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After Strawberry tried the venture to Southport last year, they stated that they weren't making enough to make it viable. The reason for that, I believe, is Fairway's interference in the Stagecoach service.

As soon as Fairway stepped in with a lower fare (albeit with much worse vehicles) they took the fare paying passengers. Therefore, Stagecoach lost the little income they gained from the route rendering it a loss making service for them. They pulled out and the route was left with step entrance, inferior minibuses. The chops and changed which followed in the hands of Fairway then ruined the 'reputation' of the route, if you will, and also lost a lot of regular custom therefore making it impossible for even them to run it through to Southport which is when it was chopped back to Ormskirk. That route slid and slid from the minute Fairway put their foot in the door.

Do I think it would still run through to Southport, be a Stagecoach service and operate at a financial gain for them if Fairway had never touched it? Yes, I do.

Hi sorry if been said on the old forum what gear box have the 53/55/06 darts have?

thanks in advance!

i was told the reason stagecoach pulled out was down to the fact the driver that was always on there retired, i take it what i been told is bull?

(27/06/2012 20:21)bolton bus basher Wrote: [ -> ]i was told the reason stagecoach pulled out was down to the fact the driver that was always on there retired, i take it what i been told is bull?

No 2 drivers ran it! There was a older driver and a young driver.

You still see the young driver on the 86s and 82s!

(27/06/2012 20:21)bolton bus basher Wrote: [ -> ]i was told the reason stagecoach pulled out was down to the fact the driver that was always on there retired, i take it what i been told is bull?

I believe that chap (who'd done the 319 for years and years) was indeed retiring but I highly doubt that was the reason as there was another regular driver who did the route a few days a week who was at most in his early thirties. The reason they pulled out was that the service stopped being profitable for them.

ahh right that old driver was a pain in the bum anyway i know passengers hated him as he had an attitude problem with kids on the bus, i remember when i was 4 or 5 he kicked of at me coz i stood up when the bus was like almost full, thankfully a few passengers and my dad kicked of back saying i was standing up for an old person

He used to have some sort of mood swings. One day he'd be happy and would even joke with you (and this is me as a Y7 pupil) and then the next, he'd bite your head off for not stating your destination loudly enough. Like I say, he'd spent years on the 319 exclusively.

yea the passengers that defended me told my dad about that, we never used that bus again we went onto using the trains changing at liverpool

Iv had a few arguements with stagecoach drivers and the worst thing is they think they can win your your a teenager !¬

I can confirm that the 319 wasn't taken off due to the driver retiring- it was merely taken off due as Stagecoach deemed it to not make enough money anymore.