Bus Vannin. More waste/good idea?

[Andy Onchan]

The only reference I can find to this Dial & Ride service is from local media. No mention, from what I can see, from government itself.

[woody2]

52 minutes ago, BigDave said:

Dial a ride

that's what pof.com is for.....

[Bazza Smurf]

The actual hearing of the "dial a ride service" was scheduled at RTLC Office at ST Johns on 13th Dec. The meeting was actually stopped. Not adjourned but stopped. 

As an objector I and the other objectors (without prejudice) were firstly refused any recording devices at the meeting (which was called a tribunal). Upon questioning that we were told we were only members of the public and were not allowed any powers of objection even though we had already inputted written formal objections through the correct manner. 

It was then brought to attention that the Chair of the RTLC is also the Chair of Travelwatch which had already endorsed general favour for these services through media earlier in the month. Next thing we were told to leave the room and if we didn't the we might be removed. 

Cut a long story short we didn't move, the Police did not come and the meeting was stopped. The rest will be told in the fullness of time. Needless to say I'm actually appalled by the way I was treated. 

If this Section 25 service is running it should not be as there was not a hearing.

 

 

[thesultanofsheight]

10 hours ago, Bazza Smurf said:

The actual hearing of the "dial a ride service" was scheduled at RTLC Office at ST Johns on 13th Dec. The meeting was actually stopped. Not adjourned but stopped. 

As an objector I and the other objectors (without prejudice) were firstly refused any recording devices at the meeting (which was called a tribunal). Upon questioning that we were told we were only members of the public and were not allowed any powers of objection even though we had already inputted written formal objections through the correct manner. 

It was then brought to attention that the Chair of the RTLC is also the Chair of Travelwatch which had already endorsed general favour for these services through media earlier in the month. Next thing we were told to leave the room and if we didn't the we might be removed. 

Cut a long story short we didn't move, the Police did not come and the meeting was stopped. The rest will be told in the fullness of time. Needless to say I'm actually appalled by the way I was treated. 

If this Section 25 service is running it should not be as there was not a hearing.

 

Well done Bazza, Longworth and his failed loss generating practices just need to be hoofed out the door. I had heard this was in operation anyway but that was second hand info so could have been wrong. Fair play for you standing up against it. How can IOMG attempt to steal jobs off private sector tax paying workers in a bad economy so they can keep PS workers driving loss making buses and mini buses about? It’s some insane communist agenda! 

[Declan]

I’m a bit puzzled by this. What’s the proposal is it - 

A. someone in a country area needs to get to town and rings Bus Vannin and they send a mini bus. Essentially a taxi service. 

OR 

B. The rural areas are supported by a service with a flexible route. ie A bus sets off every hour from Port Erin, it’ll cover Glen Chass or Bradda or Rongue and similar places - but only if someone wants to go to Glen Chass or Bradda OR rings up and says “pick me up in Rongue”.

[pongo]

5 hours ago, thesultanofsheight said:

Well done Bazza, Longworth and his failed loss generating practices just need to be hoofed out the door. I had heard this was in operation anyway but that was second hand info so could have been wrong. Fair play for you standing up against it. How can IOMG attempt to steal jobs off private sector tax paying workers in a bad economy so they can keep PS workers driving loss making buses and mini buses about? It’s some insane communist agenda! 

Dial a bus seems a bit daft. But a much better bus service paid for out of direct taxation would be a really good idea. More routes. More buses. And, especially, much later running buses especially at the weekends.  You should be able to get home anywhere on the island by bus at least up to midnight. Tax business a bit and start funding stuff properly. That's not some  insane communist agenda. It's just about making the place even better.

Public transport is always much less faff than a taxi. It's the modern way.

[thesultanofsheight]

22 minutes ago, Declan said:

I’m a bit puzzled by this. What’s the proposal is it - 

A. someone in a country area needs to get to town and rings Bus Vannin and they send a mini bus. Essentially a taxi service. 

OR 

B. The rural areas are supported by a service with a flexible route. ie A bus sets off every hour from Port Erin, it’ll cover Glen Chass or Bradda or Rongue and similar places - but only if someone wants to go to Glen Chass or Bradda OR rings up and says “pick me up in Rongue”.

