Annie Bynnol 611 #49 Posted January 18, 2021 20 minutes ago, Bigal1 said: I was not having a go at all bus drivers there are many excellent ones who like you go out of their way to look after their customers just as there are some excellent staff on the trams. Yes there are always two sides but I was referring to the minority. Lets not forget that as previously mentioned that according to Supertram the time in the timetable and on the stops in NOT the departure time it is "an approximate time" but for both buses and trams there is slack to allow for slight delays indeed this is the very reason why some are complaining that the bus waits en route at some stops rather than get to its destination as fast as possible. The Supertram timetable is now governed by the Tramtrain timetable which itself is governed by National train timetable which requires the arrival and departure of the Tramtrain at Parkgate, Rotherham Central through to Tinsley to the minute. A late running Supertram Middlewood to Meadowhall service could delay(or even cancel) a Tramtrain to Parkgate, this could cause cancellations of Supertram and Tramtrains and delays for the rest of the day. Railway train drivers (and guards/platform staff if present) should be focused on the safe despatch of a train. With trains up to ten minutes away from the "gate", not waiting for one late passenger can lead to a knock on effect on other trains and routes affecting thousands of passengers. Normal railway practice is that train doors are always closed, and after a safety checks, locked before departure. Then there is a despatch sequence (depends on train and location) after which the train can to leave. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
BigAl1 142 #50 Posted January 19, 2021 This policy pre dates the introduction of the tram train and we are talking about the management sanctioning of EARLY departure A late running yellow tram can easily wait and give precedence to the tram train and whilst the tram train is indeed governed by the nation rail time table and the paths made available the practice of sending the two trams down the common line nose to tail hardly helps Sorry but at what terminus are the gates that would be shut to allow the departure of the train 10 minutes away from the train itself? the gates that are shut to allow the timely departure of the train are those that govern access to the platform not the station and even then there are few station barriers that are 10 minutes from the train for able bodied people yes of course the doors on trains are always (hopefully at least ) shut before departure just in the same way as the tram doors are Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
Annie Bynnol 611 #51 Posted January 19, 2021 3 hours ago, Bigal1 said: This policy pre dates the introduction of the tram train and we are talking about the management sanctioning of EARLY departure A late running yellow tram can easily wait and give precedence to the tram train and whilst the tram train is indeed governed by the nation rail time table and the paths made available the practice of sending the two trams down the common line nose to tail hardly helps Sorry but at what terminus are the gates that would be shut to allow the departure of the train 10 minutes away from the train itself? the gates that are shut to allow the timely departure of the train are those that govern access to the platform not the station and even then there are few station barriers that are 10 minutes from the train for able bodied people yes of course the doors on trains are always (hopefully at least ) shut before departure just in the same way as the tram doors are To write a timetable many factors are taken into account. In your example a delayed Yellow tram would be further delayed if it gave precedence to a TramTrain which itself would become delayed by the increased number of passengers getting on and off. The Yellow tram being empty will catch up with the TramTrain . Assuming that both arrive at their timing point having used the "Slack" built into the timetable any further delays will mean that return journeys will be late and unless time can be made up the whole system begins to wobble. I do not know what financial penalties Stagecoach incur for causing delays by running late between Tinsley and Parkgate but it is substantial enough for Stagecoach to cancel TramTrains at short notice. Drivers at Middlewood do know that they must leave on time because of the effect a late departure can have on thousands of others. "Gate" or 'gatelines' on the railway are the point at which tickets are checked, sometimes these are physical barriers which are only open and closed for certain trains such as Waterloo, Blackpool North, St Pancras, Euston, Paddington etc, some stations like Leeds have "gatelines" which remain open to all ticket holders. Passengers will not be refunded at Leeds if they arrive less than 10 minutes at the 'gateline'. Similarly Piccadilly, Glasgow C , Birmingham NS etc at 10min+ dozens at 8min+ and all 5m+. We all have sympathy at airports for the unfortunate and those who make genuine errors. Those who deliberately push the at the limits and rules and think they are an exception and care little for the impact on others, get and deserve little respect, so in most cultures being punctual means being prepared ready to go/leave/start/meet/treat/collect... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
