Least reliable NXWM services

[nitromatt1]

Just thought I'd start a thread where people can discuss the worst NXWM services for reliability (i.e. buses often not turning up at the scheduled times, whether early or late)

I will start with the 244 - the timetables are almost meaningless, particularly on weekday evenings; a 244 might turn up at almost any time. I think the main reason for this is that drivers aren't given enough time (23 minutes) to go between Dudley and Halesowen, it takes speeding and very few stops to manage this! They are then given too much time (another 23 minutes) to do the Hayley Green part, then again not enough time to go back to Dudley.

[Nathan4775]

Ive noticed the 935/935A running in twos,

Yesterday the 935A turned up at Circle followed by the full 935
Today the 935A heading to town, followed by the 935, I actully think it was supposed to Display the 935 if not that 935A was very early ?

[Stuharris 6360]

Have noticed that the X96 can sometimes be very unreliable, earlier this year was waiting at Stourbridge Bus station for a Wollaston bound bus, after about 30 minutes, one came in blinded for Stourbridge, asked the driver, said he had been turned short because he had a bus right behind. 45 minutes later one turned up, although the driver wasn't keen to go to Wollaston as he was running late, but the controller insisted that he had to.

this isn't the first time this has happened, what made it worse is that no 276s were showing up either.

[Trident 4609]

Most Frequent services (Like the WN 59) are usually delayed by congestion and other reasons so they bunch together.

Other routes i use are the 69 and 89 and can be unreliable. Not so long back the 15:25 journey from wolverhampton bus station turned up at 15:50 meaning
A 30 minute service was running in twos as the 15:55 journey turned up.

The 89 can be quite unreliable especially at peak time.

[richie]

Have noticed that the X96 can sometimes be very unreliable, earlier this year was waiting at Stourbridge Bus station for a Wollaston bound bus, after about 30 minutes, one came in blinded for Stourbridge, asked the driver, said he had been turned short because he had a bus right behind. 45 minutes later one turned up, although the driver wasn't keen to go to Wollaston as he was running late, but the controller insisted that he had to.

this isn't the first time this has happened, what made it worse is that no 276s were showing up either.

That seems like a long gap, was it when we had snow?

[vinh1000]

46 Birmingham - Six Ways Aston

Unreliable before, even more unreliable now going to Six Ways Aston
Stupid rota (1 minute to get from Perry Barr Rail Bridge , into one stop and round again to the other side in 1 minute - makes no sense)
Often 10 - 90 minutes late (waited hour and a half b4 :L) - usuailly peak journeys but even first journey of the day is damn late by 4/5 minutes  :-\

[Stuharris 6360]

Have noticed that the X96 can sometimes be very unreliable, earlier this year was waiting at Stourbridge Bus station for a Wollaston bound bus, after about 30 minutes, one came in blinded for Stourbridge, asked the driver, said he had been turned short because he had a bus right behind. 45 minutes later one turned up, although the driver wasn't keen to go to Wollaston as he was running late, but the controller insisted that he had to.

this isn't the first time this has happened, what made it worse is that no 276s were showing up either.

That seems like a long gap, was it when we had snow?

No it wasn't, would have understood if there had been snow. Was just a normal Saturday afternoon, take it everything was being caught around the Merry Hill Centre.

What i couldn't understand was, being as plenty of buses were going in the other direction, why didn't control pull one of them out and put it on short workings between Stourbridge & Wollaston.

[Nathan4775]

46 Birmingham - Six Ways Aston

Unreliable before, even more unreliable now going to Six Ways Aston
Stupid rota (1 minute to get from Perry Barr Rail Bridge , into one stop and round again to the other side in 1 minute - makes no sense)
Often 10 - 90 minutes late (waited hour and a half b4 :L) - usuailly peak journeys but even first journey of the day is damn late by 4/5 minutes  :-\

I would say it needs 2 or 3 minutes. Evening journeys are fine as theres not much traffic so

[vinh1000]

46 Birmingham - Six Ways Aston

Unreliable before, even more unreliable now going to Six Ways Aston
Stupid rota (1 minute to get from Perry Barr Rail Bridge , into one stop and round again to the other side in 1 minute - makes no sense)
Often 10 - 90 minutes late (waited hour and a half b4 :L) - usuailly peak journeys but even first journey of the day is damn late by 4/5 minutes  :-\

