Arriva North West - Green Lane Depot

[Arriva3137]

RE: Arriva North West - Green Lane Depot

(26/03/2013 17:39)CX54 DKD Wrote:  Reading back through the thread, they're for the 12/13s.

Thanks!

[M113 YKC]

RE: Arriva North West - Green Lane Depot

(25/03/2013 11:02)bolton bus basher Wrote:  any sign of 7619 today? it got booked of my 12/13 on saturday for an unknown reason

7619 was on the 68 today. Also, 7618 was still out - on the 8/9

I rode on Ikarus Y36 KNB (2563) on the 8 today. It looked a mess from the outside, and it certainly was a mess inside, too - three types of moquette in place on flat, uncomfortable seats! Suspension on it was alright, which meant that there weren't too many rattles. Speed-wise - not too bad. Sounded like its differential was having some issues after about 20-MPH. Overall, rubbish quality!

Also, rode on Plaxton Pointer 2 X217 ANC (2217) on the 6. Bit loud and sluggish, however it was alright compared to a lot of other X-ANCs that I've rode on!

[Gillmoss 0324]

RE: Arriva North West - Green Lane Depot
From the previous posts and my observations at GL over the last 18 months/2 years there's been quite a lot of rubbish dumped at GL over this period particularly totally inappropriate Dart slf's with some of the oldest in the Arriva fleet usually showing up at GL and most of which are pretty much life expired and totally inappropriate for many of GL's high passenger routes.

Yes many of GL's routes are high frequency but the weight of numbers I've seen/experienced when using GL routes seems to suggest there should be deckers for the 12/13 and there's a strong case for them on the 10B, 15, 18 etc. and I won't go to heavy into this now.

If Arriva NW (wrongly) think single decks are the way (for now) for GL then there should've been a big order of Comanders/Pulsars or 12m singles from about 2005 to replace the Endurances, Ultralow's, Dart's etc. which hasn't really happened. Yeah there's been piecemeal reinvestment at GL but routes which should have kept these vehicles like the 15 and 18's have seen old vehicles frequently allocated to them and to the point the PVR's don't have the majority of the 'new' vehicles these routes should have on them.

Additonally Arriva NW could surely put in better vehicles than cast off Darts from depots which have got new Pulsars/deckers as replacements and particularly the pretty much life expired Dart's and Daf Cadets and Ikarus's should really be sold on or scrapped and are insulting to people using GL's routes which are a major profit generator for Arriva NW. Even the much criticised ex-London DLA's would've been better and more suitable at GL than most of this rubbish.

The only half decent cast off kit which has arrived at GL were the Renown's and even one of them (electrical not vandalism) caught fire which has mean't one less 12m single deck which is really what GL needs and I still don't know why if GL can't have deckers why the ex-London bendies couldn't have been acquired instead (thanks Merseytravel!) which although not as good as deckers would have solved some of the overcrowding problems these routes suffer instead of allowing them to rot at an airfield right now.

If Arriva management do take notice of this site perhaps they may conceed that if they gave GL a fair go it really needs to be set up with the following-

6 - Generally fine with midi's/12m single decks
7/7A - 12m single decks or midi's on a 20 min daytime frequency
8/9 - 12m single decks or midi's on a 20/15 min (each) daytime frequency
10B - 12m single decks or borderline double decks
12/13 - double decks
14 - 12m single decks (double deckers if one of the operators disappeared from the 14's)
15 - 12m single decks or borderline double decks
18 - 12m single decks or borderline double decks
26/27 - 12m single decks with double decks on matchdays
68 - could be midi operated on an increased 15min M-F daytime frequency (20 mins Saturdays).

Yes GL does serve some rough areas but on the whole these areas/passengers using these services are no worse than some of those in South Liverpool and to some extent the Wirral. Overall GL seems to be getting the worst vehicles and cast offs in Arriva NW with no real focus (branding, hybrids etc.) in developing what could be very good bus territory. Additionally there also seems to be a lack of support from Merseytravel for these route corridors despite all its bluster about SMART and QBP's and the lack of rail alternatives and no sign of a trams even coming to the city either.

Come on Arriva NW start treating GL bus users better than you are right now!

[CX54 DKD (Moderator)]

RE: Arriva North West - Green Lane Depot
It really does perplex me as to how you can claim some of the above. Other than from the 12 plate order, Green Lane have received Pulsars from every order 58 plate onwards and are also now the first to receive vehicles on the 13 plate.

