9 September Update: Beep Bus ‘B’ went live yesterday (8 September), operating free of charge, pending the registered start date of 15 September
Or just market sensitivity? What the B* is going on in Eastleigh, from today? Black Velvet and Go South Coast’s Wilts & Dorset, Solent Blue Line and Southern Vectis all have a hand in it. It's a little like an old fashioned bus war...
Today’s the first outing of Velvet’s new ‘B’. It’s a limited service operating between Eastleigh, Boyatt Wood, Velmore Estate Chandlers Ford and Southampton, with some shorts to Bosville. In part, it replaces February’s withdrawn ‘B’ at the time SBL made the major network change that saw the withdrawal of Red Rockets. But it also now links Velmore directly with Southampton.
And therein lies the problem, Velmore Estate. ‘B’s gotten under Go South Coast’s skin. Velmore isn’t too far from SBL's 20-minute Bluestar 1 to Southampton and it’s also on half-hourly Baby Bluestar ‘C’ to Eastleigh.
So, one week later, Eastleigh’ll see a different ‘B’, registered by none other than W&D. It’s a matching timetable that’s almost exactly three minutes in front of Velvet’s.
A Notices & Proceedings latter, however, comes a cancellation for W&D’s ‘B’ dated 22 September and, in its place, a registration of the same timetable (still three minutes in front of Velvet’s) by SBL, from the same date.
Now, given the number of buses already in and near Velmore, you’d think that there wasn’t enough demand for two new ‘B’s, but that’s market forces for you. Or market sensitivity. Velvet's operation is largely marginal, converting layover and dead mileage into a service. It's the sort of innovation the commercial sector should be introducing. Yet, what this now does, for the first time since former SBL supremo Phil Stockley left Go South Coast and later established Velvet, is bring the two players into direct conflict. Just where might this end? It's a bit 1980s, really, only this time it's no fourth division low-cost operator jumping minutes ahead.
But there’s more. What’s Go South Coast’s Southern Vectis’ part in all this? SVOC’s the legal registrant of www.beepbus.co.uk, a site not yet active. Beep is the sub-brand adopted by Go South Coast for the ‘B’. Could Beep have a greater role as a Velvet spoiler? ‘Beep beep, beep beep, yeah’.
As they used to say on the TV comedy Soap, ‘Confused? You will be’. We're referring to the passengers.
Monday, 8 September 2008
Market Forces or Market Farces?
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15 comments:
Bluestar are running 3 minutes ahead of Velvet on this. It seems they are desperate.
Also worthy of note is that Stagecoach won the tender for the Sunday service C1 from Sunday 7th (yesterday). However, despite not having the tender for it anymore, Bluestar were still running on the route.
Did they forget not to?!
On Sunday we had the crazy situation of the C1 Stagecoach bus being followed directly behind by the Bluestar bus, both with no passengers, so much for public transport savign the environment. Bluestar should be careful of biting the dragons tail !
It must be silly season on the South Coast.First Devon & Cornwall have just started a directly competing 15 minute service operating three minutes in front of a long established Plymouth Citybus route. FDC are operating into well established Citybus territory against a fairly loyal passenger base. Despite massive and expensive press advertising, leaflet drops, and give away fares for the first week my casual observations would suggest that passengers are reaining loyal to Citybus with an average of 5 passengers per bus on the FDC service and most of these were pensioners probably looking to find a seat as the Citybus services are regularly carrying fully seated loads. One wonders how long this "war" will continue. FDC's passengers in other parts of Plymouth must be spitting feathers as their services are expensive and terribly unreliable, yet FDC can find resources to start a bus war. At the end of the promotional fares FDC's fares become more expensive than CItybus as they are in all but one area of the city. Time will tell. I know who I hope will succeed!
If i was GSC and I wanted to take a pop at Velvet I'd leave the B and go for the 35/300.
"Smoothish Operator said...
