Stagecoach Manchester and Wigan

[dounowhoiam]

RE: Stagecoach Manchester and Wigan
Stagecoach would take a massive dislike to franchising as Manchester is their most profitable region where they (practically) have a monopoly on the entire south of Manchester (which was mostly proven to carry passengers) and Wigan areas.

I think it could be compared to the likes of buses in Blackpool and Edinburgh where the major operator (owned by the council) holds a substancial demand in the area whilst providing a standard experience of service (similar to that of Stagecoach) whilst running more as a public service rather than maximising profits.

The major point about franchising is that passengers should be the forefront of bus use. Due to the likes of Stagecoach losing routes (X41, X5, 370) passengers have lost out because they are less likely to buy multi-operator tickets because they cost more. By having a set fare that goes direct to TfGM the operators won't be able to force SystemOne (and the like) to make fares cost more with savings being passed to the customers.

The more customers you start to get (which if there is more frequent and direct routes this can attract) the more efficient public transport can be.

[Barney]

RE: Stagecoach Manchester and Wigan

(29/08/2020 14:09)wirralbus Wrote:  Will Bus franchising be the winning formula , im still not convinced that all the bus operators are happy , but in the post covid world they may be forced into now to get any help with routes.

I think the franchising costs could go up if the bus companies all work together to up the value of the routes they presemntly operate or operators go bust and the amount of operators dwindle.

Stagecoach are one of the companies that did take an intense dislike to franchising.

Stagecoach might not like the prospect of franchising but it is only one of many local bus operators that has benefited from the state-funded furlough scheme and received millions of tax-payers money in bail-outs to continue to run services that are currently running at a serious loss. This is the reality of a privatised system focused on profit. If it had been left to free-market forces Stagecoach would now be in receivership.

[wirralbus]

RE: Stagecoach Manchester and Wigan

(29/08/2020 20:50)Barney Wrote:  Stagecoach might not like the prospect of franchising but it is only one of many local bus operators that has benefited from the state-funded furlough scheme and received millions of tax-payers money in bail-outs to continue to run services that are currently running at a serious loss. This is the reality of a privatised system focused on profit. If it had been left to free-market forces Stagecoach would now be in receivership.

I agree with you this will or should reboot how Public Transport is run and operated .

[KXW212]

RE: Stagecoach Manchester and Wigan

(30/08/2020 13:07)wirralbus Wrote:  I agree with you this will or should reboot how Public Transport is run and operated .

Looking back over the last few posts and others recently, the capability of TfGM to organise public transport provision has proven to be pretty dire. Giving them a whole network would quite frankly be a disaster.
The private sector aren't exactly the best, but the alternative on recent performance isn't going to make things any better. A rock and a hard place.

[Mayneway]

RE: Stagecoach Manchester and Wigan

(30/08/2020 15:43)KXW212 Wrote:  Looking back over the last few posts and others recently, the capability of TfGM to organise public transport provision has proven to be pretty dire. Giving them a whole network would quite frankly be a disaster.
The private sector aren't exactly the best, but the alternative on recent performance isn't going to make things any better. A rock and a hard place.

I’ve said this all along. They couldn’t organise a teddy bears picnic let alone manage a franchised network.
At the start of the pandemic while operators were reducing commercial services and they were furloughing staff they were very very reluctant to allow subsidised services to be reduced in anyway because legally they had to keep paying the operator to run (or not). Complete shambles.

[Barney]

RE: Stagecoach Manchester and Wigan

(31/08/2020 21:43)Mayneway Wrote:  I’ve said this all along. They couldn’t organise a teddy bears picnic let alone manage a franchised network.
At the start of the pandemic while operators were reducing commercial services and they were furloughing staff they were very very reluctant to allow subsidised services to be reduced in anyway because legally they had to keep paying the operator to run (or not). Complete shambles.

I think that you identified the salient point: they were legally obliged to continue to pay operators to run subsidised services. If they hadn't they would have faced a legal challenge that they would have lost that would have cost a considerable amount of tax payers' money. Btw, how much do you think it has cost the tax payer (you?) to furlough Stagecoach staff for the last six months or doesn't that count?

[Mrboo]

RE: Stagecoach Manchester and Wigan
System one / get me there caps bus fares as they go up each year. If there was not a multi bus ticket the likes of Stagecoach could set the weekly tickets to what ever they want. And we get it good look at medway towns with arriva £22 for a weekly for a area that covers 5miles by 10miles and about 6miles of that is a single road bus route.

[iMarkeh]

RE: Stagecoach Manchester and Wigan

(01/09/2020 04:26)Mrboo Wrote:  System one / get me there caps bus fares as they go up each year. If there was not a multi bus ticket the likes of Stagecoach could set the weekly tickets to what ever they want. And we get it good look at medway towns with arriva £22 for a weekly for a area that covers 5miles by 10miles and about 6miles of that is a single road bus route.

You do realise that Stagecoach own System One right? While each company does have a say in the prices, Stagecoach officially own SystemOne.

I do agree with you though that multi operator fares in general do help keep fares lower. Surrey Independants have the worst fares in my opinion. Carlone I think it is on their 20 minute Staines to Heathrow trip, £24. You can get a System One Anybus weekly for less than that!

[gilbert]

RE: Stagecoach Manchester and Wigan
The Bus Times now shows the 313 as only going from Stockport to Manchester Airport but not back. Have they changed that too?

Nobody still has a clue about the 378/378A and 379[when ,where and which way] as well as the 42B/C lash up.

They're not doing very well are they?

[Manc93]

RE: Stagecoach Manchester and Wigan

(01/09/2020 16:52)gilbert Wrote:  The Bus Times now shows the 313 as only going from Stockport to Manchester Airport but not back. Have they changed that too?

Nobody still has a clue about the 378/378A and 379[when ,where and which way] as well as the 42B/C lash up.

They're not doing very well are they?

I'm sure there were many more people around Stockport who were confused by all the recent changes due to no changes on any bus stop plates. I'm guessing the timetables wouldnt of been updated in any shelters too?

All observations i notcied still showed re-routed routes on old routes (7 on bus plates between Reddish Morrisons & South Reddish Halfords), and withdrawn routes still on plates! (309/310/329) No mention of a 7A or 7B, and im sure theres a few 308/312 ones knocking about too.

On another note, due to the withdrawl of services from stand Q in stockport bus station (309/310/312), tfgm have decided to move the 199 to Buxton to use this stand. Why the 328 which has replaced some of these services, and ventures the same way as the 313 was not moved across seems daft. Maybe that was too easy!