Council’s £2.1m plan to get us on the buses (From Southend Standard)
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Council’s £2.1m plan to get us on the buses
10:00am Wednesday 19th September 2012 in News By Steve Hackwell
Changes in the pipeline – Southend Travel Centre
BUS stations will be overhauled, stops moved or altered and an Oyster card-style system introduced as part of a £2.1million plan to get more people using Southend’s buses.
Southend Council have outlined how they will spend the money after a successful bid for a share of a Government cash pot earlier this year.
Chief among their ideas is installing a smart card system – a localised equivalent of London’s Oyster card – to make journeys easier.
Paul Mathieson, the council’s group manager of transport and planning policy, said: “This programme affects the lives of all those who live, work and visit the town. The implications are positive, as the intention is to provide an improved, reliable bus network, to enable better journey times, reduce congestion and provide a reduction in carbon emissions.”
The council applied for almost £1.6million from the Department for Transport’s Better Bus Area fund, a £50million fund set aside to encourage more people to use public transport.
As part of its bid, it agreed to find an extra £500,000, with the money coming from its own coffers and contributions from Arriva and First Buses , the main bus companies operating in the town.
The vast bulk of the money will go on six projects –- installing the smart card readers and system on every bus, and making changes at major bus stops, such as Leigh station and Southchurch Road.
A total of £100,000 will be spent overhauling the much-maligned Travel Centre, which was built at the southern end of Chichester Road in 2006 to replace the old central bus station.
Passengers have frequently complained about the cramped waiting areas and sparse protection against the weather.
To improve the station, bosses plan to upgrade the shelters and move the kerbs to give waiting passengers more space.
The smart card system, once introduced, could also be linked to other forms of transport and council services.
The new franchisee for the c2c line will be forced to bring in a similar system when the contract begins next May, while council chiefs have previously predicted the cards could even be used for payments in libraries or on school buses.
Tony Cox, the Tory councillor responsible for transport, said: “The Oyster-style system would be much more convenient.
“London has proved it is the best way of attracting people to public transport.”
The council’s plans will be discussed by the cross-party economic and environmental scrutiny committee on Thursday, before a final decision is made by the Tory cabinet in November.
Comments(45)
aduksquack
says...
11:12am Wed 19 Sep 12
Eventually this will thoroughly discourage any buses from coming to Southend, and those that do will be restricted from being any practical use.
aduksquack
says...
11:14am Wed 19 Sep 12
beyond the valley of the asbos
says...
11:56am Wed 19 Sep 12
Alice in Her Own Land :P
says...
1:05pm Wed 19 Sep 12
Also there are drivers who do not pull into the kerb however high they are ... this needs addressing as well as the drivers who have no regard for the safety of their passengers by driving away before they have found a seat. There have been many near misses where passengers have nearly fallen while hanging on for dear life when the driver leaves a stop.
sosad 1
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1:10pm Wed 19 Sep 12
GentleGiant
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1:59pm Wed 19 Sep 12
Nebs
says...
2:10pm Wed 19 Sep 12
ian3900
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2:14pm Wed 19 Sep 12
I use the trains every working day of my life, both in Essex and away and you never get this level of contemptuous bad service.
Will I use the bus again because they have extended the kerbs and introduced a smart card for the minority who pay?
How about "no".
emcee
says...
2:21pm Wed 19 Sep 12
Nebs wrote:Agreed. Many cities around the world provide free services on some or all routes within their city boundries.
All public transport should be free at the point of use, paid for out of general taxation.
I would not mind paying a few extra quid on my council tax if it means I can quickly jump on bus (as long as I don't have to wait more than five or ten minutes) if I need to pop into town. Saves petrol, the environment (not that I buy into that malarky) and £1 for parking each time. However, the bottom line is it MUST be convenient. I have never used a free service in one of these cities that has not been convenient.
Sir Peter Pantsless the 3rd
says...
2:44pm Wed 19 Sep 12
.
Also Southend's Tory Council has failed the borough with its transport infrastructure, spending millions to make conjestion worse.
.
Viable public transport will never see the light of day in Southend with project failures like Cuckoo Corner and Victoria Gateway!
emcee
says...
2:50pm Wed 19 Sep 12
They are mainly from those who do not have access to a car. Whether they do not hold a licence, the car is in use by another family member or just cannot afford one, the bus is their only viable transport to get around town.
