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Post by wirewiper on Apr 16, 2019 18:16:39 GMT
Easter 2019
Good Friday: Sunday services on all routes. Route 17 has an amended and enhanced service between 06.30 and 10.00 with departures every 20 minutes after 07.00 and up to every 10 minutes from 09.00. Routes 1, 2, 4 and 22 have later evening journeys, route 11 has a later last journey and route 13 has a special hourly late-night service with the last bus from Central Reading at 02.30.
Thames Travel will operate the SATURDAY timetable on X38/X39/X40 including late buses on X40. Arrival 800 and RailAir operate to the Sunday timetable.
Saturday and Easter Day: normal Saturday and Sunday services.
Easter Monday: Sunday services on all routes. Route 17 has an amended and enhanced service between 06.30 and 10.00 with departures every 20 minutes after 07.00 and up to every 10 minutes from 09.00.
Arriva 800, RailAir and Thames Travel X40 all operate to the Sunday timetable.
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Post by wirewiper on May 25, 2019 11:39:27 GMT
Reading Buses vehicle news: according to Buses Magazine, the ex-Arriva London DWs (VDL-DB250/Wright Gemini) 527-530 have been withdrawn for sale*. 530 (ex-DW 55)was the one that was refurbished and given a cosmetic facelift with the Gemini2 from light cluster, it has reverted to its original London registration (LJ04 LEU). X100 RDG is now carried by generic-liveried Scania OmniDekka 801. * 527 is reported as sold to Lynx, King's Lynn with 530 expected to follow. 524-526 were withdrawn and sold some time ago. (my photo on Flickr - click to enlarge) Reading Buses 530 (ex-Arriva London DW55) at work on route 17 in September 2017. The white building in the background, now the Malmaison Hotel, was originally built for the Great Western Railway in 1844 and is believed to be the oldest Railway Hotel still functioning as such in the world.
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Post by sid on May 25, 2019 12:33:37 GMT
Reading Buses vehicle news: according to Buses Magazine, the ex-Arriva London DWs (VDL-DB250/Wright Gemini) 527-530 have been withdrawn for sale*. 530 (ex-DW 55)was the one that was refurbished and given a cosmetic facelift with the Gemini2 from light cluster, it has reverted to its original London registration (LJ04 LEU). X100 RDG is now carried by generic-liveried Scania OmniDekka 801. * 527 is reported as sold to Lynx, King's Lynn with 530 expected to follow. 524-526 were withdrawn and sold some time ago. (my photo on Flickr - click to enlarge) Reading Buses 530 (ex-Arriva London DW55) at work on route 17 in September 2017. The white building in the background, now the Malmaison Hotel, was originally built for the Great Western Railway in 1844 and is believed to be the oldest Railway Hotel still functioning as such in the world. It's remarkable the improvement in ex London buses when a proper transport provider like Reading or Lothian get hold of them.
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Post by vjaska on May 25, 2019 14:39:21 GMT
Reading Buses vehicle news: according to Buses Magazine, the ex-Arriva London DWs (VDL-DB250/Wright Gemini) 527-530 have been withdrawn for sale*. 530 (ex-DW 55)was the one that was refurbished and given a cosmetic facelift with the Gemini2 from light cluster, it has reverted to its original London registration (LJ04 LEU). X100 RDG is now carried by generic-liveried Scania OmniDekka 801. * 527 is reported as sold to Lynx, King's Lynn with 530 expected to follow. 524-526 were withdrawn and sold some time ago. (my photo on Flickr - click to enlarge) Reading Buses 530 (ex-Arriva London DW55) at work on route 17 in September 2017. The white building in the background, now the Malmaison Hotel, was originally built for the Great Western Railway in 1844 and is believed to be the oldest Railway Hotel still functioning as such in the world. It's remarkable the improvement in ex London buses when a proper transport provider like Reading or Lothian get hold of them. What improvement?
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Post by wirewiper on May 25, 2019 15:44:40 GMT
530 was completely refurbished inside and out (to such a standard that many passengers thought it was a new bus). Also it is a Mark I Gemini - but has the Mark 2 headlight/front bumper panel.
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Post by wirewiper on May 25, 2019 16:09:42 GMT
Reading Buses is making some changes to the Green Line 702/703 timetables and fares, including the introduction of reduced "Boost" fares for young people age 16-18. Additional Summer journeys between London Victoria, Windsor and Legoland (08.00/09.00 from London Victoria, 17.45/18.45 from Legoland) will operate daily from Saturday 13th July to Sunday 2nd September inclusive. These journeys will be renumbered 701 as they omit Slough and Langley. There is still no date for the entry into service of the five new Optare Metrodeckers for the 702. www.reading-buses.co.uk/boost-comes-green-line-702-703
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Post by galwhv69 on Jun 2, 2019 9:44:25 GMT
757 has now had its Royal Wedding livery removed
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Post by M1199 on Jun 10, 2019 21:45:36 GMT
Took the 703 today on a round trip from T5 to Bracknell and back today, not something I'm gonna repeat anytime soon! Got the 11:10 out of T5, in the shape of Emerald liveried 760 (YY15 OYB) I paid my £6.50 for a return, whilst my GF used her Heathrow Tavelcard. Everything was fine until a change of driver at Slough, which was when our journey slowed down to a crawl, with him waiting at almost every other stop and crawling along barely hitting 20mph, it took us 15 min to navigate the Legoland complex! We eventually arrived at Bracknell 43 minutes late and for no apparent reason, as traffic was light (despite the rain) The loading's on this journey were very light, 15 passengers max boarded throughout the journey, An E400MMC was a very generous offering, whereas one of the Thames Valley Solo's would of sufficed on this trip!
