Tram Troubles : Trading Troubles

Replacement Buses Rag Bag

Back in the days when Stagecoach operated South West Trains and painted their units in bright distinctive liveries, their Hampshire company has a fleet of buses in SWT livery to match the trains.

Some of them had been repatriated from Hong Kong. Thus, the overall image was maintained, despite the frustration of disruption.

What might you expect to see on tram replacement services in Sheffield now that the mayoral authorities the trams? 

Apparently, anything with a wheel at each corner. 

The contractor has to move his buses all the way from Wakefield. Do drivers have to travel, or are casual people recruited from Sheffield?

The pale blue one, seen here at the Herdings bus turning circle ...

... which was once with First on the York Park and Ride! 

It did get a dark blue paint job.

There is no need to investigate the ancestry of this decker ...

... also snapped in the Herdings turning circle. But you would not immediately spot this livery ...

... as being ex London. For that you need the reg. Number and the Internet!

This rather gloomy grey Merc ...

... was once a more cheerful maroon with YourBus ...

... briefly an intruder in Derby and Nottingham. Shopaholics will spot the frontage of John Lewis ...

... occupying the footprint of part of the former Nottingham Victoria station. 

But the best historic timeline applies to this bus.

Previously it wore a plain yellow yellow for the ailing Bournemouth Transport 'Yellow Buses' business ...

... but, even further back it was with Bus Vannin (that's Isle of Man to ye and me!) ...

... with an obviously "furrin" registration plate.

Now, were fbb running Supertram, and were he planning the consequences of digging up a huge section of track, he would want his replacement bus services to look reliable and confidently professional.

A multi-coloured collection from the queue for the scrapyard does NOT inspire confidence in the hearts and wallets of the paying customer.

Negative house points are awarded to Travel South Yorkshire and a dunce's cap for big cheese Oliver Coppard.

Must do better!

Thanks to Sheffield correspondent, Roy, for pictures of the replacement vehicles.

The End Of Yorkshire Buses

It sounds dramatic, and it is for a small company mainly involved in tendered work. This was its on-line announcement ...

... and a full text version.

It is with a truly heavy heart that we share this news.

After much thought and consideration, the continued rise in costs which includes fuel and many other significant increases has made it no longer sustainable for us to continue operating. This has not been an easy decision, and it is one we have fought hard to avoid however with further cost increases forecast on the horizon the decision has had to be made sooner rather than later.

From the very beginning, Yorkshire Buses has been about more than just transport. It has been about community, connection, and the people we have had the privilege to serve every single day.

We want to take this moment to sincerely thank each and every one of you, our passengers, nurses, supporters, staff, and partners and the rest for your loyalty, kindness, and support over the years. Your encouragement has meant more to us than words can express.

To our incredible team, past and present, thank you for your dedication and hard work. You are the heart of everything we have done.

While this chapter is coming to a close, we will always be grateful for the journey we have shared together.

Thank you for being part of our story.

As is often the case with this sort of business, the company has operated a variety of routes in West Yorkshire over recent years.

These have included a vintage open topper!

Likewise, the fleet has been varied. Here are two versions of allocation on service 61/61A, small ...

... and larger.

Here is a timetable extract for the 61/61A.

The 116 and 212 are hourly and more main line in character.

One operation over the border in Doncaster was the Sunday service on Arriva's 51.

Currently, West Yorkshire Metro is scurrying around trying to find alternative operators.

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A huge part of all four gospels deals with the last week or so of Jesus' life. So much challenge and encouragement is packed in to well over one third of the written account. So it's all important.

So we have seen triumph (of a sort, Palm Sunday); anger at the corruption of God's House, anguish at the future that was waiting for both the temple and Jerusalem (both destroyed in AD70).

The foolish virgins (better word, bridesmaids) who wuere locked out of God's eternity because they were not ready.

But from now on things become very personal.

A woman (unnamed in Matthew's account) poles expensive ...

PERFUME

... over Jesus' head. She is rehearsing the anointing of his body for burial, a self sacrificing act of worship and commitment.

True commitment to God (to Jesus if you like - both are the same) is what makes a difference.

But sometimes that commitment is beyond us.

What is missing here ?

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Next book review blog : Fri 3rd April

Trams Need Rails (2) [mini blog]

 Excellent Publicity

The diagram is helpful for regulars, but the accurate geographical map (see yesterday's blog) is much better, especially for those bamboozled by necessary  deviations from the tram route. Also, for the unwary, buses cannot always stop at tram stops!

The web site does, however, provide a list of stops served by the replacement bus.

Even better, you get local maps guiding you from tram stop to bus stop.

They are accurate and helpful.

Unlike Manchester, where tram timetables are a closely guarded secret, Sheffield has always published proper timetables for its tram route, as per the example sample below.

The PURPLE route was once every 20 minutes, then cut back to every 30 minutes, now reduced to a really useless hourly service.

