Sheffield Bus Network Changes - September 2019

[Andy C]

A reminder the timetable and route changes take place tomorrow, Sunday 1st September.

 

See https://www.travelsouthyorkshire.com/servicechanges/

Edited August 31, 2019 by Andy C

[Retro Queen]

The 32 bus from Herries Road, what a joke. Its changing to First so I would have thought there would be an improvement. No chance. Its now going to run once an hour, even at peak times,  and the times it runs will make me either far too early or too late for work so I will have to go back to the 98 which takes ages and goes round the houses before getting to town. Why can't they leave things alone?

 

I have also heard that some areas, like Grenoside and some parts of Walkley will be without a bus service at all which is just outrageous. How are people supposed to go to work and get around, we don't all have cars nor can afford taxis all the time. The buses in Sheffield are turning out to be running a service that would run in the country and the middle of nowhere and we are a city.  Time to listen to what the public what.

[Andy C]

3 hours ago, Retro Queen said:

The 32 bus from Herries Road, what a joke. Its changing to First so I would have thought there would be an improvement. No chance. Its now going to run once an hour, even at peak times,  and the times it runs will make me either far too early or too late for work so I will have to go back to the 98 which takes ages and goes round the houses before getting to town. Why can't they leave things alone?

 

I have also heard that some areas, like Grenoside and some parts of Walkley will be without a bus service at all which is just outrageous. How are people supposed to go to work and get around, we don't all have cars nor can afford taxis all the time. The buses in Sheffield are turning out to be running a service that would run in the country and the middle of nowhere and we are a city.  Time to listen to what the public what.

Those are buses that are specified and subsidised by the local authority in the form of SYPTE.

 

Not enough fare paying passengers actually use them to be financially viable  as a commercial operation.

 

Unfortunately SYPTE have again had their budgets cut as part of the government's austerity policy across the public sector. 

 

Grenoside isn't completely without buses - the 86, M92 and 135 will still run, however it is a much reduced level of service. 

 

Walkley still has it's main bus service - the 95/95a but loses the little bus around the estates  

Edited September 1, 2019 by Andy C

[Retro Queen]

31 minutes ago, Andy C said:

Those are buses that are specified and subsidised by the local authority in the form of SYPTE.

 

Not enough fare paying passengers actually use them to be financially viable  as a commercial operation.

 

Unfortunately SYPTE have again had their budgets cut as part of the government's austerity policy across the public sector. 

 

Grenoside isn't completely without buses - the 86, M92 and 135 will still run, however it is a much reduced level of service. 

 

Walkley still has it's main bus service - the 95/95a but loses the little bus around the estates  

The 32 bus at Herries Road is always full of people and through Shirecliffe, its hardly running on empty. I have heard that the 31 isn't going to serve most of Walkley and that's not on the 95 route.

 

My friend's nephew lives at Grenoside and his bus has already been taken off completely. Also there isn't a bus that goes up to the crematorium which again isn't acceptable.

 

As for where I live, on Scraithwood Drive, we have the 98 bus which is every half an hour, the 18 bus to Hillsborough which is now every hour and the 32 bus which is every hour. Its an inner city suburb where a lot of people live - there is my estate, Southey, Shirecliffe - all putting up with this rubbish service yet you can't blink for 52 buses! All estates should have the same service.

[catmiss]

I appreciate that some of the services are not economically viable (the 31 service is known colloquially as the old farts bus) but when the council provide housing for elderly and disabled people at the top of steep hills do they not have a responsibility to subsidy a bus service? Many of the people using who used the 31 service have said they would pay a top up fee on their concession pass to maintain a service which served the whole area

[Andy C]

5 hours ago, catmiss said:

I appreciate that some of the services are not economically viable (the 31 service is known colloquially as the old farts bus) but when the council provide housing for elderly and disabled people at the top of steep hills do they not have a responsibility to subsidy a bus service? Many of the people using who used the 31 service have said they would pay a top up fee on their concession pass to maintain a service which served the whole area

You'd think that would fall into the social need category to justify funding wouldn't you?

 

The problem with the 31 mon-fri daytime is Sheffield Community Transport was being operated commercially without any funding, but on water thin profit margins. This was possible as community transport has lower overheads and it shared a pool of drivers with other routes which were run under contract with a subsidy. 

 

Sheffield Community transport lost all their other contracts except the H1 so the resource is lost, the 31 carried very few full fare paying passengers so they had to withdraw it as unviable.

 

From SYPTE point of view, they simply don't have the money to fund extra routes.

 

The money that funded the evening and weekend service is now being used to extend the 52a to Loxley to replace that bit of the withdrawn 31/31b. Not sure if any subsidy is involved in diverting the 135 via Upperthorpe to replace that section of 31b.

 

I'm not saying that's right - the publically funded side of the system (be that concessionary pass reimbursements or supported socially necessary services) simply hasn't enough money going in, ultimately because of the Conservative government austerity policy. 

Edited September 2, 2019 by Andy C

[Temuchin]

10 hours ago, Andy C said:

...

Grenoside isn't completely without buses - the 86, M92 and 135 will still run, however it is a much reduced level of service.

...

"completely without buses " should never be an option! You have to think of Greno in terms of Upper and Lower and the hill walks necessary to move between the two, making the 86 a difficult option for lots of Upper Greno residents. The fact remains that the main Upper Greno service has gone from a peak of every 20 minutes on the 85 to the current hourly 135.  And given the persistent lack of reliability on this route, it's likely to mean upto a two hour wait!

10 hours ago, Retro Queen said:

...

My friend's nephew lives at Grenoside and his bus has already been taken off completely. Also there isn't a bus that goes up to the crematorium which again isn't acceptable.

...

The M92 does still service the crem according to the latest timetable, but the route has changed.

[Pat&Cat]

I went to  catch a 75 at the top of Sicey Avenue to go to Meadowhead as usual this morning. UK buschecker showed the next 75 coming at 13:45! Very surprised. Then 2 76s came in quick succession. When I checked  bus checker for Firth Park it showed 3 75s in quick succession. I have since discovered that they're changing numbers half way round the route! What's the point? 

[Vaati]

On 29/08/2019 at 14:00, Andy C said:

In more simple language, support your local community's bus service by buying tickets and travelling on it - or lose it!

I did, now the bus being the time it is, it's 'useless' to me. Almost as if they want to get rid of it. I know several paying passengers who are no longer going to get it as it's too late for the final trip.

[Hotmale 1954]

Like owt else, the Tories will blame the last Labour Government. That, by the way, was in 1978. Blair's 'New Labour' was just a light blue Tory Party. As for Carr Road at Walkley, you could sail the QE2 up and down it.