First Bus - Wyvern

[Solo1]

More on 144 ending going to Birmingham https://bromsgrovestandard.co.uk/news/shock-as-144-bus-services-to-birmingham-are-axed/

[2206]

More on 144 ending going to Birmingham https://bromsgrovestandard.co.uk/news/shock-as-144-bus-services-to-birmingham-are-axed/

May 2nd? The date on TFWM website says 24th April, a week earlier I think?
The 63 goes to Birmingham from Rubery does it not?
"People rely on that bus to get to work in Birmingham if they live in Rubery or Bromsgrove and vice versa."

From my understanding the route is well used between Worcester and Catshill, beyond there usage drops.

[metrocity]

May 2nd? The date on TFWM website says 24th April, a week earlier I think?
The 63 goes to Birmingham from Rubery does it not?
"People rely on that bus to get to work in Birmingham if they live in Rubery or Bromsgrove and vice versa."

From my understanding the route is well used between Worcester and Catshill, beyond there usage drops.

It would be a good opportunity for NX to extend the 63 beyond Rubery to Bromsgrove

[Gareth]

Back in the early to mid 00s I used to work and in both Hopwood and Wychbold and commuted from Birmingham. I had wonderful, reliable, frequent services that ran early mornings and late at night that suited my working patterns on both the 144 and 146. Such a shame how times have now changed and the effects these have had on both those services.

[Stu]

I seem to recall seeing something a while back that First refused to accept nBus tickets/passes, which might go some way to explaining the low usage between Rubery and Birmingham.

The councillor makes it sound like Rubery has no other bus services.

I would imagine that TfWM would be unwilling to provide any support for this service, not while there are numerous other more frequent services that serve the Bristol Road.

[2206]

I seem to recall seeing something a while back that First refused to accept nBus tickets/passes, which might go some way to explaining the low usage between Rubery and Birmingham.

First do accept N Bus, they might have reinstated ticket acceptance since then as that would probably have been some years ago.
https://www.firstbus.co.uk/worcestershire/tickets/ticket-types/nnetwork-nbus-swift

Though a lot of local usage passengers on the Bristol Road might have NX day/season tickets for use on the 63.  63 runs frequently to Rubery.
Also odd routing in the City Centre to, doesn't stop with the 63, so won't pick up any local usage passengers anyway and misses out some of the busiest stops on that route.

[j789]

I need to be somewhat careful here with what I say but this has been on the cards since the Brum section was reduced to every hour only. 10 or so years back in was every 20 minutes the full length between Worcester and Brum. There were also regular evening buses every day of the week (bar Sunday).

The frequency was chipped away in order to provide a more frequent service on part of the route (Bromsgrove to Worcester) which, at least pre-Covid, did increase passenger numbers on that section. It is understandable to focus on profitable routes (or sections of) but this just smacks of throwing in the towel without really trying.

However, there was no need for this withdrawal to ever have happened if First had just took a chance and not gone to every hour a few years back (when books needed to be balanced for a possible sale of parts of the company). Having driven this route regularly in the past, the Bromsgrove to Brum route is viable in the right hands, the train station is far outside of town and not convenient for a large part of the town, unless you travel there first by car.

It is a shame what has happened but if I was working in the route planning department at NXWM today, I would be sending a 63 route amendment to the relevant authorities straight away to extend to Bromsgrove every 20 minutes. NXWM WOULD be successful on that route, and I speak from a position of genuine know how about this route. Introduce the Daysaver valid to Bromsgrove (along with a reliable and decent frequency) and paying passenger numbers would treble in a year I am certain. There is a real need for this service and it has the potential to be well used once again.

I really don't know why First just could not have come to some sort of arrangement with NXWM to terminate at Longbridge island and passengers transfer onto the 63 there for onward travel. At least the link would have been maintained to Brum that way. 

[D10]

As NXWM like most operators have not got the drivers to run their existing routes, I can't see that a speculative extension of the 63 would be a good use of the resources they currently have no matter what a good idea it seems.

[Stu]

I really don't know why First just could not have come to some sort of arrangement with NXWM to terminate at Longbridge island and passengers transfer onto the 63 there for onward travel. At least the link would have been maintained to Brum that way. 

I must admit I'm not familiar with the 144 route having never needed to use it myself.

But looking at the timetable, it looks to take roughly an hour between Worcester and Catshill, and then an hour from Catshill to Birmingham, so it probably makes some operational sense to curtail the service at Catshill rather than Rubery or Longbridge.

I can't imagine there are many people who regularly commute by bus from Worcester or Droitwich to Birmingham though, not while there is a quicker train service available.

[j789]

I must admit I'm not familiar with the 144 route having never needed to use it myself.

But looking at the timetable, it looks to take roughly an hour between Worcester and Catshill, and then an hour from Catshill to Birmingham, so it probably makes some operational sense to curtail the service at Catshill rather than Rubery or Longbridge.

