Real Time Information

Bus and Coach operations, new or changed services and timetables for First Midland Red Buses Limited or its predecessor, Midland Red West Limited.
TimBrown
Posts: 1280
Joined: 05:59 Monday 4th July 2016
Location: Worcester

Re: Real Time Information

Post by TimBrown » 14:38 Wednesday 7th December 2016

AdamH wrote:
11:47 Wednesday 23rd November 2016
I would have though the display should show "0 mins" or "Now" when your bus arrived. Anyone who arrived one minute later would be pleased to read they only have a short wait, yet in reality they have missed it.

Was the bus running two minutes early by chance? :lol:
This morning I walked down to the New Inn in Ombersley Road at 08-50 in good time to catch the 08-58 number 37 into Crowngate, the display was showing this bus as 29 minutes late and the 09-30 departure on time. When the clock time approached 09-30, yes 09-30, the 08-58 service just disappeared off the display; now I would have thought the least that could have been shown was 'sorry cancelled' which is the way that all railway stations operate. In the event the 08-58 was missing altogether and the 09-30 was running just 3 minutes late. This meant that bus users didn't have a Firstbus for 98 minutes between the 07-56 and what became the 09-34 departure in the peak period - yes 98 minutes just 2.5 miles from the centre of a City of over 100,000 population.

My 37 service has deteriorated markedly since the timetable changes, this same working was missing altogether about a fortnight ago, and prior to that the 08-58 departure bus came straight up the Ombersley Road at approx. 09-20 to the Green Lane terminus, missing out Northwick Green and the top end of Grange Avenue completely. Again anyone on the loop didn't have a bus for at least one and a half hours.

From the City I was waiting for a lunchtime bus at Crowngate a couple of weeks ago and the bus was on the stand well before departure time, but no driver came and it was eventually driven away and parked up and we all had to wait 30 minutes for the next bus.

Today the bus arrived into the bus station on time, but the changeover driver eventually got us under way 15 minutes late, he may be RTA, but it looks bad for the dozen or so passengers waiting to get home!

Last week we departed on time but only made it round the block because of either a flat tyre or offside suspension collapse. Back in the bus station we were herded off the bus and told to wait back in the relevant stand, again another half hour vigil for the next bus. All the while number 35 buses were leaving every 7, 8 or 10 minutes to Warndon and none was pulled off to obviate an hour gap for passengers waiting to come into town from the northern end of 37. Just not good enough and worthy of some fine old Anglo-Saxon expletives!

These are only MY experiences, and many other passengers relate that they too have experienced other buses missing altogether, many running very late and no changeover drivers to take a bus over on the Crowngate stand. Some are so disillusioned that they prefer to use the Diamond 303 BECAUSE IT IS MORE RELIABLE (Yes Diamond more reliable!) and walk up to half a mile home up the steep Grange Avenue climb from the New Inn.

DD12
Posts: 1650
Joined: 19:49 Monday 4th July 2016

Re: Real Time Information

Post by DD12 » 22:49 Wednesday 7th December 2016

Thanks for your information about the 37 (but it's very depressing).
I grew up in Whinfield Road, where I got my enthusiasm for buses (DD12s, every 15 minutes !)
In modern times, (as you know) First ran the 32 cross-city, Ombersley Road - Crowngate - Bath Road (Where I live now).

When they were, say 20 minutes late, the Bath Road locals used to say "they've missed one off", whereas I guess that some of them were delayed on your side of town, so the bus company presumably didn't want to put an extra one on at Crowngate, because there might be "through" passengers on the one that was delayed. ( ... something like that) :)

Now however, there isn't that excuse, with the 44 being the only cross-city service.

From what I've read, and what I've been told, First had a bad reputation in Worcester, and I had hoped that when our current MD took over, that things would improve (a lot), but what you've experienced on the 37, is too bad.

Failing to take buses off the 35 say, to replace a missing (low frequency) 37, seems to me to defeat the object of dividing the old services.

When FMR divested itself of the Evesham, Hereford, Kidderminster, and Redditch operations, I selfishly thought - "well at least that will leave a fairly strong, profitable core at WR," - possibly with a few extra buses and drivers to help improve reliability.
Instead, the number of buses allocated has dropped by about 6 this year.

I actually like, and admire the clear thinking and focus, and efficiency of this year's service changes, with extra frequent buses on the services that will give growth, and early-day and late-day services linking Pershore + Evesham, and, Upton + Tewkesbury.
( - I'm not one of the various "losers" elsewhere).
BUT there needs to be enough drivers and vehicles to run the advertised services, reliably.

I would like Worcestershire (including Worcester) to have a FRANCHISED bus network when the new "Buses Bill" becomes law, but that would probably be unaffordable.

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marck
Posts: 137
Joined: 20:51 Tuesday 5th July 2016
Location: Northwick

Re: Real Time Information

Post by marck » 13:13 Monday 11th September 2017

Looks like they're working on the real time information screen at the new inn ombersley road this afternoon
_20170911_131223.JPG
Real time work

Rich82
Posts: 160
Joined: 19:03 Sunday 3rd July 2016

Re: Real Time Information

Post by Rich82 » 15:01 Friday 13th October 2017

The bus stops on Avenue Road in Great Malvern at the Train Station were seen today being fitted with Real Time Info Boards dont know if these will be the only one in Malvern

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AdamH
Posts: 2044
Joined: 12:17 Sunday 3rd July 2016
Location: Worcester
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Re: Real Time Information

Post by AdamH » 20:20 Friday 13th October 2017

I was in Hereford on Wednesday (working the 405 service) and they have started appearing there too.

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