Done what we needed to do and waited for the 16:03 back, up rocks 760 again, we board, this time the driver states that the GF's Heathrow Travelcard isn't valid and says that she can only use it between T5 & Windsor, despite the map on the travelcard website seemingly stating that it can be used on the whole route. She ended up paying for a single to Windsor, we go and take up the same seats as before, whereas now the upper deck resembles the shallow end of a swimming pool! God Knows where all the water come from! (was quite funny seeing and hearing the waterfall as the bus turned left and all the water flows down the stairs!) We pull out of Bracknell 1 minute early, however by the time we reached Slough, we were an Hour late! No doubt not helped by people's inabilities to drive when there's some wet stuff falling from the heavens! At 18:20, almost 2hrs 20min later we pull into T5, where we finally alight! This journey had a decent load out of Bracknell all the way to Slough where only a few stragglers stayed on to the Airport.
One thing I noticed about 760, was that it seemed to be limited to 39-40mph.
Another thing I noticed was that were didn't seem to be much publicity about the 703 at stops, I'm probably wrong, but I can't recall seeing any 703 tiles on any of the stops I happened to look at!
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Post by wirewiper on Jun 22, 2019 14:15:21 GMT
After a lengthy period of inactivity, the www.buszone.co.uk website gained a sizeable update earlier this month (June 2019). One snippet of information is that delivery of the five Optare Metrodeckers for Green Line 702 has been delayed until October. Three new Scania K360EB4/Caetano Levante II coaches (1415/6/7, BV19 XPC/XPD/XPS) have just been delivered to full National Express specification for the Woking Station - Heathrow Airport 925 service. Interestingly these are to the older Levante II design and not the new Levante III design that is now entering service in considerable numbers. They are twin-axle and seat 48, and replace Volvo B9/Caetano Levante 1403-5 which have been on loan from National Express since September 2018 when Reading Buses took on the contract for the 925.
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Post by vjaska on Jul 6, 2019 20:04:39 GMT
A very interesting post on Reading Buses Facebook page "Did you know, a 10% improvement in local bus services is linked to a 3.6% reduction in social deprivation across England, taking into account employment, income, life expectancy and skills?" A certain transport provider should really listen to that sentence
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Post by wirewiper on Jul 7, 2019 18:07:03 GMT
A very interesting post on Reading Buses Facebook page "Did you know, a 10% improvement in local bus services is linked to a 3.6% reduction in social deprivation across England, taking into account employment, income, life expectancy and skills?" A certain transport provider should really listen to that sentence It would be good if more of our politicians - at both national and local level - once again started to recognise the social benefits of properly-funded bus services. Sadly, we seem to be drifting ever further away. There was a recent House of Commons cross-party Select Committee which was highly critical of the lack of government strategy for bus services. England's Bus Minister (yes we have one, Nus Ghani, but she is about as much use as a chocolate teapot) was interviewed. She claimed that government was encouraging modal shift through The Bus services Act 2017, yet was unable to identify a single thing that the Department of Transport was doing to achieve modal shift. Funding for bus services is a mess. On one hand inadequate funding for Concessionary Passes is putting increasing numbers of non-commercial but socially necessary bus services at risk, yet on the other hand there are generous sums of Green Bus Fund money being made available for buses using alternative fuels - without any clear targets for what that money is meant to achieve. I suspect some operators are using that money to subsidise what would otherwise be routine fleet renewal.
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Post by wirewiper on Jul 11, 2019 9:45:28 GMT
Reading Buses is making a few minor timetable changes for the Summer Holiday period, effective from Monday 29th July.
Lion 4/X4 (Reading-Wokingham-Bracknell): peak-time journeys will no longer operate via Waterside House as Vodafone has vacated its offices there. This will mean a slight adjustment to some arrival and departure times at Bracknell Bus Station. Also the 23.50 (Monday-Saturday) X4 Bracknell-Reading journey will be withdrawn due to low usage.
Emerald 5 (Central Reading-Northumberland Avenue): Minor changes to Monday-Saturday daytime journeys although the frequency remains at every 8 minutes.
Emerald 6 (Central Reading-Whitley Wood): Minor changes to Monday-Saturday daytime journeys. Frequency will be about every 10 minutes, including at peak times (currently up to every 8 minutes at peak times).
