Suspended? possibly..

A comment left on an earlier post that the Dartmoor Explorer was cancelled has been queried – but they are right, or at least it looks like it…

There were 6 service alterations published this week that show the Dartmoor Explorer, Discover Exeter and at least parts of the Atlantic Coaster are suspended until further notice due to covid. That on its own isn't surprising.

What is surprising is just how difficult it is to get confirmation on this as I have not seen it mentioned anywhere by First Kernow on their web site or the facebook pages.

Traveline are still showing the timetables as current but the Adventures By Bus web site is showing these services as Coming Soon!

The Falmouth Coaster does still appear to be running though

Licence	Route	Start Point	End Point	Effective	Notes	OPERATOR
PH0004983.518	Atlantic Coaster	Newquay Bus Station	Padstow Old Station Car Park	16-Jan-2022	Temporary suspension of service due to Covid	FIRST SOUTH WEST LIMITED
PH0004983.585	Atlantic Coaster	Newquay Bus Station	St Agnes Institute	16-Jan-2022	Temporary suspension of service due to Covid	FIRST SOUTH WEST LIMITED
PH0004983.596	Dartmoor Explorer	Plymouth Royal Parade	Postbridge	16-Jan-2022	Temporary suspension of service due to Covid	FIRST SOUTH WEST LIMITED
PH0004983.597	Dartmoor Explorer	Exeter St Davids	Postbridge	16-Jan-2022	Temporary suspension of service due to Covid	FIRST SOUTH WEST LIMITED
PH0004983.615	Discover Exeter	Exeter, St David's Station	Exeter, St David's Station	16-Jan-2022	Temporary suspension of service due to Covid	FIRST SOUTH WEST LIMITED
PH0004983.608	Falmouth Coaster	Falmouth, The Moor	Falmouth, The Moor	16-Jan-2022	Temporary timetable variation due to Covid	FIRST SOUTH WEST LIMITED

© Nick Rice [cc]

It certainly makes sense to suspend these services at the moment, and they will be back before too long. With covid restrictions being wound down over coming weeks, hopefully staffing levels will increase again. The company clearly has plans for the new season….

Another year, another investment project begins at First South West… pic.twitter.com/DHu9E2NjF2

— Marc Huws (@MarcMorganHuws) January 14, 2022

Plymouth Citybus Temporary Service Reductions

As with so many business at the moment bus companies are struggling to find enough staff to run their full services.

Plymouth Citybus have just introduced temporary timetables for many of their Plymouth services with quite a few journeys removed from the timetables. These arrangements will be in place for the rest of January at least until staffing levels increase as covid hopefully start to decline a bit…