driver151 27 #52 Posted January 26, 2021 (edited) On 15/01/2021 at 18:54, 1295galaxy said: Stage Coach started off well in Sheffield and were very reliable,but now they have changed there bus timetables,and some buses are stood at bus stops too long,when there is no one there and don"t just do this once but about 2 to 3 times,so you get annoyed with the driver just waiting at a bus stop when your trying to get to the place you want to as quick as you can,instead of gaining passengers doing this there just going to stop people wanting to catch any of there Buses,Why have Stage Coach brought this on when First do not seems very odd,and when you see a driver just stopping the bus for a cigarette or even doing a crossword it can be very annoying indeed i would happy to invite u to spend a few shifts with me on my bus and tell u what we have to do, Trust me i hate sitting at stops (timing points) as it makes our day longer, if it was up to me i would fly round and go home earlier, i always find it strange that people know my job more than me and they have never worked for any of the bus companies, instead of slating the drivers just ask them i have had people ask me and we have a nice chat on y we have to wait everywhere and the fact i hate it to but it part of the job, i will show them the running board and explain what it all means, Regarding how first and stagecoach do timetables diffrent, first tend to put alot of there stack time at there terminus as where stagecoach put alot of there time within there route, Driver getting off the bus at a timing point when having time is down to the fact they could be on that bus for 5 1/2 hours (domestic driving hours) Edited January 26, 2021 by driver151 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
RollingJ 1,988 #53 Posted January 26, 2021 Good answer, @driver151 - but the OP will never accept it - to him, you are a taxi service. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
BigAl1 142 #54 Posted January 26, 2021 Driver 151 yes please as long as I can drive seriously there is one thing that can be done by the driver and that is to tell passengers why you are stopped and how long you expect to be there. The real frustration on the part of the customer is that they do not know why they are waiting and how long the “delay” is Long long ago in the days of InterCity they asked conductors to inform passengers why they were waiting especially when they were stopped at a signal because they were ahead of time. The conductor knew the train would arrive on time so no reason to make any announcement but of course the passenger did not and would assume that they would be late. I also noticed last time I was on the London Underground there were announcements when we were held at signals - I remember the reason in that case was to space out the trains because of uneven gaps. flying back from Bangkok I was massively frustrated first because our departure was put back an hour and then once boarded we remained at the gate. Then the captain announced that the reason we were being delayed was because the prevailing weather meant Heathrow would not be open and we being held so our arrival coincided with the opening time. Even though we left 90 minutes late we arrived ahead of schedule. I just wish they had told us earlier as would not have been worried about catching my train with advance ticket from Kings Cross. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
RollingJ 1,988 #55 Posted January 26, 2021 6 minutes ago, Bigal1 said: seriously there is one thing that can be done by the driver and that is to tell passengers why you are stopped and how long you expect to be there. The real frustration on the part of the customer is that they do not know why they are waiting and how long the “delay” is Long long ago in the days of InterCity they asked conductors to inform passengers why they were waiting especially when they were stopped at a signal because they were ahead of time. The conductor knew the train would arrive on time so no reason to make any announcement but of course the passenger did not and would assume that they would be late. I also noticed last time I was on the London Underground there were announcements when we were held at signals - I remember the reason in that case was to space out the trains because of uneven gaps. flying back from Bangkok I was massively frustrated first because our departure was put back an hour and then once boarded we remained at the gate. Then the captain announced that the reason we were being delayed was because the prevailing weather meant Heathrow would not be open and we being held so our arrival coincided with the opening time. Even though we left 90 minutes late we arrived ahead of schedule. I just wish they had told us earlier as would not have been worried about catching my train with advance ticket from Kings Cross. Maybe because I am fairly interested in all things transport connected - but especially passenger transport - I can usually work out the reasons for why buses, trams, trains come to stop, unless they do so in unusual places, so I rarely worry. In the case of buses at timing points, if you use the route on a regular basis, it becomes fairly obvious, trams I'm not certain about as I rarely use them, and trains in my experience only usually make announcements if it is an unscheduled stop of more than a few minutes. I can see your point though, @Bigal1. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
