"Don't do it"

[Deleted]

Aug 8, 2015 13:26:07 GMT @chazaroo said:

It was intended as a joke. However a polish driver on the 364's did run over a groups of chav's dog and got dragged out of the bus and giving a good beating for it. Did him a favour though as he no longer had to drive 364's.

Aug 3, 2015 22:07:17 GMT Connor said:

Possibly SOH failure on my part; how would a dog cause you to lose your job?

what's the polish connection... Couldn't work out why where he came from was mentioned.

[Deleted]

Get a grip. I couldn't remember his name and we always referred to him as polish driver. Don't read more into something then there is.

Aug 8, 2015 14:17:55 GMT @dan said:

Aug 8, 2015 13:26:07 GMT @chazaroo said:

It was intended as a joke. However a polish driver on the 364's did run over a groups of chav's dog and got dragged out of the bus and giving a good beating for it. Did him a favour though as he no longer had to drive 364's.

what's the polish connection... Couldn't work out why where he came from was mentioned.

[Deleted]

I'll get ya the number for the Samaritans then and ya can have a good cry over it. I'd dread to think what you'd have to say if you knew what some of my colleagues referred to me as. Having worked with them 8 years that's what happens.

Aug 8, 2015 14:32:51 GMT @dan said:

Aug 8, 2015 14:24:52 GMT @chazaroo said:

Get a grip. I couldn't remember his name and we always referred to him as polish driver. Don't read more into something then there is.

such a way with words lol. I personally thought it was a bit offensive. We didn't need to know his name. Hey ho

[vjaska]

What's wrong with driving the 364?

[Eastlondoner62]

Aug 8, 2015 14:54:39 GMT vjaska said:

What's wrong with driving the 364?

Chazaroo should be able to give you a driver's view. But from me as a passenger it's just a route with a really long Hail and Ride section, crowded and has depressing buses. Even after the refurb that they have had even though I also dislike the 145 I would much prefer taking it to Ilford over the 364. 

[Deleted]

Mainly it's the hail and ride sections that annoy me I was on the rota for 18 months. There is just too many people that abuse it and treat it like dial a ride. I actually like the buses yes they are boring enviros but they are still quite nippy and corner really well. They also have the old dash where you can actually get your foot up. That's what most newer types lack now, space to move your left leg about to stop it getting bored. I'd be back on it like a shot if they just got rid of hail and ride.

Aug 9, 2015 0:23:59 GMT Eastlondoner62 said:

Aug 8, 2015 14:54:39 GMT vjaska said:

What's wrong with driving the 364?

Chazaroo should be able to give you a driver's view. But from me as a passenger it's just a route with a really long Hail and Ride section, crowded and has depressing buses. Even after the refurb that they have had even though I also dislike the 145 I would much prefer taking it to Ilford over the 364. 

[VPL630]

So on Friday we had ticket and iBus training, easy stuff, didn't know you are able to block someone's Oyster card on the ETM but only under instruction from revenue staff, You can also print out a recent list of transactions that have happened on the card.

ETM is easy to use, just give it the data it asks for and it does the rest, seems a bit slow at times but that might just have been our training ones.

iBus training itself is quite boring and I wouldn't say great, it's done using a flash animations on a website (Nothing to do with Stagecoach) now during stage 1 it tells you what certain buttons do, stage 2 it asks you to do certain tasks with slight hints and then stage 3 it asks you to do the same tasks again without hints. I'm sure this is all well and good for some people but unlike with the ETM you don't get the chance to play with the functions and see what everything does in your own time, it just wants you to do set tasks which to be honest I don't even remember, I've already had an in depth explanation of the system and know what it can and can't do but from the "training" I had I would still be unsure of a few things if I hadn't had previous knowledge of the system. It is very easy to use once you know what you are doing

Monday I am hopefully getting signed off to Leyton for type training and route learning

[daveb0789]

Congratulations on passing out. I won't forget the job I did for 6 years although I take my hat off to the present day drivers as traffic conditions are worse than in my day - especially cyclists (and I used to be a cycle courier). Im so put off by London's traffic that I specifically request not to go there when I do any coach driving!

[stubag]

Aug 8, 2015 14:37:06 GMT @chazaroo said:

I'll get ya the number for the Samaritans then and ya can have a good cry over it. I'd dread to think what you'd have to say if you knew what some of my colleagues referred to me as. Having worked with them 8 years that's what happens.

