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| Wednesday 9 July 2008 37 Hits Headlines The furore over free transport and Stroud's service 37 as featured on this Blog on 2 June, 27 May and 20 March, hit last week's national technical press, in a report that highlighted industry managers' concerns right across England. The Stagecoach West part of the report focused on just two main problem routes with particularly high numbers of concessionaires: the 41 between Cheltenham & Tewkesbury and the 37 between Stroud and Cashes Green, with the 37 being the one trade journal Route One chose to highlight most.
Of both the 37 and 41, Stagecoach West's MD Ian Manning said "We are delighted to be carrying all these extra customers, but just want to be properly paid for doing the job. I'm extremely saddened to have to reduce frequencies, and I will be making several more justified Additional Capacity Cost claims in the near future". Manning claims to be vindicated in his demands for additional reimbursement, stating that the scheme organisers recognise that his claims for the 37 are legitimate, something that Stroud District Council does not agree, leaving him no choice but to make the cuts he brought in from May. He felt that the scheme was "the most unsatisfactory and time consuming aspects of bus operation that I have seen or faced in my 32 years in the job". Stagecoach receives 44p in the pound for inter-urban and 50p for urban services. Are these rates among the worst in the country? One of the reasons why Stagecoach Wales split from Stagecoach West in about 2003 was because of the then free travel scheme in Wales. This was way before free travel was considered in England (2006). Wales reimburses 73p in the pound. The report did not give an opportunity for Stroud or any district council to comment. Wednesday 2 July 2008 Long Distance Affairs I received an email last month from a gentleman received an email last month from a gentleman who in the early 1970s used to catch the bus once a week from Cirencester to Bristol. He clearly wanted to reminisce and asked whether I knew of the service number & route, and whether I had a timetable. He seemed delighted when I could answer his questions. In spite of the number sitting uncomfortably within the Stroud series, the 432 was actually Cirencester – Bristol and was but one example of Bristol Omnibus' penchant for long distance services. BOC was past master at such buses, many of which radiated to all points from Bristol itself. Like the others of its genre, the 432 was worked by crews from both ends. Again like its sister routes, it was something of a rural ramble, operating as it did via a string of villages and towns, eventually reaching its destination some 2hrs 19 mins after departure. And the route mileage was a little over 40!
It was also possible (though inadvisable?) to commute on such services. The 0620 ex-Cirencester (0700 ex-Tetbury) arrived at Bristol at 0834 (later if City Road etc was busy) and, in reverse, there was an 0635 ex-Marlborough Street, arriving Cirencester at 0850. There was a 1650 back and a 1735 Monday to Friday short to Hawkesbury Upton. Even in the early 1970s few, if any, regulars would ever travel end-to-end that early, though in those days shoppers would do so. As regional and then out of town shopping developed in Swindon and Cheltenham, so this market dried up. In the early 1970s, there were six return journeys on the 432 (four of Sundays), including a daily 1915 ex-Bristol and 1935 ex-Ciren (1925 on Sundays). Like other longer distance services, they began to thin and dwindle as the 1970s progressed. The 432 first lost its Sundays and then was cut back to Tetbury. They'd whittled down in number even before MAP saw the end to such services well before deregulation, as BOC saw decreasing numbers. Even had they lasted twenty years longer to 2006, the European hours regulations would've got them in the end invariably over 31 miles each. The 432 number eventually was recycled as a variant of the 430/1 Stroud-Minchinhampton via Amberley. Thursday 5 June 2008 Guy Arab We continue our look at the vehicles that will assemble for the 29 June 2008 Stroud Running Day. One of the most welcome additions at this year's Running Day will be HWO 342, a 1949 Guy Arab with Duple bodywork, new to Red & White. Though it's believed that Red & White didn't operate these buses at Stroud, there remains a link with the town nonetheless. For it was one year after this vehicle's manufacture that Red & White sold to the State. This paved the way for a reorganisation that would see the end of Red & White Services in Stroud, in a logical tidying up exercise leaving the Bristol company dominant. Yet, in 1949 and indeed 1950, Red & White double decks (of Albion manufacture) still looked resplendent around the town. Red & White always tended to operate smartly turned out vehicles such as this. Stroud is also known to be the first Red & White garage to operate double decks though, of course, the other pre-1950 operator Western National also did so, and from the very start.
