Oxford, High Wycombe & surrounding areas

updated Sunday 10th December 2000
The next update will be on Sunday 17th December 2000

Please note that any comments made in this news page are those of the Editors' and in no way constitute 
any official points of view from the bus companies mentioned,  or indeed any other official body. 
As a news page we reserve the right to make valid comments as seen from an editorial point of view.

Problems with the pictures ! - sometimes it seems that the pictures do not load.
I have found a solution which does work normally - 
RIGHT CLICK ON THE PICTURE AND THEN CLICK ON "SHOW PICTURE"
Good luck !

The week has proved an interesting one for Oxford and its transport. Following much protest by residents and pressure by the local press, including BBC Radio Oxford, a bus service to Herschel Crescent was revived. Last Monday, 4th December a twice daily service, nr 18, was revived and will run until Friday 30th March 2001 on a temporary basis. Departures from Herschel Crescent are at 09.54 and 12.24. Service runs via Cowley Centre and Florence Park road to Oxford Castle Street. Return services, from St Aldates H3, leave at 1200 and 1505. The route is the same as that operates by the 16 which serves Minchery Farm. The service is operated by the Oxford Bus Company using Dennis Dart buses from the 5XX series. Sadly support so far is minimal with poor load factors. We shall have to wait and see if the residents can be more supportive of the route. 

As is usual your Editor spent much time away once again and a visit to Glasgow enabled one to ride on a gas powered DAF from the Airport into the City Centre. Only two of the gas powered buses remain in Glasgow, the remainder having been transferred to Watford for the 321 service ! Both remaining buses have contravision advertising as can be seen from my photo below.

494, T494KGB, shows off its Icelandair contravision livery outside Glasgow International Airport.
Two similar buses were trialed on the 15 road in Oxford some two years ago.

Vic Gacowski e-mailed to add some useful notes for this weeks page which I am sure everyone will find most interesting. He says:

1. Gloucester Green is to close to all buses and coaches for a month next Easter with services being moved to the Oxpens. (This is presently a coach park by the Ice Rink) . It is said that feeder shuttles will operate from the City Centre. It seems that the waterproofing over the Underground Car Park needs replacing. 

2, The bus is now king in Oxford . Visitors to the city show 44% by bus and 39% by Car. Park & Ride custom is up by 5% . Overall traffic is down 20% with more people on the streets.  Welcome news in one way but as mentioned last week traders report an equal 20% down on trade !

3, It appears that BBC Top Gear have been forced to film a third program about OTS after complaints that they were biased.

4, Stagecoach is meeting Head Teachers after complaints about bad behaviour on Routes 32 Oxford - Abingdon - Didcot and Route 77 Brookes. A newspaper article quotes Stagecoach Marketing Manager, David Whitely as saying that children pushed other passengers out of the way. The children are also said to have shouted, sworn, spat and thrown objects at them !!!  David said " Our customers deserve to travel in peace and our drivers have the right to work in an environment free of abuse. (Ed. I can only but agree, this adds to the bus driver reported in the national press for kidnapping a bus load of riotous children south of London. Wrong but maybe not wholly with sympathy, most drivers have tales to tell of abuse, threat of or actual physical aggression etc etc.) 

5, The Oxford Park & Ride services are suffering due to queues waiting to get into Westgate Car Park. Mr. Phil Clark of Oxford Bus is quoted as saying "The 300 is diverting regularly via Donnington Bridge due to traffic congestion on the Abingdon Road. It is considered as sad that those doing the right thing by using the Park & Ride cases suffering due to excessive connecting bus journey times. 10 Minute journeys are taking over 30 minutes. We at Oxford Bus are putting on extra vehicles to try and keep a service going but this adds to the amount of traffic on the roads of Oxford ". David Whitley of Stagecoach was also quoted as stating the empty movements to and from Horspath Depot have to use the Abingdon Road thereby causing delays to many services awaiting their diagrammed vehicle.

Company reports - to 9th December 2000

Airlinks/Jetlink (Cambridge Coach)

Following an unfortunate incident when my very elderly mother travelled from Oxford to Stokenchurch on the 767 on a recent Saturday, I tried to contact Airlinks/Jetlink/National Express by phone and by e-mail. Mother had been charged the fare - and issued a ticket for - a journey from Stokenchurch to Cambridge. The fare charged was double. Being elderly she did not like to question the £6 fare (correct fare is £3.) and only asked me why the fare was so high when she got home, hence my efforts to contact the company. 

