|
Post by 6HP502C on Oct 18, 2020 19:17:59 GMT
I've taken MEC4 out for the rest of the night! Gipsy Road is closed due to planned works so I'm following the boarded diversion via Salters Hill! Geez Is this the first time buses have used Salters Hill? Do double deckers miss out Gipsy Hill Station then? Not sure what others are doing but deckers can use Salters Hill with care and caution. Word on the street was Gipsy Hill, rather that Gipsy Road was shut so some may be missing it entirely.
|
|
|
Post by greenboy on Oct 18, 2020 19:30:02 GMT
Geez Is this the first time buses have used Salters Hill? Do double deckers miss out Gipsy Hill Station then? Not sure what others are doing but deckers can use Salters Hill with care and caution. Word on the street was Gipsy Hill, rather that Gipsy Road was shut so some may be missing it entirely. Salters Hill should be ok, I've seen double deckers negotiate far worse places.
|
|
|
Post by 6HP502C on Oct 19, 2020 2:59:24 GMT
So I drove the Balham to West Croydon via Crystal Palace route. Sunday late shift.
The route
The service runs every 15 minutes all day. Stops served are Balham, Streatham Hill, Tulse Hill, West Norwood, Gipsy Hill, Crystal Palace, Norwood Junction and West Croydon.
The route was complicated. Balham to Streatham Hill was via Clapham South, the South Circular and King's Avenue. Streatham Hill to Tulse Hill was via the Streatham High Road and Christchurch Road (and via Clapham Park in the reverse direction). Tulse Hill to West Norwood, straight along Norwood Road. West Norwood to Gipsy Hill is normally via Gipsy Road. Gipsy Hill to Crystal Palace is via the Crystal Palace one way system and Crystal Palace - Norwood Junction - West Croydon follows route 157.
Early and late trips omit Tulse Hill. The route between Streatham Hill and West Norwood was via the 417/Leigham Court Road to Crown Point and Knight's Hill. Approaching West Norwood from the opposite direction to Tulse Hill means the driver has to remember to serve the correct bus stops, even if it means doing a full loop of the one way system.
The route is made complex by a number of banned left and right turns between Balham and Tulse Hill and is notorious for buses getting lost. Balham to Streatham Hill requires the triangle at Clapham South to be negotiated in order to access the South Circular. Tulse Hill to Streatham Hill to Balham follows an absolutely bonkers route which involves doing a full circuit around the western side of Streatham and a loop around the green at Atkins Road. Any route where the driver has to cover the same stretch of road in the same direction more than twice per rounder is going to cause confusion.
In most cases the route stops within a stone's throw of the station, except Norwood Junction which is served from South Norwood High Street, though on occasion buses end up outside the station. Announcements were made at every stop, when there were passengers on board.
As mentioned, Gipsy Road was closed. At West Norwood I'd make an announcement that we'd be going on a diversion, but still reach Gipsy Hill on time. The diversion was via Elder Road, Central Hill and Salters Hill to get back onto Gipsy Road. A significant percentage of passengers were going to Gipsy Hill so it was good not to have to miss the stop.
I grew up and was educated in the areas the route passes through so driving it was like second nature, despite the very disorienting nature of it! No mistakes made.
Loadings
Very quiet. I did 5 trips, two conveyed no passengers at all and I never carried more than about 7. The majority of passengers got on at Balham and West Croydon, mostly going to West Norwood and Gipsy Hill. I suspect a lot of people make use of local bus services. I saw a couple of 315s leaving Balham over capacity, which didn't look normal to me.
Running times
Actually, they were about right for daytime traffic! The banned turns and also making the route suitable for deckers mean it really does take as long as scheduled to get around, with about 4 minutes of give between Balham and Crystal Palace.
Vehicle Choice
Mercedes Evobus Citaro.
There were deckers out from AL, BX and SW.
Summary
A route which requires a lot of concentration and knowledge of the local road network. Pity it was so quiet demand wise, but a nice enough run.
Route difficulty rating - 3/3 (difficult)
Enjoyability - 4/5 (fairly enjoyable)
Next route review - 11:34 Herne Hill to Swanley via Denmark Hill, Catford and Bromley South and 14:56 return, Sunday 25th October. It's going to be a single decker due to a low bridge on Gibbon Road in Nunhead.
