Warrington's Own Buses

[Valandil]

RE: WBT Network Warrington
Timetable for the 22 from 2nd June:
http://www.merseytravel.gov.uk/travellin...014%29.pdf
Changes look to be only for the final journey of the evening (Monday - Saturday) and on Sundays.

NB Often Merseytravel links seem not to work: if this is the case, you can get to the timetable from this page:
http://www.merseytravel.gov.uk/travellin...ges--.aspx

[Valandil]

RE: WBT Network Warrington
It sounds like we may get an announcement or two on 06/05.
Let's wait and see and hope so.

[motormayhem1]

RE: WBT Network Warrington
An announcement about what ?

[Valandil]

RE: WBT Network Warrington

(02/05/2014 15:57)motormayhem1 Wrote:  An announcement about what ?

Sorry, I should have added, about all these changes that are to take place.

[motormayhem1]

RE: WBT Network Warrington
Ah sound,thanks.

[Valandil]

RE: WBT Network Warrington
Well here it is:
http://www.networkwarrington.co.uk/news/...m-2nd-june

Quite a few surprises there, particularly with the introduction of circularity to the Connect 17's and 29's, and increasing it on the Penkeths.
The 17's truly will be a circular service as well, since it looks like no vehicle change will usually be required at the Interchange or anywhere else along the route.
It's quite surprising that the 17 will no longer serve Chapelford, given that that was the original intention of the service.
Also surprising that the 13 will have a Sunday service, that the 18 will not, and that there will no longer be an 18a!
It looks like the 13 and 18 will interwork, swapping over at the Callands terminus.
Kingswood will no longer be served, though the 13/18/17's will go near.

I'm trying to work out exactly which things will interwork and the timings, but it's hard since some of the 'natural' timings look tight.
E.g. will the 14 and 15 interwork? -- they would only have 3 minutes' recovery time at Warrington Interchange ...

It is a surprise to me that the 6 will now terminate at Thelwall and there will no longer be any 7's.
So too that the 10c will run right through to Dudlows Green and will now interwork with other routes (the 11a, 12a and 31?).
On the 31, I really do not understand why it is now to operate only clockwise around the Hall Nook - Maple Crescent - Neville Crescent estate, and why inbound there will be a subtle variation in the route in this area.
One possible reason could just be to 'slow the route down' so as to create a more even headway down (Old) Liverpool Road, with a service roughly every 10 minutes between 29a, 29c, 31 and 32a, but with one gap of 20 minutes each hour.

I will be looking through in more detail over the coming days, as I imagine other Warringtonians will!

One thing I don't like about the timetables is that, say when a time is 01 minutes past the hour, it is given as just 1, though admittedly that is a pretty minor point!

[2829]

RE: WBT Network Warrington
The allocated vehicles on the Bus to the Pub 2014 have been Volvo B7TLs; 189, 190 & 191. 189 being the most tuneful of the trio.

[robertclark125]

RE: WBT Network Warrington
No doubt tuneful as it may have been suitably replenished - hic!

[R557 ABA]

RE: WBT Network Warrington
Here's some photos and videos from the Bus to the Pub day, I agree with 2829 with 189 being the most tuneful of the three. It was a great day and a bonus to a B7TL enthusiast such as myself to sample three very different examples.

189
Photo - https://www.flickr.com/photos/thomasharr...973810320/
Video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AGz5f5o1skM

190
Photo - https://www.flickr.com/photos/thomasharr...180477933/
Video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Gi8zxcpyBo

191
Photo - https://www.flickr.com/photos/thomasharr...973722218/
Video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pSOSIJnuA6s

[Valandil]

RE: WBT Network Warrington
Some good photos of the Gems there!
It's nice to see one along with a First Manchester Gem.
This isn't unusual in itself, but the location where this happened is!

It will be interesting to see what the further changes registered today for the 11/12, 17's and Penkeths will be -- and how these are communicated to the public.

One of the curious things about the next set of timetable changes in Warrington is the difference between peak and off-peak services.
Previously, the 10A operated through to Dudlows Green in the peaks only -- now 10C will operate through to Dudlows Green, but off-peak only.
So too, the 31 used to have roughly double the frequency in the peaks than it did off-peak -- now there will be no service in the peaks with a roughly similar level of service off-peak.
It remains the case that the 5 will operate through to Altrincham only in the peaks (Monday to Friday) -- and the trend will continue to be reversed on Saturdays, with services operating through to Altrincham only during the main part of the day (e.g. not before 9am).
The 6 will do all kinds of crazy things in the peaks -- sometimes being extended to Statham or Lymm, and sometimes being curtailed to the Cobbs Estate (as 6C).