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Post by ronnie on Aug 2, 2018 13:21:45 GMT
I guess the more pertinent question a few weeks down the line is - do buses have sufficient heating? One of the things which has often been off-putting in winter is that buses are freezing.
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Post by londonbuses2018 on Aug 2, 2018 13:35:33 GMT
I have to say the London Sovereign ADHs (Not MMC) have the air con on constant I shut all the windows during a 29c heat sat on the other side under the cool air.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 2, 2018 14:51:04 GMT
It also doesn't help that there are a few garages that have disconnected the air-con from the drivers cab by removing the driver belt on the a/c compressor, so no a/c for drivers and definitely no a/c for the passengers upper deck cooling. I'll bet it was done on economic grounds. If your mpg in your car goes down with the a/c running.................... Exactly this. It’s an easy thing to do to save fuel, but makes journeys unbearable.
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Post by 6HP502C on Aug 3, 2018 0:46:47 GMT
It also doesn't help that there are a few garages that have disconnected the air-con from the drivers cab by removing the driver belt on the a/c compressor, so no a/c for drivers and definitely no a/c for the passengers upper deck cooling. Don't the unions have anything to say about it? And operators wonder why they struggle to recruit drivers. I suspect they won't. To do so, they would have to teach drivers to keep the cab window closed whilst the aircon is on. Not only is that a mammoth task, but there's the risk of light sabotage by a percentage of the workforce who take pride in having mechanicals and losing mileage. I say that as a driver who knows many who are incredibly proud of doing so with impunity! I've been driving 67 and 18 plate MMCs recently - the cab aircon was disabled on most of them and on a couple, the upstairs unit was leaking down the side of the bus and into the cab, making driving with the cab slider open unpleasant. I just rode one on the N136 and the cooling unit above the stairs was spewing out fluid every time the bus turned a corner - the floor was soaking!
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Post by snoggle on Aug 3, 2018 8:49:00 GMT
Don't the unions have anything to say about it? And operators wonder why they struggle to recruit drivers. I suspect they won't. To do so, they would have to teach drivers to keep the cab window closed whilst the aircon is on. Not only is that a mammoth task, but there's the risk of light sabotage by a percentage of the workforce who take pride in having mechanicals and losing mileage. I say that as a driver who knows many who are incredibly proud of doing so with impunity! I've been driving 67 and 18 plate MMCs recently - the cab aircon was disabled on most of them and on a couple, the upstairs unit was leaking down the side of the bus and into the cab, making driving with the cab slider open unpleasant. I just rode one on the N136 and the cooling unit above the stairs was spewing out fluid every time the bus turned a corner - the floor was soaking! Interesting issue there. Worth noting that Mr "Comadad" Kearney is currently ranting on social media about driver hours, the TfL performance regime "forcing" buses to remain in service so drivers lose their breaks and also about non functioning cab air con affecting driver's ability to drive safely in the heat. As ever with him this is a continuation of a standing theme but, of course, he is listened to by certain politicians. Might be fun of TfL to tell him and others the blunt truth about what some drivers do the kit that's there for their comfort.
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Post by rambo on Aug 3, 2018 21:00:20 GMT
It also doesn't help that there are a few garages that have disconnected the air-con from the drivers cab by removing the driver belt on the a/c compressor, so no a/c for drivers and definitely no a/c for the passengers upper deck cooling. Don't the unions have anything to say about it? And operators wonder why they struggle to recruit drivers. Union rep; I say mr manager, you have disconnected the air con belt, the drivers are very hot in the cab. Mr manager; so? Union rep; ok then..................
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Post by ronnie on Aug 4, 2018 10:33:25 GMT
Did anyone try LTs yesterday to see how they were? I only used the 135 which wasn’t too bad.
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Post by capitalomnibus on Aug 4, 2018 10:41:48 GMT
It also doesn't help that there are a few garages that have disconnected the air-con from the drivers cab by removing the driver belt on the a/c compressor, so no a/c for drivers and definitely no a/c for the passengers upper deck cooling. Don't the unions have anything to say about it? And operators wonder why they struggle to recruit drivers. Well it seems the unions wants to do silly things regarding having the buses at the stands take as much time as they want. They have done nothing to pressure management, nor have they even bothered to complain to TfL. They have an open letter criticising the mayor about bus drivers conditions with air conditioning and the heat. But to me they need to pressure TfL to crack down on the operators. It is unacceptable imo that there is nothing in place to stop operators not re-gassing buses and doing things like cutting or removing a/c drive belts. End of the day it is fraud if we also have the same thing being done to new buses switching them off or disconnecting them. If TfL are specifying these items to be on buses.
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Post by capitalomnibus on Aug 4, 2018 10:46:38 GMT
It also doesn't help that there are a few garages that have disconnected the air-con from the drivers cab by removing the driver belt on the a/c compressor, so no a/c for drivers and definitely no a/c for the passengers upper deck cooling. I'll bet it was done on economic grounds. If your mpg in your car goes down with the a/c running.................... This is one of the main reasons, to save money, which is wrong imo. In a car the a/c would be worth it above 50mph instead of the windows opened. Having the windows opened at higher speeds creates more drag, and this drag would be higher than the energy consumer from the a/c compressor on the drive belt and that of the alternator drain.
