Re: Oi! Boris! Wot abaht the bus shelters?


On 21 Jan, 13:52, "Andrew Heenan" <f...@xxxxxxxx> wrote:

"Paul Corfield" <pl...@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote :

It's interesting that you cite quite clear reasons for problems
with FirstBus's I-Bus performance - how do you know it is
garage or driver set up that is the cause of the problems?
I've recently experienced buses not knowing where they are
(* on the display) and then springing in to life further on.
Drivers can't use the equipment if the bus is moving and the
change in the display happened while we were moving.
Perhaps a signal to and from the bus was magically restored?

Not i-bus problems - Countdown problems. I don't think the two are linked
(yet), and I've read somewhere that much of the countdown system is
obsolete, which is why I'm wonderuing about how / when renewal will happen.

All services are prone to the occasional 'lost on route' (*), this is a
feature(!) of countdown (and i-bus to some degree) and large lorries / other
buses.

But it's a personal experience thing - I take a number of bus routes
regularly, mostly East London,  Arriva (N), Metroline and First (E). Buses
appearing from nowhere is a rare occurrence on other routes - but fairly
frequent on First.  Buses counting down for ten minutes then disappearing
forever (ghost buses) appears to me to be more frequent on F services, too.
And this is routes where the incoming 1+ mile is shared with other services
that have no problems.

Are the buses that appear out of nowhere at the beginning of their
route? In many (most?) places that are at or near the start of a route
no information seems to appear on Countdown displays until the bus
actually sets off, though I think I've seen a few bus route ETAs
appear on Countdown displays at or near the beginning of their route
(can the driver key in their expected departure time, presumably
something that approximates to the working timetable! - when they
begin their rest break at a layover?).

I've never really noticed many 'ghost buses' - in my experience in
most cases when a non-existent bus is shown it is displayed as being
"due", when in fact it has been and gone and disappeared round the
corner (hence it was actually existent in the first place!).


I've no way of knowing if it's driver or bus that's 'wrong' - but it sure
ain't 'the system'!

And while we're naming names - I've found any Countdown issues with Arriva
and East London to be as rare as Hen's Teeth, though I've seen them here and
there with most other companies from time to time.

Spend half an hour waiting at the Angel on bitterly cold evenings, and you
notice these things!

Indeed!
.

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