Acocks Green Garage

[MW]

I did wonder & was gonna to PM you about it but haven't got around to it lol @MW  ;D

Might as well post here.

Disruption of service. I took over on two buses. Couldn't see out of either properly due to the incorrect wing mirror arm fitted. They deemed it to be fit for service. Because I was a new driver on probation, they can dismiss whenever they feel like. What did they tell us at training school. You must always be able to see one third bus, two thirds road out of the mirrors. I got into a debate with one of the managers, who I proved wrong in front of around 5 other drivers. Said manager felt like I attacked his intelligence and went out of his way to get rid of me.

Here is evidence of view on buses.

4521 (A good example of how it should be):
http://s27.postimg.org/ko9nu2tb7/IMG_2666.jpg
http://s30.postimg.org/aaojmhkkx/IMG_2667.jpg


4673 (A terrible one, like):
http://s27.postimg.org/cudnmfaw3/IMG_2670.jpg
http://s9.postimg.org/44zenuykv/IMG_2671.jpg

Management initially dismissed me for the disruption, and when I told them about this issue, they accused me of making it up because the engineering manager reckons all these Geminis have the exact same wing mirror.

In my appeal, I showed them this evidence and they changed their minds and said the engineering manager didn't say this. They said they feel the view in the mirror is fit for purpose. Clearly not as you can see in the pictures. Shows the interior and exterior, blatantly different mirror types.

Ultimately, there's too many politics in this company. The job is enjoyable, but the management are a bunch of idiots, and they just treat the drivers like s***, now that they've got over their driver shortage. They basically wanted me to grovel for my job back, I didn't. I showed them the evidence and explained it out to them. They still sacked me.

There was an issue for punctuality too a while back, so they combined it with this. My probation would have been over in a few weeks as well lol. I guess that's the way it goes eh.

[mranon]

I wouldn't drive a vehicle with a mirror like that no chance! If you failed to spot something etc resulting in a incident you'd never hear the end of it

[dw1308]

Does the management not see that the incorrect mirror arm like that which is fitted to 4673 could possibly cause an accident or even worse dragging somebody off the pavement and under the vehicle when arriving at stops because the driver just can not see everything they need to? While I understand it's @MW against the company I am however on the side of MW on this one as not being able to see along your blind side is down right dangerous

[MW]

Does the management not see that the incorrect mirror arm like that which is fitted to 4673 could possibly cause an accident or even worse dragging somebody off the pavement and under the vehicle when arriving at stops because the driver just can not see everything they need to? While I understand it's @MW against the company I am however on the side of MW on this one as not being able to see along your blind side is down right dangerous

These shorter mirror arms are on most of the 46xx Geminis. The management say that the engineering department says its fit for service. They also said that I should adjust my seat, but as I'm quite tall, if I do the seat forward, my legs don't fit unless I move the steering wheel, and doing that makes the steering wheel too far to reach...

A lot of the engineers reckon these shorter mirrors are cheaper.

[JoNi]

Speaking to Coventry drivers I'm reliably informed that they had a similar problem with their 46xx Geminis which was solved by replacing them with the same mirror arms that are fitted to Tridents within six months of them entering service. It is my understanding the matter was raised through the "cab committee" at the time along with being unable to see the internal mirror due to the assault screen and the fact you couldn't see the money being put in the slot due to its poor positioning. I have never driven a bus so make these comments on well reasoned arguments put to me by people who have driven these buses.

[2900]

Mirror arm debate: I can see the huge difference between arms but with out having experienced the shorter arm I can't say how good or bad it is, I,m from generation of drivers who drove buses with tiny mirrors and arms, today the mirrors are twice the size,the arms are enormous, when the mercs first came to Hockley there standard mirrors were awful then they were replaced with standard metrobus/ Lynx bus items small but did the job better. My personal preference is large mirror left side , small driver side. There have times when looking right these large mirrors get in the way most annoying.

[andy41]

These shorter mirror arms are on most of the 46xx Geminis. The management say that the engineering department says its fit for service. They also said that I should adjust my seat, but as I'm quite tall, if I do the seat forward, my legs don't fit unless I move the steering wheel, and doing that makes the steering wheel too far to reach...

A lot of the engineers reckon these shorter mirrors are cheaper.

This has been going on for years, they are well aware of the problem but don't want to spend money on it. I suspect the problem is that the actual bracket may be designed/positioned differently on the later batch so it would require more than just a new arm. The Geminis in particular have always been hideous for visibility. The attack screens are poorly positioned, the offside mirror creates more blind spots than it solves and the door column is so thick that if the nearside mirror is only slightly out of position you can see nothing. The nearside mirror is also often set too high such that you can only see the bottom half of it. Have you noticed how poor the driver's seats are in the 46** ones too? Offset, sloping to one side and soggy. My sciatica was back after a couple of weeks stuck in them.

As for your treatment, if you intend to carry on bus driving you can get used to this. Large operators are on a constant treadmill and always will be. Shortage - recruit excessively - over staffed - no overtime - spare drivers - start sacking.... and then back to the start and repeat. When they are in the final cycle they will devote months to finding reasons to sack drivers.

There was a time when a decent union convenor would have helped you keep your job but unfortunately the bus industry is now in the Unite days whereby most depot convenors are only in the job to get a cushy number away from the roster. Next time, ignore the Unite people and sign up with the RMT.

[JoNi]

Who are they?
When speak to someone and they say "they" my immediate
response is to say "who are they" to which the answer is usually "the management" to which I reply "which manager" which usually gets a blank look in return. Having greater expectations of who is  responsible for resolving issues when matters go awry. After all any organisation must have clear roles and responsibilities for leaders if it is to function effectively.

[Rob H]

Not sure if it has been mentioned already 4514 is now branded for the 11 and I think is named Chloe but not 100% sure

[P419 EJW]

Not sure if it has been mentioned already 4514 is now branded for the 11 and I think is named Chloe but not 100% sure

Thanks, @Rob2832. :) Do you (or anyone else) know if 4524 and/or 4660 have been branded yet?

[Rob H]

Thanks, @Rob2832. :) Do you (or anyone else) know if 4524 and/or 4660 have been branded yet?

@P419 EJW Not to my knowledge but I'll keep an eye out for both :)

[Ashley 60171]

Thanks, @Rob2832. :) Do you (or anyone else) know if 4524 and/or 4660 have been branded yet?

4524 not branded as of last week @P419 EJW .

[RS]

4524 not branded as of last week @P419 EJW .

A post that Tony put on facebook indicated its got a new megarear ad

[Ashley 60171]

A post that Tony put on facebook indicated its got a new megarear ad

I've seen the megarear @RS but the original question was about 11 branding which at the moment is as yet unbranded.

[uniquicity]

Is 4674 branded? This keeps avoiding me