Yellow Buses' network is completely reworked in Bournemouth and Poole from 8th April, with every route changing back to conventional route numbers. See the new timetables here. It looks like More are taking on the R4 and R5 routes, which are being abandoned by Yellow.
Stagecoach have new timetables on most of their Winchester routes from 25th March. See full details and the new timetables here.
Also on 25th March we have a timetable change to First X54 (Poole-Weymouth) and their entire Weymouth network.
Plus, First M1 (Southampton-Marwell Zoo) relaunches for the summer season from 30th March. First don't think you're interested in the timetable yet, as it isn't on their website, but you can see it on Traveline here.
See a summary of all changes on the way here.
The first M1 timetable is on their site under forthcoming timetables.
ReplyDeleteTheir website is very poorly designed in that case, as in order to see the timetable, you need to ignore several warnings that the route number cannot be found and then know to use the 'forthcoming timetables' tab once it appears. Not very user friendly. They really ought to have a news item and a clear pdf timetable.
DeleteSo, was it just a wild hope that raised the speculation earlier in the year that First would not be operating this service in 2018, or is it, perhaps, going to operate from a different depot?
ReplyDeleteBranding was removed from the vehicle used last year, which may have led to that speculation. It may well be that First just live long enough in Southampton, to run this service one more time.
DeleteIt was still carrying the branding up to a few weeks ago.
DeleteNew departure points at Newport bus station for Southern Vectis services from March 25.
ReplyDeleteIndeed - but I can see some of it changing from the September timetable already!
DeleteHas anyone read the excellent article about Xelabus in this next months BUSES magazine. Really interesting talking about their future with Hybrid buses coming soon on the X4.
ReplyDeleteI read the article, but I didn't realise the new hybrid buses would be on the X4's, strange as I thought Southampton Council had part-funded them. I'd imagine Xelabus will take on extra work as and when First decide to pull the plug on Southampton.
DeleteXelabus are trialling some buses from Reading Bus over next 2 weeks. There is a streetlite and two DAF double deckers. I think they will be for college routes but nice to see a bit of variety.
DeleteFirst have either closed, or are in the process of closing, their schools and contract unit at Southampton, with additional work moving to Bluestar and Xelabus. This really does spell the end of First in Southampton as far as I'm concerned, because any company with a future wouldn't give up schools and contract work. I expect First will be gone by September - with Bluestar plugging most of the gap, and a little bit of Xelabus here-and-there, on the higgledy piggledy back street rounds First run, such as the 6's and 9's.
ReplyDeleteEnter the Stagecoach again me thinks....
ReplyDeleteIf stagecoach were interested, they would have come in long ago. They would certainly not have let Bluestar get a stranglehold on most of the routes, before then having to try and dislodge them. First will be gone before year end in my opinion.
ReplyDeleteStagecoach took over Hampshire Bus in the privatisation of the National Bus Company, but decided that the Southampton operations were not profitable enough. That is why they left Southampton and Eastleigh, and thus allowed Blue Line (as it was then called) to expand. I doubt that they would be interested in what remains of First in Southampton, but we'll have to wait and see what the press releases have to say. Don't count the chickens yet!
DeleteStagecoach took over the NBC Hampshire Bus, flogged off assests (bus station) & left making money selling routes to Solent Blue line. That was many years ago & the world has changed since then. Southampton City routes now were certainly not NBC routes then. We are all speculating & no one except possibly First management knows the situation.
DeleteBluestar new timetables 1 and 2 are now on traveline
ReplyDeleteYes, indeed, extra morning journeys on the 1 and the period when they run every 15 minutes have been extended too.
DeleteAlso, introduction of a 15 min frequency on service 2, Monday to Saturday, as well as the last journey to Eastleigh being extended to run the full route to Fair Oak.
However there’s a twitch: both services are scheduled to run from stop CU near Hanover Buildings, and on weekdays, the departure times for both services are coincidental. As there is two bus stops they may alternate on a first come first served.
Yes, there are signs First is thinking of leaving Southampton and move Hampshire and Dorset’s headquarters from Empress Road to Hoeford or Indeed Weymouth. However, operations in Dorset are not performing that well either, so we may have to wait to see what will happen in Weymouth and Southampton.
ReplyDeleteIn 8 weeks, First in Southampton will implement another route alteration to its service 7, and further timetable adjustments to services 8, 9 and 13. I am hoping it is just minor alterations, however I would not be surprised if they reduce frequency on the 13.
I could continue with speculation here, but the whole picture is very blurred, and we have no option but to wait.
Well done Morebus for your update journey information on your website and twitter on both Saturday and Sunday, yes Sunday.
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like the tendered routes have been awarded to Yellow Buses again, as there are new registrations lodged for routes 18, 33 and 36.
