First Manchester

[Brickmill]

RE: First Manchester

(02/10/2018 11:13)Mayneway Wrote:  I think in places like Tameside they would actually be doing punters a favour if they did pull out. Sadly there's a massive difference between the quality of service as well as punctuality between First and Stagecoach. You only have to look at the investment Stagecoach have made at each depot to see how it should be done!

Must have been a completely different Ashton that I have been visting recently. Apart from old Solos on the 353/4, First buses in Ashton seem to be predominantly Streetlites, supplemented by the odd Enviro300 and Enviro400 on 348/350 and a mix of Enviro400s and Geminis on 409. Meanwhile, Stagecoach run middle aged Enviro200s (and the odd Enviro400) on 346 and apart from the 330, the remaining routes are either a mix of variously powered or designed Enviro400s - except the 347 which seems to have settled back to its natural historical place of just having the oldest buses in the fleet.
The 346 stands out like a sore thumb; 5 years ago, Stagecoach ran nothing but nearly new Enviro200s whilst First chucked out any old rubbish. Nowadays, the situation is almost reversed.