Bus Vannin in Crisis

[Declan]

1 minute ago, Banker said:

Doubt it as most of them are during day on weekdays & are mostly those with free bus passes, kids at lunchtime etc

Not in my experience. People work all sorts of hours.

[Passing Time]

26 minutes ago, Declan said:

Not in my experience. People work all sorts of hours.

Your "experience" must be pretty limited then. You don't have to look very hard to see half empty/nearly empty buses anytime between 9am and 4pm and nearly all day on a Sunday

ETA - if you want full buses then stop people parking on the streets around Douglas and encourage them to use public transport. 

Edited May 3, 2022 by Passing Time

[Declan]

9 minutes ago, Passing Time said:

Your "experience" must be pretty limited then. You don't have to look very hard to see half empty/nearly empty buses anytime between 9am and 4pm and nearly all day on a Sunday

ETA - if you want full buses then stop people parking on the streets around Douglas and encourage them to use public transport. 

But are they empty at the beginning or end of the journey? 

I would ban parking on the Prom etc if I could, but that would require more buses around Douglas's outskirts. 

[Ham_N_Eggs]

4 hours ago, Banker said:

But lots are empty & i what people are saying run some services 2/3 times per hour in off peak times  rather than 4 times per hour to make it fit the number of drivers 

Where are you seeing the buses? Douglas when they've dropped everyone off?

[Ham_N_Eggs]

24 minutes ago, Passing Time said:

Your "experience" must be pretty limited then. You don't have to look very hard to see half empty/nearly empty buses anytime between 9am and 4pm and nearly all day on a Sunday

ETA - if you want full buses then stop people parking on the streets around Douglas and encourage them to use public transport. 

You say half empty, I say half full.

[Passing Time]

10 minutes ago, Ham_N_Eggs said:

You say half empty, I say half full.

Either way - they appear to be losing money

[Ham_N_Eggs]

2 minutes ago, Passing Time said:

Either way - they appear to be losing money

Appear but are they? Let's wait for the accounts. 

[Passing Time]

2 minutes ago, Ham_N_Eggs said:

Appear but are they? Let's wait for the accounts. 

Thanks Ian but the writing is on the wall. From as far back as 2017 they have been losing money but you just put your head back in the sand and pretend it's all good

[Banker]

12 minutes ago, Ham_N_Eggs said:

Appear but are they? Let's wait for the accounts. 

It’s fact, buses we’re losing c£6m 3 years ago, probably minimum £7m by now!! Any sensible person can see the folly running loads of services which have little demand 

In response to further written questions, Mr Harmer revealed that in 2018/19, the bus service generated £3,777,560 in income, compared with running costs of £9,468,237.

By comparison, it cost £3,812,338 to run the MER, Steam Railway and Mountain Railway in 2018/19, compared with £1,956,551 income.

The horse trams cost £411,532 to run in 2018/19 and brought in £87,088.

[TheTeapot]

3 hours ago, Passing Time said:

I suspect you know eff all about people who comment. You sound like one of those that think you are entitled to a bus every twenty minutes and sod the cost. Grow up

I know all about you.

The point I am making is that those who make the most noise about the buses and their apparent lack of use are those who don't use the fucking service 

So pricks. Like you.

[Declan]

 

2 minutes ago, Banker said:

 

In response to further written questions, Mr Harmer revealed that in 2018/19, the bus service generated £3,777,560 in income, compared with running costs of £9,468,237.

 

We're not losing money - we're choosing to subsidise travel for the elderly and those going to school. Reducing service buses impacts the income part of your equation.

[Banker]

10 minutes ago, Declan said:

 

We're not losing money - we're choosing to subsidise travel for the elderly and those going to school. Reducing service buses impacts the income part of your equation.

Sorry but that’s bollocks!! In any normal business you reduce or scrap the highest loss making services to protect the profitable routes.

The routes reduced would be those lightly used by mainly free pass users.the income loss would be minimal compared with savings on costs.

You sound like a Longworth fan!! 

[Declan]

But the routes you're complaining about are the profitable ones! Longwith has cut back the ones around the Douglas estates, the Northern Villages have a bizarre dial-a-ride system, Foxdale largely forgotten, South to Peel has to be via Douglas. He's focused on providing more buses on the South to Onchan via Douglas route because that's the one most fare paying passengers use but those are the ones you are advocating cutting. 

But it's still a political decision, not a commercial one, to provide any services to the estates and the villages. Politicians have decided the elderly, the young should have subsidised travel and that buses should run to out of the way places. That's down to the social and economic benefits of enabling the poorest to access the rest of the island.  

[Banker]

18 minutes ago, Declan said:

But the routes you're complaining about are the profitable ones! Longwith has cut back the ones around the Douglas estates, the Northern Villages have a bizarre dial-a-ride system, Foxdale largely forgotten, South to Peel has to be via Douglas. He's focused on providing more buses on the South to Onchan via Douglas route because that's the one most fare paying passengers use but those are the ones you are advocating cutting. 

But it's still a political decision, not a commercial one, to provide any services to the estates and the villages. Politicians have decided the elderly, the young should have subsidised travel and that buses should run to out of the way places. That's down to the social and economic benefits of enabling the poorest to access the rest of the island.  

I never mentioned south to onchan routes, what I said was reduce services to fit demand & there's obviously not a demand for existing services otherwise they would be full.

Ive travelled to both Peel & Port Erin on bus several times in last 12 months and I've never seen the bus more than half full, the only one remotely full was the last normal service back from Peel on Saturday.

[Passing Time]

1 hour ago, TheTeapot said:

I know all about you.

The point I am making is that those who make the most noise about the buses and their apparent lack of use are those who don't use the fucking service 

So pricks. Like you.

So when you run out of any sensible thing to say just resort to insults - outstanding.

Just for the record, I use the bus quite frequently. Still doesn't alter the fact the buses are too frequent by far. Two an hour would be sufficient. No need for three an hour.