As for the 15 and 18 - allocated some of the oldest vehicles? Both are allocated the newest full size single decks, can't comment on the specifics of the 18 but the 15 received a specific order (61 plates)!

I agree that some of the routes warrant deckers but claims that Green Lane suffer from a lack of investment and from the 'old rubbish' being dumped upon them come across as ludicrous when compared to the situation at garages such as St Helens who have been taking cast-offs from Green Lane as recently as yesterday.

[V671 DVU]

RE: Arriva North West - Green Lane Depot
I can see the opinion from both sides of view here...yes Green Lane have had a MASSIVE investment in Pulsars since 2008 (getting on for 60ish now I think?) but over the past year or so tired cascades such as the Darts from Bootle and the Renowns from Speke have been coming into the fleet. It has become a dumping ground over the past 12 months or so, and the situation is similar at St Helens. But lets not forget St Helens got a number of Solo SRs for local routes not long back...as well as a good few Pulsars from Skem! I do think the new buses balance out the old at Green Lane now though, especially after the new Pulsars come in.

[Gillmoss 0324]

RE: Arriva North West - Green Lane Depot
Just observations and using routes like 8/9 and to a lesser extent 15's which have had 13-15 year old dart's on there when I've used them. Yeah there's been Pulsars at GL but not enough of them to fully replace life expired Endurances/Ultralows that were better suited for GL and I reckon at least 20 to 30 odd vehicles are life expired most of which are dart's and do need replacement. For example the Pulsars that recently got cast off from Runcorn to Wythenshawe would've been more useful at GL. Instead we get stuff like elderly dart slf's and clapped out Cadet's/Ikarus's which should really be sold on/scrapped IMHO.

I do agree with you that SH too also needs better vehicles than they've got at the moment and being objective private companies will always do whats best for them not the customer (passengers).

[CX54 DKD (Moderator)]

RE: Arriva North West - Green Lane Depot

(26/03/2013 21:41)V671 DVU Wrote:  I can see the opinion from both sides of view here...yes Green Lane have had a MASSIVE investment in Pulsars since 2008 (getting on for 60ish now I think?) but over the past year or so tired cascades such as the Darts from Bootle and the Renowns from Speke have been coming into the fleet. It has become a dumping ground over the past 12 months or so, and the situation is similar at St Helens. But lets not forget St Helens got a number of Solo SRs for local routes not long back...as well as a good few Pulsars from Skem! I do think the new buses balance out the old at Green Lane now though, especially after the new Pulsars come in.

Pulsars from Skem can hardly be classed as investment given they were provided to satisfy the PVR of an inherited route. As for the SRs, true enough but as you yourself admit, the investment in Green Lane has been considerably greater and in larger vehicles. Beside that, St Helens have also received significantly more older transfers including Marshalls from Skem at the same time as the Pulsars and a huge influx of time expired Darts including, as I mentioned above, cast off Darts from Green Lane in a number of instances. I don't know about you but I'd have been much more satisfied with cascaded Y reg Renowns at 12m than numerous T reg Darts at 10.7m ready to be withdrawn within months.

St Helens was just an example though, Green Lane do very well for investment compared to most depots and I think people forget the scale of that investment sometimes. As above, even their cascades tend to be of a younger age.

[T42 PVM (Moderator)]

RE: Arriva North West - Green Lane Depot
green lane do get new buses a lot but i do agree its a joke on the buses bought as A the bus bought are just low quality crap and B to small for some routes like the 12,13, 15 and 10B, i do think the 10,10A or 10B should get deckers on myself not even bothered if it was castacaded deckers myself.

[M113 YKC]

RE: Arriva North West - Green Lane Depot

(26/03/2013 21:41)V671 DVU Wrote:  I can see the opinion from both sides of view here...yes Green Lane have had a MASSIVE investment in Pulsars since 2008 (getting on for 60ish now I think?) but over the past year or so tired cascades such as the Darts from Bootle and the Renowns from Speke have been coming into the fleet. It has become a dumping ground over the past 12 months or so, and the situation is similar at St Helens. But lets not forget St Helens got a number of Solo SRs for local routes not long back...as well as a good few Pulsars from Skem! I do think the new buses balance out the old at Green Lane now though, especially after the new Pulsars come in.

As with the ex-Skelmersdale-based Pulsar 2s, the Plaxton Pointer 2s went to Green Lane with the 68 and were buses that were already used on the 68 at Bootle, so they should be counted-out of this issue.

[507022]

RE: Arriva North West - Green Lane Depot
Noticed last week that Pulsar 3058 IIRC is still running around with Arriva Malta Web address on the rear