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Post by vjaska on Aug 4, 2018 11:14:08 GMT
Did anyone try LTs yesterday to see how they were? I only used the 135 which wasn’t too bad. Not intentionally but I did get LT710 on the 415 from Elephant to Brixton Water Lane and it was the hottest LT ride I ever had. I was ringing wet and everything on board was also very hot - the windows, handrails, wall panels. When I got off, I was immediately cooler than on the bus so decided to check the outside temperature at that time and it was 32C so on the bus must of been close to 40C.
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Post by sid on Aug 4, 2018 11:28:37 GMT
Did anyone try LTs yesterday to see how they were? I only used the 135 which wasn’t too bad. Not intentionally but I did get LT710 on the 415 from Elephant to Brixton Water Lane and it was the hottest LT ride I ever had. I was ringing wet and everything on board was also very hot - the windows, handrails, wall panels. When I got off, I was immediately cooler than on the bus so decided to check the outside temperature at that time and it was 32C so on the bus must of been close to 40C. Funnily enough I've been on LT710 and LT711 this morning and both were fine. www.flickr.com/photos/154741497@N03/42935925095/in/dateposted-public/
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Post by 6HP502C on Aug 4, 2018 12:28:54 GMT
Well it seems the unions wants to do silly things regarding having the buses at the stands take as much time as they want. They have done nothing to pressure management, nor have they even bothered to complain to TfL. They have an open letter criticising the mayor about bus drivers conditions with air conditioning and the heat. But to me they need to pressure TfL to crack down on the operators. It is unacceptable imo that there is nothing in place to stop operators not re-gassing buses and doing things like cutting or removing a/c drive belts. End of the day it is fraud if we also have the same thing being done to new buses switching them off or disconnecting them. If TfL are specifying these items to be on buses.
What can the Mayor or TfL do? There are drivers who do things like stuff newspaper down the demister hoses, knackering out the motors and where the aircon works, have it running full pelt with the cab slider wide open. Every single driver has driven a car at some point and should know better. Sadly the actions of a minority cost the company unnecessarily which probably contributes towards mechanicals and the systems being isolated. General wear and tear should definitely be kept on top of. But what are management supposed to do when their own staff are vandalising the assets? Short of educating or reprimanding the people who are doing it (very difficult to detect who it is), there's not a lot that can be done and the unions should know that really.
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Post by vjaska on Aug 4, 2018 15:35:21 GMT
Not intentionally but I did get LT710 on the 415 from Elephant to Brixton Water Lane and it was the hottest LT ride I ever had. I was ringing wet and everything on board was also very hot - the windows, handrails, wall panels. When I got off, I was immediately cooler than on the bus so decided to check the outside temperature at that time and it was 32C so on the bus must of been close to 40C. Funnily enough I've been on LT710 and LT711 this morning and both were fine. www.flickr.com/photos/154741497@N03/42935925095/in/dateposted-public/The temperature this morning was 21C, when I was on it yesterday, the outside temperature was 32C - a 11C difference is a lot and would have a big impact on how hot the bus is. Anyway, I shall leave it there as I do not wish to go any further into the same old debate - ronnie asked for anyone who used one yesterday and I gave my honest experience.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 4, 2018 15:58:03 GMT
I had to suffer a extremely uncomfortably hot LT on a EL1 today I always try to catch a 169 from Ilford to Barking but just missed one today.
Also caught a EH on the 5 and this was very warm but air was circulating more than on the LT which just seem so stuffy.
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Post by grubbysa on Aug 4, 2018 18:15:01 GMT
Well it seems the unions wants to do silly things regarding having the buses at the stands take as much time as they want. They have done nothing to pressure management, nor have they even bothered to complain to TfL. They have an open letter criticising the mayor about bus drivers conditions with air conditioning and the heat. But to me they need to pressure TfL to crack down on the operators. It is unacceptable imo that there is nothing in place to stop operators not re-gassing buses and doing things like cutting or removing a/c drive belts. End of the day it is fraud if we also have the same thing being done to new buses switching them off or disconnecting them. If TfL are specifying these items to be on buses.
What can the Mayor or TfL do? There are drivers who do things like stuff newspaper down the demister hoses, knackering out the motors and where the aircon works, have it running full pelt with the cab slider wide open. Every single driver has driven a car at some point and should know better. Sadly the actions of a minority cost the company unnecessarily which probably contributes towards mechanicals and the systems being isolated. General wear and tear should definitely be kept on top of. But what are management supposed to do when their own staff are vandalising the assets? Short of educating or reprimanding the people who are doing it (very difficult to detect who it is), there's not a lot that can be done and the unions should know that really. A bit silly to purposely break the AC, with NP you can't get subbed for no AC in the cab anyway. All you can do is write it down on the VCR for it to most likely be ignored by the engineers. Another problem with some AC units is that its simply not cold enough to suffice for the window closed, still its better then nothing.
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