The image of a Red & White Guy in service is from the book "Red & White Services 1919-1949" by Walter Dowding, published in 1950. Monday 2 June 2008 Cashes Green: exploding a few the myths The fall-out in the local media over Tuesday's reduced bus service between Stroud and Cashes Green continues. It's never good when the bus service attracts bad press; it's even worse given that Stagecoach has actually been quite adroit at reducing the pain. There are two types of service in Stroud: those with a reliance and those with a high reliance on revenue from free travel. The 37 to Cashes Green is in the latter bracket. This means that in spite of free travel growth on the service, the reimbursement Stagecoach receives per passenger is actually significantly less than the half-fare-plus-reimbursement it once received under the former half-fare scheme. Added to which, a frequent and popular service such as the 37 needs to make a strong contribution to the overall position of the depot. Stagecoach therefore is in an invidious position:
Sunday 1 June 2008 Hanham Project I've no idea how the following request will work, but if I don't ask, I'll never know... Bristol Omnibus Company's Hanham depot, and the routes from it, have always been something of an enigma. It's like a forgotten depot. BOC histories rightly concentrate on the major depots, often omitting Hanham. In a sense, Hanham depot was somewhat like Stroud's - though a lot, lot smaller. Like Stroud, Hanham was tucked away but not in a quiet corner of rural Gloucestershire, rather among the peripheral Bristol urban fringe. And that was the trouble. Hanham wasn't quite in Bristol. It was in pre-1974 Gloucestershire and its bus services were largely outside the purview of the Bristol Joint Services agreement. Had they been, perhaps Hanham may have featured more prominently.
I've no idea what response I shall get but unless I try, I won't know. In the absence of anything substantive I can find, this website wishes to try to produce a short history of Hanham's depot and routes. To do this, we need help! Can you assist? Do you have memories, documents to share, articles? How about anecdotes? Did you once work there? Please let us know. Friday 30 May 2008 Bristol MW We continue our look at the vehicles that will assemble for the 29 June 2008 Stroud Running Day. In one sense, the 43-45 seat Bristol MW bus was the bedrock of Stroud's more rural services. It's seating capacity was well suited to the number of peak time passengers carried throughout the 1960s. It came with the added bonus that all but the earliest deliveries were to a one man operation specification just at the time when Stroud, as elsewhere in the shire counties, operators needed to make necessary economies. Like the LS before it, that it could carry some 10 extra people tan the last of the Bristol Ls it replaced gave far more flexibility. Indeed, the MW saw off a number of crew-operated double decks.
The MW came with one distinct disadvantage. Many of Stroud's buses (as opposed to downgraded coaches) came with a Gardner five cylinder engine. MWs may therefore be described as 'steady' at best and 'sluggish' at worst, on the more demanding of Stroud's bus routes. And they were relatively 'heavy' to drive, too. Drivers didn't particularly like then but, till the arrival of the RE many, this was the only single deck they tended to drive. The long climbs up Brimscombe Hill and Butterow, each towards Minchinhampton, tested the MW's stamina to the limit. Yet, these routes were or a time almost exclusively MW operated. All these attributes gave the MW its character. Three MWs are promised in service at Stroud on 29 June, with one static, giving nostalgia-seekers amble opportunity to witness at first hand what it was like travelling on full MWs up the steep Cotswold scarp. It remains quite a challenge for driver an bus. More on the Bristol MW Tuesday 27 May 2008 Stagecoach Cuts Service Back in March we reported on this blog that the continuing disagreements over free travel reimbursements between Stagecoach and the Gloucestershire councils might mean a reduction in local services. Well, today's the day. Stagecoch is cutting two back significantly. One is service 26 (Stroud-France Lynch) which, last week, operated at half-hourly intervals (hourly on Saturdays). Such a service befits the large agglomeration of housing as we now see at Bussage Manor Farm. As of today, though, Stagecoach has reduced the service to hourly, six days a week. The other is the 37 (Stroud-Cashes Green). The changes here are less painful but no less significant. Whereas beforehand buses operated at every 15 minutes throughout a large slice of the Monday to Friday timetable, this is now scaled back.
