Brand New Buses for Lancaster as Stagecoach re-jigs New Network

Eighteen new buses, similar to this one borrowed from Hull, are due in the new year

A report by the Omnibus Society says that no fewer than eighteen brand-new buses are coming to Stagecoach's Lancaster depot as the company re-jigs its new network to cope with rising demand.

The company has been experiencing problems with overloading and passengers being left behind on service 2 to the University since it was converted to single-deck operation in October.  Despite an increase in frequency and the use of double-deckers on the more direct service 1 via Scotforth Road many passengers bound for the University have continued to use the 2, leading to the single-deckers being unable to handle all the traffic and not just at traditional "peak" travel times.

From 13th January, Stagecoach will converting services 2 and 2X  to double-deck operation, with the 2 being re-routed to run via Scale Hall Lane rather than Torrisholme Road to avoid the railway bridge on that route.

The move was unexpected. The purchase and allocation of new buses within the Stagecoach group is tightly controlled by the group's head office and the initial purchasing round for 2018/9 did not include any new buses for Stagecoach Cumbria & North Lancs.  The Bus Users' Group understands that the new buses (plus a 19th for Carlisle depot) are additional to the national order and, if so, securing them is a feather in their cap for local management.

The new buses, built by Alexander Dennis in Scarborough, will be allocated to service 1, to reinforce its position as the trunk service between Heysham, the city and the University, with the existing double-deckers being transferred to service 2. The single-deckers displaced from the 2 will presumably be re-allocated elsewhere within Stagecoach.

The move co-incides with a number of changes to the new network introduced in October that are being made in the light of operational experience and feedback from passengers and the Bus Users' Group.

Service 1

A check by the Group showed that buses from Heysham in the morning peak will needed extra running time between Morecambe and Lancaster, which they will now get as well as five minutes "loading time" at Common Garden Street in the city centre. This will be in addition to the existing five minute layover in the bus station.  Despite the widespread use of passes and pre-paid tickets, the time taken to load passengers for the University in the city centre has been a cause of delay that the new ticket machines seem to have exacerbated. Altogether, peak hour buses are being given an extra 15 minutes to get from Heysham to the University, although this merely reflects the reality of the present situation.

 The basic daytime frequency remains at 10 minutes (20 minutes between city and university in the holidays) but there are some extra buses from the University to Lancaster in the evening peak some of which will start at the Sports Centre.

Also, following requests from the Bus Users' Group, the late-night service between Lancaster and Heysham is being improved. The midnight departure from the Bus Station  is being extended from the Battery through to Heysham Towers and will run throughout the year and the 0020 Bus Station to Battery service will also run throughout the year.

Service 2

Single-deckers will disappear from service 2

As noted above, this service is being re-routed via Scale Hall Lane to avoid the railway bridge on Torrisholme Road. The stops at "Watery Lane" and "Ryelands Road" will no longer be served by Stagecoach, although Kirkby Lonsdale Coach Hire's service 8 will continue to serve the area. Stops to the east of the railway bridge will lose their service to Morecambe, something that the Bus Users; Group is unhappy about and which we will be monitoring.

On a positive note, the 0724 from Hala is being extended to start at the University at 0712 to allow night workers to get home more easily.

Service 4

Most timings towards the city are altered by a few minutes and journeys terminating at the railway station are extended to St. George's Quay or the Bus Station - a sensible move as they have to go that way anyway. There will be a later journey from the University at 1900 to help move the considerable number of students who wish to travel at that time.

Service 7

Although not directly affected by the re-organisation the service to Vale will gain some evening journeys for the first time since the county council-inspired cuts in April 2016.  As the 7 is now the only service along Torrisholme Road and as that road apparently still justifies evening buses there will be new journeys from the bus station to Vale at 1915, 2015, 2115 and 2300.

The Bus Users' Group hope that these moves will eliminate scenes such as this in the University Underpass in October

This queue at the University continued up the stairs and out of sight!

Whilst it was obvious that something would have to be done about the situation on service 2, where overloading had become commonplace at all times of day, the arrival of as many as eighteen brand-new double-deckers is a bonus and very much welcomed by the Group.

Fare Increase for Disabled Passholders

Lancashire County Council has announced an increase in the fare payable by holders of concessionary pass buses for travel before 09.30 on Mondays to Fridays

The current concessionary fare of 50p will increase to £1 from Monday, 3rd December.

The concession available to disabled passholders will then be:

• English National Concession: free off peak travel (between 9.30am and 11.00pm Monday to Friday, all day Saturday, Sunday and bank holidays) on local bus services throughout England
• From 3rd December 2018 - £1 flat fare per journey on local bus services which start, end or are wholly within Lancashire (includes Blackburn with Darwen and Blackpool) before 09:30 Monday to Friday.

The council consulted on this move in early 2018 and the results of the consultation were published in June.

Roughly half of respondents objected to the increase, with the other fifty-per-cent either supporting it or having no view either way.  The majority of travel before 09.30 was for medical appointments, followed by leisure, shopping, education and work, but only 4% of passengers thought that the increase would make their journey unaffordable.

Although a 100% increase might be considered steep, a major consideration was the ability of passengers to continue to be able to pay for their ticket with a single coin and 38% of respondents said that this was the case.  The 50+Assembly and several parish councils stated that they had no objection to the increase.

The Bus Users' Group also did not object to the move. The Council's financial position is well known and there appears to be no prospect a change to that in the foreseeable future. The 50p fare has been in place for some considerable time over a period when other bus fares have risen more sharply than inflation and we agree that for many passholders the ability to pay using only one coin is important.

Improved Access to the Bus Station

Regular users of Lancaster bus station will have noticed the steady deterioration in the condition of the pavement in Damside Street near the bus station entrance and, especially, the pedestrian crossing that gives safe access across Wood Street for passengers approaching from the city centre along Damside Street.

The Wood Street crossing. 

BUG member Mel Guilding, a city councillor and regular bus passenger from Carnforth first raised the issue, but as highways and crossings are a County Council responsibility is was another BUG member, County Councillor Gina Dowding that brought the matter to the attention of highways chiefs and asked for remedial action to be taken after supplying them with the following evidence

The condition of the pavement.

The pedestrian crossing

Now, following a visit from the council's highways inspector, an official order has been placed and work is expected to begin "in the next two weeks".

Bus Station Doors

Meanwhile, another BUG member, Councillor Abi Mills, has been chasing up the problems with the doors in the bus station that are stuck in the "open" position - except for the fire exit doors, which are jammed shut!  Again there is good news to report. A new, local, contractor has been appointed and work to repair the doors is due to start soon. We will, naturally, be monitoring the situation.

Lancaster Bus Users' Group is privileged to have a number of City and County Councillors amongst its membership and happy that they come from all sides of the political spectrum in the city. The Group is not ashamed to use this influence - and not above a bit of "insider dealing" -  in its task of improving bus services and the lot of bus passengers throughout the District.