Route	days	Details
5 5A	MON-FRI	MONDAY-FRIDAY Services removed are as follows: 07:05 #5A City-Staddiscombe & Elburton 07:35 #5A Elburton & Staddiscombe-City-Saltash 08:40 #5 Saltash-City-Elburton 09:55 #5 Elburton-City 10:35 #5A City-Staddiscombe & Elburton 11:05 #5A Elburton & Staddiscombe-City 13:05 #5A City-Staddiscombe & Elburton 13:35 #5A Elburton & Staddiscombe-City-Saltash 14:40 #5 Saltash-City-Elburton 15:55 #5 Elburton-City
5 5A	SAT	Services removed are as follows: 11:05 #5A City-Staddiscombe & Elburton 11:35 #5A Elburton & Staddiscombe-City-Saltash 12:40 #5 Saltash-City-Elburton 13:55 #5 Elburton-City 14:35 #5A City-Staddiscombe & Elburton 15:05 #5A Elburton & Staddiscombe-City 15:35 #5A City-Saltash 16:10 #5 Saltash-City-Elburton 16:35 #5A City-Staddiscombe & Elburton 17:05 #5A Elburton & Staddiscombe-City-Saltash 17:25 #5 Elburton-City 18:10 #5A Saltash-City-Staddiscombe & Elburton 19:18 #5A Elburton & Staddiscombe-City
8,9	MON-FRI	Services removed are as follows: 08:40 #9 City-Laira / 09:00 Laira-City 11:32 #8 City-Efford / 11:52 Efford-City 12:02 #9 City-Laira / 12:22 Laira-City 12:52 #8 City-Efford / 13:12 Efford-City 13:52 #8 City-Efford / 14:12 Efford-City 14:12 #8 City-Efford / 14:32 Efford-City 15:52 #8 City-Efford / 16:12 Efford-City 16:22 #9 City-Laira / 16:42 Laira-City 16:37 #8 City-Efford / 16:57 Efford-City 17:22 #9 City-Laira / 17:42 Laira-City
8,9	SAT	Services removed are as follows: 09:05 #8 City-Efford / 09:25 Efford-City 09:50 #9 City-Laira / 10:10 Laira-City 10:35 #8 City-Efford / 10:55 Efford-City 11:20 #9 City-Laira / 11:40 Laira-City 12:05 #8 City-Efford / 12:25 Efford-City 12:50 #9 City-Laira / 13:10 Laira-City 14:35 #8 City-Efford / 14:55 Efford-City 15:20 #9 City-Laira / 15:40 Laira-City 16:05 #8 City-Efford / 16:25 Efford-City 16:50 #9 City-Laira / 17:10 Laira-City 17:35 #8 City-Efford / 17:55 Efford-City
16	MON-FRI	Services removed are as follows: 10:55 #16 City-Kings Tamerton / 11:18 Kings Tamerton-City
16	SAT	Services removed are as follows: 09:55 #16 City-Kings Tamerton / 10:18 Kings Tamerton-City 13:55 #16 City-Kings Tamerton / 14:18 Kings Tamerton-City 16:55 #16 City-Kings Tamerton / 17:18 Kings Tamerton-City
21 21A	MON-FRI	MONDAY-FRIDAY Services removed are as follows: 06:35 #21 City-Barne Barton / 07:05 Barne Barton-City 07:25 #21A City-Barne Barton / 07:55 Barne Barton-City 07:45 #21 City-Plympton / 08:21 Plympton-City 08:35 #21A City-Plympton / 09:14 Plympton-City 09:05 #21A City-Barne Barton / 09:35 Barne Barton-City 09:25 #21 City-Plympton / 10:01 Plympton-City 09:55 #21 City-Barne Barton / 10:25 Barne Barton-City 10:15 #21A City-Plympton / 10:54 Plympton-City 10:45 #21A City-Barne Barton / 11:15 Barne Barton-City 11:05 #21 City-Plympton / 11:41 Plympton-City 11:55 #21A City-Plympton / 12:34 Plympton-City 12:35 #21 City-Barne Barton / 13:05 Barne Barton-City 13:45 #21 City-Plympton / 14:21 Plympton-City 14:35 #21A City-Plympton / 15:14 Plympton-City 15:55 #21A City-Barne Barton / 16:29 Barne Barton-City 17:20 #21A City-Plympton / 17:59 Plympton-City
21 21A	SAT	09:30 #21A City-Barne Barton / 10:00 Barne Barton-City 10:40 #21A City-St Maurice / 11:06 St Maurice-City 12:00 #21A City-Barne Barton / 12:30 Barne Barton-City 13:10 #21A City-St Maurice / 13:36 St Maurice-City 15:30 #21A City-Barne Barton / 16:00 Barne Barton-City 16:40 #21A City-St Maurice / 17:06 St Maurice-City 18:00 #21 City-Barne Barton / 18:25 Barne Barton-St Budeaux Square
24		Services removed are as follows: 21:45 #24 City-Mount Gould-City
27	SAT	Services removed are as follows: 09:00 #27 City-Deer Park / 09:18 Deer Park-City 12:00 #27 City-Deer Park / 12:18 Deer Park-City 14:30 #27 City-Deer Park / 14:48 Deer Park-City 16:00 #27 City-Deer Park / 16:18 Deer Park-City
27B	MON-FRI	Services removed are as follows: 18:05 #27B City-Crownhill
28 28A	MON-FRI	Services removed are as follows: 12:45 #28A City-Crownhill / 13:25 #28 Crownhill-City
28 28A	SAT	Services removed are as follows: 10:45 #28A City-Crownhill / 11:25 #28 Crownhill-City 13:15 #28 City-Crownhill / 13:45 #28A Crownhill-City 14:45 #28A City-Crownhill / 15:25 #28 Crownhill-City 17:45 #28A City-Crownhill / 18:23 #28 Crownhill-City
33	MON-FRI	Services removed are as follows: 08:40 #33 City-Keyham / 08:57 Keyham-City 14:40 #33 City-Keyham / 14:57 Keyham-City 17:40 #33 City-Keyham / 17:57 Keyham-City
33	SAT	Services removed are as follows: 11:40 #33 City-Keyham / 11:57 Keyham-City
35	SAT	Services removed are as follows: 08:20 #35 City-Peverell-North Prospect / 08:36 North Prospect-Peverell-City
40		Services removed are as follows: 17:25 #40 City-Southway / 18:06 Southway-City 18:45 #40 City-Southway / 19:09 Southway-City 19:45 #41 City-Southway / 20:10 Southway-City 20:45 #40 City-Southway / 21:09 Southway-City
42		#PCB42 services removed are as follows: 09:20 #42 City-Mainstone / 10:15 Mainstone-City 11:20 #42 City-Mainstone / 12:15 Mainstone-City 14:20 #42 City-Derriford / 14:47 Derriford-City 14:50 #42 City-Mainstone / 15:50 Mainstone-City 15:20 #42 City-Derriford / 15:52 Derriford-City
42A		#PCB42A services removed are as follows: 17:00 #42A City-Tamerton Foliot / 17:54 Tamerton Foliot-City
43		Services removed are as follows: 07:27 #43 City-Ernesettle / 08:00 Ernesettle-City 09:35 #43 City-Ernesettle / 10:07 Ernesettle-City 14:35 #43 City-Ernesettle / 15:13 Ernesettle-City 14:55 #43 City-Ernesettle / 15:33 Ernesettle-City 17:25 #43 City-Ernesettle / 17:57 Ernesettle-City 18:30 #43 City-Ernesettle / 18:59 Ernesettle-City
50		Services removed are as follows: 15:00 #50 City-Derriford 16:05 #50 Derriford-City-Derriford 17:50 #50 Derriford-City
61, 62		Services removed are as follows: 07:20 #62 City-Transit Way / 07:55 Transit Way-City 10:35 #61 City-Transit Way / 11:10 Transit Way-City 14:50 #62 City-Transit Way / 15:25 Transit Way-City 16:10 #61 City-Transit Way / 16:45 Transit Way-City

