A Chemical Intolerance

This month’s Buses magazine adduced that First Group was right for the delayed FTR Metro to have awaited the completion of highways work before a ‘softly softly’ introduction of its Swansea Streetcars. In a special report on Metro service 4, we asked local people, has this tactic worked?

Visiting Swansea, you get a real sense that you just can’t win. Everyone from the government down is calling for revolutionary public transport. So, First Cymru, the Welsh assembly & Swansea council go radical and yet face something between unease and a barrage of local ‘nimby’ criticism. Seems so unfair.

The Quadrant bus station Metro stop sees north-bound buses slew across the south-bound lane to wait on the 'wrong' side. This minimises passengers needing to cross for the bus station

Since the 1 June 2009 introduction, First has gradually added Streetcars to its service 4. A week ago today, five of the Volvo B7LA/Wrightbuses were out. Every other bus was a Metro articulated vehicle, enough to give an impression.

Another interesting feature is bus stops opposite each other, even outside the bus only sections. Beyond the red road surfacing is the reduced standard road for other users

The first passenger to whom I spoke called the service “useless”. She stated that ‘they’ had stopped serving some Cross with an unpronounceable name beginning with the letter ‘P’, which meant she now had a 10-minutes walk, not easy with shopping. This seemed to be the case at another point along the route, as a passenger complained that his usual stop was now served only by other, less frequent buses and not Metro. This in spite of Metro passing it, something he couldn’t understand.

All buses can use the city centre Metro infrastructure. Here with Metro are three other First buses, one from Silverline and a private hire taxi. Goods vehicle loading is also permitted

Another felt that we could ill afford such buses in these recessionary times (not realising that they are actually two years old, four of which had seen service in Luton and the remainder were stored. The perception was of all-new buses).

The Hafod bus only road is shared between Metro and the Landore park & ride. Here, a Streetcar goes through the gates, leaving a particularly congested Neath Road to other local services

More than one commented that Metro was “empty most of the time”. This wasn’t evident during my short visit. There were journeys where the 42-seaters were half full but there were off-peak times with standees & every seat occupied. I was impressed by the number of mothers-with-buggies who would crane & peer inside when FTR ‘landed’ at their stop. There were nominally four buggy spaces though I saw more on board.

Not all the infrastructure is quite in place

It was true, however, that there was a more positive view *inside* FTR than out. In their usual way, passengers didn’t seem over-excited but they tended to like the environment within and the conductor service offered. And they liked the flexibility of boarding at both doors, welcoming the swiftness this and conductors brought. A cautious thumbs up, then.

This was not the case regarding non-users. As you might expect, there was some criticism over the way Swansea had realigned the city centre’s roads to accommodate Metro. More than one claimed that the innovative central priority—available to all local buses—had throttled the city and businesses had apparently closed as a result. Were these peripheral shops, I wondered? To be honest, there was little evidence of a down-at-heel city centre and it would be difficult during a recession to attribute closures to Metro.

One person at least cottoned on to the theory behind Metro, by suggesting that First might’ve been better trying double decks to increase passenger numbers. This, though, missed the point entirely.

Infrastructure improvements range from bus only roads to a bus gate at Singleton Hospital to priorities at roundabouts to building out bus stops. Notice the half-obscured 'bus stop' markings as the kerb is extended to assist the 18.5m artics, seen here at Morriston

It was in the suburb of Morriston where there was most Metro vitriol. Residents in Chemical Road are particularly intolerant at so many Metros squeezing their way through the interestingly named, long residential street. And Streetcar certainly dominates the streetscape, though it only seems to be inconsiderate parking that causes problems. The Streetcar is wider than your average bus but, being articulated, Streetcar is just as manoeuvrable. I wonder what Chemical Road residents might think about passengers on double decks peering into their upper windows.

Poster in a Chemical Road window: beware of the dog and beware of the bendy bus

My lasting memory of Metro was a positive one. It’s of two young children who with their parents were waving to the Metro ‘pilot’ as if they were greeting a train driver. That gave me hope for the success of Metro in Swansea. If youngsters recognise Metro as different, may be in time dissenters will, too. Perhaps, then, everyone can win after all, as the bus plays its part in reducing traffic in the city.