Bit of an update on the bus movements at ashton if you are interested. At the moment 19120 is the newest enviro we can have as we don't have adblu. We are getting it very soon along with newer enviros from somewhere so i am told. Also we are getting the newer man buses from stockport and not before time. Not sure when! I am guessing for the 25th july rewrite. Also got the final details for the mossley buses. We are still going to mossley. We are terminating at shudehill and we are putting just one extra bus on to increase the journey times of the ones already on there. Also get 15 standing time at shudehill so they should all run bang on time with no problems honest!
sounds good stagecoach have better buses and that weekend is when stotts take over 353/54
ReplyDeleteI think speedwell newer minibus the 2 T regs and 2 V regs will be kept for the 395/96 services
do you still have 16189 the chap who I get weekly reports thinks it may be repainted into stagecoach livery in due course is this the case
ReplyDeleteMic, ive also heard it may be repainted into normal Stagecoach livery, but to be honest as its only used on school services and the odd 237 whats the point painting it.
ReplyDeleteStott's take over the 353/4 on the 26th July i belive. Will be interesting to see more of there Solo's in Ashton.
One of the two Magic Buses (16188 or 16189) was on a 237 yesterday. Great news about the AdBlu, if it's true that is!
ReplyDeleteWe do need some newer Enviros round here, but Ashton must look after them (e.g. clean them regularly, not let them get into the state that 19081 is in right now, and make the heating work in the bleak midwinter). You never know, we may be able to boast a World Class bus service soon!
And with Stotts taking over the 353/354 service, it looks like things are on the up.
Mr Branson, i agree about looking after them. Does Ashton have any cleaners at the moment as the some of the buses are filthy, and thats first thing in the morning.
ReplyDeleteI just hope Ashton dosen't end up with an entire fleet of single decker MAN's. Some services need double deckers.
In one sense its a shame Speedwell are loosing so much at the minute, i notice they have lost the evening 309/10 service in Stockport as well, but Stott's seem to really make the effort with clean shiney buses every day, and if rumours are to be belived they could be going for more tenders in the Tameside area in the very near future.
last known report on 16188 is stored withdrawn at Charles st so I guess it would be 16189 on the route
ReplyDeletegood luck to stotts think they will do well I will use the 354
ReplyDeleteI think speedwell KX54 NKG has gone in for repainting as NKH was the only one running today
Yes Mic i noticed they had a Marshall Dart on the S50. I would have thought it was the wrong time to start painting the Enviro's with the S48 starting fully on Monday.
ReplyDeleteMic do Speedwell use one bus on the 353 and one bus on the 354 or are they both interworked with one bus.
felix
ReplyDeletethey use one bus each on the 353/54 mainly the same bus all the time
there where 2 of the marshall darts on the s50 today the 02 dart was not running on it today
As for the new 217/218 timetable I wonder whether the current 16:02 from Ashton-Manchester will better timed to run on time and not late as it occasionally is at the moment due to various problems on the route, I know the return journey from Manchester has to be regularly covered with another bus at the moment due to late running
ReplyDeleteThanks Mic,
ReplyDeleteI wasn't sure about the 353/4 but know now.
Apparently Speedwell's 392 hasn't run properly for the last few days bue to 'breakdowns' so perhaps there short on vehicles. I do like the Marshall Darts though, i think they suit the speedwell livery although like i said above i carn't see them painting the Enviro's just as the S48 goes every 20 mins.
The shudehill change isn't a surprise, bear in mind Mayne's and Stagecoach's predecesoor 232/3/4/5 ran from shudehill. I'm guessing the extra bus allows the 15 minute layby, plus it'll be the first time a stagecoach bus pulls in Shudehill, minus the megabus and blackpool expresses...mind you, there have been a couple of Enviro400's filling in for spares on megabus routes lol
ReplyDeleteWilliam you are right with regards to Mayne's. However they only used Shudehill as most of there services required some sitting out time which isn't a good idea in Piccadilly gardens,however once they had waited at Shudehill the 217 and 230 - 235 would return to Piccadiily Gardens to pick up which i dont think the 217/218 are doing any more.
ReplyDeleteim guessing by "new MAN buses" u mean the 06-reg ones with the updated cab layout? lovely buses, them. I, personally, have always liked the MANs, fantastic ride comfort, and a nice driving position, just a shame a lot of the older ones are let down by uncomfortable seating, engines that can barely produce enough power to shift their own weight, and gearboxes that will not change gear properly, kickdown, or go in reverse.
ReplyDeletejust seen stagecoach 19256 on the 346 in Ashton today wonder if this is the start of transfers
ReplyDeleteNo Its borrowed.
ReplyDeletethanks for that
ReplyDeleteaha, well let's wait and see then. I'm off to London again soon via megabus at Shudehill. Last time I went it was both on 6 wheel plaxton coaches which were quick but the seats were a bit uncomfy, hopefully I'll catch one of them newer Van Hools, since my journey times are different...When I say quick, it was 4 hours which wasn't bad for a coach lol
ReplyDeleteI'm surprised there were any '06 alx300's, since the Enviro300 were introduced then. What were Transbus thinking?
There are also 07-reg ALX300s somewhere, which really surprised me when I came across them on Flickr. I reckon Ashton will get the 54-reg MANs from Stockport, not the 06 ones, but perhaps I'm just being pessimistic again.
ReplyDelete4 hours on a coach to London doesn't seem that bad at all. Still, much quicker on a train and that advantage will keep on growing as the rail network becomes more advanced.
the last of those 22100 is at Princess Rd
ReplyDeletejust been looking at some buses photos in saddleworth and one was 3127 in Express livery at Greenfield stn