The full BLUE service usually runs every 12.

During the rail replacement fortnight, the PURPLE hourly tram service is replaced by a bus every 15 minutes; but the bus is also a cover for the BLUE trams.

It fills the gap between the two continuing bits of the BLUE. trams, one running from Malin Bridge to the railway station ...

... with frequency reduced to every 15. The Gleadless to Halfway section is also every 15.

Is there a replacement bus timetable?

Of course there is!

Note that the green shading highlights connection FROM Malin Bridge and TO Halfway. 

Unusually, times are given for every stop, very continental!

In each case there is a five minute connection time, This, combined with slower bus turning times, will make a cross city journey at least 15 minutes slower than a through tram.

Painfully tedious, but very necessary to ensure track is well maintained.

Tomorrow we explore the buses that are operating this essential replacement service. Readers may remember the appearance, in the past, of a couple of bendibuses, one red, one sky blue filling in for withdrawn trams.

Will these be climbing the hill once again through the Norfolk Park estate ...

... like wot buses did when fbb was a lad and Norfolk Park still had tower blocks?

 Meanwhile, in Leeds ...

The company operates tendered services in Leeds and Doncaster, of which more anon.

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As well as seemingly to provoke antagonism, Jesus tells parables (ostensibly simple stories with a challenging message) that are "full of surprises" - and how!

The other five had not taken a refill of oil for their ...

LAMPS

... so when their evening accompiament duty serving the bridegroom, were required, they were not ready, could not join the procession and were shut out of the wedding feast.

History tells us that the authorities of the day were not ready for the Jesus message but the parable is a more far-reaching challenge.

Everyone who heard this story would know that it was about being ready, not for the arrival of Jesus in Jerusalem, but for the return of Jesus at the end of time.

But being ready for the ultimate is all part of what Easter is about.

Really!

One woman was keen to make sure Jesus was ready for his self-provoked death and burial!

Ready with what?

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  Next tran replacement blog : Thurs 2nd Apr 

Trams Need Rails (1)

And Rails Need Replacing

A while back, the above was a big job replacing track in the Sheffield University area.

The tunnel takes the service under the main roundabout.

But when the rails are being replaced, no trams can run and Supertram has to organise replacement buses.

If your tram network is complex, then there may be alternative routes as here in Paris in the 1920s ...

... or today in Basel.

There are no by-pass tracks in Sheffield.

The latest renewal project is at Manor Top on the BLUE  line and the PURPLE line. The work is on rails via a road junction between Sheffield's outer ring road and the main road to Mansfield.

The tracks are on-street on the A6135 and 'reserved' on Ridgeway Road ...

... but the interface at the junction is complex. It is going to be fun for road traffic as well.

For the duration of the school Easter holidays no trams will run between Sheffield railway station and Gleadness Town End.

What happens is shown diagrammatically. BLUE trams run from Malin Bridge to the station ...

... where they terminate.

A replacement bus service in GREEN starts from Fitzalan Square ...

... connects with BLUE trams for Halfway at Gleadless Town End then continues to Herdings totally replacing the PURPLE service.

But the bus cannot always follow the tram tracks exactly. Here is the bus route geographically.

The detail is of interest. Buses will follow an anti clockwise loop in the city centre to stop opposite the Fitzalan Square tram stop.

After a call at the bus station, buses will stop a good bit further from the trains than the tram offers, close to the Granville Road tram stop and then joining the route via Norfolk Park.

Let's hope the tramway travellers of Sheffield remember to interchange at Fitzalan Square/Commercial Street and nor risk a hike from station tram stop to station bus stop!

The bus diverts from the tram route between Norfolk Park and Manor Top ...

... which means that the Spring Lane tram stop sees no service whatsoever.

After a stop at Gleadless Town End to connect (?) with a tram to Halfway, the replacement bus finds its way to the Herdings terminus.

It cannot turn right into Raeburn Road, so has to trundle on and do a 'U' turn at the next junction. The tram stop is hidden in foliage opposite (ish) the bus turning circle.

Can you see a tiny yellow dot in the trees, centre right? Well it is there and it is ...

... the buffer at the tram terminus!

More tomorrow including a look at the temporary timetables and some of he buses operating the replacement service.

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We have seen two surprises so far. Jesus arrives as a King coming in peace, welcomed by the people; then follows a less than peaceful rant at the temple.

After his anger about the commercialisation of worship (have you visited a Cathedral recently?) Jesus takes his inner circle away from controversy, only to create another.

He is looking across the Kidron Valley at the ...

TEMPLE

... the centre of religious activity, of the law and of the governance of the Jews.

And he predicts (accurately, as it happened just 37 years later!!) its total destruction.

Does this Jesus guy want to infuriate the establishment? Does he want to be provocative? Is there more angst to come?

Does he have an alternative plan?

..

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 Next tram replacement blog : Weds 1st April