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Post by sid on Jan 27, 2018 19:52:23 GMT
I've never liked the old WVLs! I did have a soft spot for the VWLs on the 180 though! Those were fantastic buses! I'd rather have the PVLs than WVLs. I wish they were using PVLs instead of WVLs as refurb floats. Go-Aheads WVLs were definitely my favourite Gemini’s in London. I was so sad when they got replaced on the 14, 22, 74 and 430, I don’t think there are any routes that suited Gemini’s better. I am very happy with the new vehicles on those routes though, AF’s maintence is clearly extremely good because the new vehicles of all types found there are extremely nice to travel on! I totally agree with you about AF, whilst at certain Go Ahead garages the standard of presentation is appalling AF really are a shining light. I've never seen any blind banditry on their buses which are invariably clean and well looked after.
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Post by vjaska on Jan 27, 2018 20:03:01 GMT
Go-Aheads WVLs were definitely my favourite Gemini’s in London. I was so sad when they got replaced on the 14, 22, 74 and 430, I don’t think there are any routes that suited Gemini’s better. I am very happy with the new vehicles on those routes though, AF’s maintence is clearly extremely good because the new vehicles of all types found there are extremely nice to travel on! I totally agree with you about AF, whilst at certain Go Ahead garages the standard of presentation is appalling AF really are a shining light. I've never seen any blind banditry on their buses which are invariably clean and well looked after. They have the advantage of having a near entirely modern fleet of buses that are only a year old other than a small batch of WHV’s, one WVL and a small batch of E’s. Not many other garages within Go-Ahead have that luxury so not a fair comparison.
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Post by sid on Jan 27, 2018 20:08:52 GMT
I totally agree with you about AF, whilst at certain Go Ahead garages the standard of presentation is appalling AF really are a shining light. I've never seen any blind banditry on their buses which are invariably clean and well looked after. They have the advantage of having a near entirely modern fleet of buses that are only a year old other than a small batch of WHV’s, one WVL and a small batch of E’s. Not many other garages within Go-Ahead have that luxury so not a fair comparison. I'm sorry but your relentless defence of Go Ahead (I assume you have shares in the company?) is getting ridiculous, no other operator puts out unblinded buses on a daily basis. Even when AF had a large fleet of WVL's they were in pristine condition despite their age so having modern buses has got nothing to do with it. Just look at the photos somebody has posted of MG's modern buses.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 27, 2018 20:14:07 GMT
They have the advantage of having a near entirely modern fleet of buses that are only a year old other than a small batch of WHV’s, one WVL and a small batch of E’s. Not many other garages within Go-Ahead have that luxury so not a fair comparison. I'm sorry but your relentless defence of Go Ahead (I assume you have shares in the company?) is getting ridiculous, no other operator puts out unblinded buses on a daily basis. Even when AF had a large fleet of WVL's they were in pristine condition despite their age so having modern buses has got nothing to do with it. Just look at the photos somebody has posted of MG's modern buses. It is fair to say that some garages, even those that have a fairly simple fleet, have absolutely appalling presentation standards. I think MG is the best example of this. The buses are often dirty outside and in, I took some pictures of a filthy WHV earlier: Their standards of blinding buses, even when they have the correct blinds, is terrible! At least they've sorted the WSs now, and put new, working, sets in WVL321. WVL313 is still a common problem. WVL328 and WVL323 are stuck on 180 at the front, so have trouble when they go on the N1, and WVL352 is STILL stuck on 129, which is terrible when it appears on the 180 or 286: www.flickr.com/photos/wanderer30/24548693448 (NOT MY PHOTO)! They really need to sort things out there!
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Post by vjaska on Jan 27, 2018 20:21:51 GMT
They have the advantage of having a near entirely modern fleet of buses that are only a year old other than a small batch of WHV’s, one WVL and a small batch of E’s. Not many other garages within Go-Ahead have that luxury so not a fair comparison. I'm sorry but your relentless defence of Go Ahead (I assume you have shares in the company?) is getting ridiculous, no other operator puts out unblinded buses on a daily basis. Even when AF had a large fleet of WVL's they were in pristine condition despite their age so having modern buses has got nothing to do with it. Just look at the photos somebody has posted of MG's modern buses. I’m sorry but your rentlentless criticism is based on rumours and hearsay - for the umpteenth time, banditry is bad but that does not mean that there could be other factors going on and unless someone can produce actual 100% information on it, then I’m not particularly interested in assumptions and the whole continuation of this plus digs towards Go-Ahead is boring & silly. I don’t have shares but if Go-Ahead are listening, can I have some please - no way would I turn down potential extra money lol.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 27, 2018 20:26:13 GMT
It is fair to say that some garages, even those that have a fairly simple fleet, have absolutely appalling presentation standards. I think MG is the best example of this. The buses are often dirty outside and in, I took some pictures of a filthy WHV earlier: Their standards of blinding buses, even when they have the correct blinds, is terrible! At least they've sorted the WSs now, and put new, working, sets in WVL321. WVL313 is still a common problem. WVL328 and WVL323 are stuck on 180 at the front, so have trouble when they go on the N1, and WVL352 is STILL stuck on 129, which is terrible when it appears on the 180 or 286: www.flickr.com/photos/wanderer30/24548693448 (NOT MY PHOTO)! They really need to sort things out there! I wonder why the 129 batch still haven’t received new blinds yet so they can stray onto the 180, 286 & N1. I was told that the new MG sets (the full ones, same as the ones in the 180 buses) have now been ordered for the Route 1 and 129 buses. So far, I haven't heard of any inserts being ordered for the WHVs.
