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Post by romfordbuses on Dec 20, 2012 19:28:00 GMT
Well, Tweeted the First COO about Tri-axles earlier and he said this back; "Well we just took the Artics out of London! Essentially vehicle type proscribed by TfL." So, Nothing of interest  |
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Post by ServerKing on Dec 21, 2012 1:45:55 GMT
I guess the 192 is out then ;D The LED blind is cool... a lot of the Hong Kong operators actually use the Johnston font, so I dont know why that couldn't find its way onto our buses.... most of our Tubes, DLR and Rail have LED, so why not the buses? They will be clear to read and cheaper to maintain  I guess in many ways TfL isn't too old fashioned.. but the varying quality and presentation of our current blinds is poor IMHO The 192 is difficult to fix but it is a complete nightmare. I don't see it as much as I used to but have seen it on a few Sundays recently and the loadings out of T Hale are insane. I don't imagine it is any better at peak times either. TfL should seriously consider adding at least another 1 bph on Sundays plus some supplementary peak departures. The better solution is to but another route on the busiest section - I've previously suggested diverting the 349. I am loathe to get into the electronic blinds debate  . HK's displays are pretty decent but they aren't perfect. Even there, with their high maintenance standards, they do fail or get dirty. Conventional blinds also get torn and ripped. The one thing the HK operators are good at is immediately having a route board to stick in the windscreen so they have a back up system. I think the difference in London is no obvious requirement to keep blind boxes very clean and to ensure they are always properly illuminated. I know some blind box designs are very cramped and not easy to service and smart blinds are full of electronics but pressure on suppliers might get "easier to maintain" designs over time. It does all depend on how "tough" TfL want to get on standards for clean, well lit blinds. The other issue is that buses get route bound so the same destinations get shown all the time causing them to fade. Surely it's not beyond the wit of operators to smarten them up or else, on short blind sets, to "double up" the popular destinations so there is a "clean" spare available? I was being facetious about the 192.. I don't think we will see E500s on the backstreets of Bush Hill Park just yet ;D but the blind issue is something TfL should consider... newer buses are okay, but even the WVN s on the 476 have some that are dark in places, and the 3 series DWs could do with LED backlights. I don't think other blind manufacturers will want to invest in this dying tech when there's an established LED market outside London.... |
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Post by Deleted on Dec 21, 2012 2:19:10 GMT
I imagine operators would be pleased to have LEDs as standard. More flexibility in allocations, buses more attractive to provincial operators when the time comes for them to be moved on. Whether TFL would be interested in adopting them in future remains to be seen...
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Post by Deleted on Dec 21, 2012 2:22:51 GMT
Well, Tweeted the First COO about Tri-axles earlier and he said this back; "Well we just took the Artics out of London! Essentially vehicle type proscribed by TfL." So, Nothing of interest He's pretty much right though. As I understand it (anyone is welcome to correct me on this) TFL specify a set of boundaries/specs etc. as part of tendering a contract out, and so operators can only essentially choose vehicles compliant to those standards. Guessing First can't just say "We're getting tri-axles because we want to" because a) I don't imagine TFL would be too happy for an operator to introduce a significantly different bus type without their approval b) they probably wouldn't get the contract anyway if they were in contravention of the specifications set out by TFL for the vehicles for the contract... |
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Post by vjaska on Dec 21, 2012 2:23:54 GMT
I imagine operators would be pleased to have LEDs as standard. More flexibility in allocations, buses more attractive to provincial operators when the time comes for them to be moved on. Whether TFL would be interested in adopting them in future remains to be seen... They fail far more regularly than standard blinds though |
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Post by IanF on Dec 21, 2012 2:38:24 GMT
I imagine operators would be pleased to have LEDs as standard. More flexibility in allocations, buses more attractive to provincial operators when the time comes for them to be moved on. Whether TFL would be interested in adopting them in future remains to be seen... They fail far more regularly than standard blinds though If only they could create a blind from a tv type screen as it would be clear (if they've already invented this sorry I've never seen one) |
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Post by Deleted on Dec 21, 2012 2:42:49 GMT
I imagine operators would be pleased to have LEDs as standard. More flexibility in allocations, buses more attractive to provincial operators when the time comes for them to be moved on. Whether TFL would be interested in adopting them in future remains to be seen... They fail far more regularly than standard blinds though Well, that's true, but then the number of buses that don't have any blind lighting anyway... |
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Post by IanF on Dec 21, 2012 2:48:56 GMT
They fail far more regularly than standard blinds though Well, that's true, but then the number of buses that don't have any blind lighting anyway... Or just rubbish useless lighting that in no way helps you to read the blind. |
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Post by vjaska on Dec 21, 2012 3:13:14 GMT
They fail far more regularly than standard blinds though Well, that's true, but then the number of buses that don't have any blind lighting anyway... I think that problem is slightly over exaggerated and more depends on certain batches not having it. Refurbs seem to have very good blind lighting, as do buses from roughly 09 reg onwards. Certain batches like the 57 reg E's at AL & SW have some blinds with no lighting, for example, the front blind could just have the number lit and the destination in darkness and vice versa but I'd expect them to remedy the problem when they go for refurb. |
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Post by ServerKing on Dec 21, 2012 4:11:36 GMT
Well, that's true, but then the number of buses that don't have any blind lighting anyway... Or just rubbish useless lighting that in no way helps you to read the blind. They don't fail much... I install a lot of LED displays in ePos kit, it's fairly robust. Look how well LEDs are doing in the ibus kit you wouldn't be afraid to roll out that across 8500 buses because you're worried some displays malfunction... if they do go wrong, then replace the failed ones. As a trial do some on a handful of routes, just a few vehicles.  It could happen...  |
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Post by romfordbuses on Dec 21, 2012 10:42:49 GMT
He's pretty much right though....... Yeah, I was just hoping that he might of said if First looked at tri-axles for the 25  |
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. HK's displays are pretty decent but they aren't perfect. Even there, with their high maintenance standards, they do fail or get dirty. Conventional blinds also get torn and ripped. The one thing the HK operators are good at is immediately having a route board to stick in the windscreen so they have a back up system. 
