There have been reports in the local media that First have snatched the P&R fro Ipswich Buses, and are to start running the service from July 2017. The reports claim 20% fare rises, outrage and ignorance within Ipswich Buses, and ridiculous claims from local politicians.
First have indeed got the Park & Ride PROVISIONALLY!. The new structure still has to be approved by Suffolk County Council, which will not be until next week. Fares have not even been discussed so where the 20% comes from is anyone's idea. It is also worth noting that to my knowledge Ipswich Buses did not want to provide a dedicated P&R service, instead extending the 13 which anyone with an ounce of sense would realise that would mean mixing P&R and Chantry passengers. A bit like setting Masterchef in McDonald's.
It is also well known that there is constant in fighting between Ipswich Borough Council and Suffolk County Council so I have a message for both of those kindergartens;
Get your bloody act together and work for the County not your own egos. It doesn't matter if the Park & Ride is operated by First, Ipswich Buses, Donald Trump or Mr Blobby - until the never ending traffic and roadworks issues in Ipswich are sorted it's going to suffer huge delays and will put people off coming into Ipswich. You are becoming a laughing stock except there's nothing remotely funny about it. If Ipswich dies as a town the buck will lay entirely at your collective feet. Grow up and serve which is what you were elected to do.
When First release hard facts and details about Ipswich P&R I will report them. Until then don't read too much into speculation or headline grabbing by the newspapers but it might now give you a bigger idea as to why Jeremy Cooper decided he'd had enough.
Chambers are axing almost 50% of their service 84 and its variants. For example on Saturdays it goes down from 8 return journeys to 4 yet Suffolk on Board states it is only minor changes
ReplyDeleteHeddingham are axing the 34/34A which operates in the Braintree area. Whether Essex county council will put it out to tender I dont know
ReplyDeleteAs ever it's all trying to cut the suit out of the available cloth to fit within the available resources! And as ever Suffolk seem to be so late to the party. Everyone else has been doing the minor engineering works to try and knock the minutes off the bus journeys for years, even decades. The $64K question is does it all work? Can't make my mind up; the drivers, passengers and, not least, the rest of the motoring world seem to ignore it all; or, more charitably, take a lot of time (and I mean a lot) to adjust. It seems that half the time, for instance, I have to hobble out into the carriageway from a raised kerb to haul myself back up again into the bus, delaying it. Is it so hard? And why do the rest of us have to block every junction, and so many bus lay-bys?
ReplyDeleteThough four buses a day seems pretty routine for non-school rural services in this region. The exceptions seem to be where there is a good active bus users group or bus-user politician acting as an advocate, which Suffolk has always seemed to lack. Hardly surprisingly, all companies have always needed to be nagged to do the right thing. (Probably just like the rest of us!) I've always compared First's 31/33 with the 64/5 (or even the 84 with the Essex 65) in that regard. How many councillors (or their officers) actually use the bus? Are the town and parish councils any more interested? Let alone many MPs.
The 84 is more inter urban than rural and with the service now reduced to an approximate 1 1/2 to 2 hoursinterval and with the afternoon service almost non existant I dont see that rouite lasting long as it will be to infrequent to be of use to anyone
DeleteComment on the P+R proposals in the "Ipswich Star": http://www.ipswichstar.co.uk/news/will_the_park_and_ride_bus_deal_really_save_ipswich_s_service_1_4808988.
ReplyDeleteJust another shocking state of affairs in the operation of bus services in this county. When are we ever going to get modern, forward thinking bus services like other parts of the country. Just look at most parts, new high quality services with innovative branding and publicity, high quality buses etc, what do we get? We are so backward here in Suffolk, even with "good" operators like Beestons and Galloways, there really is no innovation at all, no wonder passenger numbers are declining when the approach is the same as it was in the 70's, 80's and 90's!! I really do think it's time Ipswich Buses sells out too, we are all clinging on to the fact they are one of the last municipal operators etc but I think that is clouding the fact we could get a much better quality service, be it from Transdev, Stagecoach or whoever without the constraints of a skint council running the show
ReplyDeleteThese same people want to control buses.The buses bill has made even big groups wary of taking risks.I think besides Reading ,Nottingham and Lothian buses all the other municipals are struggling big time.Cardiff bus are being given sleepless nights by NAT .
DeleteAs an example, just look at the new Coastliner buses, and how the whole thing is marketed with the use of social media to see how behind the times we are in Suffolk
ReplyDeleteTake First Ipswich for instance, got on to a cracking start with the Ipswich identity but it never really got going, look at the two buses for the X7? No branding, just in a different colour? There is so much more they could have done to make it attractive, especially given the railway to Felixstowe and its unreliability!
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