At the moment the bus services can hold these people to ransom because they know, no matter how many services they cut or how much they raise the fares, these people must still use them.
So, as I see it, if you want to attract other demographics onto the buses you must, firstly, make using the buses a service people want to use rather than need to use. You must ensure that everybody is able to get to where they need to be, quickly and conveniently, without having to walk half a mile to a bus stop. It must also be cheap, very cheap. Some services (between the White Horse, Southchurch and town and Hamlet Court Road and town, for example), could even be FREE.
To attract more users you must create a lot more routes, make the buses more regular and slash the fares. This is the sort of investment that is needed. Sort out the infrastucture of the public transport in this town before you start tinkering with ways people can pay their fares.
OK, so this with take a lot of investment, and it will probably not show dividends for a few years but this is the only way to make a public transport service survive. Otherwise, we will get fewer and fewer users of a continuously more expensive service. As passenger numbers decrease the more services are cut and the cycle continues until there is nothing left.
Blind Haze
says...
2:58pm Wed 19 Sep 12
beyond the valley of the asbos wrote:Back in my day (the 90s), I think anyone over 12 was considered an 'adult' for their fares - it does seem like a rip off to the nth degree!
fares are way too high to ever consider using bus services in southend - the only ones who can afford it are the pensioners. crazy that a 16 year old child in education has to pay a full adult price
Not sure if it's the same now, but I have no real interest as I won't be able to pass for a child....
Blind Haze
says...
3:00pm Wed 19 Sep 12
GentleGiant wrote:I didn't realise there wasn't a service that went from Canvey to Rayleigh and vice versa - that'd be a very handy route as it's fairly frequent that there's problems on the trains.
Never understood why there is not a bus that goes from say Canvey to Rayleigh, which could then link the two rail lines.
Cockle
says...
3:30pm Wed 19 Sep 12
Smart, clean, modern buses; bus stops are named and have real time displays showing the number and expected arrival time of next bus; onboard displays indicating destination and which named stop is the next on the route. Buses in constant real-time contact with their control and receive updates on changing traffic conditions to update passengers.
Crucially, in London, no cash is taken on the bus; tickets are bought before boarding or Oyster cards used and all fares are one price only, £1.40 each time you get on a bus regardless of destination, this means less time delayed at stops while passengers board and ferret around for the last 5p or the driver counts out the change. Also for the casual user, you don't have to ask the fare to X from Y. Cashless buses also mean attacks on drivers for their cash boxes have become pointless as there aren't any therefore a safer working environment for the drivers.
In short, using a bus in London is a pleasant experience compared to Southend.
leftboot83
says...
4:19pm Wed 19 Sep 12
Cockle wrote:Only in the Central area of London is cash not taken on buses. Many routes outer edges still take cash fares.
If they want to see how to run a bus service then they could do a lot worse than have a look at the Newcastle area or even better London.
Smart, clean, modern buses; bus stops are named and have real time displays showing the number and expected arrival time of next bus; onboard displays indicating destination and which named stop is the next on the route. Buses in constant real-time contact with their control and receive updates on changing traffic conditions to update passengers.
Crucially, in London, no cash is taken on the bus; tickets are bought before boarding or Oyster cards used and all fares are one price only, £1.40 each time you get on a bus regardless of destination, this means less time delayed at stops while passengers board and ferret around for the last 5p or the driver counts out the change. Also for the casual user, you don't have to ask the fare to X from Y. Cashless buses also mean attacks on drivers for their cash boxes have become pointless as there aren't any therefore a safer working environment for the drivers.
In short, using a bus in London is a pleasant experience compared to Southend.
Flat fares are all well and good, but expensive if you are only going a short distance whilst being a bargain for long distance; this would not be practical in the Southend area as the council will not be subsidising travel anywhere near the rate at which TfL do
leftboot83
says...
4:23pm Wed 19 Sep 12
beyond the valley of the asbos wrote:As long as I can remember and many friends before that remember, the age for 'full' fare is 14.
fares are way too high to ever consider using bus services in southend - the only ones who can afford it are the pensioners. crazy that a 16 year old child in education has to pay a full adult price
Students can get a half card upto the age of 18
Keptquiettillnow
says...
