Stagecoach MCSL - Chester & Wirral Depots

[P528LND]

RE: First Chester & Wirral

(06/07/2012 00:16)126th street Wrote:  

(05/07/2012 17:37)P528LND Wrote:  Take into account that it's not up to them to advertise Arriva journeys, as is it not their responsibility to advertise Arriva's tickets either.

Actually yes it is. It is a partnership between all parties involved,

If somebody reads what First have published online they could come to the conclusion that the service frequency is erratic and that, if you look at the Heswall timetable, buses operate via different routes depending on which direction they're heading(!!) and that there is no evening service. Say if you lived in Heswall and wanted to go to Liverpool one night: you might well ride a First bus there and obviously an Arriva service back. If you just looked at First's timetable you would arrive at the conclusion that you couldn't get back so would probably abandon the bus altogether, losing them a daytime/early evening passenger in the process.

The operator of individual journeys is irrelevant to both passengers and the operator themselves and hence they should publish the timetable for the QBP routes in their entirety, not just the bits that First have rather childishly and very arrogantly chosen to publicise.

Who is actually in charge of the quality bus partnership? The local authority. It is their responsibility to explain how the ticketing along the routes work and what buses come when. An operator is only interested in making themselves money and themselves only full stop. Here in Manchester, there are journeys on the route 22 that are run by Stagecoach Manchester, North West and First Manchester. Neither company advertise that their weekly tickets are inter-usable on the 22 but they still are. It's up to TfGM to explain this. They also don't show each others journeys, however on TfGM's website there is a shared timetable with all relevant information of journeys on it.

The quality bus partnership is simply two bus operators providing journeys along one bus route/corridor with a few mix and match tickets. At no point do First have to display information about the rival company because after-all, it's still a rival company.

Personally I think this whole QBP scheme is a stupid way of living in a dream world of bus companies all working happily together. It's just not going to work under any circumstance.

One thing I can never make sense of is why Chester have 3 route 1's. It makes abaolutely no sense to me, it's as though they've gone 'Oh lets make a bus route, stop there there there and there... what shall we number this, 1? Yes 1. Right, lets make another bus route, go round in a circle there, come back. Hmm, what shall we number this, 1? Yes. 1. We'll do one that goes round the other way and number that one 1A. Right, another bus route, go up there, past the Zoo, up to the city. Stop here, there, everywhere. What shall we nu... 1? Oh, are you sure? Oh well I guess that's ok...