Buses now operate to a 20-minute frequency to 0915 rather than 0800 as previously. The 15-minute service will now operate 0915-1445 (previously 0800-1715). After 1445, the 37 drops back to every 20 minutes till 1645. 1645-1730 sees the service regain its 15-minute frequency, followed by later departures at 1750, 1810 and 1840. This takes out one bus during the school peak but, ironically, because the 15-minute timetable is inefficient compared to the 20-minute one, the reductions though saving a peak school bus result in only four fewer departures per day (but a somewhat untidy timetable). Confused? Fair play to Stagecoach in making these changes as painless as possible. Cashes Green residents could so easily have seen a 20 minute service throughout.
There are also minor changes to the 14 (Stroud-Stanleys-Stonehouse-Gloucester) and 20 (Stroud-Stonehouse-Dursley-Uley). Sunday 25 May 2008 Bristol RE We continue our look at the vehicles that will assemble for the 29 June 2008 Stroud Running Day. If there was one bus that characterised the 1970s at Stroud, it was the Bristol RE. The first of these hard-working machines arrived in 1967 and the last new example in 1974 (being Bristol Omnibus' last of all). They were withdrawn from Stroud as late as 1986 . In those 19 years, the RE completely changed the way BOC operated buses in the town.
They were large enough to see off the remaining crew-operated double decks. They were powerful enough to operate on just about any of Stroud's arduous climbs. They made a fine contribution to Stroud's trunk routes. More importantly, they offered passengers a new, bright interior and a comfortable ride. So what if they were a little noisy in the process. Moreover, the high frame dual purpose RELHs were equally at home on stage carriage, limited stop services or tours & excursions, such was the type's versatility. It's therefore not surprising that a number of these popular vehicles have found their way into preservation and 11 are promised at the 29 June 2008 running day. More on Stroud's REs may be found here. Thursday 22 May 2008 Leyland Leopard We continue our look at the vehicles that will assemble for the 29 June 2008 Stroud Running Day. Making a very welcome addition to this year's event for the first time will be two preserved former Black & White Leyland Leopards. It's easy to overlook the role Black & White and Associated Motorways have played in Stroud's bus history, because the number of departures a day was always small.
Black & White express coaches nevertheless served Stroud at various times to a variety of destinations, including London, Bournemouth, Weston-super-Mare, Burnham-on-Sea, Weymouth and Portsmouth. The suitably heavyweight C53F Plaxton-bodied Leopard with native registration SDD 146R no. 146 represents standard National Travel purchases of the late 1970s. No. 359, similarly registered locally as KAD 359V has a more modern Plaxton front and 57 seats. It's an example of National's early 1980s purchases. Black & White became variously National Travel West and South West before the short-lived rebirth of its name. Shortly after, it fell under Cheltenham & Gloucester control, just at the time C&G embarked upon its Cotswold coaching brand. Black & White nearly put paid to Cotswold but both eventually succumbed to the collapse in local coaching, as successor Stagecoach concentrated on local bus services from the early 1990s. Tuesday 20 May 2008 Bedford OB In the first of a number of posts about the vehicles at the forthcoming Stroud Running Day, we feature Dr Mike Walker's Bedford OB. You'll have to be fairly senior in years to remember Stroud's Bedford OBs but those who do have a very high regard for them. They are fondly remembered.