4:35pm Wed 19 Sep 12
A circular route passing the main points, hospital, train stations, clowncil offices etc would be great.
If SBC are anything to do with it though, total disaster predicted. Time will tell.
beyond the valley of the asbos
says...
4:41pm Wed 19 Sep 12
leftboot83 wrote:i was using the 16 year old example because i looked at it last year as an alternative to the school run. just not viable - no half price card was offered by either first or arriva
beyond the valley of the asbos wrote:As long as I can remember and many friends before that remember, the age for 'full' fare is 14.
fares are way too high to ever consider using bus services in southend - the only ones who can afford it are the pensioners. crazy that a 16 year old child in education has to pay a full adult price
Students can get a half card upto the age of 18
AnotherSister
says...
5:13pm Wed 19 Sep 12
jayman
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6:04pm Wed 19 Sep 12
((monorail!!!))
sjreynolds143
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6:14pm Wed 19 Sep 12
Under privatisation, commercial companies get to operate whatever routes they like - oddly enough, the profitable ones - and the council can only legally procure add-ons or services where there is a social need. Needless to say, those are the loss-making ones. So the council gets to spend without seeing any income (and it is revenue spending, so this new money, which is capital, cannot be used to pay for services anyway), while the commercial operators get to keep the profits from the services that they run.
It would be better to let councils specify and tender for all the services that a town needs, as a package, so that the benefits from the profitable routes can be spent on the non-profitable ones, either with cheaper fares, newer buses, or more routes.
And no, I'm not some lefty statist, but if you want people on public transport then you need to give them a service that is better than what they can get by driving themselves.
CALL ME CLINT
says...
7:20pm Wed 19 Sep 12
Nebs wrote:I recall that such an idea was very much on the agenda of the Labour Party Young Socialists during the early '70s. Not sure if that was on a national basis or just my local branch.
All public transport should be free at the point of use, paid for out of general taxation.
The idea has always appealed to me. There are many pros and a few cons.
One thing I do believe would be necessary would be extreme penalties for damaging such a public service.
I'd like to see a network around the country making best use of technology to reduce environmental damage.
Not going to happen though, unfortunately we are probably further away now than when I used to catch the bus to the LPYS meetings.
beyond the valley of the asbos
says...
7:27pm Wed 19 Sep 12
Nebs wrote:i thought we put this one to bed on another story. services should be paid for by those that use them. travel is bad for the planet - why encourage needless joyriding? are we to assume you're a heavy user of public transport?
All public transport should be free at the point of use, paid for out of general taxation.
heartbeat
says...
7:29pm Wed 19 Sep 12
Add to that the unreliability (I have tried to go to Southend Hospital and back on more than one occasion and each time buses have been missed out (how much more stress do you need when going to the hospital!). No explanation given, of course - talk about "third rate" service where the passengers, i.e. customers, are treated like the dregs of society. Coming back I had to endure a long wait at Southend "bus station" (LOL) in the cold - neither I or the other passengers were allowed to sit on the bus, out of the freezing cold, while drivers changed over. Sorry but I thought this was the 21st century!! What on earth use is a "SMARTCARD" if you have to stand freezing on the pavement looking at a bus with the doors closed?? On more than one occasion also I have wondered why on earth those (presumably expensive) illuminated signs which give arrival times even exist - they keep changing, i.e. one minute they say your bus will arrive in, say 4 minutes...you look away, try to pass the time dum-di-duming to yourself or avoiding bus-stop nutters and people puffing their smoke all over you....look back at the sign again thinking "4 minutes must be gone by now..." and it will say something like 11 minutes. No explanation, and so it goes on. Next it will say 17 minutes or whatever. Finally...some of the drivers are so rude, it defies belief. A friend ran up to a bus recently and the woman driver looked at him and pressed the button to shut the doors deliberately so he couldn't board. She then sat there for another minute, as if to confirm her power. He stood there incredulous while this seemingly "power-crazed" individual drove off and left him to wait 20 mins for the next bus. I've never had that myself but I have felt as though I have been treated as a third-class citizen on several occasions, almost as if by travelling on a third-rate bus service confirms your own third-rate status! Obviously not all, some are friendly and helpful, but several drivers are grumpy and unhelpful. Why on earth should customers have to put up with that, even sometimes? If it was a shop assistant treating me like that I certainly wouldn't go back for another dose!
southend brummie
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8:00pm Wed 19 Sep 12
MUSHY
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8:06pm Wed 19 Sep 12
Kentish Alex
says...
