Dudley Network Review

[Stu]

On the other hand surely if Diamonds 123 was successful it would still be operating today?
Does anyone know what usage was like on the service?

And that is why network reviews take place. Travelling habits change, places that people want/need to travel to change. Circumstances and situations such as congestion cause services (especially long convoluted routes like the 123) to become unreliable. When services become unreliable, people change their journeys, and as passenger numbers fall, those services become less viable.

You're right, if the 123 was a successful viable service it would indeed still be operating. Same goes for other changes that have taken place. Yes, it is true that no-one in their right mind would really regularly travel from Perry Barr to Merry Hill using the 123, it was one of those routes that was all about connecting the 'bits inbetween'. If those 'bits inbetween' can be better served by breaking up the route or modifying other services to fit, then go for it, rather than just hoping things will turn around naturally.

Sometimes change is inevitable; one can either embrace and adapt to the changes, or sit in a corner sulking about the past.

As a businessman, I can tell you, if your business is failing, if you don't make changes and adapt, your business will definitely fail. The same analogy works here: some people would like the bus network to go back to how it was in 1986; it was great then, but wouldn't be fit for purpose here in the 21st century.

[sonic84]

Are these changes always to meet changing passenger demands. We have seen in the last year's an increase in the simplification of core main routes and an increase in the need to change buses, particularly away from the city centre.

Whilst cutting routes like the 123 and 444 seems easy as they can be covered by other services, it makes those other routes seem less attractive as tendered services become more convoluted to cover the gaps.  Look at routes such as Diamonds 54 and IGOs 19 for examples of complicated routes! 

I expect changes to the 241 will drive more bus users onto the 244 between Halesowen and Dudley. Will the fall in end to end passengers on the new 14 cover the lighter loadings between Blackheath and Dudley?

The 21 Birmingham to Bartley Green is another example or a route withdrawn to meet changing demand of passengers yet the X64 was altered so much it basically became the 21!

[BK63 YWP]

Just an idea for the new 5, would it be viable to extend it to Stourbridge (merge it with 267) or Wolverhampton to boost passenger numbers (people traveling to the trading estate for work), it's the fastest route between Kingswinford and Dudley

[Mike K]

The 21 Birmingham to Bartley Green is another example or a route withdrawn to meet changing demand of passengers yet the X64 was altered so much it basically became the 21!

You beat me to it on the X64. I don't disagree with the majority of what Stu says but the X64 is a prime example of where these reviews don't get things right and the constant tinkering every few months thereafter creates a situation where the passengers who were supposed to benefit have no idea whether they are coming or going. That route wasn't around for that many years but during that time, these are some of the iterations of it (off the top of my head and not necessarily in order):
Via Bristol Rd to Great Park
City terminus changed to Colmore Row
City terminus changed to Square Peg
Amended to go to Bartley Green
Diverted to serve QE Hospital and Gibbins Road
Changed to serve Selly Oak
City terminus changed to Priory Queensway
Extended to Woodgate via Kitwell
Changed to no longer serve Kitwell
Diverted to serve University / The Vale (removing the limited stop element)

How are people supposed to embrace this constant change? It's a mess and is not conducive to encouraging passenger growth. There are lots of other examples of changes from reviews being changed or indeed reversed a short time later but the X64 is an extreme example. NX is a commercial operation and is there primarily to maintain its profit margin - I totally get that, but I can't help but think they've made a pig's ear of some of these incessant changes.

[MasterPlan]

Surely the infamous X64 was perhaps the biggest failure by NX in recent years. Yes the 21 suffered with reliability issues and I can understand why they felt change was needed but as the 21 was popular it should've been done with maintaining the links already being used. However, as has been said they made a pigs ear of it. You could actually say that this current X21 is probably what should've replaced the 21, including Bartley Green of course.

[Kevin]

Just an idea for the new 5, would it be viable to extend it to Stourbridge (merge it with 267) or Wolverhampton to boost passenger numbers (people traveling to the trading estate for work), it's the fastest route between Kingswinford and Dudley

Actually quite surprised myself that they didn't do anything with the 255/6/7 beyond the renumbering, defite scope for simplicity there and would save some numbers for elsewhere

[Sh4318]

Are these changes always to meet changing passenger demands. We have seen in the last year's an increase in the simplification of core main routes and an increase in the need to change buses, particularly away from the city centre.

Whilst cutting routes like the 123 and 444 seems easy as they can be covered by other services, it makes those other routes seem less attractive as tendered services become more convoluted to cover the gaps.  Look at routes such as Diamonds 54 and IGOs 19 for examples of complicated routes! 

I expect changes to the 241 will drive more bus users onto the 244 between Halesowen and Dudley. Will the fall in end to end passengers on the new 14 cover the lighter loadings between Blackheath and Dudley?

The 21 Birmingham to Bartley Green is another example or a route withdrawn to meet changing demand of passengers yet the X64 was altered so much it basically became the 21!

