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Post by sconehead85 on Jun 24, 2013 21:52:06 GMT 1
What's the point of buying a Volvo B10M when such vehicles will be barred from regular bus operation in 18 months time? I think CBNW are making a rod for their own back, and like Transdev they seem to be hoping the DDA requirements are going to go away. What also is the point of purchasing a 30 year old Leyland Olympian when they have access to sufficient "classic" buses as it is? They might get three summers out of it admittedly!
Is "Big Momma" operating at or near capacity?
sconehead85
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Matty
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Post by Matty on Jun 24, 2013 21:56:13 GMT 1
18 months is long enough for service isn't it!?
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ratty
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Post by ratty on Jun 25, 2013 8:00:36 GMT 1
I will make this categorically clear. Classic Bus North West, like any other sensible operator has absolutely NO WISH that the DDA requirements will go away. It is still a fledgling company and has to buy accordingly, for the present time to build up trade to get the low floor buses for their respective dates. I have discussed this matter with the boss, and he made it quite clear that low floor buses ARE on the agenda, and by the respective dates we will have low floor buses. Have you seen the prices that firms like Ensign are placing on low floor double deckers at the moment? The Leyland Olympian by the way was not bought, but was already here, its revival will be due only to the contract for advertising that the Pleasure Beach have negotiated. The last sentence in Sconeheads post answers his own question, we will get 3 years out of these vehicles, and hopefully less.
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Post by driver6540 on Jun 26, 2013 22:23:05 GMT 1
Sorry, But im a bit ignorant about the DDA laws and their intended application etc.(thats because im from t,other side, the HGV side.) But am i right in thinking it applies to all PSV operators?. If thats the case then cannot companies run services with step-entrance vehicles under the scope of "Heritage" services?. Or am i barking up the wrong tree altogether there. Also, if all PSV operators must have low-floor fleets to comply with the proposed legislation when it takes effect then, surely the financial impact of equipping small company fleets like, Halifax Joint Committee with newer vehicles will probably bankrupt them. Are there any exemption clauses within the new legislation which may take into account the plight of the smaller (less financially well endowed) operator, or is it an all-enveloping law that must be adhered to rigidly from a certain date, or else!!.
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Post by sconehead85 on Jun 27, 2013 0:31:51 GMT 1
There are some limited exemptions for non-DDA vehicles, apparently they can be used 20 days per year. There should be a limited exemption for tourist routes provided, like as is the case with London's Routemaster operated 9 and 15 accessible vehicles are also available. CBNW's route 12 is a similar service with Blackpool Transport's route 1 and the new trams..
Single deck buses have to be all LF from 1st January 2015, and double deckers from 1st January 2017.
sconehead85
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Post by dwarfer1979 on Jun 27, 2013 8:26:07 GMT 1
Sorry, But im a bit ignorant about the DDA laws and their intended application etc.(thats because im from t,other side, the HGV side.) But am i right in thinking it applies to all PSV operators?. If thats the case then cannot companies run services with step-entrance vehicles under the scope of "Heritage" services?. Or am i barking up the wrong tree altogether there. Also, if all PSV operators must have low-floor fleets to comply with the proposed legislation when it takes effect then, surely the financial impact of equipping small company fleets like, Halifax Joint Committee with newer vehicles will probably bankrupt them. Are there any exemption clauses within the new legislation which may take into account the plight of the smaller (less financially well endowed) operator, or is it an all-enveloping law that must be adhered to rigidly from a certain date, or else!!. As stated by Sconehead the only exemption is heritage vehicles that operate for less than 20 days a year, I'm not sure how it would be viewed if an operator owned enough vehicles to maintain a all year round service without any individual vehicle operating for more than 20 days a year but it would be technically feasible (though somewhat expensive in number of vehicles owned), though certainly it would be perfectly feasible to run weekends and/or holidays under those rules. That is the only exemption and all other vehicles used on regular service work (they don't need to be registered to count) available to the public are covered, it is a little unclear how things like closed school contracts should be treated, the wording of the law would seem to indicate they are included but the DfT have said they are outside the scope though until someone tests it in court we can't be certain as UK law works off the wording of the law not what the law