Stagecoach MCSL - Chester & Wirral Depots

[wirralbus]

RE: Stagecoach Chester & Wirral

(22/04/2018 21:27)iMarkeh Wrote:  There are traffic hotspots but they are busy stops. At the Zoo, they should have inspectors and when it is busy traffic wise, get inspectors to move passengers and make buses stop into the park and ride stop and at Cheshire Oaks they could close the Oaks stop (like they do during the light switch on) and send everyone to Stanney Lane and/or Colliseumand turn buses around there.

All McArthur Glen outlets are the same. Not one has a bus lane or any sort of bus priority, not one has a bus station or even a decent bus stop. Cars are always king with McArthur Glen. Bus companies run there because they know how much money can be made. Though the parking spaces are going, that is the point of making a second level on one car park and an extra level on the multi storey isn't it? to allow more parking.

If the Oaks had more transport links, more people would use public transport. Runcorn, Frodsham, Helsby, Liverpool, Birkenhead, Chester. That is it. Plus a once per day Manchester, Leeds, Bradford coach. That is rubbish. GHAs X20 used to look quite busy which obviously served Cheshire Oaks. That is what I think the problem is, not enough places have a regular bus link. Weekends and bank holidays are the busiest days. The 1 is hourly, X8 hourly. That is it. Mold, Buckley, Runcorn etc all have no link Sundays or bank holidays. Once things like that are sorted and more places have transport links, that is what will change people's ways.

Though that sounds like a good call, the problem is blacons only need 4 buses. You could do Blacons and Saltney (4 Blacons, 4 Saltney). Enviros would work well on the SPs though as well as darts are too slow. The enviros have kickdown and get round the route much faster. That is another 3. Chester will take 11. All the others can go elsewhere haha. Could route 17 be a good call though from Gillmoss??? Covers PVR + a few spares. It is the most frequent route in that depot and isn't tied into an QBP so no competition. It is a longish route as well. GOLD doesn't work as well on local routes as USB will only get your phone upto like 10% before you get off and wifi is now standard on most buses. The only feature then is the seats.... I don't know many people who change their travelling habits based on the seats.

I could also see the Enviros going onto the 41/42s. That is another busy route (Mon-Fri). It means they don't have to mess around as well moving around buses and makes things easier for maintenance and stuff as Rock Ferry drivers and engineers know the buses already so saves time in that respect (no training for familiarisation).

The difference with the 471/472 compared to the 2s is that each company runs each way round a somewhat circular (471 in 472 out or vice versa). I know both companies run both ways as it swaps in the evening but the point is that you would get whichever bus is quickest, you wouldn't go 'through' Heswall just to get a cheaper bus. On the 2s as well, you have to remember south of Hooton, Arriva had nothing except for the 2 and X2. Stagecoach also ran the X2 but had the 1 as well which has always been a more popular route. Plus if I remember rightly, Stagecoach had an extra bus or two on the route compared to Arriva.

The balance of the partnership on the Chester service was too weighed on the main corridors to First and then Stagecoach. Also with the service 2 the depot at Birkenhead was much too far away when things went wrong with the buses , whereas at the time first then Stagecoach had depots at Rock Ferry and Chester on the line of the route , the straw that broke the camels back was probably the introduction of the X8.