If i was GSC and I wanted to take a pop at Velvet I'd leave the B and go for the 35/300."
They could if they wanted but not a lot of point really; the 35/300 is a paid for HCC tender so straightaway GSC would be on a financial loser, plus GSC kudos in Ringwood and the surrounding area is practically zero because of the way they've treated their passengers in recent times - all that is ever heard in Meeting House Lane are bad words about W&D.
I defer to Anonymous's greater knowledge but I feel not all the 35/300 is contracted and anyway would not an attack here mean that HCC have to withdraw the tender whereby Velvet would loose both revenue and subsidy?
It gets worse as I understand that GSC variant is running free of charge this week. They are Bonkers. Welcome back to 1986!
"Also worthy of note is that Stagecoach won the tender for the Sunday service C1 from Sunday 7th (yesterday). However, despite not having the tender for it anymore, Bluestar were still running on the route. Did they forget not to?!"
Surely not? They're such a reputable operator...
The Black Velvet B timetable had been so carefully designed to avoid direct competition with Blue Line, that it's really sad to find the major dominant operator feeling so threatened.
For example, The C1 only runs hourly in the afternoons at xx05 from Eastleigh, so Velvet scheduled their Velmore B to run at xx35. Double the service for the passengers, fills a gap in the timetable, everyone wins. But No, GSC see this sensible scheduling as a threat.
The only conclusion one can reach is that GSC feel that Velvet need to be stopped in their tracks, now.
It would seem innovation only comes from GSC HQ in Poole, and no one else is allowed to add value or bring fresh ideas to the local area.
Still, if GSC are going to continue to be obsessed with the activities of a 10 vehicle operation, can we look forward to them taking their eyes off the ball operationally, thus leaving gaps for smaller companies to exploit.
And before long, this flooding of the market will result in losses at SBL worsening (the company's costs exceed its income and this has been the position for a few years, say published accounts). I thought SBLs position was bad enough that 'economies had to be made' - funny that this goes out the window when someone else steps up to fill in their withdrawals.
I was in Eastleigh recently, and noticed a two tone green ex SV Darts shoved out on Bluestar 2 with bits of blue stuck on the green livery..ok its better than nothing, but it has all the appearance of having given up and lost all interest in a service that is supposed to be a prime route. If you want to be taken seriously, you have to look after your staff and customers. Should SBL be concentrating on running what its got really well rather than preceiving a threat which isn't there?
Wonder who the customers will support? An operator that always cuts back services with round after round of revisions, or someone new who provides a friendly service not offered by the incumbent?
I'd hope that the customers stick with the small company that has given them a service they can't get from a big company.
The SV Dart Bluestar is running is because they were banned from painting anything until the new financial year, to make their results look bigger.
But then they go on and run the B for free because their registration doesn't come in until 22nd Sept.
Wilts are meant to be operating it next week chaos!! They registered it first, and then cancelled it a week later, for BS to take over.
One wonders if it was actually Wilts wanting revenge on the 35/300 that started this??
I think you will find that Plymouth Citybus started the "war" by going into Barne Barton, Saltash and also operating tendered servcies commercially once they had lost the tender. I think FDC are just reacting after much provocation. I think you will also find that FDC are quite reliable now, and will probably be cheaper than citybus on 11
If BS have been banned from painting buses to save money then the number of buses transferred in of late will only produce a 5-10k saving - and in a company turning round millions 5-10k is a bit insignificant to a 12 month picture. It's probably not even one days worth of takings compared to their last posted loss.
I'm more inclined to understand that the SV darts are a short term stop-gap rather than any part of a long term fleet policy. I wouldn't be looking at them as long term vehicles in a fleet I was running and would treat them accordingly.
I wouldn't have them anywhere near a prime service though, and you can set up your allocations in such a way you confine buses to routes-I've seen it done.
SBL really need to sort out their existing operations before trying to do other things. The public fall out is something GSC management are obviously happy with.....
