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Post by SILENCED on Aug 2, 2024 20:36:42 GMT
Aren't we being a bit harsh on Dean and the company? Notice states TfL are falling short of 200k a month on payments, with such a small business their reserves have probably blown by covid, he probably had to make cuts to maintenance etc and wass possibly in a place where the company cant afford to repair some vehicles, as seen with the scrappage of 2017 StreetLites. I guess he put profits over people rather than the other way round Its not profits, £200k a month is an impossible sum for a single guy to cover ... How long could you do it?
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Post by twobellstogo on Aug 2, 2024 20:43:29 GMT
Is it confirmed 217 is heading to Metroline? As far as I can see, no-one has taken up the 217, so if you rely on that route, think again for the time being.
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Post by atb123 on Aug 2, 2024 20:44:42 GMT
Is it confirmed 217 is heading to Metroline? As far as I can see, no-one has taken up the 217, so if you rely on that route, think again for the time being. Lot of pressure on 231 and 317
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Post by ServerKing on Aug 2, 2024 20:49:23 GMT
Has that ever happened before? E10 under Arriva? Or was that because they had closed their Heathrow base and had no other suitable garages anywhere near the route? E10 was won by Tellings Golden Miller who were part of Burtons Coaches, who were bought by Arriva. So it was a surprise to see a fully liveried Arriva bus rock up in Ealing... sad to say the Euro6 14 plate they bought was junk, That YX14R** batch was plagued with problems, bad gearboxes, coupled with awful roads that wrecked suspension. That and the fact their near maintenence garage was Dartford, miles away, so elderly Cadets with A4 sheets for blinds stood in until the buses were fixed. After Garston closed, the Heathrow / Dartford setup just didn't work, too far away from other Arriva routes. They passed the route to RATP. Back to Sullivans, noticed the service going downhill for a while on the 217, all the 17 platers were being relplaced by their 12 reg Rail Replacement stuff, sometimes sans blinds. Drivers were either too slow or too fast. Will Arriva take the 217 and the 17 platers become DLA391-400? will they escape onto the 123?
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Post by lundnah on Aug 2, 2024 20:52:35 GMT
Brief tweet this evening from @tfl
⚠️ Due to an operator ceasing bus operations in London, the following routes will be affected 217, 298, 299, 327, 389, 399, 549, W9 Plan ahead and check before you travel ↓ tfl.gov.uk/plan-a-journey/
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Post by SILENCED on Aug 2, 2024 20:59:23 GMT
Brief tweet this evening from @tfl
⚠️ Due to an operator ceasing bus operations in London, the following routes will be affected 217, 298, 299, 327, 389, 399, 549, W9 Plan ahead and check before you travel ↓ tfl.gov.uk/plan-a-journey/That is really poor ... they really need to set up a web page detailing what routes have new operators and which ones are unlikely to be running in the morning.
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Post by Red Dragon on Aug 2, 2024 21:02:07 GMT
Bus status information in London is pretty d*mned poor, and wouldn't be tolerated on the railway.
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Post by atb123 on Aug 2, 2024 21:06:58 GMT
E10 under Arriva? Or was that because they had closed their Heathrow base and had no other suitable garages anywhere near the route? E10 was won by Tellings Golden Miller who were part of Burtons Coaches, who were bought by Arriva. So it was a surprise to see a fully liveried Arriva bus rock up in Ealing... sad to say the Euro6 14 plate they bought was junk, That YX14R** batch was plagued with problems, bad gearboxes, coupled with awful roads that wrecked suspension. That and the fact their near maintenence garage was Dartford, miles away, so elderly Cadets with A4 sheets for blinds stood in until the buses were fixed. After Garston closed, the Heathrow / Dartford setup just didn't work, too far away from other Arriva routes. They passed the route to RATP. Back to Sullivans, noticed the service going downhill for a while on the 217, all the 17 platers were being relplaced by their 12 reg Rail Replacement stuff, sometimes sans blinds. Drivers were either too slow or too fast. Will Arriva take the 217 and the 17 platers become DLA391-400? will they escape onto the 123? Depends if 217 goes to AR or EC, but with E being full it looks like either EC or WN will be the 217s new home if it heads Arrivas way.
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Post by ThinLizzy on Aug 2, 2024 21:11:50 GMT
Aren't we being a bit harsh on Dean and the company? Notice states TfL are falling short of 200k a month on payments, with such a small business their reserves have probably blown by covid, he probably had to make cuts to maintenance etc and wass possibly in a place where the company cant afford to repair some vehicles, as seen with the scrappage of 2017 StreetLites. As I've mentioned a few times- the Sullivans operation was of very poor quality, failing to meet any contract targets etc etc etc
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Post by sp17 on Aug 2, 2024 21:13:16 GMT
For all the critics of Sullivan, I tell you this, you’re all being pretty harsh without knowing the ins and outs. There’s a lot more to this story; the so called neglect comes from loss of revenue, if they are not paid how are they meant to maintain the standard TfL set?
Not wanting to convert the garage to an electric is another thing but the reality is electric buses aren’t going to last long term, every industry expert knows this but won’t admit it because it doesn’t fit the “script”. The industry as a whole is broken like everything else in this country.
