Chaserider

[Bob]

The fast and direct USP of the 1 not been a success then?

[Westy]

The fast and direct USP of the 1 not been a success then?

They'll probably have to change that destination display then!

[Capitalpotter]

services retimed,, is that to allow all the solos time to break down mid journey then on the routes they are unsuitable for :-)

Either Bob has an alias or he's recruiting Solo haters

[Bob]

Either Bob has an alias or he's recruiting Solo haters

Nope not me. But 12-14 yr old Solos that arent in the best of states are pretty unsuitable for interurban services, even Lets Go can do better than that

[Capitalpotter]

But if passenger numbers are so low they're unlikely to put a single decker on a route.  They're there to make a profit. More passengers more profit. More profit better buses. It's a simple equation

[Trident 4194]

Nope not me. But 12-14 yr old Solos that arent in the best of states are pretty unsuitable for interurban services, even Lets Go can do better than that

Do you want some mellors then? It's clear that vehicles bigger than a solo aren't required.

[Tony]

Do you want some mellors then? It's clear that vehicles bigger than a solo aren't required.

Try telling that to Students left behind in Stafford.

[Bob]

Try telling that to Students left behind in Stafford.

Exactly that!

[IMarkeh]

Service 70
Most journeys will be retimed.
Buses will operate to a revised route in Wolverhampton City Centre, serving Stafford Street and Broad Street only.

Service 71
Most journeys will be retimed.
Buses will operate to a revised route in Wolverhampton City Centre, serving Stafford Street and Broad Street only.
Buses will operate via a revised route in Great Wyrley at peak times to improve reliability.

Managed decline. Slowly make it less convenient for passengers to alight in Wolverhampton. Next thing these will drop down in frequency because people can't travel where they want to go to in town and so will stop using the bus or use competitors.

Service 828
Most journeys will be retimed.
Some evening journeys will be withdrawn due to low passenger numbers.
Buses will operate via Weston Road and Blackheath Lane in Stafford instead of Hydrant Way and Tixall Road.

Unless they are being funded for this diversion, this is a managed decline. Why serve housing estates when you can bypass them and serve no one.


I know D&G are poor but I never, ever expected them to get this bad. It's no wonder numbers are so low when there are huge changes every month and as we know from experience and from comments here, the few buses that they do run are very poor.


I think it's getting to a point where I have to sit and wonder, will Chaserider even see Christmas? Huge cuts, dismal bus operation which is an embarrassment. Can't keep drivers for love nor money. Sooner they sack off the bus network and leave, the better.

[ContainsNuts]

Why on earth would any business want to participate in 'managed decline'? Don't you think that if a bus operator didn't want to run something then they would just cancel it? This idea of running a service into the ground over time so as to eventually withdraw from it is a load of twaddle as it just doesn't happen.

You may not like what bus companies do, but as an 'armchair spotter' I'm sure you have a wealth of experience to dispense sage advice on how to fix all of the issues!!

[Stevo]

Managed decline was a concept British Rail used a lot. Divert services away, run remaining ones at the wrong times, then say the line was uneconomic and should close. But a private company would have no reason to do that. I have no experience of D&G in their own area. Is it really a poor company? It's been going for many years.

[Grinder]

I use the 74 fairly regularly and can honestly say I have not experienced the 'crap' service that Chaserider are portrayed as giving on this site. I've yet to ride on a smelly filthy dirty one, rattly yes but smelly no.
IMarketh writes 'Sooner they sack off the bus network and leave, the better' I ask him to tell me who is going to take over the 74 and 826 services out of Stafford, obviously he lives in an area where there are already other providers and couldn't care less. Does anyone really think that NXWM or First are going to come in for them, nuts.
Yes they do sometimes use vehicles that are too small at busy times, especially on the 74 and yes their buses are on the whole old second, third or maybe 4th hand but they run them. They've tried to introduce new services but have had to pull the plug because of poor patronage. Perhaps the critics could run for council and try to introduce a tax on everybody to run the services with the quality of vehicles they allude to, fat bloody chance.
Constructive criticism is good for any company but constant knocking, no way.

[Solo1]

the 70&71 services must suffer delays unless they dont pick anyone up in the town & thats the reason for the change

[the trainbasher]

Remember that drivers may still be off due to COVID, same with pax numbers.

[Westy]

Wasn't there talk of looking at the competition rules, to make it easier for the likes of NX to take over the smaller areas?

If D & G / Chaserider can't make this work, surely this will be the only way to keep a decent bus service?

(Mods - If this deserves a new topic, then move it)