I don't travel by bus much but all the goings on with the 'B' route have confused me.
I was sure that Black Velvet were going to start a B route near me in Boyatt Wood then saw lots of promotion for Beep Bus in the are and presumed it was the same. I presume that is what Bluestar want.
It seems crazy to me to have 3 companies running the same route (A and others i believe).
Being retired I have spent some time looking in to the Bus Wars story, the reason for the WAR reported first did not make sense to me. Being a business man it is my opinion that there are enough wars in the world with out my evening news paper printing this seemingly one sided story. So I am trying to restore some balance in to this bus war.
First I ask you if someone started dipping their fingers in your pie in these hard times, would you not defend your pie. You would unless is it did not taste good, If it was bad you would discard it and not look back.
BLACK VELVET drew first blood, no question; it is Black Velvet with the aggressive attitude! If you can’t take it Black Velvet, don’t dish it out!
Firstly I will say that a private company running a public service is a contradiction in terms, some will loose, usually the passengers, but in this case a bus company may be construed as wilfully rocking the boat, the end result effects only the public.
At the end of the day passengers have no other loyalty than to them selves, which ever bus comes along first will do, what ever the colour of bus or even price of ticket! Passengers in general are not interested in a bus war they are not ultimately going to win or benefit from.
However there are I am sure some people who would be swayed by this story of Goliath and David, poor David. The truth is somewhat different and the statement in reader’s comments about the Rich gambling with the public is not, in my opinion, so far from the truth. I will say that I would not invest my money in a company who, as it is reported in the main article, actively rely on poaching from another company! Very dodgy, would you invest or use the company?
There is a word which comes to mind and the word is ethics! Another word could be morals!
Whilst investigating the bus war I came across the following paragraph in an extract from the velvet bus blog web site ( http://velvetbus.blo
gspot.com/ ) namely from paragraph 15 dated Sunday 28th December, posted by Phil Stockley (is this the ex Managing Director of Blue Star!)
Extract starts
“As I head back out through Southampton I switch the interior lights off, but leave 'Rail Replacement' on the destination screen. This is partly to avoid being confused with a local night bus, but partly so that I can silently boast "look what I've been doing" as if any passer by would be impressed!”
Extract Ends
Firstly according to VOSA (www.vosa.gov.uk / Vehicle and Operator Service Agency the bus industries regulatory body) when a bus is not in public service, the fact it is not in service must be clearly stated on the front of the bus, so why can Black Velvet feel they are exempt from this regulation by displaying “Rail Replacement” when the bus is out of service? Secondly, the night bus refered to in Phil Stockley’s Blog is, I suspect, the N2 Blue Star service from Southampton to Eastleigh and Fair Oak, As a mature adult, I am struggling with the comment “so that I can silently boast, look what I’ve been doing”? Alarm bells ring in my head as I think, who cares about the Black Velvet ego, passengers just want to get from A to B reliably, what is the meaning of this statement? Why would anyone want to boast this at a time of night when no body is about? What ego trip are Black Velvet on?
I read in to this that the passers by are the Blue Star drivers of the N2 and word will get back to HQ about Black Velvet working Rail replacement in the Blue Star area. The statement does not paint a very professional picture of Black Velvet in my opinion, this sort of comment is more likely to be heard in a Childs playground.
Mr Stockley says in the Main article in the Echo that the decision to walk away from the B was pragmatic, I have looked at the services and I would say it is financial; neither the Blue Star Beep bus, or the Black Velvet B, was ever truly busy so the takings were low! However I suspect a lot of OAP passes
My findings are that, Blue Star (Go-Ahead) used to run the A bus from Eastleigh to Hamble which was taken over by Black Velvet, after Blue Star dropped the service, possibly due to low passenger numbers. Blue Star left Black Velvet alone and did not attack the company on this route, but Black Velvet has cut the service down from the original frequency!