In all, 12 operated in Stroud by Bristol Tramways, at various times, from 1951, and they were something of the darlings of the depot. Their staple bus routes were the rural rambles along the Slad Valley and over Whiteway, on the back road to Cheltenham; and the so-called Nailsworth outstations, the small network of local routes radiating from the town of Nailsworth. The vehicles were never hard pressed on these routes: loadings were never of concern (even in the 1950s) and the narrow lanes upon which the diminutive Bedfords found themselves kept average speeds down. There was much hill climbing, though. The Bedfords were ideal for the routes on which they tended to be allocated. They were progressively converted to on man operation, gaining a power-operated sliding door in the process. Those in the know at Stroud have always tended to show affection for small buses like the OBs. They replaced similarly well regarded Dennises and, in turn, along came the equally tiny Bristol SUS to replace the OBs, another much loved type which, incidentally, will also be represented at the Running Day. Thursday 20 March 2008 All at 26s and 37s The increasingly bitter row over funding for free travel in Gloucestershire could threaten two local bus services. Stagecoach is hinting that unless there' a swift resolution between itself and the consortium of districts in Gloucestershire then the 26 Stroud-France Lynch and 37 Stroud-Cashes Green could ace cost-cutting reductions later this year. The 37 currently operates to a somewhat inefficient timetable at every 15 minutes. Reducing it to every 20, as Stagecoach suggests, makes it effective, saving a bus. The Cashes Greens have seen a variety of frequencies in their time, from a chaotic broadly two per hour service in the pre-MAP days when buses usually ran through to terminate at neighbouring villages to every 10 minutes:
Thursday 13 March 2008 Phase Two Goes Live! Today we go live on Phase Two of the stroudvalleys.co.uk website. Phase One was the holding page, the start of this blog and the Thamesdown Transport page. Phase Two includes Stroud's Buses history, memorabilia, and the country dual purpose. Way back in January, I said the site's return would be phased; it's taken a while to get to where I am but at last the world is able to see some of the fruits of my labours. Now watch out for Phase Three. Sunday 17 February 2008 Progress at Last Today the first of this site's substantive web pages was uploaded and it wasn't one that you might expect. Rather, it's a page about Thamesdown Transport, the municipally-owned operator in the midst of Bristol Omnibus/Stagecoach territory. The page coincides with the Fleetline Farewell, yesterday. It seems that I've cured the HTML code corruption to which reference was made on 10 February. Or so I trust. Monday 11 February 2008 Not Dead, Just Sleeping Will the proposed Stroud Interchange at the rail station site ever come to fruition? It's been on and off the cards for several decades but matters got serious from 1997 when there was renewed talk about the closure of the bus station. The county and district councils and what was then Railtrack began working up a scheme but it suffered from a lack of cash and concerns that rail passengers might be disadvantaged. And lack of cash remains the case today. Said district council cabinet member for regeneration and tourism Cllr Nigel Studdert-Kennedy last month, "We cannot proceed as we do not have a couple of million pounds. It's not going to happen straight away but I'm not going to abandon it." Meanwhile, there are still concerns that facilities at the new Merrywalks are inadequate. The bus stops were once designed as "temporary" but with the opening of Stagecoach's travel shop, its permanency becomes ever more likely. Sunday 10 February 2008 Stroud's Buses Website Update "Getting there" is how I'd describe the current situation. I know what I want to achieve and have the HTML code (near enough) ready. There are two issues. First, I am not satisfied with the web page layout, yet. But more significantly, somewhere between my HTML page creation and transferring the files for all to see, the code becomes corrupted, causing major issues for those trying (in vain) to view the pages. Not sure where the problem lies but I think it's in the way it's uploaded to the web. Or is it me? Perseverance... Saturday 9 February 2008 Fleetline Farewell A week today and Swindon says farewell to its last two 'Leyland' Fleetlines. The chassis, designed by Daimler, has been a part of Swindon for 40 years. Back then, buses were largely cream and the livery suited particularly the last batches of 'Daimler' and 'Leyland' Fleetlines, with attractive ECW bodies. The rear bustle aside, the ECW bodywork looked decidedly Tilling, and the ECW Fleetlines didn't look out of place on municipal buses deep in Bristol Omnibus territory, always except that the Swindon machines were highbridge (whereas Bristol Omnibus' were lowbridge). In fact, the Swindon Corporation Transport Department's ECW-bodied Fleetlines ran alongside Bristol Omnibus' ECW-bodies VRs on the then 489/490/90 joint service to