Looked to me like a mixture 

http://www.iomtoday.co.im/article.cfm?id=36870&headline=Dial-a-ride buses to be trialled&sectionIs=news&searchyear=2017

“Services 16, 20 and 20A will be withdrawn and replaced in the off peak periods with a demand-responsive solution where passengers booked their journeys within a defined area and travel at bus fares but do not have exclusive use of the vehicle. 

People who book subsequently are added to the route.”

So you call for a bus or book a bus; thats pretty much getting a private hire taxi for the price of a bus fare isn’t it?  So I guess that instead of paying people to drive empty buses around you can now just dial up a bus. It will just perhaps be less empty that it was when you couldn’t dial it up. 

[pongo]

1 minute ago, thesultanofsheight said:

That’s pretty much getting a taxi for a bus fare isn’t it? 

No. That's a further cutting of bus services to be replaced by a system which will deter people from using it.

Public transport should run to a schedule. If they want to cut buses then they should free up the taxi business completely by introducing a free for all.

[Declan]

1 minute ago, thesultanofsheight said:

Looked to me like a mixture 

http://www.iomtoday.co.im/article.cfm?id=36870&headline=Dial-a-ride buses to be trialled&sectionIs=news&searchyear=2017

“Services 16, 20 and 20A will be withdrawn and replaced in the off peak periods with a demand-responsive solution where passengers booked their journeys within a defined area and travel at bus fares but do not have exclusive use of the vehicle. 

People who book subsequently are added to the route.”

That’s pretty much getting a taxi for a bus fare isn’t it? 

I’m not sure it is. It sounds like replacing a bus service with a different type of bus service. 

I’m basing that on the “defined area” bit. So you wouldn’t be picked up at your door and dropped off at your specific destination. You’d be picked up at the bus stop in Andreas and dropped at the bus station in Ramsey say. 

[thesultanofsheight]

5 minutes ago, pongo said:

No. That's a further cutting of bus services to be replaced by a system which will deter people from using it.

Public transport should run to a schedule. If they want to cut buses then they should free up the taxi business completely by introducing a free for all.

But outside of peak times the buses are almost completely empty. Nobody is using them as every time you see one it’s got about 8 people on it. This is just turning buses into taxis because rather than stop providing buses that lose millions a year they now have to actively try to ply for the trade of people who dont normally use buses. 

[thesultanofsheight]

2 minutes ago, Declan said:

I’m not sure it is. It sounds like replacing a bus service with a different type of bus service. 

I’m basing that on the “defined area” bit. So you wouldn’t be picked up at your door and dropped off at your specific destination. You’d be picked up at the bus stop in Andreas and dropped at the bus station in Ramsey say. 

Aren’t taxi plates regional too? 

[pongo]

2 minutes ago, thesultanofsheight said:

But outside of peak times the buses are almost completely empty. Nobody is using them as every time you see one it’s got about 8 people on it.

I don't see that as a reason to remove a service. I have often travelled on almost empty tube / metro trains late at night. It's not a reason to stop running them. The island is not short of money.

[thesultanofsheight]

6 minutes ago, pongo said:

I don't see that as a reason to remove a service. I have often travelled on almost empty tube / metro trains late at night. It's not a reason to stop running them. The island is not short of money.

The Island is short of money, very short of money, and the buses we have are far too big for the fares they carry which would seem to be the problem. There is normally 8/10 people you seee on a bus outside of peak times yet they clog up the roads causing havoc and generally don’t do an affective job. More smaller buses or mini buses doing the rural routes more often seems sensible to me not a quasi Uber for buses where if you’re in Jurby you ring up for a bus into Ramsey that is then diverted from its route to pick you up at a designated bus stop at a designated time. That is surely operating a private hire taxi company with public funds? 

[pongo]

4 minutes ago, thesultanofsheight said:

The Island is short of money, very short of money

No it isn't. Companies here are clearly making it by the bucket full. If you think of low tax as effectively a national asset then perhaps there is a case for govt becoming more of a stakeholder in some of that business. As an alternative to tax.

[thesultanofsheight]

18 minutes ago, pongo said:

No it isn't. Companies here are clearly making it by the bucket full. If you think of low tax as effectively a national asset then perhaps there is a case for govt becoming more of a stakeholder in some of that business. As an alternative to tax.

So you decried me for my communism comment, and then went on to suggest .... partial nationalization and basic communism. Start taxing local businesses not trying to steal their profits.