10:27pm Wed 19 Sep 12
fletch12107
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8:32am Thu 20 Sep 12
SARFENDMAN
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8:56am Thu 20 Sep 12
SARFENDMAN
says...
8:57am Thu 20 Sep 12
heartbeat
says...
9:19am Thu 20 Sep 12
fletch12107 wrote:Ah yes, I remember, when all the buses sat in logically numbered bays next to each other, and it was so much easier to see which buses were available all from one vantage point. Nowadays you would have no hope of deciding to catch a different bus if one turned up (as they often do in such a random fashion). Unless you have superhuman eyesight and are Mo Witham and are not carrying bags of shopping/pushchairs/
How about buying Sainsbury in London Road demolishing it and putting a really nice covered bus station there. All buses could call there and there could be a nice cafe to get good food from. Oh hang on we already had that once but it was closed down.
don't even mention being in a wheelchair you have little hope of getting from one bus stop to another in time
And what a novelty it would be to be inside in relative warmth, out of biting winds, and with a cafe open late into the evening to warm yourself on a cuppa while you wait. Dream on......Southend Council have been "modernising" and "improving"!!!!!
Broadwaywatch
says...
9:42am Thu 20 Sep 12
This very subject was brought up some years ago at a public Leigh Town Council meeting. The spokesman for, and representing the SBC in the company of Nigel Holdcroft denied that they had chosen the wrong design and it was up to the waiting passenger to either lean forward to see round the obstructing panel or to keep getting up, whatever the age or possible disability and to move out, whatever the weather, from under the shelter to see if the bus was coming. This suggestion was delivered, in my opinion, with an utter arrogance which seems to be shown to often by many a local Council officer or Councillor.
andy:)
says...
2:14pm Thu 20 Sep 12
Ray Von
says...
5:59pm Thu 20 Sep 12
Also there is nothing wrong with 10 year old buses that are ex-London and thoroughly refurbished before coming out into provincial service, nowhere in the country (except London or Manchester) has a bus fleet with a majority under 10 years old, thats ridiculous.
Also fare in Southend are cheap due to there being 2 major companies here. Try Chelmsford...or Colchester...or Maidstone. Stop whinging.
You are all just ridiculous with your demends and won't be happy unless a bus arrives as the monent you need it, costs nothing and drops you offright outside your destination. No wonder drivers are rude to you all.
jolllyboy
says...
6:28pm Thu 20 Sep 12
Yes drivers are a sad lot taking great fun in closing doors when you get there and just not stopping when you put your arm out - but that's their fun for the day.! Write in and complain, that's the only answer to that.
Southend have been given money many times to improve the buses and we see nothing for it.The bus station is useless , extending the path for passengers would not work because there is already not enough room for the buses. Look how many scrape the bottom of the bus when they clip the kerb when they try to pull away because the shape of the path is wrong. I have never, ever, seen the shelter full. As for getting buses on time how come the No.9 had a bus added from 1st Sept. to enable the bus to keep to the timetable - it runs every 12 mins for goodness sake. This adds insult to injury for those using and needing the 29 which is cut to 20 mins, cannot keep to the timetable which is said to be 'approximate times' does not always turn up (remember it serves the hospital) and some evenings it has been seen turning back to Southend at Westcliff Schools insread of completing it's run to Belfairs. That's no use if you want to go out for the evening. As for buses to Leigh station , dream on, it's difficult enough to get to leigh itself. (anywhere is better than southend for shopping).
Diannah
says...
10:45pm Thu 20 Sep 12
leftboot83 wrote:Can you give more information about this half card for students please? I currently pay £47 every 4 weeks for a bus pass for my 16 year old son and have been appalled by the (lack of) service they provide.
beyond the valley of the asbos wrote:As long as I can remember and many friends before that remember, the age for 'full' fare is 14.
fares are way too high to ever consider using bus services in southend - the only ones who can afford it are the pensioners. crazy that a 16 year old child in education has to pay a full adult price
Students can get a half card upto the age of 18
madmark50484
says...
11:24pm Thu 20 Sep 12
I have worked for both companies as a driver I wont reveal which one I currently work at.