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Post by MetrolineGA1511 on Jan 27, 2018 20:27:15 GMT
I wonder why the 170 still has its DPs with the arrival of the new WSs while the SEs have come off the route. Guessing there is a mass refurbishment and servicing for those buses? I'm sorry if I'm about to suggest something that has already been suggested but I have not seen yet. It's just that I think SE47-54 will be used as a stop-gap measure o route 153 until the SEe's arrive.
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Post by rj131 on Jan 27, 2018 20:29:23 GMT
They have the advantage of having a near entirely modern fleet of buses that are only a year old other than a small batch of WHV’s, one WVL and a small batch of E’s. Not many other garages within Go-Ahead have that luxury so not a fair comparison. I'm sorry but your relentless defence of Go Ahead (I assume you have shares in the company?) is getting ridiculous, no other operator puts out unblinded buses on a daily basis. Even when AF had a large fleet of WVL's they were in pristine condition despite their age so having modern buses has got nothing to do with it. Just look at the photos somebody has posted of MG's modern buses. I second that! The condition of older buses really is testament to a garage’s maintenance. I also think Camberwell are pretty good as well, I went on a 16-plate EvoSeti on the 185 and it rode like a NB4L (I’m the world’s biggest hater of NB4L’s but even I’ll admit their build quality is exceptional), and one would have thought a cheaply made EvoSeti would be a wreck after about a year and a half. RR, NX, MG and SI (judging by the state of their EHVs which I’ve already moaned about in another thread) meanwhile are another story. EDIT: I will just put it out there that GAL are one of my favourite operators. I love their philosophy of lots of variety in bus types and allocations. It really helps keep enthusiasts and driver’s days interesting
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Post by MetrolineGA1511 on Jan 27, 2018 20:33:34 GMT
Arriva could get it from DT. Stagecoach could get it from TB. MG is actually in quite a good position for the route though. The SEs are being overhauled so should have their reliability issues fixed. They're being billed as virtually new buses mechanically upon return. Can't see it going to another operator anytime soon. DT has refocused its efforts to win local routes I can only assume to cut down on dead mileage. Also Stagecoach south of the river is at capacity and the route is just a little to far from the new Sydenham base. New Sydenham base for Stagecoach? I have yet to see the Stagecoach thread this time but hope to see more details there!
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Post by MetrolineGA1511 on Jan 27, 2018 20:35:52 GMT
Can't see it going to another operator anytime soon. DT has refocused its efforts to win local routes I can only assume to cut down on dead mileage. Also Stagecoach south of the river is at capacity and the route is just a little to far from the new Sydenham base. Well PD, TL or TB anyway. There may be tenders to be awarded before the 286 that could create space. (If the 51, 54, 61, 75, 96, 122, 124, 136, 178, 208, 227, 261, 291, 356, 472 or R5/R10 are lost) Routes 51 & 61 are strong contenders for GAL (MB), and route 75 for GAL (C) or Abellio (BC).
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Post by Deleted on Jan 27, 2018 20:37:11 GMT
Can't see it going to another operator anytime soon. DT has refocused its efforts to win local routes I can only assume to cut down on dead mileage. Also Stagecoach south of the river is at capacity and the route is just a little to far from the new Sydenham base. New Sydenham base for Stagecoach? I have yet to see the Stagecoach thread this time but hope to see more details there! A shuffle. 208 TB > TL, making space for the 286 at TB?
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Post by Deleted on Jan 27, 2018 20:39:07 GMT
Well PD, TL or TB anyway. There may be tenders to be awarded before the 286 that could create space. (If the 51, 54, 61, 75, 96, 122, 124, 136, 178, 208, 227, 261, 291, 356, 472 or R5/R10 are lost) Routes 51 & 61 are strong contenders for GAL (MB), and route 75 for GAL (C) or Abellio (BC). I think MG could try for the 54. BX would be a strong contender for the 96. 178 might be interesting to see. I imagine MG will try and nab it, with some existing buses. A surprise twist could be 472 going to GAL!
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Post by MetrolineGA1511 on Jan 27, 2018 20:39:26 GMT
I would think many of the 56 reg E's will be going? I think there are only a handful of PVL's left at BX. The 56 reg E's are allocated to the 486 - there is unconfirmed reports of the 422's buses moving onto the 213 so we'll just have to wait & see. Although these Es are officially allocated to route 486, they have quite often worked route 422 instead. A case in point was 29.10.16 when more vehicles were on opposite routes than official routes. It is claimed/rumoured that WVLs were deemed more suitable for route 486 with its hills.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 27, 2018 20:45:15 GMT
The 56 reg E's are allocated to the 486 - there is unconfirmed reports of the 422's buses moving onto the 213 so we'll just have to wait & see. Although these Es are officially allocated to route 486, they have quite often worked route 422 instead. A case in point was 29.10.16 when more vehicles were on opposite routes than official routes. It is claimed/rumoured that WVLs were deemed more suitable for route 486 with its hills. The Es got a special engine upgrade to be able to do the hills on the 486. Some of them became real beasts!
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Post by MetrolineGA1511 on Jan 27, 2018 20:47:48 GMT
I would be interested to see what happens with E246-275 on the 36 when the new MMC’s arrive to replace them. I wonder what will be done with them. Am I right in thinking the 213 and D7 don’t have enough allocated buses to make up their PVR? Some could be used there. I think GAL will bid for routes 51 & 61 using these Es.
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