I can't imagine there are many people who regularly commute by bus from Worcester or Droitwich to Birmingham though, not while there is a quicker train service available.

Pre-Covid there was a not insignificant number of passengers who traveled between Droitwich and Bromsgrove (such as Wychbold) to destinations past Catshill, particularly Longbridge and Northfield.

It is not easy for these passengers to transfer onto alternative transport now as they are not near train stations. Running from Catshill to Longbridge and back would be done easily within 30 minutes meaning only one extra bus is needed on a 30 min frequency.

A few years back, there was garage rumours of the Worcester to Brum motorway express bus route via the M5 being brought back as it was thought there was scope for passenger growth on this route, despite the train competition. It must be said that in recent years the trains themselves have not exactly been very reliable on that route so perhaps a fast express bus/coach service could have worked.

[2206]

Pre-Covid there was a not insignificant number of passengers who traveled between Droitwich and Bromsgrove (such as Wychbold) to destinations past Catshill, particularly Longbridge and Northfield.

It is not easy for these passengers to transfer onto alternative transport now as they are not near train stations. Running from Catshill to Longbridge and back would be done easily within 30 minutes meaning only one extra bus is needed on a 30 min frequency.

That one extra bus would probably make it unviable I guess. Not enough passengers to justify it, I think it was already said 1 extra bus costs £100, 000 a year.
Yet some people complain because its always busy when they use it "4 times a year". https://twitter.com/JenOnTheMoveUK/status/1512113165856878603

There does seem to be a 145 from Wychbold to Bromsgrove Station to. Though irregular service. 

[Kevin]

Could totally see it coming, obviously First chasing the commercial local traffic has made that bit more profitable and worthwhile and obviously the Cross City line was going to take some Brum traffic from some areas of Bromsgrove.

I just hope that something better could be made of the link from Rubery down to Bromsgrove at least, be it over Lickey or round via J4, the current 202 is only hourly Mon-Sat daytime that could be much improved on. And at least some replacement connection for the Worcs bit of Rubery up the Bristol Road into Brum.

I would also have thought that someone would have made more of connecting areas of Bromsgrove to the station when the Cross City line started up. Realistically only the 147/318 have made anything of that and between them and the Diamond routes they're hardly frequent enough to be worth locals using over their own cars.

[Westy]

Not really suprised at this but I thought it might still go as far as Rubery . . . . 

From someone on the outside looking in, it does seem daft they wouldn't run the bus as far as a decent Nx route interchange point?

The only thing I can see comparable in my neck of the woods,  is Chaserider's truncation of it's route 3 at Brownhills allowing passengers to use Nx to continue south.

[Justin Tyme]

Could totally see it coming, obviously First chasing the commercial local traffic has made that bit more profitable and worthwhile and obviously the Cross City line was going to take some Brum traffic from some areas of Bromsgrove.

I just hope that something better could be made of the link from Rubery down to Bromsgrove at least, be it over Lickey or round via J4, the current 202 is only hourly Mon-Sat daytime that could be much improved on. And at least some replacement connection for the Worcs bit of Rubery up the Bristol Road into Brum.

I would also have thought that someone would have made more of connecting areas of Bromsgrove to the station when the Cross City line started up. Realistically only the 147/318 have made anything of that and between them and the Diamond routes they're hardly frequent enough to be worth locals using over their own cars.

I am not that surprised either.  The trains had taken most of the Bromsgrove - Birmingham traffic (and I believe struggled to cope until the Cross City Line reached Bromsgrove).

What will happen next for the Bromsgrove or Catshill to Rubery section?  Unless another operator decides to give it a go commercially it's up to Worcestershire County Council to decide whether to fund a replacement - or not.  I am not surprised that First have decided not to run beyond Catshill to Rubery

Finally, any bus service linking areas of Bromsgrove to the station would be up against the Bromsgrove on Demand DRT service that started last year - see https://www.diamondbuses.com/news/bromsgrove-on-demand/.

[Stu]

It is a shame what has happened but if I was working in the route planning department at NXWM today, I would be sending a 63 route amendment to the relevant authorities straight away to extend to Bromsgrove every 20 minutes. NXWM WOULD be successful on that route, and I speak from a position of genuine know how about this route. Introduce the Daysaver valid to Bromsgrove (along with a reliable and decent frequency) and paying passenger numbers would treble in a year I am certain. There is a real need for this service and it has the potential to be well used once again.

If the data is available for NX to look at then I'm sure if they thought it was viable they'd be on the case.

Perhaps there may be some advantage in running a service through to Bromsgrove station?

Clearly NX are not averse to expanding 'cross-county' as we've seen with the X51 to Cannock and X3 to Lichfield.

But then again it could be argued that if the demand was there, then First wouldn't be curtailing their 144.