Let me ask you all a few questions
I try my best to be a courteous driver and to let people get their seats etc now how am I supposed to keep to a timetable which barely gives you enough time to do the journey without stopping at all when you have several OAPS get on dither around trying to find their passes then spend their time selecting (not making their way) a seat ?
Several people have made the point of drivers driving off when running for the bus well as I have just said Im already late letting OAPs sit down should I make my bus later or try and get back on time ? by all means if I am on time or early then I wait.
As for being grumpy I have only recently come back down this way from another depot in Essex yet already I have had my bus shot at before I left I had my bus rocked.
Now I am all for helping but like it or not we can please everyone. our job is a minefield and there is no right way of doing it per say !!
now to the story in hand I am all for this smart card payment system as has been said it will mean drivers wont have to carry so much cash around.
whataday
says...
12:31pm Fri 21 Sep 12
Agree with another comment on here its difficult to go over and use public transport when buses don't go anywhere near where you want to go
Even in Third World countries they seem to be able to do this e.g. use smaller mini-buses from less used routes to get people to more well used routes that are served by the bigger buses. Not rocket science is it.
Personally I dont think the government is in the least bit interested in getting us to use public transport otherwise they would have made sure the services were reliable and cheap. Its obvious to me they are only interested in making loads of money out of car owners through the enormous tax they take on petrol
beyond the valley of the asbos
says...
12:57pm Fri 21 Sep 12
whataday wrote:i can't think of 3 places i would least like to go - in no particular order - canvey, benfleet and rayleigh
Absolutely right there should be a bus srvice which goes from Canvey to Rayleigh via B enfleet. It seems incredible to me that there isnt a bus from Tarpots or any other part of Benfleet to Rayleigh
Agree with another comment on here its difficult to go over and use public transport when buses don't go anywhere near where you want to go
Even in Third World countries they seem to be able to do this e.g. use smaller mini-buses from less used routes to get people to more well used routes that are served by the bigger buses. Not rocket science is it.
Personally I dont think the government is in the least bit interested in getting us to use public transport otherwise they would have made sure the services were reliable and cheap. Its obvious to me they are only interested in making loads of money out of car owners through the enormous tax they take on petrol
tendringexile
says...
3:54pm Sun 23 Sep 12
When I was a teenager there used to be a 'Southend Travelcard' which allowed unlimited travel on trains and buses in Southend, Castle Point and Rochford areas. It was only available as a 7 day ticket I believe, a daily version would have been popular I'm sure. I think this ticket bit the dust with bus de-regulation by Mrs Thatcher's government and the demise of Southend Transport. But it could be brought back easily and much more cheaply than bringing in a 'Cockle Card' system!
I think the reason why useful bus services such as Benfleet station to Rayleigh station via Tarpots are not being considered is because it would cross council boundaries. It seems that Southend, Castle Point and Rochford councils just don't want to work together any more on anything. When Southend 'Unitary Authority' was set up it should have been all three boroughs so there is some unified planning for the South East Essex urban area rather than just leaving Southend more isolated than ever.
Public Inconvenience
says...
3:30pm Mon 24 Sep 12
heartbeat
says...
4:20pm Mon 24 Sep 12
Public Inconvenience wrote:Yet more reason for this to continue to be such an "un-green" area! Poor, patchy service, too many rude and unhelpful drivers, no explanations or apologies (dream on!!) for lateness or cancellations and above all VERY HIGH FARES.
Footnote to all these complaints is the fact that local fares are due to go up yet again this sunday 30th September!
Where's me car keys....
rodgdodge
says...
4:03pm Tue 25 Sep 12
Then have short localised routes running into them, which then could connect to a main route ( large capacity vehicle) into town.
The exceeding length of some routes, causes unreliable timings and service in anything, but free-flowing traffic conditions.
heartbeat
says...
4:20pm Tue 25 Sep 12
rodgdodge wrote:An excellent idea and something which is done in countries all over the world, very successfully too.
As well as having the central bus station, why not have 3 or 4 mini bus stations located around the area( remember `Hoppers)? with comfortable waiting areas.
Then have short localised routes running into them, which then could connect to a main route ( large capacity vehicle) into town.
The exceeding length of some routes, causes unreliable timings and service in anything, but free-flowing traffic conditions.
HadleighBoy says...
10:18am Wed 19 Sep 12