South Yorkshire Bus Service Needs Improvement

[Michael_N]

2 hours ago, Bigal1 said:

Quite correct and although is can be annoying there is good reason even if they might review some of the times in the off peak. It  really hacks me off when supertram management (been confirmed when I have complained) are more than happy for their trams to leave 2 minutes early and regard their timetable as a guide - you may well ask if it is important but as I know exactly how long it takes me to reach the tram stop from home then walking up to the tramstop at Middlewood and seeing the tram pulling away early is a real pain. OK now I have to leave a couple of minutes earlier and sit and wait )They care so little about their customers that they never check to see if people are approaching they just shut the doors and give the proverbial two fingers (doesn't even matter if it is the tram link bus arriving)

As far as I'm aware trams are not covered by the traffic commissioner so therefore run to their own rules. I also imagine it's pretty difficult if running ahead of schedule to wait time at most stops, as they will call for signals, block the carriageway etc. Much easier on to do on a bus with bus stop laybys etc.

 

17 hours ago, 1295galaxy said:

Stage Coach started off well in Sheffield and were very reliable,but now they have changed there bus timetables,and some buses are stood at bus stops too long,when there is no one there and don"t just do this once but about 2 to 3 times,so you get annoyed with the driver just waiting at a bus stop when your trying to get to the place you want to as quick as you can,instead of gaining passengers doing this there just going to  stop people wanting to catch any of there Buses,Why have Stage Coach brought this on when First do not seems very odd,and when you see a driver just stopping the bus for a cigarette or even doing a crossword it can be very annoying indeed

Sorry but that's a little contradictory. The reason Stagecoach buses are so reliable and remain to be, is because they give their drivers enough time on the route. This is why when they reach a timing point (stops listed on the main timetables) the drivers have to wait until the departure time window to then leave to the next stop. The traffic commissioner states this is a window between 59 seconds early or 5 minutes late to be classed as on time. As you will appreciate traffic congestion can vary in normal times, so it's a fine balancing act to please everyone. I'm sure the drivers would much rather be sat at the terminus for longer on their own, rather than with customers onboard mid-route waiting to catch up on time as much as you and the rest of the passengers onboard.

[BigAl1]

22 hours ago, Michael_N said:

As far as I'm aware trams are not covered by the traffic commissioner so therefore run to their own rules. I also imagine it's pretty difficult if running ahead of schedule to wait time at most stops, as they will call for signals, block the carriageway etc. Much easier on to do on a bus with bus stop laybys etc.

 

 

Indeed they do run to their own rules and with complete disregard for their customers often. leaving the terminus early is inexcusable, and yes I agree they can not stop and block the road to wait but there are plenty of places where they can and indeed are meant to wait if early

[Annie Bynnol]

Some bus services are run on contract, particularly very early/late services on main routes and some rural services.

If these are not running or are overly early/late direct complaints should be made to the  authority and a copy made to the provider.

In my experience the complaint was investigated and resolved to my satisfaction.

 

On the other hand I would have no objection to an operator 'fixing' the frequency of a busy route by allowing early departures, curtailment or empty moves, so that everybody along that route benefits. 

 

At a bus terminus passengers arriving at departure times will cause the bus to depart late. 

Busy railways avoid this by closing and locking train doors up to a minute before departure, thus avoiding the need to restart the departure process.

 

 

[13court2]

roll on auto self drive buses trains and trams

[andyofborg]

4 minutes ago, 13court2 said:

roll on auto self drive buses trains and trams

why?

 

they will stop at every bus stop until the proper time 

[BigAl1]

19 hours ago, Annie Bynnol said:

 

At a bus terminus passengers arriving at departure times will cause the bus to depart late. 

Busy railways avoid this by closing and locking train doors up to a minute before departure, thus avoiding the need to restart the departure process.

 

 

Unlike with Supertram they warn you in advance that the train it about to depart before they shut the doors and whilst gates may be shut a minute before departure doors are not usually locked then as the idea is that there is still time for passengers to get from the gate to the train if they hurry

 

I have never seen bus driver at the terminal refusing to let waiting passengers board the bus even if they do arrive at the last minute and have even seen them reopen the doors to let passenger on (true I have seen the odd one who delights in "not seeing" an intending passenger

[Guest busdriver1]

26 minutes ago, Bigal1 said:

true I have seen the odd one who delights in "not seeing" an intending passenger

I would imagine you have, but, just remember that in the case of many routes they have regular drivers who get to know their passengers.  I was aware of one passenger who on a regular basis used to arrive just as you were setting off and want to be picked up as the bus was pulling away. She lived opposite the bus stop and used to come out exactly on time (by her watch) every time. On a regular basis she got left behind. To a casual observer the driver may have appeared awkward, but like many things in life there are 2 sides to every story. The time quoted in a timetable is a departure time. Passengers should be on the bus, seated, fare paid at that time.

Mid route is different. If it is a frequent service ( every 10 minutes or more) I would never wait but on an infrequent service I would

[BigAl1]

I was not having a go at all bus drivers there are many excellent ones who like you go out of their way to look after their customers just as there are some excellent staff on the trams.

 

Yes there are always two sides but I was referring to the minority. Lets not forget that as previously mentioned that according to Supertram the time in the timetable and on the stops in NOT the departure time it is "an approximate time" but for both buses and trams there is slack to allow for slight delays indeed this is the very reason why some are complaining that the bus waits en route at some stops rather than get to its destination as fast as possible.

[Annie Bynnol]

20 minutes ago, Bigal1 said:

I was not having a go at all bus drivers there are many excellent ones who like you go out of their way to look after their customers just as there are some excellent staff on the trams.

 

Yes there are always two sides but I was referring to the minority. Lets not forget that as previously mentioned that according to Supertram the time in the timetable and on the stops in NOT the departure time it is "an approximate time" but for both buses and trams there is slack to allow for slight delays indeed this is the very reason why some are complaining that the bus waits en route at some stops rather than get to its destination as fast as possible.

The Supertram timetable is now governed by the Tramtrain timetable which itself is governed by National train timetable which requires the arrival and departure of the Tramtrain at Parkgate, Rotherham Central through to Tinsley to the minute.

A late running Supertram Middlewood to Meadowhall service could delay(or even cancel) a Tramtrain to Parkgate, this could cause cancellations of Supertram and Tramtrains and delays for the rest of the day.

 

Railway train drivers (and guards/platform staff if present) should be focused on the safe despatch of a train. With trains up to ten minutes away from the "gate", not waiting for one late passenger can lead to a knock on effect on other trains and routes affecting thousands of passengers.

 

Normal railway practice is that train doors are always closed, and after a safety checks, locked before departure. Then there is a despatch sequence (depends on train and location) after which the train can to leave. 

  

 

 

 

[BigAl1]

This policy pre dates the introduction of the tram train and we are talking about the management sanctioning of EARLY  departure

 

A late running yellow tram can easily wait and give precedence to the tram train and whilst the tram train is indeed governed by the nation rail time table and the paths made available the practice of sending the two trams down the common line nose to tail hardly helps

 

Sorry but at what terminus are the gates that would be shut to allow the departure of the train 10 minutes away from the train itself? the gates that are shut to allow the timely departure of the train are those that govern access to the platform not the station and even then there are few station barriers that are 10 minutes from the train for able bodied people

 

yes of course the doors on trains are always (hopefully at least ) shut before departure just in the same way as the tram doors are