|
|
|
Post by 6HP502C on Oct 24, 2020 11:22:24 GMT
So I drove the Waddon Marsh to East Croydon Tramlink replacement route. Unexpected as it was all very short notice! Tramlink is closed between Wandle Park and East Croydon until the end of next week. The routeThe service runs every 10 minutes all day and operates as a circular route. Stops served are Waddon Marsh, Wandle Park, Wellesley Road/George Street, West Croydon, Wellesley Road, East Croydon (Dingwall Road), Park Road (Fairfield Halls), Wandle Park and Waddon Marsh. Reeves Corner and Centrale were left unserved, but local buses had it covered. The replacement bus service provided a faster route to the town centre by going via Croydon Flyover and serving the Electric House bus stop. Many passengers were standing at West Croydon tram stop waiting for a tram that was never coming - there were no staff out to direct passengers to the rail replacement bus service. A minor reroute was also implemented - serving stop B1 at West Croydon proved to be problematic so this was changed to stop B5 which is where rail replacement buses normally stop. After work, I got a 455 from BC to West Croydon. Passengers at Wandle Park were demanding information on how to get to East Croydon as nobody was about to help with information. In the end I piped up and told them there was a rail replacement bus service which would turn up at some point. By the looks of things, the tram drivers were telling passengers to change at Waddon Marsh where the bus is clearly in line of sight and a controller in a hi-viz is present to deal with queries. That 455 also got very busy with people from the Ikea area wanting a direct service to Croydon rather than taking the tram and changing. There were two changeover points. Shift changes took place at Waddon Marsh. Meal reliefs took place at West Croydon, which means there are live changeovers at times. SignpostingThere were no signposts in the early afternoon and no pilots were provided. Drivers were provided with videos and maps the day before and it was all experienced rail replacement drivers on the job. Signposts started to appear mid-afternoon and were all up by late afternoon. Signposts were also provided for pedestrians to navigate their way to certain tram stops. LoadingsBusy. Maybe 20-30 passengers upon departure from Wandle Park between the peaks, but during school kick-out and the PM peak, loads were well over the published capacity of 30. I noticed some double deckers operating on the 289. Running timesTramlink routes wouldn't be out of place in Gran Turismo. During the day, the schedule has a 40 minute cycle. I was doing it in 32-35 minutes so had time to breathe at Waddon Marsh. Other buses were taking up to 45 minutes to do the same route. During the evening the cycle was reduced to 30 minutes. I was taking 21-25 minutes. But again, some other buses were taking longer. I ended up overtaking one of my leaders. My cycle times were reduced due to the vehicles driven (see next section), familiarity with lane handling in Croydon Town Centre and pre-empting customer queries by making announcements on approach to every single bus stop on every trip (no iBus on this route). I was sure to let people know at East Croydon that they must change there for trams towards New Addington, Beckenham Junction and Elmers End. Of course, not everybody got the message and some ended up back where they started. There was a service controller at East Croydon, but service regulation abilities were limited. One lane of Dingwall Road has been converted to a two-way cycle lane. As it's a very busy road for buses and other traffic, it wasn't really somewhere buses could be held. Vehicle ChoiceBuses from QB were moved to BC for the job. Took over on the road so I had no choice. I had one Euro 4 Enviro 400 and one Euro 6 E400H. My reduced cycle times were partially down to the other buses out being Euro 5 E400s, which have significant impediments to their rate of acceleration programmed in. On a stop-start route with lots of traffic lights, they lose a lot of time compared to a normal bus. If these vehicles are to be used then it will be difficult to maintain a reliable service unless the cycle time is increased to 50 minutes. The lesser spotted "Tram Replacement Service" blind was promptly set upon taking over the E400. SummaryHaving spent a lot of time in Croydon over the years, I had no issues getting around town with the map as an aide for the first rounder. Doing this route was a one off - long spells, short break, minimal stand time and a high chance of landing a Euro 5 E400 mean it's quite hard work as far as rail replacement goes. However, credit goes to Abellio for arranging meal reliefs in a location with facilities. Route difficulty rating - 2/3 (intermediate) Enjoyability - 2/5 (fairly unenjoyable) Next route review - 11:34 Herne Hill to Swanley and 14:56 Swanley to Herne Hill, Sunday 25th October. There will be a lot of thumb twiddling - very heavy padding between Denmark Hill and Beckenham Junction, in some cases waits of up to 10 minutes at stops will be necessary. Nunhead has been removed from the route.
|
|
|
Post by class387 on Oct 24, 2020 15:40:07 GMT
Does anyone know what the Clapham Jct - Twickenham replacement is being run by tomorrow?
|
|
|
Post by capitalomnibus on Oct 24, 2020 23:56:17 GMT
Does anyone know what the Clapham Jct - Twickenham replacement is being run by tomorrow? buses I believe, sorry I couldn't resist that one
|
|
|
Post by 6HP502C on Oct 25, 2020 0:48:08 GMT
Does anyone know what the Clapham Jct - Twickenham replacement is being run by tomorrow? There are normally a large number of operators on the SWR suburban routes. First Travel Solutions have a lot of operators who supply them with buses and they allocate on a duty by duty basis for the most part. There's also some degree of crosslinking, where one duty will cover different routes. For these reasons, multiple operators are found on those routes out of Clapham Junction.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Oct 25, 2020 9:36:37 GMT
Go Ahead have their MDL1 out between Greenhithe and Strood today. Left Greenhithe on the 0925 departure.