driver151 27 #56 Posted January 26, 2021 (edited) 1 hour ago, Bigal1 said: Driver 151 yes please as long as I can drive seriously there is one thing that can be done by the driver and that is to tell passengers why you are stopped and how long you expect to be there. The real frustration on the part of the customer is that they do not know why they are waiting and how long the “delay” is Long long ago in the days of InterCity they asked conductors to inform passengers why they were waiting especially when they were stopped at a signal because they were ahead of time. The conductor knew the train would arrive on time so no reason to make any announcement but of course the passenger did not and would assume that they would be late. I also noticed last time I was on the London Underground there were announcements when we were held at signals - I remember the reason in that case was to space out the trains because of uneven gaps. flying back from Bangkok I was massively frustrated first because our departure was put back an hour and then once boarded we remained at the gate. Then the captain announced that the reason we were being delayed was because the prevailing weather meant Heathrow would not be open and we being held so our arrival coincided with the opening time. Even though we left 90 minutes late we arrived ahead of schedule. I just wish they had told us earlier as would not have been worried about catching my train with advance ticket from Kings Cross. You can drive mine might bring some entertainment to the day, but yea if I have more than 5 mins or so I will tell people to save them the boardem, sometime we will wait in different places due to knowing there is a chance we can't get on the next stop safely aswell, plus you can get timetables which tell you how long it will take from u getting on to where you want to go, as drivers we share your frustration of just sitting at timing points as it makes our days longer too Edited January 26, 2021 by driver151 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
BigAl1 142 #57 Posted January 27, 2021 16 hours ago, RollingJ said: Maybe because I am fairly interested in all things transport connected - but especially passenger transport - I can usually work out the reasons for why buses, trams, trains come to stop, unless they do so in unusual places, so I rarely worry. In the case of buses at timing points, if you use the route on a regular basis, it becomes fairly obvious, trams I'm not certain about as I rarely use them, and trains in my experience only usually make announcements if it is an unscheduled stop of more than a few minutes. I can see your point though, @Bigal1. Yes if you are interested or frequent user then you may well have an idea of what is happening but many users do not fit both criteria. many times a wait does not matter but sometimes it can matter (train to catch or appointment for instance) in this case the bus driver announcing that they are waiting two minutes because they are early is all the reassurance needed. I did a lot of work on this subject once upon a time but it can be just as important on a bus as on a long distance train 15 hours ago, driver151 said: You can drive mine might bring some entertainment to the day, but yea if I have more than 5 mins or so I will tell people to save them the boardem, sometime we will wait in different places due to knowing there is a chance we can't get on the next stop safely aswell, plus you can get timetables which tell you how long it will take from u getting on to where you want to go, as drivers we share your frustration of just sitting at timing points as it makes our days longer too My friend if you ever spend time listening to announcements then sometimes the personal touch is magic like in this case telling them you are just as fed up with the wait as them Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
catmiss 12 #58 Posted January 28, 2021 Driver 151 your posts make me think that you may be a good bus driver but a bit lacking in customer service skills. Perfect for the remit of the city’s bus companies Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
RollingJ 1,988 #59 Posted January 28, 2021 6 hours ago, catmiss said: Driver 151 your posts make me think that you may be a good bus driver but a bit lacking in customer service skills. Perfect for the remit of the city’s bus companies I disagree - would you like to have to drive a bus and put up with some of the aggro they get? 99.9% of the drivers I've encountered have been perfectly OK. You get the odd one that's a bit grumpy, but you will see that in any public-facing job. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
driver151 27 #60 Posted January 28, 2021 9 hours ago, catmiss said: Driver 151 your posts make me think that you may be a good bus driver but a bit lacking in customer service skills. Perfect for the remit of the city’s bus companies why am i lacking customer service skills i answer any question to the best of my abilty, tell people if we have a wait, i am open to suggestions really, also remeber we as the drivers are told what to do alot of things we have no choice, again its seem like dunt matter what we do we are always in the bad books lol and you have to remember its a bus service not a chauffeur service, Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...