My M Y Day & More; Yippee (3)

To Long Ashton And Back

fbb boarded his M2 at the "Temple Meads" stop, the beginning of the City centre loop. The bus was well provided with bus lanes all the way round ...

... and at 0945 they were hardly needed. At two "critical points" arrangements differ.

There is a clear red-painted route at the end of Newfoundland Street (above, upper right) where the M32 disgorges its worst every morning ...

... but at St James Barton (a k a The Bearpit) ...

... buses have a traffic light controlled exit onto the roundabout, but  actually on the gyratory all lanes are often clogged solid. The arrangements on these roads are the same for all buses; the wondrous M2 is no different from any other apart, of course, from its Monoliths.

The route crosses the Redcliffe Bascule Bridge (with a bus lane) ...

... alongside a two way cycle lane.

But the bridge no longer bascules. It is seen above welcoming a replica of John Cabot's ship, The Matthew, back "home" to Bristol. Mr Cabot has a claim to be the first explorer to discover the American mainland, possibly Newfoundland, in 1497. Fans of a certain Mr Columbus might dispute this, but our Chris only hit the bulk of South America in 1498 on his third voyage.

The M2 then trundles along Cumberland Road between the original River Avon, now known as the "floating harbour" and the man-made "cut" built as a watery by-pass to maintain the river flow. fbb passed by at low tide.

The most likely bus business along here is for tourists getting to the SS Great Britain (Brunel yet again) but, like many places "on" the route, this involves a reasonable trek.

The walk route is via the delightfully named Gas Ferry Road ...

... where once plied a ferry over to the north bank.

There, the equivalent is the spooky Gasworks Lane - where tourist ferry boats still call.

Also on the way to Brunel's biggie, you pass the HQ of animators Aardman, home of Wallace and Gromit.

Mysteriously, instead of being conveniently located at the end of Gas Ferry Road ...

... the stop is way past, after the footbridge (dotted line, lower left on the map above.)

But all the way along the Cumberland Road it is just an ordinary bus route. Things start getting a little more exciting as we fork off left to pass behind the magnificent Cumberland Basin warehouses.

At the former Ashton Avenue bridge we meet our first bit of guided busway ...

... and fbb managed to take several piccies beautifully out of focus!

(probably caused by the bright sun glinting on the bus windscreen; thus causing the phone's camera to automatically focus of the glass! Bummer!)

Next comes the flyover!

This is a hugely expensive bit of engineering to get the busway (seen below under construction - via Streetview) ...

... over the railway line to Portishead.

But what has happened to the guiderails?

Answer: you only get guide rails on short bits of straight roads. Once corners arrive ...

... it's back to standard two-way road. Even stranger, the carriageway is narrowed where there are guide rails, despite there being more than enough room for a normal roadway.

All of this means that the bus has to slow down to lock into the guides, making progress slower than if they weren't there!

Sounds crazy and it is!

Most of those on the well loaded bus back to City were having a jolly time; many enjoying an exploratory ride. So what have these Bristolians gained from the millions of oncers invested in this project?

LONGER JOURNEYS

A comment writer (Monday) suggested that with a "loop" some lose and some gain. Quite right sir, but the withdrawn 903 also ran via a loop. So here are some comparisons.

Not much evidence of  "gainers"!

MORE EXPENSIVE JOURNEYS?
And here fbb make a mega bludner in an earlier blog. It would appear that the fares quoted for the 903 were RETURNS. The fares quoted for the M2 are singles. 903 was £4 at peak and £3 off peak. "great value travel" looks like this ...

... i.e. more expensive. But why would you pay £2.50 for a single when you can buy a day rover a k a return for £4. More craziness.

A SHORT SWITCHBACK RIDE
Yippee!

Other than the latter, the M3 offers no advantage over its 903 predecessor.

fbb chatted to a few fellow travellers on Monday and the general opinion was that the M2 is a ...

MASSIVE WASTE OF MONEY!

In an attempt to be less critical, the chubby one has trawled web sites and journalistic opinions to find some positives. It was not a very fruitful search.