really meant. I can see no reason for any exemption for smaller fleets, this law has been in place for 15 years so everyone has had plenty of warning to plan ahead and since all buses built from 2001 onwards should have been built as DDA compliant (and many operators/dealers have been retrofitting older vehicles as well) the oldest non-compliant buses will be 15 or 17 years old by the time it comes into force (the legislation appears to have been designed to ensure there was no premature withdrawals as those are reasonable lifes for a bus to have). There are plenty of DDA compliant vehicles available on the market at affordable prices, you can get a pre-2001 retrofitted DDA compliant Dart SLF for £3-4k, a 2001/2 Solo/Dart SLF for £5-7k & a 2001/2 DDA compliant decker for around £20-25k (I have seen some advertised for less than £17k). The only issue is on deckers where it is proving difficult to retrofit belts to a DDA compliant decker (the extra rules make it difficult for them to pass the pull test on the belts, though where vehicles had the belts fitted from new they are fine) but that is a small segment as most belted deckers don't see a lot of normal 'in-scope' bus work. If an operator has chosen to ignore the upcoming DDA deadline so they can buy cheaper buses that is their own business but they shouldn't be given an exemption because of it, the reason these vehicles are so cheap is that many operators, planning ahead, stopped buying non-DDA vehicles a while ago as they began to work towards the upcoming deadline.
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Matty
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Post by Matty on Jun 27, 2013 20:49:42 GMT 1
There are some limited exemptions for non-DDA vehicles, apparently they can be used 20 days per year. There should be a limited exemption for tourist routes provided, like as is the case with London's Routemaster operated 9 and 15 accessible vehicles are also available. CBNW's route 12 is a similar service with Blackpool Transport's route 1 and the new trams.. Single deck buses have to be all LF from 1st January 2015, and double deckers from 1st January 2017. sconehead85 Minibuses by 2015, Full Size Singles from 2016, Deckers from 2017 & Coaches 2019
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Post by driver6540 on Jun 27, 2013 20:55:19 GMT 1
Thanks, Sconey and dwarfer for your above responses. I was totally unaware that operators had known about this legislation for 15 years, so had plenty of time to make provisions to comply. Therefore i would conclude that any operator caught "on the hop", It would be totally their own fault.
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Post by driver6540 on Jun 27, 2013 20:57:40 GMT 1
Thankyou Matty also, Hadn't seen your response before i posted above.
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Post by sconehead85 on Jul 20, 2013 1:07:57 GMT 1
AT LAST we have a summer fit for open toppers. Its a pity they seem to be every seven years we get a decent summer so CBNW needs to make the moistest from it. And if I may diverge, a fit enough summer to mark the final season of Leyland Olympian operation by Arriva in Rhyl..
sconehead85
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Post by driver6540 on Sept 10, 2013 21:24:38 GMT 1
Dart 163 was spotted by myself, parked up on the A644 towards Huddersfield this lunchtime. Still in Bispham College vinyl's. Anyone know why?. It's a little bit off it's beaten track.
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ratty
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Orange,Green and Cream Best livery ever
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Post by ratty on Sept 10, 2013 22:54:05 GMT 1
Yes I do.
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ratty
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Post by ratty on Sept 11, 2013 6:22:21 GMT 1
Go on then...It's going to Barnsley......but it's coming back!!
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Post by driver6540 on Sept 11, 2013 22:33:40 GMT 1
It was still parked there at the same spot this breakfast time. So i assume it had an overnight stay in that lay-by. BTW the sarnies in that snack bar across the road are damned expensive.
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ratty
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Post by ratty on Sept 11, 2013 23:27:54 GMT 1
It should have gone to Barnsley by now, the journey there did not go as planned shall we say. In the next 2 or 3 weeks we will have some news from CBNW for you, but please be patient. Some of it involves Yorkshire!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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Post by driver6540 on Sept 12, 2013 0:27:33 GMT 1
CBWY?, Oh No!, You've not bought out HJC have you?.
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ratty
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Post by ratty on Sept 12, 2013 0:36:44 GMT 1
In a word y...no. Just be patient its not a big deal but it does involve Yorkshire in a way. It will TRANSpire as a DEVelopment in due course.
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Post by driver6540 on Sept 12, 2013 0:53:54 GMT 1
OK Chris, We'll leave it with you. Feel free to report back when you can.