Completely agree with that.

Whilst Devonshire Road, Stoney Lane have benefitted with more and newer buses. The Oval & Thimblemill Road have suffered with the convoluted 54 which takes you through Cape Hill and Smethwick before you even get to Spon Croft.

The constant changes with the 48A, 50, 53 & 129 have left some roads with a service/less of a service

[Roy]

Actually quite surprised myself that they didn't do anything with the 255/6/7 beyond the renumbering, defite scope for simplicity there and would save some numbers for elsewhere

As a regular user of the 255/6/7, I can say that the present routes work really well to provide 15 minute interval journeys on the busier sections of the routes and 30 minute intervals on the others.  Simplifying the services would only force more people to have to change buses in Kingswinford or Wall Heath and I am sure that would go down well with local travellers.  However, I'm sure that, if NXWM management decide to change these routes in the future, they will do so for a valid reason because I feel that to "save some numbers for elsewhere" will never go down in the annals of history as a valid reason for changing a perfectly good bus service.

[Kevin]

As a regular user of the 255/6/7, I can say that the present routes work really well to provide 15 minute interval journeys on the busier sections of the routes and 30 minute intervals on the others.  Simplifying the services would only force more people to have to change buses in Kingswinford or Wall Heath and I am sure that would go down well with local travellers.  However, I'm sure that, if NXWM management decide to change these routes in the future, they will do so for a valid reason because I feel that to "save some numbers for elsewhere" will never go down in the annals of history as a valid reason for changing a perfectly good bus service.

Well obviously my post wasn't just saying to combine the routes just to save the numbers, more that there's scope for simplifying them. Take the 255, there's an obvious need for every 15 mins to Kingswinford and Wall Heath, the fact that it picks up other people along the way can easily be absorbed into a more frequent 256 that they can change onto. This is the whole point of such network reviews, to have a network of core higher frequency routes that people can change onto

[dingding]

If you do look back to PTE days and before I would contest that perhaps Merry Hill and Russells Hall excepted, traffic objectives in the Dudley area haven't really changed that much from when Midland Red, Wolverhampton and West Bromwich ran the routes.

Totally agree however that the 'reviews' are more to suit operator objectives rather than the needs of the passengers.

As an example many years ago there was a big review of Perry Barr services made mostly on the back of a manager wanting to make a name for himself. In less than eighteen months everything was more or less back to the tried and tested network.

There could be an element of these changes in all the meddling but at the end of the day large parts of the bus network are probably approaching terminal decline so anything that keeps the level of service/resource/revenue balance at a commercially achievable level has to be given a go!

[Roy]

Well obviously my post wasn't just saying to combine the routes just to save the numbers, more that there's scope for simplifying them. Take the 255, there's an obvious need for every 15 mins to Kingswinford and Wall Heath, the fact that it picks up other people along the way can easily be absorbed into a more frequent 256 that they can change onto. This is the whole point of such network reviews, to have a network of core higher frequency routes that people can change onto

If your plan went ahead, Planks Lane, Brickbridge Lane and Swindon would lose their bus services.  In addition, especially during rush hours, a lot of people travel between Wolverhampton and Bromley, Pensnett, Brierley Hill and Merry Hill.  I'm sure they would be thrilled if they had to change in Kingswinford.  In fact, I caught an early afternoon bus from Wolverhampton last week and, between Bull Meadow Drive and Swindon, over 20 teenagers in small groups got on to go to Merry Hill.  This happens every Saturday and most weekdays during school holidays.  I'm sure the ones who got on between Bull Meadow Drive and Wombourne would be thrilled if they had to change bus every time they wanted to go to the largest shopping centre in the Black Country, while those who boarded between Wombourne and Swindon would have a long walk to a bus in the first place (for the Swindon passengers, along a dangerous narrow lane) and then be expected to change again.

Luckily, NXWM management recognise this and have not changed the routes.  The point of network reviews are meant to improve bus travel for passengers, not make it impossible for passengers to use the bus because of some ideology.  The 255/6/7 are not broken, therefore they don't need fixing.

It will be interesting to hear what other forum members in the Kingswinford and Stourbridge areas think.

[BK63 YWP]

I use the 255/E quite frequently and it does get busy between merry hill and kford, my only problem is it does not start early enough! A 0530 from kford to merry hill but be awesome :)

[Roy]

New style "West Midlands Bus" flags have been put up at Kingswinford Cross and Kingswinford High Street.

[karl724223]

New style "West Midlands Bus" flags have been put up at Kingswinford Cross and Kingswinford High Street.

and high oak area

[MasterPlan]

To be honest the routes could've been renumbered to 85, 86 & 88. The 127 becoming the 85 (The others A and B), the 120 becoming the 86 (121 86A) and the 126 88.
That way you have the 85, 86, 87 & 88 that go to Dudley.