I feel sorry for Dean but he’s been pushed here; like many others who have come and gone.
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Post by lundnah on Aug 2, 2024 21:18:09 GMT
Brief tweet this evening from @tfl
⚠️ Due to an operator ceasing bus operations in London, the following routes will be affected 217, 298, 299, 327, 389, 399, 549, W9 Plan ahead and check before you travel ↓ tfl.gov.uk/plan-a-journey/I've also just received these emails from TfL
Bus routes 389 and 399
The operator of bus routes 389 and 399 has withdrawn from running TfL Bus services in London, and as a result we will be unable to operate these services from Saturday 3 August until further notice.
To plan an alternate journey please visit tfl.gov.uk or use the TfL Go App. Please note that real time information will not be available for these routes until further notice.
We are sorry for the disruption this will cause.
Bus routes 217, 298, 299, 327, 549 and W9
The operator of bus routes 217, 298, 299, 327, 549 and W9 has withdrawn from running TfL Bus services in London, and as a result there will be an impact to these services from Saturday 3 August until further notice.
We are planning to run as many services as possible, but please allow more time for your journey.
To plan an alternate journey please visit tfl.gov.uk or use the TfL Go App. Please note that real time information will not be available for these routes until further notice.
We are sorry for the disruption this will cause.
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Post by abellion on Aug 2, 2024 21:21:19 GMT
Brief tweet this evening from @tfl
⚠️ Due to an operator ceasing bus operations in London, the following routes will be affected 217, 298, 299, 327, 389, 399, 549, W9 Plan ahead and check before you travel ↓ tfl.gov.uk/plan-a-journey/I've also just received this email from TfL
Bus routes 389 and 399
The operator of bus routes 389 and 399 has withdrawn from running TfL Bus services in London, and as a result we will be unable to operate these services from Saturday 3 August until further notice.
To plan an alternate journey please visit tfl.gov.uk or use the TfL Go App. Please note that real time information will not be available for these routes until further notice.
We are sorry for the disruption this will cause.
It would be nice for TfL to provide some in person assistance or get notices up at bus stops, especially if residents on certain local routes aren’t actively online to be made aware, although as others have pointed out their providing of information is usually very inadequate and even likelier to be at such short notice
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Post by WH241 on Aug 2, 2024 21:21:26 GMT
For all the critics of Sullivan, I tell you this, you’re all being pretty harsh without knowing the ins and outs. There’s a lot more to this story; the so called neglect comes from loss of revenue, if they are not paid how are they meant to maintain the standard TfL set? Not wanting to convert the garage to an electric is another thing but the reality is electric buses aren’t going to last long term, every industry expert knows this but won’t admit it because it doesn’t fit the “script”. The industry as a whole is broken like everything else in this country. I feel sorry for Dean but he’s been pushed here; like many others who have come and gone. We only know what Dean has been posting. I don’t want to sound too harsh but some of his social media posts have been far from professional and not what you would really expect from a TfL contractor.
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Post by DE20106 on Aug 2, 2024 21:24:06 GMT
From Dean on Facebook: After a discussion with TfL this afternoon, we have decided to withdraw from all TfL contracts effectively from Close of Traffic tonight. I have been concerned for sometime about TfLs ability to ensure that the remuneration for their contracts keeps pace with the costs of service delivery. As the country recovered from Covid we saw a significant spike in inflation and a rise in traffic congestion. As a result we were looking for investment and a suitable cost adjustment to counter the effects on our customers, staff & business. Theres more details on this in my press release which I will post in due course. We have enjoyed working in London, but in a recent meeting with TfL they made it very clear that Sullivan Buses were an unwelcome partner in the delivery of services in London. It’s now so severe that we can no longer ignore the message. We will continue with Commercial - and we will grow Commercial. I have missed many opertunites along the way as a result of perhaps being too focused on TfL work. My heart is in all three (TfL, Rail & Commercial) but they all need to be sustainable and of course you need to feel 'included'. Sadly with TfL of late we have felt very excluded. Unfortunate, but was expected to happen sooner or later. My concern is with the 217, I wonder what will happen with it, and the other routes! Well if nothing is done the 231 will be getting absolutely hammered!
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Post by ADH45258 on Aug 2, 2024 21:26:15 GMT
Which operators will the 217, 327, 605, 606, 718, 720 and W9 be novated to? I expect TFL will have a different strategy for each route, based on the tender programme. Like the 299, TFL will likely encourage UNO to start running the 298 early. They do have DDs from the school routes available for now, just means less time to find a permanent allocation for the 298 (the H98's ADEs could be available very soon). With the 549 largely being replaced by the revised W14, maybe Stagecoach could run the 549 as part of the current W14 contract for the last month or so? Tender results are currently due for the 327 and W9 - so TFL might contact whoever was the lowest bidder to see if they can start running it immediately. Same with the 617/629 too, but with more time to organise. With the 217, perhaps they will award it on an emergency short term contract to whichever operator has the resources, and add it to the tender programme? And they could try to award new contracts for the 605/606 before the school term starts again. If any short term arrangements are made, I expect Metroline could be involved, as Sullivan drivers could potentially transfer if needed (with PB only a short distance from SM).
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