MetroBus

[whole diary]

[martyjon]

http://www.firstgreatwestern.info/coffeeshop/index.php?topic=17049.msg242578#msg242578

Opening date for route M2 revealed in my post above so not so EXCLUSIVE as BristolLive claim.

[Pavement]

Some footage of a bus negotiating the guideway:
https://youtu.be/PF9TqQOxw7o

[martyjon]

M2 timetable now up on travelinesw website (http://www.travelinesw.com). No Sunday services for shoppers, is this still the parish council of north somerset still being obstinate and still refusing to remove the covenant that prevents the LA P&R^▸ (Park and Ride) being used on Sundays, one plus though. later services together with the busway will allow football and rugby fans to park there and travel to Ashton Gate and return to their cars after matches by Metrobus. One thing that puzzles me, will the P&R still be locked up after services cease daily or is that a thing of the past which will allow fans to park up there on a Sunday and walk along the busway to / from  the Ashton Gate encounter.

[Phantom]

M2 timetable now up on travelinesw website (http://www.travelinesw.com). No Sunday services for shoppers, is this still the parish council of north somerset still being obstinate and still refusing to remove the covenant that prevents the LA P&R^▸ (Park and Ride) being used on Sundays, one plus though. later services together with the busway will allow football and rugby fans to park there and travel to Ashton Gate and return to their cars after matches by Metrobus. One thing that puzzles me, will the P&R still be locked up after services cease daily or is that a thing of the past which will allow fans to park up there on a Sunday and walk along the busway to / from  the Ashton Gate encounter.

The big problem with letting us use the P&R for Ashton Gate, is it is deemed unsafe to walk due to the lack of lighting !
The fact that people have parked on the grass verges for decades seems to have been bypassed

[Phantom]

Apologies for what is probably such an obvious question, but I thought the M2 service was supposed to go to Temple Meads?

Just looking at the new timetable (as linked above) but only shows service going to St Mary Redclife

[Red Squirrel]

It loops round the central area, and one of the stops claims to be at Temple Meads on the basis that with a ladder and some glasses you can see Temple Meads from there (if it wasn't for the houses in between). With a stout pair of walking boots you can walk from the stop to the station in less than 10 minutes - or you could get a cab.

[Bmblbzzz]

"With a ladder and some glasses
You could see St Philip's Marshes
If it wasn't for the station in between."

[martyjon]

Apologies for what is probably such an obvious question, but I thought the M2 service was supposed to go to Temple Meads?

Just looking at the new timetable (as linked above) but only shows service going to St Mary Redcliffe

This is down to the clowns running this MetroBus project, if it runs within a mile of a "desired to serve" location then the stop is named as the "desired location".  I pointed this out when the stop in Lewins Mead was adorned with the I-point naming the stop as Broadmead when the stop is actually half a mile from Broadmead, in Lewins Mead outside the Premier Inn in Lewins Mead and opposite the Evans Cycle Emporium in Lewins Mead and the First Bus m3 timetable booklet refers to the stop as, yes, Lewins Mead.

Today the BristolLive website is reporting that the m2 should not be used by football and rugby fans going to Ashton Gate as they don't have enough buses to run the route even though there is a MetroBus stop at Ashton Gate for the fans that are anticipated will want to use the m2 to get to the matches.

Another fact that I noted today and can confirm that contractors are still faffing about with the Stoke Park I-point plinth (outbound) so passengers boarding there have no option other than buy their ticket on the bus unless they use m-tickets or the Travelwest travel card (Bristols part answer to Londons' Oyster^▸ (Smartcard system used by passengers on Transport for London services) card).

[TonyK]

Apologies for what is probably such an obvious question, but I thought the M2 service was supposed to go to Temple Meads?

Just looking at the new timetable (as linked above) but only shows service going to St Mary Redclife

It's no less obvious than anything else to do with MetroBust. It goes from somewhere near Temple Meads to somewhere near Ashton Gate. There will be one every 20 minutes, which will also serve the park and ride, if it can get past the hordes of football fans walking down the busway.

You would probably have a shorter walk from Temple Meads if you catch a train to Parson Street. First recommends taking the ABus shuttle from Temple Meads, which they say will be faster than using the new £60 million bus route. Speaks volumes...

[chuffed]

Local bus operator First Bristol will start operating the new m2 metrobus service from Monday 3 September.

The m2 service will run between Long Ashton Park & Ride and the City Centre serving Ashton Gate Stadium, SS Great Britain, Wapping Wharf, Temple Meads Station and Cabot Circus. It replaces the current 903 service between Long Ashton P&R^▸ (Park and Ride) and the city centre, which is operated under contract to Bristol City Council.

On Mondays to Saturdays the m2 Service will run from 6am, with the last bus leaving the Long Ashton Park & Ride at 9.30pm. During peak times it will operate every 10 minutes, every 12 minutes during the off-peak, and three times per hour after 7pm. On Saturdays the service operates every 12 minutes between 10am and 6pm, and three times hourly at other times.

A key benefit for all passengers, including current 903 users, is that all of First’s wide range of day, season and group tickets will be accepted on the m2, allowing through travel onto other services.

In the first two weeks of service, First will be offering m2 customers discounted travel with a promotional m2 week ticket for just £10, which is a 41% discount compared to a normal £17 FirstWeek ticket.

The m2 uses a guided busway for part of its route which allows services to avoid the often congested Brunel Way and Cumberland Basin.



New Sunday and night time service for m3...

Bus users using the premium m3 metrobus service between Lyde Green Park and Ride and the City Centre will be able to catch this quality service seven days a week.

Following the successful launch of the UK^▸ (United Kingdom)’s first buy-before-you-board service outside London, m3 operator First Bristol is expanding the existing Monday to Saturday timetable to include a Sunday service running half-hourly between 9am and 7pm. The new timetable starts from Sunday 16 September.

From the same date, the m3 will also provide evening and night journeys between 9pm and 4am on Mondays to Saturdays between The Centre and the University of the West of England (UWE), and on weekdays an additional U3 University service will mean that a frequent service will be provided between UWE and the city centre.

[TonyK]

So we have a gold standard service between Bristol City Centre and UWE.

[simonw]

Shame that the m1 service is so late, two years from the initial estimate. It would be have been a great help with NR^» (Network Rail - home page)|GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) shutting Parkway for three weeks next month.

[Red Squirrel]

...the UK^▸ (United Kingdom)’s first buy-before-you-board service outside London...

I presume you're quoting a press release here, but I'm intrigued by this statement. 'Buy-before-you-board' implies that they're talking about some sort of transport service, but plainly there are other such services outside London e.g. Nottingham trams. So do they mean it's the first buy-before-you-board bus service? Is that true?

[chuffed]

I think you are right to think it is the first buy before you board bus service. Given the number of press releases over the years, from Metrobus, they have nearly always contained a fair few erroneous claims !

[Bmblbzzz]

But London buses are not buy-before-you-board. They are pay on entry. In fact I don't think you can buy a ticket for a London bus before you board – or even after boarding, as no such ticket exists.