| I gave the 25's new order a
couple of days before visiting again to record a
reasonably fair report, because Saturday's
inaugural operation was such a nightmare that it
came close to souring me on this game for good
(as the conversion of the 73 to artics will
almost certainly do). The route has been
regained by Stagecoach East London after five
years with First Capital, but two things are
different. Instead of Bow, this time the 25 is
under the stewardship of Waterden Road (WA), the
operational name and code for Stagecoach's second
site at Stratford, which was formerly known
informally as SD2. And instead of normal buses,
the incredibly stupid
decision has been made by TfL to specify this
massively busy route with articulated vehicles.
Forty-two Mercedes-Benz Citaro Gs furnish a PVR
of 37 - three fewer than the forty Tridents
previously run by First, and with a drop of
nineteen seats per vehicle, many more people are
having to stand - as was the grim and extremely
unpleasant reality on Saturday.
To be fair, the
appearance of the Olympic Torch in Oxford Street
during the afternoon caused the 25 service to
crack by 3 pm and then disintegrate entirely by
five, with the convoys of three buses now coming
in fours and even one five-bus caravan, but a
return visit on the following Monday saw buses
still running in pairs and stuffed to bursting
with disgruntled passengers. Although more
passengers have Oyster cards, payers of cash
fares still had to be ordered off and to the
roadside machines - whereupon the drivers rather
mean-spiritedly closed the doors and took off!
On the opening
Saturday 23057 (LX04 LBL) is seen at
Holborn Circus, as one of those that did actually
make it through to Oxford Circus. Many of the
buses that followed it (after gaps) only got as
far as Tottenham Court Road or even Holborn. From
town, curtailments to Manor Park seem to be most
popular. The 25's busiest sections are at either
end, with comparatively less traffic in the
middle, so passengers at Oxford Circus and Ilford
risk being especially hard done by.
I think that
under today's traffic conditions the 25 is too
long - there's no need for it to go any further
east than Stratford, and routes like the 238, 330
and 369 could be extended from the east to take
up the Ilford section and provide through
alternatives.
It's difficult
to imagine what we bus passengers of London have
done to make TfL hate us so much that they've
punished us with this ludicrously inadequate form
of public transport. And even when the bendy
buses do run their course in five to seven years
of the current contract, how (and to whom) are we
going to be able to get rid of them?
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