Stagecoach MCSL - Chester & Wirral Depots

[Barney]

RE: Stagecoach Chester & Wirral

(09/11/2014 13:29)wirralbus Wrote:  Now we get to the time of the year when every man , women , dog and cat descends on Cheshire Oaks , now we get to see how resilent the timetable is of both the service 1 and the X8.

I do think Cheshire Oaks made a rod for there own back by forcing all the buses to go round Cheshire Oaks the one way , good for passengers because they know where to stand but not for traffic management when everybody wants to leave at the same time .

I intend to use the X8 next week. I will post my experiences of it.

[326VFM]

RE: Stagecoach Chester & Wirral

(09/11/2014 17:59)clarkethomas94 Wrote:  Has anyone seen the two 04 plate solars recently GMG and GNU? Also has 28552 still in overall open livery?

Last Friday I saw GMG on route 1 at Birkenhead just coming out of Queensway tunnel.

[clarkethomas94]

RE: Stagecoach Chester & Wirral
Thanks guys.

[PO59 MXJ]

RE: Stagecoach Chester & Wirral
6 buses will be allocated to the X8 on Saturdays with the introduction of a rolling bus for the X8s that come into chester late. So every X8 should leave Chester on time but once Cheshire Oaks has been hit then its anyones guess to as how late they will be running. Also an intersting diversion tomorrow affecting 1 and X8 with Stanney Lane being shut. Also one direction of the Backford dip if shut for 5 days. This will definately cause running time issues with 1,2 and X2.

[gka472l]

RE: Stagecoach Chester & Wirral
One of the X22 branded Dart's was parked in the yard at Rock Ferry early on Sunday morning.

[wirralbus]

RE: Stagecoach Chester & Wirral

(09/11/2014 21:55)Shaun821 Wrote:  6 buses will be allocated to the X8 on Saturdays with the introduction of a rolling bus for the X8s that come into chester late. So every X8 should leave Chester on time but once Cheshire Oaks has been hit then its anyones guess to as how late they will be running. Also an intersting diversion tomorrow affecting 1 and X8 with Stanney Lane being shut. Also one direction of the Backford dip if shut for 5 days. This will definately cause running time issues with 1,2 and X2.

Sounds an excellent idea , but Chester depot will be doing some head scratching with regards keeping services to time with them diversions . Pity the drivers that get the grief from the passengers .

[PO59 MXJ]

RE: Stagecoach Chester & Wirral
Heard that 36071 & 36072 could be the next buses to depart Chester. Probably to be replaced by darts.

[Barney]

RE: Stagecoach Chester & Wirral

(10/11/2014 00:14)wirralbus Wrote:  Sounds an excellent idea , but Chester depot will be doing some head scratching with regards keeping services to time with them diversions . Pity the drivers that get the grief from the passengers .

I, along with a few mates, took advantage of Stagecoach's Dayrider Plus ticket yesterday to sample operations in this area. We hoped to get the 11.00 X8 departure from Sir Thomas Street to Chester. The bus arrived at the stop at 11.12 but, in defence of the driver, this was because it had been delayed by the brief closure of the Birkenhead tunnel to commemorate Armistice Day. In total, 27 passengers boarded the X8. Eleven boarded in Liverpool and 13 at Ellesmere Port, most of whom were in possession of concessionary passes. Despite the road works in Ellesmere Port the bus arrived at Chester at 12.18 where about 15 people were waiting to board for the return journey.

We decided to get the 15.20 X22 from Chester to Neston for the next stage of our journey. The Dart allocated was full when it left Chester and it did not pick up or set down until it neared Little Neston. We stopped for a pint in Neston and caught the next X22 to Heswall. Surprisingly, this one only had a handful of passengers on it when we boarded and unlike most Stagecoach buses lacked any saloon or cab heating. When we arrived at Heswall, as advertised in the timetable, the 38 was waiting to convey any would-be passengers on to West Kirby and beyond. However, we agreed that a pint in the pub next to the bus station and a 471/2 back to Liverpool was the better option.

Overall, a £4 ticket was excellent value for money and generally the buses kept to time which is probably only to be expected for a wet Tuesday in November. The two observations I would make is that a stop outside Rock Ferry depot would add very little to the running time of the X8 and question whether the circuitous X22 route around Little Neston and Parkgate is really worth the time and expense.

[Penny Return]

RE: Stagecoach Chester & Wirral

(12/11/2014 15:20)Barney Wrote:  I, along with a few mates, took advantage of Stagecoach's Dayrider Plus ticket yesterday to sample operations in this area. We hoped to get the 11.00 X8 departure from Sir Thomas Street to Chester. The bus arrived at the stop at 11.12 but, in defence of the driver, this was because it had been delayed by the brief closure of the Birkenhead tunnel to commemorate Armistice Day. In total, 27 passengers boarded the X8. Eleven boarded in Liverpool and 13 at Ellesmere Port, most of whom were in possession of concessionary passes. Despite the road works in Ellesmere Port the bus arrived at Chester at 12.18 where about 15 people were waiting to board for the return journey.

We decided to get the 15.20 X22 from Chester to Neston for the next stage of our journey. The Dart allocated was full when it left Chester and it did not pick up or set down until it neared Little Neston. We stopped for a pint in Neston and caught the next X22 to Heswall. Surprisingly, this one only had a handful of passengers on it when we boarded and unlike most Stagecoach buses lacked any saloon or cab heating. When we arrived at Heswall, as advertised in the timetable, the 38 was waiting to convey any would-be passengers on to West Kirby and beyond. However, we agreed that a pint in the pub next to the bus station and a 471/2 back to Liverpool was the better option.

Overall, a £4 ticket was excellent value for money and generally the buses kept to time which is probably only to be expected for a wet Tuesday in November. The two observations I would make is that a stop outside Rock Ferry depot would add very little to the running time of the X8 and question whether the circuitous X22 route around Little Neston and Parkgate is really worth the time and expense.

x8 does not warrent a stop outside Rock Ferry depot will only slow it down by coming off the
bypass,leave well alone

[gka472l]

RE: Stagecoach Chester & Wirral

(12/11/2014 15:45)Penny Return Wrote:  x8 does not warrent a stop outside Rock Ferry depot will only slow it down by coming off the
bypass,leave well alone

A stop around Port Sunlight before the by-pass would be my choice......