Arriva North West - Birkenhead Depot

[mrd97]

RE: Arriva North West - Birkenhead Depot

(28/03/2022 18:08)DVG526 Wrote:  Nothing on Merseytravel yet about these changes.

The 418 needs cutting back to Woodside - APH. Doesn’t carry much to New Ferry. That end of the route could be covered by altering the 16/17 to run a longer circular, split routes at Mount Rd then say run 16 via Bedford Drive, Dacre Hill, Bebington Stn, Spital and 17 v.v etc. The Raby bit needs binning total waste of money

Not many people might use the bus from Raby Mere but it’s the start of a dangerous process by deciding an area doesn’t deserve public transport. We’ve already seen large swathes of the Wirral had their buses removed, let’s not add fuel to the fire.

The original 418/419 was relatively well patronised, maybe not commercially but enough people used it to deem it necessary. One of the most awful cuts to a bus service I’ve seen when that was axed (at the time no service to APH from Brom or Eastham), 2 half hourly bus services (418/9 and 145/6) replaced with an hourly extension to the 38. In an ideal world, I’d maybe say this:

A half-hourly 418 between Birkenhead and Arrowe park
One per hour extended to mill park via original route. Cut 38 back to Bromborough’s industrial estate. Probably wouldn’t cost much money.

Go back 10 years and nearly everywhere on the Wirral had a bus service of some sort. The subsidised ‘little’ routes are nearly all gone now. Took all the joy out of bus riding for me.

Not being funny but Merseytravel pay to divert the 418 via Prenton Dell, I wouldn’t be happy with this cut if they’re paying for part of the route.