I would say it needs 2 or 3 minutes. Evening journeys are fine as theres not much traffic so

Unless Aston Villa is playing then kaput  lol
2/3 minutes but whoever comes up with these rotas I dont know
a Lot of drivers prefer it curtailed back to Perry Barr (not enough patronage for SWA ive seen)

[Nathan4775]

46 Birmingham - Six Ways Aston

Unreliable before, even more unreliable now going to Six Ways Aston
Stupid rota (1 minute to get from Perry Barr Rail Bridge , into one stop and round again to the other side in 1 minute - makes no sense)
Often 10 - 90 minutes late (waited hour and a half b4 :L) - usuailly peak journeys but even first journey of the day is damn late by 4/5 minutes  :-\

I would say it needs 2 or 3 minutes. Evening journeys are fine as theres not much traffic so

Unless Aston Villa is playing then kaput  lol
2/3 minutes but whoever comes up with these rotas I dont know
a Lot of drivers prefer it curtailed back to Perry Barr (not enough patronage for SWA ive seen)

A minute is not enough to get round PB ?

[Stu]

The 30 service (when operated by NXWM) was the most unreliable service I've ever encountered.

Only the first few morning journeys could depart Acocks Green on time, but once they got snarled up in the morning school run traffic, they'd end up running late practically all day due to the short running time allowed, which they could never recover. One evening I noted two following each other (a few minutes apart) heading up the Warwick Road into Acocks Green village, which was particularly bad for an every-30-minute service, as it meant someone further down the line heading back to Solihull must have been waiting a long time, if they hadn't given up already.

It was fun when I first started catching it in the morning to get to work as it was always Metrobuses used, and there was an extra AM working, so while the bus would fill up with schoolkids, it was never crowded. Then the S3 was introduced, which was B10Ls at first, and a Metrobus was used on the S803 school service as a fill-in. Once the S803 was withdrawn, the S3 would get ridiculously overcrowded when it was switched to B6LE operation, but it dropped me closer to work (I could get off on Longmore Road and just walk to Cranmore Boulevard), however due to unreliability the S3 was revised to follow the old 30 route down Danford Lane, but that didn't improve matters. I never bothered getting the 30 back home in the evening, as I never knew what time it would turn up, it was easier to just get the 6, 76 or 166/S9 back to Solihull and get a 37.

[Tony]

46 Birmingham - Six Ways Aston

Unreliable before, even more unreliable now going to Six Ways Aston
Stupid rota (1 minute to get from Perry Barr Rail Bridge , into one stop and round again to the other side in 1 minute - makes no sense)
Often 10 - 90 minutes late (waited hour and a half b4 :L) - usuailly peak journeys but even first journey of the day is damn late by 4/5 minutes  :-\

It is physically impossible for a bus on that route to be 90 minutes late, if it was it would have just missed a trip out and be a few minutes late on the next. If you have really waited 90 minutes then obviously something is seriously wrong out of the control of the bus company, because with 4 buses on a route each going around in 60 minutes you cannot possibly be waiting that long under normal circumstances

[Sh4318]

48 & 129 tend to run in pairs and the 120 can be strangely unpunctual during the evening. I'm sure the timetable amendments commencing will sort that out. Generally never had any problems with the 80 or 87

[Dylan4579]

The 53 is rarely on time , just look at the timetable and +15 minutes and thats when the bus comes if your lucky. And not much has happened since the move to PE,although buses aren't bunching anymore.

[Justin Tyme]

The Inner Circle and Outer Circle were the most prone to delays in the 'good old days', especially in the peaks.  The 8A/8C is bad because it has to cross many main roads in close succession, but I think the rerouting away from the Hagley Road (onto Ladywood Middleway instead) has helped.

Of course, running times vary much more now than they used to - no doubt because the Traffic Commissioners have a rule of 'no more than 1 minute early or 5 minutes late'.  I picked up a 74/75 timetable the other day, and the running time from Birmingham to Dudley on the 74 varies between 49 minutes (evenings) and 81 minutes (early evening peak) - a difference of 32 minutes!