Aug 8, 2015 14:32:51 GMT @dan said:

such a way with words lol. I personally thought it was a bit offensive. We didn't need to know his name. Hey ho

Every garage has nicknames for all sorts....and as for the Garage banter, if you can't take the jokes from your fellow drivers, then the job will get to you VERY QUICKLY

[daveb0789]

One of the differences I find is that bus drivers are more social and lively than the those I work with

[vjaska]

Aug 9, 2015 0:23:59 GMT Eastlondoner62 said:

Aug 8, 2015 14:54:39 GMT vjaska said:

What's wrong with driving the 364?

Chazaroo should be able to give you a driver's view. But from me as a passenger it's just a route with a really long Hail and Ride section, crowded and has depressing buses. Even after the refurb that they have had even though I also dislike the 145 I would much prefer taking it to Ilford over the 364. 

Thanks - I did the route once end to end a few months ago but it was in the evening so didn't really notice any issues.

[romfordbuses]

If you can't handle garage banter, You might as well just throw the job in! As people say, It's part of the job...


I have to say, There's no banter like bus workers banter!!

[VPL630]

Aug 9, 2015 11:51:09 GMT daveb0789 said:

One of the differences I find is that bus drivers are more social and lively than the those I work with

They always have a story to tell, that's for sure

[VPL630]

So today we had type training, this was done at PD as they (in theory) have the most fit spare buses.

Started off the day with 13023, our instructor was adamant that I wouldn’t be able to start it without being shown, she was proved wrong. The Volvo B5LH/Gemini 3 seemed very nice in the cab, it’s a very simple layout with only about 5 or 6 buttons actually on the dash and they are all in clear easy to see places, as I won’t be driving theses we never took it out on the road but I was made familiar with the i-Shift gearbox operation and the fact they do roll back ect.

12295 (Euro 6 Enivro 400) was our next bus, As with all of the Euro 5 (and Euro 6 old shape) Enviro buses they have the same rugby ball dash and start procedure be it Hybrid or not, makes life simple I suppose. These are very fast and it feels like you are driving a toy car almost, it doesn’t give you the feeling that you are driving a 12ton bus what so ever which is another reason why I think quite a few drivers love to throw them about, The Enviro 400H is the type that causes the most GreenRoad events within the whole fleet. The acceleration is lethal on them, slightly torque restricted when they pull away in battery mode and the brakes are very very sharp as there is little to no resistance in the pedals but once you get a feel for the brakes they are easy to operate smoothly, When the engine does cut in and out it’s a bit surreal and it does it at times when you really aren’t expecting it, from the cab even with the window open you don’t hear half as much of the exhaust/sucking sound, something I don’t like is you can’t kneel the bus unless the doors are closed and you can’t pull out the ramp with the bus lowered none of which gives any warning as to why it won’t work ect, The door buttons are already knackered and this was a 14 reg bus which is a shame but there were things ADL could have done differently which they have with the MMC which has rocker switches but all in all a very nice bus, I’m looking forward to driving the ex BW’s ones have at Leyton, You also don’t get a great feel for the speed you are doing and because you are hitting 30 so quickly you can end up doing quite a bit more without even noticing but as I had my eye on the speedo this thankfully never happened. One final thing, buses that have tachographs fitted seem to have it in the worst position possible and at night/low light you have this red light in your face as you are driving with no card 

15067 (Euro 5 Scania Omnicity) a bus I’ve always wanted to have a drive of as I’ve heard nothing but good things about them (excluding the ones at BE/SI) we had to beg with the GS to let us have it for a bit (so much for having loads of spare buses…) as he wanted it for the 51’s but he gave in after a while and let us have a play, The bus was fresh from ROTA and had just been cleaned, after carrying out a walk round check and then my instructor doing another to make sure I hadn’t missed anything we left the garage after reversing out of a stupidly tight spot that the bus had been left in. Straight away the brakes feel very firm and nice to use, gentle braking is easy and the downshifts from the ZF gearbox are quite smooth, this one had kickdown disabled but that was fine as you might be aware on N230UD’s you can just pump the throttle to hold gears which is quite a neat feature. This compared to the E400H feels like you are driving a bus, a big heavy one to me anyway it was nice as it gives you more confidence while driving, the enviro felt more like a toy not a bus, the downside to the Omnicity is the pedals which feel really cheap and that they could snap at any point, I don’t know if that is how they are designed so you don’t get people stamping on them but they feel really plasticity and cheap, There is another short fall which is the emergency door buttons when pressed dump all the air pressure for the doors when used so you have to reset them and wait a while before the driver buttons actually do anything, The dashboard is lovely and clear, the buttons are sensibly placed, do like the raised idle feature and also the halt brake which isn’t all good as sometimes you think it has come on when it hasn’t, the handbrake is slightly awkward to use and I feel it could have been placed more ergonomically. This bus was quite nippy even without pumping the throttle, pleasant to drive and very smooth, you don’t feel half the bumps from the driver’s seat, it was a real shame my drive was brought to an abrupt end as a red warning message appeared on the dash “Hatch open” then checking my O/S mirror and the bus wasn't joking!