If new timetables are published on Traveline etc then they will get added to my usual PTBS Site in due course

The un-masked unmasked again

I didnt think it would be long before this story came back..

“Man fuming as 'students ignore mask rules' on Plymouth Citybus”

“"I caught the 16:17 42C headed to the city centre. Almost all the other passengers, whom were clearly students, had followed the rules that came into place that very day. A group of students, all young men, stood at the stop laughing and joking.

"They were not wearing masks. I boarded the bus ahead of them, sat in the disabled seats and watched them proceed to get on, not one of them being asked or challenged about not having a mask on. I can only assume they're either immune from the rules, or from Covid-19."

He added: "I contacted both Marjon and Citybus, and Citybus responded to say that it was not their job to enforce mask wearing, yet others have commented saying Stagecoach have a no mask, no travel, no exemption rule.

"Why Citybus think they have no standing, legally, to enforce this mask wearing is beyond me.

"My family and I have no choice but to get around the city on the buses. Myself and my partner are both disabled and rely on buses to get out to shops, nursery, appointments and so on”

https://www.plymouthherald.co.uk/news/plymouth-news/man-fuming-students-ignore-mask-6313349

Bus drivers and the operators cant win – if they did stop their buses and insist on mask wearing then the paper would be full of people complaining about that and insisting they are exempt – without having, or needing any proof of such exemption – making it impossible for drivers to police even if they had to. I share the passenger’s concerns about those who are not wearing masks but without clear direction from the Govt – and official enforcement then that's just not going to happen. I'm just glad I have to option of working from home!

Are more passengers wearing masks now or is it like in supermarkets where it seems there are plenty of people who still dont bother?

Meanwhile in Dawlish today…

I must admit to having the live cam on my pc for a while this morning while I worked – it was pretty rough, but it seems that the new wall being constructed did its job – its just that maybe the trains are not up to it? I thought it was just the Virgin trains that had problems in weather like this?

