We Don't Explain Things Very Well (2)

A few Quick Quotes

Before visiting Tinsley, readers may be interested in a few examples of South Yorkshire PTE's skill at explaining things.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Services 7 and 8 do not run on the main part pf the 22M route. They will be diveretd along a different road (Ferham Road|) nearer the centre of town to replace the 22M; so why not say so?

-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Here is an extract from the Sunday timetable showing no buses to Church Lane.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Here is a map of services 85 and 86,

Quietly ignore the arbitrary and incomprehensible application of 85s and 86s but look at the triangle near the left hand 85. The right hand sloping line is Fargate, a pedestrian precinct since 1973.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-

If you are searching for details of the changes due on September 4th, say, as a Sheffield Councillor aiming to allay the fears of your constituents, you might search for the replacement for route 69 which is at the heart of the problem

There is no replacement shown.

If you want to find the new service between Sheffield and Rotherham, you need to seek out the service Between Rotherham and Maltby.

Obvious, isn't it?

-o-o-o-o-o-o-

And So To Tinsley

Once a rural community located between Sheffield and Rotherham, complete with its opulent lock keeper's "cottage" ...

... Tinsley soon became enveloped in heavy industry. It was served by a through tram service between the two towns until 1948. In that year the old and narrow Tinsley Bridge ...

... was rebuilt. A temporary bus service was operated during the rebuilding.

It was then decided to economise and not replace the tram wires; thus Sheffield trams terminated at Weedon Street whilst Rotherham's service had a turning circle at Templeborough. Through passengers were catered for by retaining the temporary number 69 bus ...

... although it was a goodly number of years before such luxuries as this beauty (preserved) appeared.

The Tinsley housing was not, as such, penetrated by a bus service. The 69 passed by on the northern edge and an hourly service to Maltby (87) ran via Bawtry Road ...

.. on the east.

But when, in 1960, Sheffield's trams finally died, the replacement Tinsley bus service (numbered 24) entered the previously unserved roads of the Tinsley housing, terminating at Highgate. An fbb map will explain all.

In 1974 the service 24 was, itself extended to Brinsworth Nursery Drive which is almost at Catcliffe. 

The Rotherham Corporation cast concrete shelter is still there (or maybe it is painted brick; fbb cannot remember)!

For those uncertain of the geography ...

... Brinsworth becomes Catcliffe just down the road.

Various re-organisations, changes of route number and rejigging of links occurred over the years but the steady decline of residential property between the city and Tinsley has led to a progressive reduction of bus services.

As of today, here is still an hourly 87 but it now runs to Meadowhall, not Sheffield; also from the mega-mall is an hourly 31 via Canklow to Rotherham and the once frequent 69 offers just a 20 minute frequency via a Tinsley loop.

A variety of vehicles have been used in recent years; from the bottom of the barrel fleet ... 

... to newly delivered Streetlites.

But with the creation of the X1 to replace the 69 and its diversion via Meadowhall instead of the Tinsley loop ...

... poor Tinsley will need some other bus service.

And although those confused Councillors in yesterday's blog don't have all the details yet, the rumours are that Tinsley gets a big chop.

 Next Tinsley blog : Thursday 4th August 

We Don't Explain Things Very Well (1)

Too Right You Don't ...

... and you might have guessed - it's Sheffield. Why is fbb not surprised about this. What is nore interesting is that this is nothing to do with printed publicity, lack of publicity or just plain wrong publicity because as the middle of last week there hasn't been any.

And the controversial change? Since the atrocious mishandle bus cut-back of November 2015, publicised as an improvement (!!), ANY bus change is controversial. The public, althopugh making the best of as bad job and coping (because they have to) have lost all confidence in the bus operators, the City Council and the Passenger Trabnsport Executive akak Travel South Yorkshire.

Above all, the good Sheffield folk are profoundly suspicious of anything that comes in the name of the Sheffield Bus Partnership.

This beloved organisation consists of three bus operators ...

... TSY ...

... and Sheffield City Council.

There was a rumour that T M Travel, which has a big presence in the City as an operator of mainly tendered services, had joined the club. But if they have it is a state secret!

So what has caused the headline in the local paper?

Which is?

Well, now; this is what has been announced map-wise. Note the pretty purple stops and route in Central Sheffield.

And this is what is happening from 4th September.

It looks a bit different. The little blobs are the stops and they are quite different from the proposals.

Travelling further north we have another divergence.

As expected buses will start using a new bit of road ...

The new link under construction.

... which bypasses the cloggage at Junction 34, where the M1 disgorges and devours traffic at the southern end of the Tinsley Viaduct.

Google Streetview must have rolled by very early on Sunday morning! So the neatly named Bus Rapid Transit North takes this new bit of road to speed itself swiftly (OK swifter that the old route) between Sheffield and Rotherham

That was (maybe still is) the plan. But a look at the change from September shows a very different map of the diversion.

The new route runs via Meadowhall and then uses the new link. 

Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) North is a high quality and efficient public transport service that has been developed to help people travel into and between the centres of Rotherham and Sheffield. It will provide access to existing leisure, commercial and manufacturing facilities as well as facilitating economic growth by providing links to existing and proposed employment sites in the Lower Don Valley. 

BRT North will improve the customer experience by raising the quality of the bus offer, as well as improving capacity, reliability and quality on the bus network. It will provide essential congestion relief for local traffic at junction 34 south of the M1, through the creation of a new highway link under the motorway at Tinsley. 

Maybe the change in September isn't BRT North at all; maybe it is a sort of BRT "Lite". Or maybe BRT has faded from the minds of the politicians and this is a cheaper version. We are not told.

But this dilution of a grand and impressive scheme is, surprisingly, not what has provoked the "controversial" label.

Let us read on from the headline.

So something's up in Tinsley ...

... and the Partnership isn't!

The boss of Stagecoach told the councillors ...

... which is a bit odd as Stagecoach is not responsible for ANY of the "controversial" changes.

fbb has studied all the proposed changes for the autumn and so will try to unravel the concerns. Your cheery chubby chappie reckons that when the whole truth of the Tinsley Trauma is revealed, councillors and the electors will be even more incensed.

So tomorrow we will take a trip to Tinsley and see what the fuss is all about.

We will need to go right back to the days when most Sheffielders travelled by tram.

And just a reminder. All of this fuss is about poor communication between the bus people and one of their own partners, Sheffield City Council. Nothing that was said in the newspaper article even begins to address the poor communication between the companies and their passengers. Since November 2015 information has been atrocious and remains so.

 Next Tinsley blog : Wednesday 3rd August 

Don't Put All Your Xs in One Basket [2]

X6 Xcised at Bradford?
Amongst all the hype for the new buses on the X6 ...

... was an almost throwaway remark that the service would now run every 10 minutes to Bradford. The word "only" was omitted. It was necessary to search elsewhere for some indication of what ahd happened to the bit between Bradford and Huddersfield; now apparently removed.

If we happen to look at the list of service changes, all is revealed.

Service X6 - will now run Leeds to Bradford only It will be increased to run every 10 minutes with new double deck buses with free Wi-Fi and USB charging points for your convenience on most journeys. Look out for the distinctive new blue and gold livery. Customers between Bradford and Huddersfield can use improved service X63. Through fares will be available at £2.80 single, £4.70 day or £20 week for customers travelling across Bradford.

fbb thinks (?) that the X6 was introduced as a result of the construction of the Stanningley bypass, started in late 1968.

... and now a zippo dual carriageway ...

... bypassing Staningley; there's a clue in the name. Whilst the (ab)normal 72 sticks to the traditional route ("ab" because it is the home of the bendibuses), the X6 speeds along with very few stops (click to enlarge the map below).

72 dark blue : X6 lighter blue

But where does it stop. First Bus doesn't tell; perhpas people might get on and off and that would never do.

Of course the ever helpful Traveline thinks it still goes to Huddersfield which was part of fbb's confusion.

But the actual timetable is correct and, at first, is an unhelpful as First's. But do a bit of clicking and you can get a full list.

 Presumably times at these intermediate points are estimated.

One of the growing diseases of modern bus publicity is the coarseness of timetable information. Is it really fair on the passenger to only abide by two times 40 minutes apart? Is this really the way to encourage passengers from Armley or Thornbuty?

The old X6 was equally spares in its "time points" but did at least add Brighouse between Bradford and Huddersfield. Back in those lazy hazy xephos days there was no X63.

The 363 was all that was available.

Later, daytime Monday to Saturday journey became "Limited Stop" leaving the 363 to cover early morning, evemings and Sundays when other services along the road did not run. 

Readers will not be surprised to note that the First Huddersfield route map still shows the X6. Clearly the company is incapable of updating maps, a task which any passing seven year old could do with his eyes closed and at least two hands tied behind his back. Ah, but our contractors take time ...

X6 dark blue : 363, X63 brown

... Sack the contractors and bring it "in house".

Like the X6, the X63 has been increased to every 10 minutes.

Which begs the question. Why not leave it as a ten minute frequency X6 all the way from Leeds to Huddersfield via Bradford as it ever was? Why make it difficult for cross-Bradford passengers? Change for change's sake? Not willing to buy enough new buses?

Strange are the way of bus service planners as we shall see in tomorrow'as blog.

But here, as a whistle wetter, is a headline from a local paper.

Where might that be?

At least they are admitting it. But to whom? and why?

fbb will reveal all!

P.S. Remember that Stagecoach journey planner FAILURE (this blog : Friday 29th)?

Stagecoach's web site was still advising unsuspecting passengers to catch Stagecoach's own service 88 between Brackley and Bicester, a bus withdrawn over a week ago. Enjoy your wait folks!

Brackley Market Place bus stop

Wait here NOT for Bicester

 Next "badly explained" blog : Tuesday 2nd August