Great Western Coffee Shop

I used to joke "there will be no buses left by the time I get my senior bus pass" as bus service levels seemed to get lower over the years, and the age at which bus passes could be used got higher.  I heard it suggested this was a neat way for the government to save money without actually taking away "free" bus passes which, in reallity, I have been funding for 'seniors' for years through my taxes. Many a true word spoken in jest.

Outside my home, there were 40 buses to Bath each day a year ago.  Come last November, that was cut to 34. Plans for April were to cut that further to 20 (a sensible level), but due to the pandemic every single Bath service has been removed. There are no services at all to Bath at the moment - not that I (as someone who's not a key worker) is allowed to travel anyway.

The Town Bus does call - but that is down from 16 services a day to 5 (mornings only!), with one bus going just a single stop, 3 going just 2 stops, and one going three stops at the moment. For such a short journey, no, it really isn't worth my while - I can walk quicker than waiting for the bus if I need to go to the shops.

Same story across the road, or rather worse story. Nothing at all back from town to there at the moment, and nothing heading on out to Devizes like they up to 5 or 6 weeks ago.

I have, never the less, applied today for my bus pass.  I am hopeful that as the current overriding crisis eases, buses going somewhere useful will return.  I admit, though, that I'm not holding my breath as to when I'll be able to use it; since local journeys are planned at short notice, best to have it ready.

(http://www.wellho.net/pix/bathbusgone.jpg)

I will admit that I was one of the last people to get my bus pass at 60. Just changed my Wiltshire pass for the wonderfully named diamond pass issued by the authorities around Bristol.  Slightly better rems of use as I can use the night buses up to about 0200 - not that I am very likely to do so.

I'm curious to know what sort of social distancing is being practised on buses and whether they're still taking cash.

From what I'm reading, they are reluctant to take cash (but will if pressed). Seats behind drivers blocked off, as are alternate rows with some operators.  Double deckers in use on route where they're needed to maintain enough space, but apparently some problems persuading people to go upstairs.  Shields around driver.

We have some bus folks on here ... please [xxxx] and [yyyy] - confirm or correct my comments.  Thanks!

Passengers boarding Tfl Buses must now do so via the middle doors, with no requirement to Tap In

....almost as bad as splashing out £75 back in January on my first passport in twenty years....

On the services I've used in Bath, the only distancing measure taken is to tape off the seats nearest to the driver, so that all passengers are seated 2 metres or more away. It is then left to passengers to sort out their own social distancing.

In practice most buses are so empty that this isn't difficult, but obviously that can't be guaranteed, and even if there is only one other passenger, you may have to walk past them to get a seat. Of the small number of buses I have caught since the lockdown, most have had between one and three passengers on them at any one time. However, when I went to catch one back from the city centre after doing a shop one morning, I was rather shocked to find 11 passengers including myself, which made any distancing impossible.

I think they will still accept cash though I haven't actually seen anyone using it.

You have my sympathies, both for the frustration about the bus pass (I've had mine for over 5 years so have at least been able to enjoy the freedom it has given me), and for the complete lack of any useful services during the lockdown. First should have kept a minimum service to allow rural dwellers the chance to come into town for shopping, and for urban dwellers to go into nearby countryside for their exercise.

Actually ... no.     

First announced at the end of January that they were withdrawing their Melksham services from 4th April.  That was long before the Coronavirus scare; First services were due to finish anyway and won't be back.

First and their predecessors have run a Devizes - Melksham - Bath route since time immemorial, but after 1985 deregulation the route has been open to competition.  That's primarily come from Faresaver, who built up over the years so that by a year ago there were four buses an hour during Monday to Friday daytime - two each from First and Faresaver, with two First and one Faresaver on Saturday and First only into the evening and on Sundays.  Far too many buses for everyone to break even, and First gave up.   It's the sort of way deregulation is designed to work.

During February and early March, a scramble from all remaining parties to provided / agitate for a sensible all day, every day service - and the net results as registered with the appropriate authority to run from 5th April are sensible - congratulations to all parties concerned. Wiltshire Council providing support funding for actually more evening services and for Sunday services, routes 271 and 272 each running hourly Monday to Saturday giving a 30 minute service into Bath, where the old routes varied giving an hourly service to all ex-First-only and ex-Faresaver-only stops.

Sunday services are route 273 instead. A service every 2 hours, which does not serve Mallory Place, Melksham Hospital, Coronation Road, 3 stops on Shaw Hill, and stops via the Swan at Kingsdown and into Bathford.  And it's that Sunday service running at present - with a single extra trip on the same route, one 2 hour "pattern" earlier. So - overall - 40 services from Melksham to Bath per day reduced to 5 or 6 at the moment i.e. 15% of normal service which must be one of the most draconian cuts.  Government support for bus operator at present, though, relates to percentage of routes operated not number of services on that route, and I'm pretty sure that over 78% (I think it is) of routes are running - even if just one bus a day in some cases.

Now - travel from Melksham into Bath remains possible, with a walk (to a 273 stop) of perhaps quarter of an hour from the stops missed out (they're also missing out The Bear and Old Broughton Road at present because of roadworks) and key workers are typically fit enough to walk ... so the current changes are ironic and frustrating, but understandable. I'm making assumptions that there are no key workers needing an evening service, nor from Bath to Melksham as the first service doesn't get to the town until 11:50 even on a weekday.



 

What's left of First Kernow ask that payment is by contactless but will take cash if no other option. As for distancing, they recommend that it's one person per double seat and on every other row.

Sounds quite sensible.