Manchester Community Transport

[Mayneway]

RE: Manchester Community Transport

(20/02/2020 13:10)knutstransport Wrote:  Seems to be a cursed route. The Poynton section was formerly the P1 under GHA so it's the third time it's suffered as the result of the contract going to the lowest bidder - Selwyns losing it due to using vehicles which were smaller than the contract specified and now MCT.

It’s a hard route to operate. CEC wanted very young aged vehicles with a certain seating capacity which is fine, but they then expect you to keep 3 of the same type and age vehicles as spares.
I don’t know what the terrain of the route is like because I’ve never done it but constant issues with ABS faults - which doesn’t happen when they are on Ashton/Oldham routes suggests it’s not the best.

[Mayneway]

RE: Manchester Community Transport

(20/02/2020 06:50)M60lad Wrote:  I know MCT run 391/392 Stockport-Macclesfield tender but is it a TfGM tender or a Cheshire East tender? Either way I wonder if High Peak might get these back.

Regarding other routes I've heard that Stagecoach could be interested in 159 & 419 routes which will probably be run out of Middleton Depot which could explain them coming off 415 service as this will free up 2 buses during the day.

I wonder if Arriva will go after 18 considering they've operated it before or maybe Diamond could get it considering they operate other routes round Trafford.

One thing I have heard is that Oldham have got 408 Oldham-Shaw service back but also heard that they are not interested in taking anything else (minibus workwise) back on at this time.

Actually looking at the list of routes MCT currently operate after the changes in April there's not that many routes that will actually need covering and some could go to operators that run them during the day for example Sunday 197s and evening 237s could easily go back to Stagecoach, I wonder if they will go for X5 considering they operated it originally.

Very little of the work will need covering as most has been lost.

[knutstransport]

RE: Manchester Community Transport

(20/02/2020 14:30)Mayneway Wrote:  It’s a hard route to operate. CEC wanted very young aged vehicles with a certain seating capacity which is fine, but they then expect you to keep 3 of the same type and age vehicles as spares.
I don’t know what the terrain of the route is like because I’ve never done it but constant issues with ABS faults - which doesn’t happen when they are on Ashton/Oldham routes suggests it’s not the best.

Is that '3 spare' a rumour or a fact? They awarded the 289/188 contract to Howard's when they only had the Metrocity which met the requirement and permitted D&G to use 33 seater Streetlites on services where the tender specified 35 seats, to allow the Evos to be used on other routes, rather than being backup buses for Solo routes. Hardly sound like the same council who would specify an operator must have 5 buses to run a route which needs 2.

[NorthernCounties]

RE: Manchester Community Transport

(20/02/2020 10:26)Rodney259 Wrote:  Just wondering, where did you get information that Stagecoach giving up 415? I can’t find anything on TFGM website or VOSA. Thanks

They haven't given it up. Its been on a one year contract and several drivers at Go NW say they've won the daytime tender. Not seen anything concrete yet

[Rodney259]

RE: Manchester Community Transport

(20/02/2020 21:44)NorthernCounties Wrote:  They haven't given it up. Its been on a one year contract and several drivers at Go NW say they've won the daytime tender. Not seen anything concrete yet

Thought it was strange as my daughter lives in Alkrington and the loadings always appear to be quite good.

[Mrboo]

RE: Manchester Community Transport

(20/02/2020 09:01)NorthernCounties Wrote:  All routes MCT current won and are keeping under the tendering process, will be handed back to TfGM to be re-tendered. No routes are simply being passed to other operators

There maybe agreements in place as there most likely been talks with TFGM as they given 45 days you can't put them out to tender in this time. so it be all Emergency Tenders and that most of time is case of asking for help from others. Diamond cant really take too much as they dont have the drivers to run what they have, unless MCT Tupe drivers over with the routes,

[Mayneway]

RE: Manchester Community Transport

(20/02/2020 21:09)knutstransport Wrote:  Is that '3 spare' a rumour or a fact? They awarded the 289/188 contract to Howard's when they only had the Metrocity which met the requirement and permitted D&G to use 33 seater Streetlites on services where the tender specified 35 seats, to allow the Evos to be used on other routes, rather than being backup buses for Solo routes. Hardly sound like the same council who would specify an operator must have 5 buses to run a route which needs 2.

I was and still am heavily involved with the nighttime shunting and allocating at MCT so it’s more fact than rumour.
You have 3 vehicles in the fleet that meet the tender spec ( part of the agreement of us winning the contract was that brand new vehicles were used) and it seems a pair of slightly older vehicles in the same livery (67 plates) which we could get away as using as replacements but CEC were insistent that nothing else was used. So when one of the spares is on loan to another company within the group and you have two of the 19 plates off for faults what do you allocate as your third bus??
Obviously you send something half decent but CEC are never happy in these Instances.

[Mayneway]

RE: Manchester Community Transport

(21/02/2020 03:30)Mrboo Wrote:  There maybe agreements in place as there most likely been talks with TFGM as they given 45 days you can't put them out to tender in this time. so it be all Emergency Tenders and that most of time is case of asking for help from others. Diamond cant really take too much as they dont have the drivers to run what they have, unless MCT Tupe drivers over with the routes,

There’s always the possibly TFGM might ask MCT/HCT to continue running the tenders they haven’t lost until they can get them retendered.
Don’t forget at the moment it’s only proposed that the doors shut at end of April. Look what happened with JPT. They announced they were to cease trading then at the 11th hour TFGM stepped in and negotiated a takeover deal with stagecoach.

What I will say is that two senior managers from rotala/diamond turned up this morning, were shown around and spoke to some drivers about them wanting to offer every driver work at either Eccles or Bolton.

[knutstransport]

RE: Manchester Community Transport

(21/02/2020 05:15)Mayneway Wrote:  I was and still am heavily involved with the nighttime shunting and allocating at MCT so it’s more fact than rumour.
You have 3 vehicles in the fleet that meet the tender spec ( part of the agreement of us winning the contract was that brand new vehicles were used) and it seems a pair of slightly older vehicles in the same livery (67 plates) which we could get away as using as replacements but CEC were insistent that nothing else was used. So when one of the spares is on loan to another company within the group and you have two of the 19 plates off for faults what do you allocate as your third bus??
Obviously you send something half decent but CEC are never happy in these Instances.

If MCT said it is their intention to loan out the spare bus, maybe that's why CEC asked they had something else that met the spec especially as you have also said there have been reliability issues with the ABS on the normal buses.

[Metroline1511]

RE: Manchester Community Transport

(20/02/2020 01:10)dounowhoiam Wrote:  Does anyone know details of the South Manchester services such as the 18, 44 and X5, such as who may be picking up these?

I wonder whether some Manchester city centre routes even that go south could be won by Go North West? I think of route 44 as above, and also the Mon-Sat late evening & Sunday route 197 journeys.

I think route 18 could be Arriva and route X5 Stagecoach.