new standard livery for all Diamond operations, Rotala should have taken the opportunity to introduce a totally new livery scheme similar in style to that recently introduced at Wessex, it looks far more superior / gives a better quality image than the drab allover blue Diamond have chosen. Even the Diamond logo looks pretty basic

Wessex red livery:

http://www.flicker.com/photos/rocknrave/7235953996/in/photostream
http://www.flicker.com/photos/rocknrave/7170812480/in/photostream
http://www.flicker.com/photos/rocknrave/7472878150/in/photostream

Winston, I couldn't agree more I think the Wessex Red livery is very professional looking and very smart but simple even the new Preston Bus livery isn't too bad even thought some people are critical of it.

With Diamond now appearing to be introducing a new standard livery for all Diamond operations, Rotala should have taken the opportunity to introduce a totally new livery scheme similar in style to that recently introduced at Wessex, it looks far more superior / gives a better quality image than the drab allover blue Diamond have chosen. Even the Diamond logo looks pretty basic

Wessex red livery:

http://www.flicker.com/photos/rocknrave/7235953996/in/photostream
http://www.flicker.com/photos/rocknrave/7170812480/in/photostream
http://www.flicker.com/photos/rocknrave/7472878150/in/photostream

Winston, I couldn't agree more I think the Wessex Red livery is very professional looking and very smart but simple even the new Preston Bus livery isn't too bad even thought some people are critical of it.

at least  the blue livery for diamond is better than the variations  there have been with the first livery

[andy]

I think that Diamond's problem is that they tend to go for subsided routes

That is not sustainable for a bus operator these days.

With local authorities being cut to the bone, it is inevitable that subsidised bus routes will be put under the microscope.  Worcestershire have of course cut a number of services in recent years, and the 192 (once operated by Diamond) has been cut to run between Halesowen and Kidderminster only with another operator providing the remaining service.   Centro have got to save a substantial sum of money in the next few years and it is inevitable some tendered routes will go.

And Diamond of course have lost a number of Black Country routes, some to Arriva and others to NXWM (who then put out publicity in the Network Reviews claiming to be putting on new evening services - which in reality of course are those operated by a different operator under contract to Centro).   Add in a failure to compete with NXWM on a number of routes (even when NXWM's offer is tatty Tridents) and it is clear Diamond have a substantial problem.

Bar the minnows, we are effectively in most of the West Midlands heading back to a situation we had pre 1986 of the WMPTE monopoly - albeit now under private control and repackaged as National Express West Midlands.  NXWM running all local bus services is as ridiculous and anti-competitive as Tesco running every supermarket, Ford making all cars and telling you that you can "have any colour as long as it's black" or only the BBC providing television.   If the politicians and Centro were really serious about competition in the industry we would have route or area franchising with NXWM being under pressure to make improvements or lose the business to another provider.  The Nicholas Ridley model of competition is as broken as a clapped out Metrobus and it amazes me why Conservative politicians who are so keen to push the mantra of "competition in public services" into other areas of life are happy to continue propping the 1986 bus model in the West Midlands when it has failed to deliver what Ridley intended.

Excellent post and exactly what I've been trying to say for years.