ReplyDeleteNo mention of the C1/20 on the gov.uk site (which seems to be the only place that's got any information). To me, that means one of three things - another operator won the contract and hasn't yet submitted the registration; YB won the contract and haven't registered it yet; YB won the contract and are merging it with another route (unlikely).
Anyone know for sure?
Yes. The standstill period ended at midnight Monday so we will be releasing the information this morning. Service H1 remains with Yellow Buses as service 18 and is unchanged. Service U8 remains with Yellow Buses as service 36 and has minor adjustments at the start and end of the day but is basically unchanged.
DeleteService D1 (part) reverts to the old service 33 running between Bournemouth and Christchurch only, as previously. The timetable is relatively unchanged with slight adjustments at the start and end of the timetable. This also remains with Yellow Buses.
Poole end of D1 and the Castlepoint end of C1 are recombined to form service 20 (again). This has been awarded to Go South Coast and will run to a broadly similar frequency, but will start later and contain an afternoon schooldays gap.
Full details on Traveline this week.
Ken Traveline Dorset
Ken, many thanks for posting. Any news about the airport service, Yellows current B1, please.
DeleteService B1 will continue as now (remaining as service B1) until further notice.
DeleteKen Traveline
But not in their list.
DeleteAnyone know if Bluestar are running a Saturday service on Good Friday like their sister operator Morebus?
ReplyDeleteAccording to the headings of their online timetables they are
DeleteBluestar will be running a Saturday service on Good Friday(exc.Unilink and route 6.)
Deletehttp://www.bluestarbus.co.uk/article.shtml?articleid=8159
DeleteWell done Bluestar!!
DeleteFirst Unlimited: https://www.firstgroup.com/southampton/tickets/online-tickets?type=8591&full=103#zone
ReplyDeleteA cash grab before pulling out?
Feel sorry for those who have to rely on these clowns.
DeleteI feel sorry for you making these pathetic comments.Some people work for First in Southampton and have no desire to go to work again for Bluestar with its horrible macho internal culture. Please have a thought for others, rather than just make snide comments.
DeleteFirst Unlimited is a nationwide scheme that was first launched in West Yorkshire & Greater Manchester - it's being rolled out across the Hampshire, Dorset and Berkshire region as part of the national rollout - so describing it as a cash grab is totally inaccurate.
DeleteIt's actually a useful way for bus passengers to pay for their season tickets, and also gives them the other benefits that paying by direct debit provide (bank rewards, better credit rating etc).
This constant negativity towards First is becoming rather tiresome, and mostly undeserved - and that's coming from a very regular passenger of First's.
I do agree with you. I personally do not like First, but I try to be as independent and fair as I can.
DeleteYes it is a nationwide thing and it is good to save money.
Talking about First in Southampton: there will be changes to Routes 7, 8, 9 and 13, including route alterations on routes 7 and 9. We shall wait for an announcement after Easter.
Interesting comment about drivers who used to work at Bluestar and now work for First. I can only think of 2 who were not sacked by Bluestar! No wonder about having sour grapes... Those that have moved in the other direction describe a far fairer regime at Bluestar, where they feel trusted and less pressured.
DeleteInteresting reply. I have driven for both First and Bluestar though i no longer work for either. In my days with them, it was not very difficult to get sacked by Bluestar, but they were very keen to stop folk talking about their experience. Hopefully times have changed there for the better now the management has changed somewhat.
DeleteIndeed every disciplinary at Go South Coast seems to be Gross Negligence/Misconduct. They have paid settlements to staff dismissed rather than have the publicity of employment tribunals.
DeleteUnless you have been party to one of these alleged settlements, you are on very dodgy ground.... Many employers will choose this type of route rather than face the considerable cost of a legal challenge, not only Bluestar. They will all however insist on a confidentiality agreement, banning the individual from ever disclosing it! Please be very careful what you say, or you could end up in legal difficulty. Far from every disciplinary at this employer are about the reasons given by you, they are far more often about timekeeping and attendance in my recent experience.
DeleteThe confidentiality applies to the content of the settlement and does not prevent the revelation that a settlement has been agreed.
DeleteAnon 23 March 19:04. Your reply is symptomatic of the Bluestar management culture. Aggressive (bordering on bullying) "barrack room lawyer" comments (...you are on very dodgy ground.....you could end up in legal difficulty.....).
DeleteAnon 24/3/18 11:50 is correct in what he/she says.
The anti-First negativity from some posters on this otherwise useful blog is irritating and somewhat childish. Both operators have strengths and weaknesses.
Well let's not worry too much about any comparisons between Bluestar and First, as one is clearly progressing well, whilst the other is looking close to becoming extinct.
DeleteThere appeared to be a very strong accusation in the original comment, which I do not agree with in any way, hence my reply.