Purple 17 (Wokingham Road-Central Reading-Tilehurst): Minor changes to Monday-Friday daytime journeys, frequency reduced slightly from every 7-8 minutes to every 8 minutes.
Further changes are likely in early September, to coincide with the start of the new School Year.
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Post by wirewiper on Jul 20, 2019 9:03:30 GMT
As part of its September changes, Reading Buses is renumbering all its "Silverstars" school services into a new series from 81-90, to make them simpler to understand. There will also be two new routes (92/93) for Bohunt School in Arborfield and a new route (91) from Kentwood Circle via Oxford Road to Reading Girls' School in Whitley. Reading Buses is also simplifying its range of passes, and is abolishing the specific Silverstars and Silverstars Plus fares and passes in favour of the standard Boost products for young people aged under 19. Reading Buses will no longer operate the 145 Woodcote - Gillotts School (Henley), this route will be operated by White's Coaches from September. For details of the new route numbers: www.reading-buses.co.uk/schools EDIT/ADDENDUM: There is an unconfirmed report that at least three ex-Nottingham City Transport Scania OmniDekkas have been acquired for Silverstars school services from September.
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Post by wirewiper on Jul 25, 2019 7:11:53 GMT
<snip>
EDIT/ADDENDUM: There is an unconfirmed report that at least three ex-Nottingham City Transport Scania OmniDekkas have been acquired for Silverstars school services from September. Four ex-Nottingham Scania OmniDekkas have arrived. They are former 972-975 (YT59 OZN/O/P/R) and will be 863-866 in the Reading Buses fleet.
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Post by wirewiper on Aug 14, 2019 7:56:46 GMT
Reading Buses has announced its September timetable changes, to take effect from Monday 2nd. These are mostly minor timetable changes only, the most significant being the renumbering of dedicated school routes into a new series from 81-90, and the introduction of three new school routes, 92/93 (Bohunt School, Arborfield Green) and 91 (Reading Girls School, Whitley).
Leopard 3, 3b, 10: Revised timetable to improve reliability. Buses will no longer operate via Bohunt School in Arborfield Green, new school routes 92/93 will provide an alternative for the majority of students.
Emerald 5, 6, 6a: these route will revert to their pre-Summer Holiday timetables, with a couple of minor alterations to route 6 times.
Route 9: on Mondays-Fridays the 05.40 Reading Station-Whitley is withdrawn; on Mondays-Saturdays the last journeys (19.45 ex-Reading Station and 20.10 ex-Whitley) are withdrawn. There are changes to other times, and the 09.30 journey from Mereoak Park & Ride will commence instead at Whitley.
Sky blue 16: minor timetable changes, journeys which run in school holidays only will no longer operate.
Purple 17: this route will revert to its pre-Summer Holiday timetable.
Little Oranges 19a/19b/19c: revised timetables to improve reliability.
Pink 22: minor timetable changes to improve reliability, with morning journeys departing Caversham Heights up to 5 minutes earlier.
Lower Caversham Shuttle 27/29: no changes to timetable, but some journeys renumbered to make the routes easier to understand. All journeys via Caversham Bridge will be numbered 27 in both directions, and all journeys via Reading Bridge will be numbered 29 - buses will change route numbers in Friar Street.
Yellow 26: minor timetable changes on Mondays-Fridays to improve reliability.
Royal blue 33: minor timetable changes.
Connect Henley 151/152/153: minor timetable changes to improve reliability. Route in Town Centre amended slightly to avoid car park congestion.
School routes:
981 (Caversham Heights-Bulmershe School) - renumbered 81 22S (Caversham-Chiltern Edge School) - renumbered 82 23S (Caversham-Chiltern Edge School) - renumbered 83 25S (Reading-Chiltern Edge School) - renumbered 84 16S (Reading-Little Heath School via Norcot) - renumbered 85 33S (Ford's Farm-Little Heath School) - renumbered 86 26L (Reading-Little Heath School via Southcote) - renumbered 87 15T (Reading-Theale Green School via Tilehurst) - renumbered 88 28S (Tilehurst-Theale Green School via Pangbourne) - renumbered 89 26T (Reading-Theale Green School via Southcote) - renumbered 90 145 (Woodcote-Gillotts School, Henley) - This route will transfer to White's Coaches from September 2019 and will no longer be operated by Reading Buses.
New school routes:
91 - Kentwood Circle - Oxford Road - Reading Girls School (Whitley) - operates via Inner Distributor Road to avoid Reading Town Centre 92 - Wokingham (Broad Street) - Finchampstead Road - Tintagel Road - Finchampstead - Longwater Road - Eversley - Reading Road - Bohunt School (Arborfield Green) 93 - Shinfield Park, Lower Earley (Rushey Way, Kilnsea Drive) - Winnersh - Wokingham Station then via route 3 to Arborfield Green (Sheerlands Road) and on to Bohunt School.
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