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AdamH wrote: ↑

17:07 Friday 29th April 2022

I know this was a very short-notice contract and their commercial team have done wonders to get it ready in time, but I really hope that once the dust settles they can fix the 70-minute frequency as that is not going to work in the long run.

I think the key part of the wording is “buses will run initially run up to every 70 minutes”, which I take as something that will be reviewed over time. I just sincerely hope that once the six months come to the end…the service will not just quietly fall off the cliff, after all the media and political spotlight have moved on.

I would hope NatEx are proactive enough to see the potential and review the service before the six months are up. Certain operators would just sit back and take the council’s money, but I like to think NatEx are professional enough to monitor the numbers and work with the local authorty to find a solution that works.

I think that NatEx taking this on is making the best of a bad situation.

Hopefully national express's entering Bromsgrove might get them to consider heading Futher south down to Worcester, perhaps even open an outstation or even run some city services! One can dream though!

I'm also pleased to see that the usual range of NXWM tickets are usable on the 144A. I use the £4 Daysaver a lot and I think it represents excellent value for money.

Bit of a dream probably, but I'd love NXWM to take over the entire 144 route and turn it into a Platinum route. The 144 is such a prestigious route and deserves a decent operator with decent vehicles on it.

I think this is quite a statement on NXWM’s service update section…

“The service will initially run up to every 70 minutes whilst we fully integrate it into our network and work with Worcester(shire) County Council on plans to operate a more frequent service.”

https://nxbus.co.uk/west-midlands/servi ... d-may-2022

Feels like once things settle, incorporation onto the existing Bristol Road services could be on the cards with WCC subsidising the Worcestershire section. The extension of the NXWM passes is definitely encouraging and I think will prove popular, but it depends on how it’s publicised.

But fair play to WCC in pulling this out of the bag…when it looked like the Catshill curtailing was definitely going to happen.

While WCC have been quick to take credit for this, I understand that Centro are also helping. They are just more modest about it!

Yes, someone I know who works for Centro / Transport for West Midlands mentioned they have had considerable involvement in this. I've no knowledge of figures though.

I wonder how seriously it was discussed as to if First could have least ran to Longbridge with subsidy and terminate at the Longridge Island or Rail Station. Would have saved a lot of hassle. But money talks I suppose.