Service Changes from 27th April

[Stu]

Having fun in Acocks Green today, as nobody seems to know where the 1 and 31 are stopping!

There's a chap from Bus Users UK there, trying to direct people to the right stop, even the bus drivers don't seem to know where to stop!

Did take a trip on the 31 to Solihull earlier, overheard some people talking, seems they're quite pleased it goes to Solihull on Sundays now, although because of the roadworks on Dolphin Lane its still following the old route. Looks like drivers get a nice 30min layover at Solihull now, our bus arrived as the next one was leaving; don't know where he went to layover, but he came back half an hour later for the next journey out.

Is the 31 still DD on Sundays.

Yes, still DD during the daytime, and switches to single-decks off the 37 in the evening as before.
As this morning though, the evening journeys were using the old '31E Solihull Lane' displays, although the service now finishes on Olton Road in Shirley (turns round at the new Haslucks Green island)

I popped over to Acocks Green this morning to have a look after reading various comments on Emails and this Internet forum.
I immediately noticed "where to catch your bus stop posters" have not been updated. It also became immediately apparent that the route colours did not match up with the route map produced for the changes.
I was particularly unimpressed by the position of change information on shelter glazing in the line of sight of oncoming buses.
One shelter had a notice relating to Solihull bus stops in 2009 and another still had the consultation notice as well as the changes.
It's abundantly clear there is no joined up thinking when it comes to communication on service changes.
Notices stuck on shelter glazing invariably leave adhesive when removed and ought to be in the timetable panel to be removed when services have settled in.
I noticed the 1 still terminated at Acocks Green on the real time screen instead of Five Ways where it was going.

The real-time information display has only been showing timetabled information for the last couple of weeks anyway, hence why the 31A was still listed!

[Isle of Stroma]

Just noticed that the evening 72 B'ham - Clock garage is dropping to an hourly frequency, Bad news all round:

1) The friendly locals will now only have one bus per hour to use for target practice.....
2) The remaining 'normal' customers will disappear as they will soon tire of waiting for up to an hour for the service, only to find there's no service whatsoever 'cos some nice person has bricked the sole bus out.....

..... Certainly glad I don't live there any more, & for once that has nothing to do with the natives !

[Stu]

Despite being publicised as being 'extended to Shirley', the display of the new extended 1 journeys shows 'Hall Green' with 'Haslucks Green Road' on the lower line, before alternating between the via points!

Also, don't know whether the driver was using an old display stored in the Hanover, but noticed earlier today a YW Trident on the 3 heading to Birmingham was still showing Robin Hood Island and Gospel Oak in the via points!

[nitromatt1]

I'm confused by the new X64 timetable. During the day it seems to arrive at the Field Lane terminus at 05/35 mins past the hour and depart at 03/33. Is this an error or does each one get 28 mins layover at the terminus?

[Liberator9]

There was a Wright Eclipse Urban 2 on the 1 this morning; found it odd to look out of the window on the 76 and see the 1 go past!  ;)

[jnl1984]

Does anyone know of a reason why the majority of the 29/29A's are still displaying Northfield? This was causing much confusion with passengers earlier!

[trident4370]

Same story on the 650/34, today there was an 06 reg Solo on there with a working LED display (was blank on arrival, left with "Diamond <> Buses" showing after the driver had played with it), and a piece of paper in the windscreen with 34 written on it. Presumably it hadn't been reprogrammed with the new route number.

[wilmotm (Matt Wilmot)]

Watched almost every X64 today out the window of the library and honestly did not see a single passenger going from Newman University upto Woodgate, and only one person heading towards Birmingham! Seems a quieter terminus than Great Park at the moment!

This is not helped by the fact that Cromwell Lane is closed with the 18, 48, 002 and X64 seemingly making their own route up to get in and out of Bartley Green, all going slightly different ways round the Genners lane triangle

[Mike K]

Does anyone know of a reason why the majority of the 29/29A's are still displaying Northfield? This was causing much confusion with passengers earlier!

The destination displays on the 29/A are a mess. As someone posted in the BC thread yesterday, the via points scroll but then abruptly vanish, they are in the wrong order and the 29A I saw this evening was showing Shenley Fields. I think they've been programmed by Stevie Wonder.

[Rob H]

Does anyone know of a reason why the majority of the 29/29A's are still displaying Northfield? This was causing much confusion with passengers earlier!

The destination displays on the 29/A are a mess. As someone posted in the BC thread yesterday, the via points scroll but then abruptly vanish, they are in the wrong order and the 29A I saw this evening was showing Shenley Fields. I think they've been programmed by Stevie Wonder.

I noticed on 4428 on the 70 today that the via points were scrolling but are all in punctuation marks e.g. ..........'''''''''''';;;;;;;;;;;;;

[sonic84]

This may seem crazy, but I don't understand why the 45 displays "Rednal" and the 47 displays "Cofton Hackett" when they have the same terminus.

[Stuharris 6360]

Well done Network West Midlands for not showing any of the changes on the "service changes" pages of the website, plus other changes happened like the 311/3 not calling at Wednesbury Parkway metro stop which weren't shown either!

[Liverpool Street]

This may seem crazy, but I don't understand why the 45 displays "Rednal" and the 47 displays "Cofton Hackett" when they have the same terminus.

I guess it's to differentiate between the two routes until people are used to it, and I think as a technicality the 45 actual last stop is in the Rednal border and 47 obviously Cofton Hackett. I dare say it will change to the same termini designated on the next blind change - as like the 61/63.

[Stevo]

Looking at the new Network map I was tracing the 49 from Solihull and glanced up the map to see that the 49 terminates in Bearwood bus station. Similarly, tracing the 61 from the Bristol Road there again is 61 at Bearwood. It's absurd that a map shows two entirely separate routes with the same number. There may be others.

[Liverpool Street]

Looking at the new Network map I was tracing the 49 from Solihull and glanced up the map to see that the 49 terminates in Bearwood bus station. Similarly, tracing the 61 from the Bristol Road there again is 61 at Bearwood. It's absurd that a map shows two entirely separate routes with the same number. There may be others.

Is there a 49 & 61 that goes to Bearwood?