They are also blinded for the 269

[Steve09]

Aug 10, 2015 18:43:28 GMT VPL630 said:

So today we had type training, this was done at PD as they (in theory) have the most fit spare buses.

Started off the day with 13023, our instructor was adamant that I wouldn’t be able to start it without being shown, she was proved wrong. The Volvo B5LH/Gemini 3 seemed very nice in the cab, it’s a very simple layout with only about 5 or 6 buttons actually on the dash and they are all in clear easy to see places, as I won’t be driving theses we never took it out on the road but I was made familiar with the i-Shift gearbox operation and the fact they do roll back ect.

12295 (Euro 6 Enivro 400) was our next bus, As with all of the Euro 5 (and Euro 6 old shape) Enviro buses they have the same rugby ball dash and start procedure be it Hybrid or not, makes life simple I suppose. These are very fast and it feels like you are driving a toy car almost, it doesn’t give you the feeling that you are driving a 12ton bus what so ever which is another reason why I think quite a few drivers love to throw them about, The Enviro 400H is the type that causes the most GreenRoad events within the whole fleet. The acceleration is lethal on them, slightly torque restricted when they pull away in battery mode and the brakes are very very sharp as there is little to no resistance in the pedals but once you get a feel for the brakes they are easy to operate smoothly, When the engine does cut in and out it’s a bit surreal and it does it at times when you really aren’t expecting it, from the cab even with the window open you don’t hear half as much of the exhaust/sucking sound, something I don’t like is you can’t kneel the bus unless the doors are closed and you can’t pull out the ramp with the bus lowered none of which gives any warning as to why it won’t work ect, The door buttons are already knackered and this was a 14 reg bus which is a shame but there were things ADL could have done differently which they have with the MMC which has rocker switches but all in all a very nice bus, I’m looking forward to driving the ex BW’s ones have at Leyton, You also don’t get a great feel for the speed you are doing and because you are hitting 30 so quickly you can end up doing quite a bit more without even noticing but as I had my eye on the speedo this thankfully never happened. One final thing, buses that have tachographs fitted seem to have it in the worst position possible and at night/low light you have this red light in your face as you are driving with no card 

15067 (Euro 5 Scania Omnicity) a bus I’ve always wanted to have a drive of as I’ve heard nothing but good things about them (excluding the ones at BE/SI) we had to beg with the GS to let us have it for a bit (so much for having loads of spare buses…) as he wanted it for the 51’s but he gave in after a while and let us have a play, The bus was fresh from ROTA and had just been cleaned, after carrying out a walk round check and then my instructor doing another to make sure I hadn’t missed anything we left the garage after reversing out of a stupidly tight spot that the bus had been left in. Straight away the brakes feel very firm and nice to use, gentle braking is easy and the downshifts from the ZF gearbox are quite smooth, this one had kickdown disabled but that was fine as you might be aware on N230UD’s you can just pump the throttle to hold gears which is quite a neat feature. This compared to the E400H feels like you are driving a bus, a big heavy one to me anyway it was nice as it gives you more confidence while driving, the enviro felt more like a toy not a bus, the downside to the Omnicity is the pedals which feel really cheap and that they could snap at any point, I don’t know if that is how they are designed so you don’t get people stamping on them but they feel really plasticity and cheap, There is another short fall which is the emergency door buttons when pressed dump all the air pressure for the doors when used so you have to reset them and wait a while before the driver buttons actually do anything, The dashboard is lovely and clear, the buttons are sensibly placed, do like the raised idle feature and also the halt brake which isn’t all good as sometimes you think it has come on when it hasn’t, the handbrake is slightly awkward to use and I feel it could have been placed more ergonomically. This bus was quite nippy even without pumping the throttle, pleasant to drive and very smooth, you don’t feel half the bumps from the driver’s seat, it was a real shame my drive was brought to an abrupt end as a red warning message appeared on the dash “Hatch open” then checking my O/S mirror and the bus wasn't joking!

They are also blinded for the 269

Good to hear you enjoyed the type training Dave, I thought you'd like the Scania! They really are a drivers bus - I find them quicker to operate than Enviro's, some Enviros are really slow if they have an "engine management" light appear and can be very frustrating especially if the bus is busy.

It is unusual to get a Scania without a message on the dash all the time. "Air consumption high" is a fave!

Acceleration on the E400 Hybrids are really extreme - when I had 12299 on the 99s and it quickly built up to 30mph when pulling away from the stop on Bostall Hill before the top I was shocked. They are nice to drive if you make allowances for the green road.