"Let's not worry about" is your comment to any point you don't have an answer to, isn't it. It recurs frequently on this blog. If you are too stupid to have an intelligent debate, why post on this blog?
Delete??? I am not the person you complain about but how strange you talk about intelligent debate yet your post is purely slagging off another poster ! It is difficult to distinguish between posters when so many are anonymous but I find most posts are reasonably sensible - just some more so than others. Bear in mind posters vary from keen young enthusiasts to hardened old gits now retired from a lifetime in the industry !
DeleteYellow Buses have now published timetables for routes 18 (H1), 33 (part of D1) and 36 (U8) and referred people to Morebus for route 20.
ReplyDeleteAll four timetables can now be found on both Bournemouth Council’s website and Poole Council’s website, with Poole on a side panel as downloads.
DeletePleased to see Bluestar 7 very busy today after struggling to begin with ,after extending to Lordshill.
ReplyDeleteGood call to run a Saturday service on Good Friday Bluestar.Most buses seemed to good loadings so hopefully the same next year.
ReplyDeleteALL bank hols would be great.
DeleteDon't think that is likely. Good Friday is different to other bank holidays.
DeleteWith reference to the impending departure of First from Southampton (or not, as the case may be) there was a mention in another thread that Xelabus were going to be making an announcement in March. Did I miss it, or was this another unfunded prediction?
ReplyDeleteSorry, that should have been "unfounded".
DeleteIt was the purchase of two nearly-new hybrid double-deckers.
DeleteThank you, Darryl1976.
DeleteIt is actually THREE Hybrid buses which will enter service on 16th April. The double deck fleet is being upgraded this summer and a new delivery of more single deck buses are due.
DeleteMany thanks for the correction.
Deletehttp://www.bluestarbus.co.uk/article.shtml?articleid=8201 In Go South Coast's latest pointless rebrand Bluestar are going to be rebranding as "Pinkstar" starting today! Very odd, and an interesting choice claiming a colour previously associated with their main competitor the soon to be departed First Southampton.
ReplyDeleteAnd today's date is ???????
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteLooks like some decision from the new Bournemouth Airpot owners - B1 becomes 737 from 26th May
ReplyDeleteNew Bluestar 1 and 2 timetables are now available on their site.
ReplyDeletesaw two First 9 buses tonight and no-one on board either bus.Think everyone has migrated to Bluestar7 instead.
ReplyDeleteIMO your observation has no worth unless the locations, time, direction of travel and destination are also stated.
DeleteAs I do not live in S'ton area, I've no axe to grind over the operators, but thin your post,as it is, looks snipey.
Agreed, meaningless without context. First operate evening services on the 9; GSC/Bluestar don't.
DeleteI don't like First but I have to say the constant axe-grinding continues to ruin this blog.
DeleteThere are so many legitimate negative comments you can make about them I don't know why people feel the need to use ridiculous ones. My favourite is still "I saw a moody Bluestar driver and that's First's fault"!
Contrary to Anonymous at 0054, when I see or travel on the 9 it tends to carry a suitable loading.
DeleteMost passengers I see aren't ENCTS either - so likely the journeys are paying for themselves. As someone who lives in Woolston, with the 9 and 13 being my local routes, I've got to experience them a fair amount over the past few years.
Whilst not being the best routes in First's, albeit limited, armoury, they're holding their own.
The empty buses were observed in Bitterne at around 7.30pm on Saturday evening and in both directions.
DeleteFirst "transforming travel" once again.
ReplyDeleteConfusion starts today in Bournemouth!
ReplyDeleteStarting with the B1 that continues to operate to the existing timetable up to. 26 May. Not in Yellow Buses new timetable book. Their web site requires six downloads to print the timetable, Sunday, Weekday and Saturday, for each direction.
DeleteTraveline still shows as a composite timetable with the lost B2 & B3 routes.
As previously mentioned here the B1 becomes a 737 from 27 May - will there be changes from the B1?
Composites will all unwind themselves in this week's data build. 737 has a substantially different timetable to B1 but the same route. It won't be on Traveline this week as i'm still awaiting the electronic files from Yellow Buses.
DeleteKen Traveline
Hi Ken
DeleteDo you have any news from First's changes in May on the 7, 8, 9 and 13 (Southampton routes)?
This comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteSorry, not my patch. I'm Dorset only. I'm sure my Hampshire colleague will get everything up in a timely fashion.
DeleteKen Traveline Dorset
Saw one of the ex-m1/m2 Wright Eclipses heading up the A31 this evening. Bluestar-bound?
ReplyDeleteProbably just off to the body shop at Eastleigh for a new coat of paint or retrim. None expected to come to Bluestar.
DeleteProbably just removal of headrests at HD trim.
DeleteIf it was an original 2004-2005 morebus that would have been the ADL delivery driver having brought down a new E200 taking one of the part exchanges back.
ReplyDelete