One writer says the M2 will serve Temple Meads station once the eternal road works at the Temple Gate roundabout are finished.

That will make journeys even slower! Happy (?) memories of the Redcliffe flyover assembled from giant Meccano, in use here from 1967 to 1998.

Another article suggests that things will be much better, passenger-wise, when massive redevelopments, e.g. at Cumberland Basin, are completed.

There is also talk of even more new-build projects along the Cumberland Road.

Both these will make journeys even slower.

Of course, to avoid this, you could run a dedicated Park and Ride service from Long Ashton Park and Ride - fast into the city.

Perhaps call it service 903?

And if you are a glutton for punishment, you could read fbb's three blogs centred on the Ashton Avenue bridge, now used by a very short bit of M2 guided busway!

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Tomorrow we take a pause from the M Y Bristol expedition and return to Europe.

 Next Grischun blog : Thursday 6th September 

My M Y Day & More; Yippee (2)

You might think, O foolish reader, that catching a bus from Temple Meads Station would be really really simple. There are just two possibilities.

Here, on the station approach road, you will find Airport Flyer buses, now double deck ...

 ... ordinary buses 8, 9  and 72.

These all leave from alongside Brunel's former terminus. If you totter to the bottom of the slope, you will find many, many more on the road called Temple Gate.

But you will not find Metrobus M2, despite the map stop called Temple Meads.

Here is what you have to do. Use the exit from the booking hall that leads to "4 more self service ticket machines this way" and "Temple Quay and Ferries" ...

... and obvious route to a Temple Meads bus stop.

You then exit the station via a creepy back alley ...

... continue forward aiming at some more comforting buildings.

Continue past McColls ...

... turn left and stride purposely forward!

Cross Temple Way via two sets of lights ...

... veer left and there is the "Temple Meads" stop for the M2.

The M2 map gives you 6 minutes amble time - and the best of Bristolian British luck mate! From stepping on to the platform to arriving at the stop, it took fbb just under ten minutes - but he is old, creaky and a bit on the slow side.

Is the route clearly signposted?

Of course not.

There may be a Temple Meads bus stop map somewhere but fbb could not find it and there was certainly nothing in the station or at the M2 stop.

And best not rely on the Metrobus leaflet map. It takes you to a blank wall and the locked gates from an underground car park; no exit at the trees at the top of the Google Earth view below.

This is the non-exit at the end of the map's dotted line opposite the stop ...

... with a spectacular vault over some railings and a plunge to the road below. At least attacking the route from the stop TO the station you would give up at the outset rather than attempt a climb.

Visitors with a basic local knowledge of the area would, perhaps, find their way via Temple Gate and the station approach road or vice versa.

POOR MARKS

Thanks to considerable preparation via Google Streetview and some modicum of directional sense, the old man eschewed the M2 leaflet map and thus did not get lost.

Fortunately he did not have to tackle the required pre-book ticket machine.

The bus stop flag made no mention of the M2 ...

... but you might wait for a 903!

POOR MARKS

Regular readers will remember that all things Metrobus are delivered by a 2001 Space Odyssey type of  Monolith (My God, it's filled with stars!), where be tickets. The Monolith is not at the stop, but 30 metres away under the trees.

As a source of M2 information it was, to put it mildly, inadequate!

It didn't load. The "traditional" real/unreal screen was similarly uninformative.

POOR MARKS

But eschewing electronics, fbb consulted the old fashioned piece of paper ...

... and, to the minute, the bus appeared.

GOOD MARKS

Later, working Monoliths showed only timetabled time for the M2 ...

... which, at "Broadmead" (not actually at Broadmead!) was one minute earlier than the printed timetable. fbb passed by at 0952 (on time) but his bus had vanished from the display.

WORRYING

But the bad news was the destination shown on the bus as it arrived at the so-called Temple Meads stop was ...

 City Centre m2  

... WRONG!

POOR MARKS

This was a big disappointment after the success of the leaflet; which did not show a City "terminus", allowing the passenger to follow a seamless "loop" timetable.

At Temple Meads stop, the start of the loop, it should show "Ashton Vale Park and Ride".