I have to say that all efforts to contact the company have failed, answer phone message remain unanswered and e-mails without reply AND AFTER 3 WEEKS. I wonder if my experience is unique and I am left feeling that National Express and its subsidiaries are somewhat lacking in customer care. I now intend contacting the Traffic Commissioner since I do not believe a company should get away with this cavalier attitude. Apart from the often applling state of the coaches used, often externally filthy and unwashed - many lack proper destination indicators. Indeed the coach liveries are like Jacobs coat of many colours. Someone in Cambridge must say what colour coach shall we use today. Time keeping is often poor. Must be a job for Ann Robinson's Watchdog !!!  (At least with Oxford Bus and Stagecoach Oxford they can be easily contacted).

Oxford Bus Company (City of Oxford Motor Services)

A new route started last Monday, the 18 to Herschel Crescent. Full details are in this week's editorial above. It is operated by 5XX series Darts.

Volvo 641 is presently in the workshops and 652 and 410 in the paintshop. 802 was on 300 Park&Ride on Saturday and Vic Gacowski reports that a 65X was on X3s a short time ago. Monday December 4th saw 809 and 656 on 35 road, a most unusual event. On the same day THREE older Darts were on 13 road being 501, 512 and 515.  

Vic also notes that the 35 road is having time keeping problems. In the peaks over the last few days he has noticed 35/35A vehicles one behind the other en route into Oxford. Looks like the 30 Minute frequency to Didcot is causing delays to those vehicles coming in from Didcot. If delayed they catch the next Abingdon Starter which is often picking up both loads. His daughter waited for the 1733 ex Abingdon (1700 Didcot) the other day and it was tailed by the 1748 35 all along the Radley Road. During the week also the 1100 by Radley Station , Off Peak , saw the 1000 ex Didcot (1033 Abington ) being tailed by the 1048 ex Abingdon. Finally Vic comments that before the new timetable 35 road ran well and near to time.

Stagecoach Oxford.  

For those of you who watch Morse you will have noted that in the last episode screened recently Mercedes Vario 382 had a starring role along with Volvo/Paladin 905. Coincidentally whilst taking pictures in Oxford yesterday, Saturday, both these buses passed by each other at Carfax. The Vario is pictured above and below we see 905 on the 3 to Rose Hill. Both buses were fresh from repaint for the episode which saw the death of Morse and thereby the end of a very popular series.

Dart MPD 100 was caught by my camera in service at last, this time heading for Abingdon on the X30. It is seen below near Carfax in St Aldates. It lacks any Stagecoach vinyls anywhere !

WYCOMBE BUS COMPANY

Olympian 234 was in works for repairs to its roof following an argument with a tree !!

Nigel Peach notes that Oxford Darts are still on loan and one Oxford 502 (another newcomer!) was on the 327 at lunchtime. It was stuck near the bollards by M & S - presumably it had no equipment to lower them. An oncoming Olympian came to the rescue !

He also notes that Leopard Trainer T4 seems to have taken up residence at Wycombe. (T4 has been transferred to Wycombe for the time being Ed.) 

  PHOTO CORNER
If anyone has a digital camera and wishes to submit photos for this page please send them to the above email.

Ex Oxford 783, Metrorider is now with Charlton services and is regular on the 108 replacing the more usual Leyland Tiger.

 
Guide Friday, ex Nottingham Atlantean UTV217S , for many years a regular in Oxford is seen here in Gloucester Green 
 last Saturday carrying a reasonable load for a winter's day ! The bus still carries fleet number 323 which it had when based
at the Cowley Road garage of Oxford Bus.

A winters day which could just be a summer day by the sun, sees 656, the last of the ex London Volvos 
operating the 2D from Kidlington to the Rail Station.

Following a collision with a car on the Cowley Road, police traced the offending bus to Carfax where it was 
apprehended and the driver questioned. An eye witness later told me the was a dreadful crash and yet the 
bus driver seemed oblivious to the incident and drove off to town ! The bus 936, is the Flyer which has its
feet on the wrong way round on the offside. See a previous News Page.

Time at Victoria allowed to get this rather nice night shot of Bebb Setra EBZ9142 leaving for Cardiff.

Finally there are not so many X reg coaches about and my trip to Glasgow allowed this shot of Stagecoach Bluebird 
 Mistral bodied Volvo laying over at Buchanan Street Bus Station in Glasgow.

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