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Post by sconehead85 on Sept 12, 2013 1:08:37 GMT 1
I would have thought Blackpool Transport would be more of a catch for Transdev than CBNW.
sconehead85
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ratty
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Post by ratty on Sept 26, 2013 7:03:48 GMT 1
Right, quite a lot to get through here, so here goes. From October the 4th a new express service starts from Blackpool to Manchester ( www.catch22bus.co.uk/red-rocket/ ). It is using Mercedes/Citaro articulated buses, and through fares to other CBNW services will be available. From the 11th of November, service 22 has a slight deviation in the South Shore area, an hourly evening service starts, last Blackpool to Cleveleys is 2310, and there will be some early morning journeys as well. This is basically to offer users of Red Rocket to connect in for onward/inward travel from that service, and also in response to passenger requests. Seafront12 service is cancelled for the winter from November the 10th, and it would appear most of the deckers are to be parked up, at this moment in time. This is due to Blackpool Transport regaining the Blackpool and Fylde College buses 72/3. But as ever, further work is being investigated. After all we still have 3 years to use them in!! Finally. No, Transdev have not bought out CBNW. However, they have sold us 6 very good condition W reg Volvo B6's. Which are to come at the rate of 2 a month over the next 3 months, whilst in the meantime a revamp of the Darts is to take place. The first B6's are due in the next couple of weeks, and are reported to be 601 AND 611, which is believed to be finally being withdrawn in the next week. What the other 4 are, I am not sure at the moment, but I do know that 3 have electronic desti's, and 3 have roller blinds, and it is possible that they will enter service in their Harrogate colours at first (apparently the boss likes the livery as well!!). That will explain the Yorkshire connection in my earlier post. Even more finally, just for Driver 6540,Dart 163 has returned from its journey to Barnsley, and is undertaking MOT prep at the moment. The last I heard, the advert for Bispham High School is out of time, and was to be replaced by a new overall advert. Nothing further till I know for definite that is what is happening. I will say that the school is merging with another, and closing down. Its probable this will happen at MOT time I would think. Pause for breath, that's it.
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Post by driver6540 on Sept 26, 2013 19:06:51 GMT 1
Thanking you for the above, Now go get yer breath back.
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Davidc
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Post by Davidc on Sept 26, 2013 21:02:14 GMT 1
Blimy, didn't think the idea of running the Manchester service was going to take off (get it :-)) How many Citaros are likely to be needed?
Aren't the 80/82 LCC services? I was just working out today how long the current Fylde Villager contracts have left before coming up for re-tendering, I was thinking next year as most contracts last 5 years and the current contracts started around 2008/9.
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Post by www.buseireann.ie on Sept 26, 2013 21:10:10 GMT 1
I think we all need to get our breath back after the Red Rocket shock. Never thought I'd see a bendi bus doing such a long distance route, it has potential though as I've worked out you can get from Leeds to Blackpool for £15 return (using National Express for the Manchester to Leeds section), the only down side to this is a lack of connection at Manchester, it's anything from 30 to not far off 90 mins wait depending on time you travel. For example the 8pm departure from Blackpool should arrive into Manchester for 9.30 allowing for traffic, earlier if little hold ups. The next coach for Leeds is 10.30 as the Red Rocket is very unlikely to arrive before 9pm which is when the previous Leeds coach leaves. I've looked at Megabus but that's just as bad, in fact worse!
As crazy as this sounds, bearing in mind how over used the Leeds-Blackpool trains are, if it's marketed well would an extention to Leeds be on the cards, or even a direct service during the summer months to compete with the expensive train? With good traffic levels, some journeys could run faster than the train!
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Post by www.buseireann.ie on Sept 27, 2013 13:53:28 GMT 1
It's gone viral folks, just been on the blog East of the M60 by Stuart Valentine and Red Rocket has a full page article with a note within the article about the 80/1 routes!
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Post by sconehead85 on Sept 29, 2013 1:31:47 GMT 1
What makes everyone think that the RedRocket is going to be any more successful than the former Stagecoach X60 and X61 routes which also ran from Blackpool to Manchester? They are starting rather late in the year with the winter ahead.
sconehead85
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