Please put that right, First. At least two potential passengers had to ask the driver if he was going to Ashton Vale!

Of course, the Metrobus "team" will claim the it was "only the first day" but they have had all of Sunday to change the "flags" whilst the real-time technology should be standard and work just like, for example the M3 which was showing real real-time times.

The introduction and first stop experience was, at best, disappointing; but at 0942 precisely, your intrepid traveller boarded his M2 for a run from Temple Meads all the way to Ashton Gate.

 More M2 matters blog : Wednesday 5th September 

My M Y Day & More; Yippee (1)

M2 replaces 903

The Ashton Vale Park and Ride had carried a route number of 903. The free car park sits just off the A370 ...

... which eventually finds its way to Weston super Mud.

The on-line publicity for the now-replaced service was adequate but hardly stunning. There was a map of sorts which shows the route via Hotwells (the one-way "square" bit on the map below) and the A4 ...

... terminating in a large one way loop in the City centre.

It called at "The Centre" then plunged off via Bristol Bridge to Temple Way (for Temple Meads station) before following the inner ring road back to the Centre.

The web site borrows the timetable from Traveline ...

... and purports to show that you cannot board at Hotwells Hotwells Road on journeys TO City ...

... or alight nearby on journeys FROM City.

All the other stops are within the central area. Enlarging the map reveals stops served (which do respond to a click) and stops not served which don't.

Fares on the 903 were £4 peak, £3 off-peak with two children accompanying an adult for free.

The M2 leaflet is heaps better and themed in orange. The pictures are of two bright young things ...

... but accompanied by a cheery "senior" ...

... cheery because she/he/they can travel free on their passes at standard validity times. Many Park & Ride services nationally do not allow free travel.

We are told why we must pay before we board and reminded that the once-despised two door layout is now trendy again.

The list pf places where we can buy tickets is extensive, however, ...

... and the fares are cheaper than the 903.

The Park & Ride site itself is the only stop in Zone 2 ...

... so you are in pocket to the tune of £1.50 at peak and 50p off peak. Indeed, for the previous peak price of £4 you get the freedom of First's Bristol City network for the day. BARGAIN!

No mention, however, of childrens' fares - free on the 903.

Instead of running via Hotwells and the A4, the M2 leaves its guided busway at the Cumberland Basin and uses Cumberland Road ...

... between the original river and the later "cut". The road used to be served by the 506 but appears to have lost its "shuttle" despite evidence on Google Maps.

The City loop is different on the M2 and has been controversial.

Controversial because it doesn't serve "The Centre", a popular stop for commuters, until the very end of its long loop. Your choice is a lengthy walk from Wapping Wharf OR a grind round the inner ring road.

Either way, the complaint is that "popular" journeys will take longer. They will do. The 903 would drop you at The Centre after a ten minute whizz along the A4 (longer at peak) whereas the M2 offers the same ten minute ride to Whopping Wharf and a 15 minute walk. Or a Wapping 30 minutes all the way round the loop (again, longer at peak).

M2 - a dramatic improvement? Certainly no for Park & Riders to The Centre and its surrounding offices.

The other complaint is that, although the M2 has a stop called "Ashton Gate", near the stadium of the same name (as advertised on the web site) ...

... it is not much use on match days. The stadium is the home to Bristol City footy club and the Bristol Bears rugger ditto.

The M2 doesn't run at suitable times or frequencies for the final whistle at evening matches, and not at all for Sunday games. And even if it did ...

... there aren't enough vehicles equipped with busway guidewheels to carry the potential crowds.

Shortsighted?

Nevertheless, while most of our eager readers are perusing this blog, fbb will be riding the M2 and reporting tomorrow on the experience.

Also to come later, wise up on the Ys to Yate!

Whoops, forgot! The M2 leaflet has a full and detailed timetable.

Full marks to the Metrobus team; it would have been easy to sink to the unhelpful depths of a "simple" departure list. Full marks, too, for presenting the timetable in ssuch a way as to show all options on the City centre loop - there is no City "terminus" as such.

Refreshingly helpful.

 Next M Y Day blog : Tuesday 4th September