|
|
|
Post by MoEnviro on Oct 25, 2020 13:33:52 GMT
Does anyone know what the Clapham Jct - Twickenham replacement is being run by tomorrow? Red Routemaster, Cardinal, NPC, CT-Plus, Abellio
|
|
|
Post by 6HP502C on Oct 27, 2020 4:18:41 GMT
I drove the Herne Hill to Swanley Thameslink replacement route on Sunday. The routeThe service runs every 30 minutes all day. Stops served are Herne Hill, Denmark Hill, Peckham Rye, Crofton Park, Catford, Bellingham, Beckenham Hill, Beckenham Junction, Shortlands, Bromley South, Bickley, St Mary Cray and Swanley. There were no trains running from Denmark Hill. The link to Herne Hill got people to Thameslink services which were operating to Elephant and Castle, Blackfriars and beyond. Nunhead was originally supposed to be served, but the stop was withdrawn a few days in advance due to a low bridge at the station. Ravensbourne is not served by rail replacement buses - not sure why, but the 354 was livened up on Sundays in recent years so it isn't totally bereft of public transport when the railway is down. Herne Hill to Denmark Hill is via Denmark Hill, then via the 484 and Peckham Rye to Peckham Rye, which is currently served from the Nigel Road bus stops on Rye Lane due to the closure of the main part of Rye Lane. Through the backstreets onto Queens Road Peckham, then following the 171 line of route for several miles through Crofton Park and Catford to reach Bellingham. The station is served from stops on Bromley Road. Then following the 54 through Beckenham Hill to reach Beckenham Junction, served from the rather crowded station forecourt. From Beckenham Junction, route 227 is followed up to the bridge at Shortlands, before following the 358 as far as Hayes Lane then route 162 for quite some way, through Bromley South and Bickley (served from Bickley Park Road) as far as Chislehurst War Memorial, then straight along the A208 Chislehurst Road and following the 273 along Poverest Road and round to St Mary Cray Station. Then down Leesons Hill and along the 51 to Crittal's Corner. The route followed the 233/B2173 towards Swanley, but was via the A20 on the way back. The route is long, but rather simple in structure. Out and back with not too many deviations or one-way systems to cause confusion. Anyone unfamiliar with the area may find it a challenge the first time, but it's a nice route really. LoadingsNot too busy. One person picked up at Denmark Hill, a handful at Crofton Park and a couple at Beckenham Junction. A few got on at Bromley South. Most people got off at Bromley South or St Mary Cray. Nobody rode through to Swanley. On the way back, there were a few connecting passengers from North Kent and the Thameslink service from Sevenoaks. A few more got on at Bromley South, otherwise penny numbers. Running timesIt was a Sunday shopping hours shift, but there was still too much running time. I parked up at a bus stop on Denmark Hill for 9 minutes, then had to wait at Peckham Rye for about 6 minutes. If Nunhead had been served I think it would have been short of time - despite missing it out I arrived at Crofton Park bang on time. Temporary traffic lights in the Catford station area were causing havoc with traffic. I incurred a 10 minute delay on the gyratory and didn't make any of it up until after I left St Mary Cray, arriving at Swanley 7 minutes late. There were also roadworks in Beckenham Junction that added a couple of minutes each way. Vehicle ChoiceMercedes Evobus Citaro. SummaryMost of the route I drove without thinking. It was the first time I'd covered Peckham to Bromley South but I'm a South Londoner so no issues at all navigating the route. The only place I really had to study the map provided was between Bickley and Swanley. There seemed to be an awful lot of rail replacement about in South East London on the day. Route difficulty rating - 2/3 (intermediate) Enjoyability - 4/5 (fairly enjoyable) Next route review - TBC - was supposed to be out of the country for a week from today, but my flight got cancelled so I'll be on the bench this weekend
|
|
|
Post by galwhv69 on Oct 31, 2020 23:27:13 GMT
RATP were assisting on DL4 today. Don't RATP usually only do standby?
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Nov 1, 2020 4:49:34 GMT
RATP were assisting on DL4 today. Don't RATP usually only do standby? Haven't them majorily involved for a while but it's nice to see their buses out. How many did you see?
|
|
|
Post by galwhv69 on Nov 1, 2020 9:50:04 GMT
RATP were assisting on DL4 today. Don't RATP usually only do standby? Haven't them majorily involved for a while but it's nice to see their buses out. How many did you see? Can't remember lol but at least 2 heading in opposite direction at Putney Heath
|
|
|
Post by deppy42 on Nov 1, 2020 9:56:43 GMT
Haven't them majorily involved for a while but it's nice to see their buses out. How many did you see? Can't remember lol but at least 2 heading in opposite direction at Putney Heath Are you sure it was DL4? I know we were doing DL5 (i was one of them). We only did stand by on the Barking-Tower Hill service (only because that what we were asked to do).
|
|
|
Post by galwhv69 on Nov 1, 2020 10:00:00 GMT
Can't remember lol but at least 2 heading in opposite direction at Putney Heath Are you sure it was DL4? I know we were doing DL5 (i was one of them). We only did stand by on the Barking-Tower Hill service (only because that what we were asked to do). Oops, double checked and it was indeed DL5 👍 (I don't know why I put that lol)
|
|