Covingham Park. Thursday 10 January 2008 Abnash The old issue of Abnash raised itself in today's Stroud News & Journal. Buses and Abnash have never mixed well together, for fear of grounding. One good thing about Mercedes minibuses, though, is that they could always tackle the junction's steep camber quite well. With other buses, you need to approach at the right angle and at the right speed. On occasion, Stagecoach has needed to put one of its brand new buses on the 26 usually reserved for the 14. The new ones ground at the rear at Abnash. The remedy is to cut part of the route out. Not a good idea but probably better than no bus at all. The issue found its way to the paper. See the article here and read the comments one of which is a necessary exposition on the situation, at least to try to dispel the negativity this article raised. Sunday 6 January 2008 Stroud Running Days Bristol Omnibus and Bristol Commercial Vehicles aficionados will be delighted to hear that Mike Ede's Stroud RE Group is resurrecting the popular Stroud Running Day this year. The Stroud RE Group has entertained us with the Running Days since 2000, though there was none in 2007 owing to building work at Stroud College. This year's takes place on Sunday 29th June. There are running days and Running Days. Stroud's is probably unique for all sorts of factors I haven't the time to go into quite yet. It's also a lot of work and one that we should all endeavour to support. Thursday 3 January 2008 Bristol Anniversaries in 2008 It was 100 years ago this year that the first "Bristol" manufactured bus entered service. The vehicles were designed and built by the Bristol Tramways & Carriage Company for its own use, because it was unhappy with vehicles available on the open market. It took some while for the marque to enter volume production. When it did, it became famous first throughout the territory of the former BTCC and later throughout Britain. It was 60 years ago this year that BTCC became part of the nationalised British Transport Commission. At this point, its vehicles were available only to similarly nationalised undertakings. It was 40 years ago this year that Bristol's last chassis type debuted. It was the VRT, one of the most successful rear-engined double decks of all time. For a rear-engined example, it appeared late on the scene. It was 25 years ago this year that British Leyland, having bought a quarter stake in 1969, increasing to half in 1982, dissolved Bristol Commercial Vehicles. Its last own product remained the VR, though *technically* the Olympian was originally built by Bristol, though badged as a Leyland. Wednesday 2 January 2008 The Missing Town I'd seen the advert pinned up for it at Whiteman's, of course. But I'd nicely forgotten that on a trip to Manchester I'd purchased a copy of Curtis & Walker (2007), "Bristol Omnibus Services: the Green Years", from Ian Allan. I'd given it to my wife for safe keeping till Christmas Day. At least one of us remembered—and it wasn't me. Several browses latter and I can safely say that the £20 investment in Curtis & Walker was a good one. It's risen to my second favourite Bristol book. (It would be unfair to include Stroud's Buses in this list, of course, though I'd like to).
The image on the rear of Curtis & Walker is a gem. It's a scan of a BTCC country timetable, dated 1 January 1950. As the picture accompanying this post shows, above, it was a design featured in the late 1940s. It shows the main towns then served. Has anyone spotted the town that's missing? It's Stroud, of course. At the time BTCC produced this graphic, Bristol was still a minority player in the Five Valleys. Though this was to change dramatically in 1950, it was either Western National or Red & White operated virtually all Stroud routes. BTCC crept into Stroud from Gloucester via Painswick or Stonehouse, and Cheltenham, and on to Nailsworth. That was it. From the perspective of the traffic department siting in Bristol's "chief office" at St Augustine's Place, there was no need to recognise Stroud. Stroud simply didn't play an important enough part in the grand scheme of things. How it showed. And how it would change. Tuesday 1 January 2008 Welcome Back—to Me Since the old Stroud's Buses website went down in May 2005, I have been surprised at and indeed moved by the calls from its reinstatement. Even as recently as the autumn of 2007 have I received such a call. That's over two years since the site vanished. In truth, it was a straightforward site, with no ostentatious, swishy-woo flamboyance or florid gaudiness. Its content, however, was a little different. Why? It treated not a marque, nor a model, nor an era, nor yet a company, as is usually the case with similar bus-related websites. Instead, it considered a depot in an intimate small town, tucked away under the lea of the western slopes of the Cotswold Hills. So it is that I am dusting off my old Stroud Valleys HTML code with a view to recreating the site, in a phased way. Call back from time to time at stroudvalleys.co.uk to see progress. I hope it matches expectations. |
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