Devon & Cornwall Transit 2021: Week 28

It is time for the usual weekly look back on what has been published on the Registered Local Bus Services site over the last week.

After a the previous bumper crop of backdated Stagecoach notices, its gone quiet again with no new notices published last week.

Looking ahead though are a few seasonal operations starting this week:

Licence	Route	Start Point	End Point	Effective	Notes	OPERATOR
PH1086607.005	33	Royal Square, St Ives	Higher Penderleath Caravan & Camping Park	17-Jul-2021	Temporary timetable variation due to Coronavirus - timetables for 2021 summer season	NICHOLAS COLIN EASTWOOD
PH0000135.294	54	Royal Parade	Bovisand	17-Jul-2021	Change to dates of operation: Saturday 29th May until Sunday 6th June 2021 and Saturday 17th July until Sunday 5th September 2021 and similar dates in subsequent years as determined by Plymouth City Council	PLYMOUTH CITYBUS LTD
PH1066351.027	302	Woolacombe Sands	Combe Martin Wildlife Park	19-Jul-2021	NEW: Monday to Friday No weekend or bank holiday service	FILERS TRAVEL LIMITED

THIS WEEKEND sees the return of summer only route 54 #PCB54 to Bovisand. Just in time for the sun and to catch the Sail GP boat racing taking place in Plymouth sound over this weekend....Timetables on our website and Buses will depart from Stop A11 on Royal Parade. pic.twitter.com/BlOL64S2co

— Plymouth Citybus (@plymouthbus) July 18, 2021

Monday is being ill-advisedly described as “Freedom Day” and all restrictions are being lifted despite the rises in cases and even the PM himself now entering self isolation having been pinged by the NHS App bus operators are in the awkward position of having to request passengers still use masks with the knowledge they can do nothing about passengers who wont. Sadly this appalling (but not unexpected) lack of leadership will lead to more people getting affected and more people getting pinged and being told to self isolate which will almost certainly include essential staff, like bus drivers. There are still many vulnerable people who are at extreme risk of this infection so please be careful out there and please follow the companies advice. Please also make sure you follow the bus operators on twitter if you are thinking of travelling. Some of them are pretty good at warning when services are not running – especially as staff shortages continue to cause operators problems.

Face coverings are no longer mandatory but we do recommend that you still wear a face coverings whilst on board, especially if your service is busy.

Please be mindful of other peoples' choices on face coverings.

Find out more here: https://t.co/rqzlL3CBdS pic.twitter.com/UupndjDrcu

— Plymouth Citybus (@plymouthbus) July 17, 2021

Vaccination Centre Bus Service

These are difficult times and operators are adapting their services, almost weekly at the moment, often on advice from the Government to reduce services where possible whilst allowing essential travel – not an easy task by any means! They are also altering services to make it easier for people to access the new vaccination centres that are springing up. One new one is now up and running at the Westpoint Centre, Exeter so Stagecoach have made life a bit easier by adapting their 9 / 9A service

From 25th January 2021

We have worked closely with Devon County Council and the RD&E Hospital to introduce a new timetable for our route 9/9A, with buses now serving the Vaccine centre at Westpoint in Clyst St Mary. Buses run every 30 minutes from Exeter to Newton Poppleford, Sidmouth and Sidford with the 9 also connecting Sidbury and Honiton and the 9A Seaton, Axmouth and Lyme Regis hourly. Passengers travelling from other fringe areas can interchange with the 9 service at Exeter Bus Station, stand 5.

Buses will serve the centre from the first bus in the morning. The last bus to Sidbury will be at 21:49 Monday - Sunday, the last buses toward Exeter bound it will be 21:18 (Monday to Friday),  21:13 (Saturday) and  21:10 (Sunday)

To help keep everyone safe we have reduced the number of seats available on our buses to promote social distancing. We’ve also employed extra cleaners to make sure all of our buses have a thorough clean each day.

There are also some additional steps you can take to help us keep you and our drivers safe- make sure you’re wearing your face covering when you board, and that you open up a window to keep the bus ventilated. Also, why not pre pay for your ticket on our mobile app, info here, or pay for your ticket by contactless when you board.

Whilst this is clearly a useful move by Stagecoach I assume that the site operators are expecting most people to arrive by car as a half hour service on a reduced capacity bus is not going to bring that many people in.