James Stewart’s article about train cancellations from Rye reminded me of the time, some 20 years ago, when I had a house in Rye. I don’t know what percentage of trains were cancelled then, but I do know that, more often than not, the first train to Ashford on Monday morning was cancelled.
This meant a frantic phone call to a local taxi service and a £55 trip to Ashford International, only to find, again more often than not, that trains were running late from there. Clearly the situation is no better now than then, and may indeed be worse. I rarely use trains now, but the last time I did, trains were running about 20 minutes late.
My habit, probably caused by an ex-army father, is to arrive at the station in time for the train before the one I plan to catch. More than once that has saved me from being late for an appointment.
Now I live in St Leonards and, although older, still work part time. I can walk to work in about 20 minutes, but it’s all uphill and I can’t quite manage that these days. Until earlier this year, our bus service, run of course by Stagecoach, was adequate.
Since timetable changes earlier this year it has been abysmal. As an example, the most convenient route for me to take home is the 21. This replaced the 26 service, and serves the Conquest Hospital, so is heavily used. The 26 service generally ran three times an hour. The 21 runs twice – apparently.
One day recently I arrived in time for the 16:48, which was, of course, cancelled. The next, 17:18, was shown on that work of fiction, the Stagecoach app, until 17:14, when it mysteriously vanished. The 17:48 was cancelled. By 17:30 I gave up waiting and walked home. The app showed that the next bus was due at 18:18. So, a major route was left without a service for two hours. The next day the 17:18 was cancelled, so I caught a different service home, and had to wait 20 minutes past the scheduled time for that service.
Things are generally better in the morning as I can catch most services. However, not everyone can, and this morning, a popular service for those with school-age children, the 23, was running very late, causing concern amongst children and parents. So school children and hospital patients are frequently late. What is the cost of this in lost education time and wasted NHS time?
This is all happening during a spell of good weather. What delights do Stagecoach have in store for us during the winter months? Wretched misery no doubt. The occasional delay is inevitable, unforeseen problems occur. But constant late running and cancellations are not acceptable. If Stagecoach is running a public service then the public are entitled to a reliable service.
I’ve looked at Stagecoach reviews on Trustpilot. That shows 89% of reviews are just one star. A frequently used word is ‘shambles.’ In 2021 they were reported as blaming Brexit for their problems. What is it now? The wrong type of sun? The war in Ukraine? Too many people wanting to use their services? The senior management of Stagecoach should hang their heads in shame. They won’t of course, just find something or someone else to blame for their mismanagement.
Image Credits: Kenneth Bird .
Would be nice if their app corresponded to the timetables and their ‘plan your journey’. They all seem to have conflicting information. Not to mention buses disappearing from the lists!
Couldn’t agree more Clare. Trying to get home last night the 17.18 was shown arriving at 17.14, then 17.23 and then just vanished. I haven’t been able to get that bus home for two weeks because it has just vanished. Walked home again last night. I wouldn’t trust Stagecoach to run a tap. A stagecoach would be an improvement!
Again, too many cheifs not enough Indians springs to mind !!
I work with vulnerable people in new Romney and our bus service has been cut from three buses an hour to two an hour. Doesn’t sound too bad. That is until you’re waiting for a bus and it doesn’t bother showing up. Stagecoach are constantly cancelling services meaning sometimes we’re left between 2-3 hours without a bus. Luckily we have use of cars when buses are cancelled but I hate to think how it is for people who don’t have that option. I’ve even heard of school kids having to give up waiting for buses and miss a day of school. Stagecoach never were the best but now they’re just hopeless.
Whilst the govt want drivers off the road, passing my driving test and getting a car was the best thing I ever did.
This is all very interesting and concerning. I have written to Martin Griffiths, CEO of stagecoach (Pay package £910,000 PA!), raising these issues. I read yesterday that the City of Manchester has taken over the running of its bus services. It will be interesting to see how that works. Stagecoach receives taxpayers’ money to subsidise some of its services. I’m sure it would be better to end their franchise and let local people decide what they need.