Tram Rail Replacement From 27/05/14 - Blue & Purple Route Disruption

[dutch 68]

I rather have a direct tram to Cineworld or meadowhall.

[No User Name 10]

I rather have a direct tram to Cineworld or meadowhall.

 

My tongue was firmly in my cheek.

 

In any case, normally people in Middlewood do get a direct tram to those places.

[dutch 68]

My tongue was firmly in my cheek.

 

In any case, normally people in Middlewood do get a direct tram to those places.

 

We usualy take a taxi to trainstation anyway.

[No User Name 10]

Ok, thanks.

[nohands 10]

So what's happening to the Tram Link service between Middlewood and Stocksbridge? This appears to be running every 10 minutes to connect with trams running every 12 minutes. No notices on the buses to state that the tram times have changed. Hence the passengers are missing the connection adding more than 2 minutes onto their journey.

 

Do the people who plan these things not care about customers, or are they just an inconvenience? Perhaps Stagecoach should reduce their fares to reflect the reduced service.

 

Not sure every 12 minutes counts as a skeleton service!

[Andy C 85]

So what's happening to the Tram Link service between Middlewood and Stocksbridge? This appears to be running every 10 minutes to connect with trams running every 12 minutes. No notices on the buses to state that the tram times have changed. Hence the passengers are missing the connection adding more than 2 minutes onto their journey.

 

Do the people who plan these things not care about customers, or are they just an inconvenience? Perhaps Stagecoach should reduce their fares to reflect the reduced service.

 

The SL bus, which like other bus services legally has to be registered with the traffic commissioner and stick to the registered timetable, is operating to its normal 10 minute interval service so passengers making local journeys within Stocksbridge, Deepcar etc are not inconvenienced by a reduction in frequency.

 

The tram has become every 12 minutes instead of every 10 minutes. This is necessary due to the reduced fleet available whilst the line from the depot is closed for rail replacement, a multi million pound investment securing the future of the tramway for the benefit of its users.

 

Ticket pricing has had the disruption in mind - the 13 week tram only ticket has had a massive discount applied from £131 to £95 to reward those committing to keep travelling during the disrupted periods and other tram fares have been frozen at a time when bus and train operators have increased theirs to reflect increasing operational costs.

[nohands 10]

Thanks for the reply, but it still does not make sense to me. Did Stagecoach not know about the disruption 8 weeks before to allow a change to the service registration? Even with less than 8 weeks, they could apply to the traffic commissioner for a temporary alteration. Whoever plans these things clearly does not put passengers at the centre of what they are doing and have a very supply side approach to decision making.

 

When the yellow trams to Middlewood were off, the timetable for the bus changed, inconveniencing passengers making local journeys within Stocksbridge, Deepcar etc as the times were different to the printed timetable and those on bus stops.

 

The massive reduction to the tram only product is of little use to those of us who have to travel on bus and tram. Those in the valley are now forced to use both to get to Sheffield.

 

It seems that Stagecoach cannot get the tram and bus sides to work together and the tram replacement project is a good example of this.

 

The SL bus, which like other bus services legally

has to be registered with the traffic commissioner and stick to the registered timetable, is operating to its normal 10 minute interval service so passengers making local journeys within Stocksbridge, Deepcar etc are not inconvenienced by a reduction in frequency.

 

The tram has become every 12 minutes instead of every 10 minutes. This is necessary due to the reduced fleet available whilst the line from the depot is closed for rail replacement, a multi million pound investment securing the future of the tramway for the benefit of its users.

 

Ticket pricing has had the disruption in mind - the 13 week tram only ticket has had a massive discount applied from £131 to £95 to reward those committing to keep travelling during the disrupted periods and other tram fares have been frozen at a time when bus and train operators have increased theirs to reflect increasing operational costs.

[waddy13 10]

Moaning about 2 mins being added to your journey what a sad state of affairs, catch an earlier connection if it bothers you that much

[nohands 10]

I will explain so that you can understand. It can be about 10 minutes each way. When the tram goes when the bus approaches, its another 12 minutes to the next tram. Similarly when the tram approaches Middlewood, the bus can go leading to another 10 minute wait.

 

Another 10 to 15 minutes a day added to the commute because Stagecoach cannot be bothered to plan their bus and tram times is frustrating. Its the unpredictability that is the problem.

 

It was not my idea to remove direct services from Stocksbridge to Sheffield, but if they are going to make us change at Middlewood, they should ensure that the connection works.

 

Moaning about 2 mins being added to your journey what a sad state of affairs, catch an earlier connection if it bothers you that much

[LuSiVe 10]

Flippin' heck. Try having one bus an hour. Being only 10-12 minutes late when it goes wrong would be awesome.

[nohands 10]

Fair comment. Its just about getting the advertised service.

 

Flippin' heck. Try having one bus an hour. Being only 10-12 minutes late when it goes wrong would be awesome.

[chessie 10]

Flippin' heck. Try having one bus an hour. Being only 10-12 minutes late when it goes wrong would be awesome.

 

Couldnt agree more with this, you've still got a very good service, prices froze and if all goes to plan a better service in the future. A 12min wait would be a luxury had I just missed the previous bus, another on a far less frequent timetable here, I would be more than happy to wait a mere 12 mins for the next un.

 

I need to be a little more organised about my day to catch the relevant bus but cant complain about the service I get at all.

Edited June 11, 2014 by chessie