This video appeared in a French enthusiasts' web site. It shows the ultimate demise of a diesel electric locomotive at Gare de l'Est.
Les CC 72000 forment une série de locomotives Diesel-électriques, construites à quatre-vingt-douze exemplaires, pour la Société nationale des chemins de fer français par Alstom. Ce sont les locomotives Diesel les plus puissantes de la SNCF. Trente d'entre elles sont devenues des CC 72100, par remotorisation.
It appears that no-one was hurt!
And here is CC72180 in happier mode.
Nuclear Bus in Minehead
fbb is greatly indebted to correspondent David (from Minehead) who kindly rushed out to photograph the free service to Bridgwater operated by Somerset Passenger Solutions and paid for by EDF Energy.
SPS is jointly owned by Crossville and First Bus. Here is KX14 FJU at the Bancks Steet terminus in beautiful Minehead.
Here is a close-up of the blind display.
Question : What is "HPC Communite Bus"?
Answer : Hinkley Point C, the name of the Power Station under construction on behalf of French company EDF but funded by the Chinese government and planned as part of a UK government initiative. It will ultimately be paid for by you and me through increased fuel bills. So, ultimately, we will be paying or the free bus between Bridgwater and Minehead!
fbb is also grateful to another corespondent for finding the time to dig deep into the coal measures of the internet and find a timetable for this innovative service.
It needs TWO buses to run it; departures are at similar times from Minehead.
The restrictions below are explained, with a profusion of "betweens" but perhaps a better job could have been done by annotating the map.
Local passengers may not be carried between any points wholly between Minehead and Carhampton (it should say "inclusive") ...
protecting Buses of Somerset 28
... or from anywhere between these points to or from Watchet WST Station.
BoS 28 runs via Washford
Local passengers also may not be carried between points wholly between Cannington and Bridgwater (also "inclusive").
protecting BoS 14
How We Appreciate the Fourth Estate!
Bristol correspondent Paul draws fbb's attention to a major article in the on-line Bristol Post.
It is illustrated with a line-up of First Bristol Streetlites.
There then follows a list of journeys (NOT services) which First will now operate commercially.
No.1: Five Monday to Saturday evening journeys.
No.2: Five Monday to Saturday evening journeys.
No.5: Three Monday to Friday and one Saturday morning journeys; 11 Monday to Saturday evening journeys; all Sunday journeys.
No.6: Five Monday to Saturday evening journeys.
No.7: Six Monday to Saturday evening journeys.
No.24: Five Monday to Saturday evening journeys.
No.36: Seven Monday to Saturday evening journeys; all Sunday journeys.
No.50: Five Monday to Saturday evening journeys.
No.90: Seven Monday to Saturday evening journeys.
So no slashing there.
Then follows a list of eight services (or parts thereof) which will continue to be subsidised. (52 & 77 evenings; 508, 511, 512, 513, 514 and 515).
So no slashing there.
Then we have minor changes to 505 and 506:-
No.505: Half-hourly service from Long Ashton park and ride and Southmead Hospital; less frequent services during peak hours; the current short working journeys to Blackboy Hill will no longer operate; evening services will be hourly (majority of passengers who use this service have hospital appointments and will not be affected).
No.506: Half-hourly service from Southmead Hospital to Broadmead; route change will mean this service will no longer continue past Broadmead to Create Centre as this stretch of the route will be served in future by MetroBus.
Not a slash but a very tiny trim.
Finally the article gets to the slash and burn in full detail!
Severn Beach Line rail replacement (9 journeys between Avonmouth and Severn Beach on Saturdays): Service withdrawn as cost is more than £10 per passenger journey.
FACT : No trains are "replaced"
FACT : It is actually five RETURN journeys.
And that's it. That's all there is. Not a slash but responsible good housekeeping. It is marginally sad for the (very) small number of rail passengers between Severn Beach and Avonmouth on a Saturday, but hardly a disaster. Currently these buses increase the train frequency from two hourly to hourly by connecting at Avonmouth. This is a Saturday only enhancement (times with note "b").
Trains are two hourly on Mondays to Fridays.
fbb guesses that Ian Onions (the article's author) never travels by bus and has no idea what the Severn Beach withdrawal means.
It's called (ir)responsible reporting!
Telford Station - Integrated Transport
Northampton correspondent Alan sends this heart-warming picture from Telford.
Alan's suggested headline is apposite:-
London Midland, Wrekin havoc
with bus infromation
at Telford Central station.
Chortle, chortle!
Don't bother to try to enlarge it; there isn't any!
The posters are (from left to right) Arriva Trains Wales Information, Advert for cheap fares from Birmingham to London and London Midland about Delay Compensation.
Models and More Miscellany on the Morrow.
Next miscellany blog : Sunday 5th March
The Bristol story seems to fall into the 'fake news' category (or 'alternative facts). Either way, it's unhelpful to readers, bus users and the industry.
ReplyDeleteSadly that's the normal standard for the Bristol Post which goes in for "Shock, Horror, Misery...." headlines. Usually there's very little story to support the hype.
ReplyDeleteYou understate London's Night Bus pvr which at 31 December 2016 was 1020 buses on Saturday nights. (Source: LOTS London Bus Magazine 629 p8 (January 2017).I reckon Friday night pvr would be comparable, other weekday nights around 640 buses.
ReplyDelete