FMR Changes from Jan 2020.

Bus and Coach operations, new or changed services and timetables for First Midland Red Buses Limited or its predecessor, Midland Red West Limited.
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AdamH
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Re: Changes to Worcester city 36/36A & 37 from 05/01/20.

Post by AdamH » 11:55 Saturday 7th December 2019

Rumour in Worcester canteen is that First Group has ordered another PVR reduction (nothing new there) and the team at Worcester are running out of things to cut.

It’s about time Group stop messing about and get on with the sale, while they still have something to sell. Let someone who is interested in running buses have a go.

willr7
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Re: Changes to Worcester city 36/36A & 37 from 05/01/20.

Post by willr7 » 16:33 Saturday 7th December 2019

AdamH wrote:
11:55 Saturday 7th December 2019
Rumour in Worcester canteen is that First Group has ordered another PVR reduction (nothing new there) and the team at Worcester are running out of things to cut.

It’s about time Group stop messing about and get on with the sale, while they still have something to sell. Let someone who is interested in running buses have a go.
Absolutely ridiculous. The 144 is probably Worcester's most successful route and now (like you say) they're being forced to cut it as everything else has already been cut to the bone! :x

Also, what is the point in spending money on Route branding (not just Worcester) only to make services look appealing & then cut them all, making it a waste of time...

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SEVERNLINK
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Re: Changes to Worcester city 36/36A & 37 from 05/01/20.

Post by SEVERNLINK » 18:59 Saturday 7th December 2019

ANDREW wrote:
11:43 Saturday 7th December 2019
DD12 wrote:
11:27 Saturday 7th December 2019

Time for some whizz-kid at STAGECOACH to get into the market, ( - like they have done in Bristol) ??
Did not Diamond try competing on the 144 route some years ago - but with a different service number ?? :?:
Was same route number if I remember correctly and used branded Volvo Wright Ecclipse's.This was when 144 Worcs-Brum was every 15 mins and Diamond were every 30 mins so six buses/hour and with buses going the other way made it twelve buses an hour going via Bromsgrove Hospital so wasn't uncommon to see three buses trying to turn around there at the same time it did get a bit messy at times :shock: Think I've got a Diamond 144 timetable somewhere in the loft will try and dig it out when I go up to get the Christmas tree down :) Diamond gradually cut it back I can recall them only going as far as Rubery at some point possibly only from Bromsgrove not Worcester.

After typing that I think you may be correct about a different route number :geek: I was thinking that the 64 that went via Birmingham Road was a Birmingham Coach Company service but think Diamond also used that number.

bringstybeast
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Re: Changes to Worcester city 36/36A & 37 from 05/01/20.

Post by bringstybeast » 19:13 Saturday 7th December 2019

SEVERNLINK wrote:
18:59 Saturday 7th December 2019
ANDREW wrote:
11:43 Saturday 7th December 2019


Did not Diamond try competing on the 144 route some years ago - but with a different service number ?? :?:
Was same route number if I remember correctly and used branded Volvo Wright Ecclipse's.This was when 144 Worcs-Brum was every 15 mins and Diamond were every 30 mins so six buses/hour and with buses going the other way made it twelve buses an hour going via Bromsgrove Hospital so wasn't uncommon to see three buses trying to turn around there at the same time it did get a bit messy at times :shock: Think I've got a Diamond 144 timetable somewhere in the loft will try and dig it out when I go up to get the Christmas tree down :) Diamond gradually cut it back I can recall them only going as far as Rubery at some point possibly only from Bromsgrove not Worcester.

After typing that I think you may be correct about a different route number :geek: I was thinking that the 64 that went via Birmingham Road was a Birmingham Coach Company service but think Diamond also used that number.
Diamond had a couple of goes. The 64 must have started just before Go-Ahead bought them, something like every half hour to Bromsgrove using ex-MRW 257 and the Stagecoach Lances. Then under Go-Ahead went to something like every 10 mins to Rubery, 30 mins to Bromsgrove with red Olympians. Definitely a gap in my memory but must have changed again around late 2009 (or around when Diamond came into Worcester) as definitely remember seeing a Diamond Eclipse come down Barbourne Road on route 144. Again recall a mostly Bromsgrove-Birmingham route but with "peak" extensions further south. Digging deeper into memory, did this wither out and end up being just Bromsgrove-Rubery in the end?

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SEVERNLINK
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Re: FMR Changes from Jan 2020.

Post by SEVERNLINK » 23:23 Saturday 7th December 2019

That sounds about right bringstbeast.I think the 64 number followed on from the West Midlands Travel 61,62,63 Bristol Road services pretty sure it took the same route around the centre of Brum as those rather than terminating on Smallbrook Queensway I did catch a 64 to Bromsgrove on Corporation Street once.

There were definitely early morning Diamond 144's from Worcester as I'd see one in Droitwich between 6-6.30am when I was coming off a nightshift.When it was cut back to Bromsgrove -Rubery (Morrisons?) it was mainly Darts.

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SEVERNLINK
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Re: FMR Changes from Jan 2020.

Post by SEVERNLINK » 23:44 Saturday 7th December 2019


Matt
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Re: FMR Changes from Jan 2020.

Post by Matt » 22:04 Sunday 8th December 2019

Maybe with recent Bromsgrove rail improvements it would be sensible to route the Bromsgrove terminating 144 to go that little bit further and terminate at the station after going through town, that way giving a direct link to cross city services for those not close to other stations?

Or is that the kind of joined up travel planning that just doesn’t happen because there’s no one coordinating, just disjointed transport groups fighting for profits run from far away places with little local knowledge. :evil: :o

Struggling to see how you can continue to call all the variations 144, considering that should describe Worcester to Birmingham. I would presume historically there are route number(s) for a Worcester to Bromsgrove service?
Maybe Salt road could be used to identify the group of routes, 144 to Bham, 142 to Catshill and 141 to Bromsgrove maybe? Even just using letters alongside 144 if required to differentiate short routes would be clearer.

(Rant over)

DD12
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Re: FMR Changes from Jan 2020.

Post by DD12 » 14:30 Tuesday 10th December 2019

Can someone help me with my "damaged thinking" please !

I am assuming that there are at least SOME, REGULAR passengers on the 144 between Bromsgrove and Birmingham ( - and points in-between).

So, by halving the frequency, isn't First going to lose a lot of these people ( - half ?) ??

(Would it be better / viable, to retain a half-hourly frequency between Bromsgrove and Rubery, - giving the option to change to / from a NXWM bus ?)?

-- should Worcestershire county council approach NXWM (as a matter of urgency) to provide through services to / from Bromsgrove ??

- Could the planned cut-back by First be intended to help NX group to buy FMR ( - as the competition authorities will then see that FMR / "Salt Road" is not a competitor !) ?


- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
ALSO, I'm seriously worried that poor reliability, due to roadworks and bad congestion is "crucifying" WR's bus network.

-- -- how many times will YOU wait for up to an hour for your scheduled bus (perhaps in a grotty location, bad weather, noise, dirty air, and close to anti-social people) ??

:cry: :cry:

DD12
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Re: FMR Changes from Jan 2020.

Post by DD12 » 21:45 Tuesday 10th December 2019

Some of the new timetables are now on the First website.

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marck
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Re: FMR Changes from Jan 2020.

Post by marck » 01:28 Wednesday 11th December 2019

Looks like the new terminating stop for 36/38/X38 is A&E now not serving main hospital entrance, probably due to delays around there! Wonder what the passangers will think of this?

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