Black Velvet then took over the Southampton to Ringwood service, previously run by Wilts and Dorset (Go-Ahead), (possibly dropped due to low passenger numbers) and Wilts did nothing also, despite Blue Star and Wilts being part of the Go-Ahead group, Black Velvet are or have dropped the route for the same reason, so why take it on in the first place?
As I say, I believe Velvet has pulled out of the Ringwood service and has drastically cut down on the frequency of the A, who suffers, the passengers! Why? Because the routes are not financially viable and the OAP passes do not cover the running costs.
Point of fact, the main article printed in the Echo is deceiving, Mr Taz Kelly was not the Operations Manager of Blue Star, never was, and it is my understanding after reading the blog, he is not the operations manager of Black Velvet, he is a driver and part owner, which implies he has little to do with the operations of Black Velvet.
If a route is unsustainable, why take it on? Mr Stockley is reported in the main Echo article to be the ex Managing Director of Blue Star and he should know what routes are sustainable, financially viable and those to stay away from!
Blue Star used to run the evening C from Eastleigh to Hiltingbury and backed out due to very low passenger numbers which equals no money. How long will Black Velvet be able to run the evening C to Hiltingbury, every time I see the evening C to and from Hiltingbury the bus is empty or maybe 1 or 2 OAP passes aboard.
How much does it cost to run a diesel guzzling bus at 8 Miles Per Gallon? Oh and the drivers wages, maintenance, insurance, road fund licence etc.
Blue Star have not set about defending their old evening C route they have left Black Velvet to operate it in peace. But for how long will Black Velvet be able to operate it, how deep are their coffers?
Black Velvet registered a route which encroached on no less than 7 Blue Star Services, namely the B from Boyatt Wood to Southampton, now they have given it up.
The Blue Star Services being encroached on were the E1, E2, E3, C1, C2, 2 and the premier Blue Star route number 1 from Southampton to Winchester (Stagecoach territory) steeling little pieces of several pie’s, Blue Star have an obligation to their staff to keep the money coming in.
Blue Stars reaction by putting on the Beep bus in direct competition to the Black Velvet B, demonstrates a commitment to the future for their employees, by defending the routes the Blue Star drivers operate. Who would not defend their territory?
No one condemned Winston Churchill, or bomber Harris for defending England in the 1940’s so what is all the fuss about with Blue Star defending their territory?
More care in planning routes was not it seems taken, as is stated in Mr Stockleys statement in the Echo. Maybe Black Velvet would be successful without having to "poach" from other companies and deliver a first class sustainable service, if they stopped poaching and became a game keeper!
You will notice, if you look, that the major bus companies, Blue Star, First and Stagecoach manage to co-exist without this nonsense being printed every so often in the Echo, I feel sure they co-operate with un written morals and ethics, which is what Black Velvet do not seem to comprehend. The main bus operators recognise that it is important for all to survive to stay away from each others routes where possible, survival depends on it or perhaps more simply, they have no interest in running routes where another company is well established. So what is Black Velvets agenda?
It is common knowledge in the Southampton bus industry that Mr Stockly departed Blue Star and Go-Ahead under a cloud of bad feeling. Perhaps the sour grapes are leading the way for Black Velvet who it would seem are incapable of being able to make a unique decision in route planning, as demonstrated in the attack on the Blue Star Fair Oak services.
Black Velvet why don’t you evolve, do some lateral thinking and register some original routes? Or perhaps as the ex MD of Blue Star is well aware; this is easier said than done.
“Times be hard” for all just now and even more so in the bus industry. If Blue Star, First and Stagecoach can survive without encroaching on each others territory why cant Black Velvet find some unique routes in the same way. There are plenty of roads and housing estates in the area without a bus service which could do with a reliable bus service.
Finally, the privatisation of the bus industry was wrong, the idea Maggie had, did not happen and the rest of the UK is not likely to get a scheme like TFL (transport for London), but then again introducing a system like the railways operate under by tendering for routes, might be a good idea for all us bus passengers
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