Thursday 31 March 2011

More chance of winning the lottery than in getting a No 6 bus to arrive on time!

Clive Betts MP today blasted First South Yorkshire for the continuing poor service on the No 4 and 6 routes, which serve Darnall to the City Centre.

Clive Betts said:
“For several months, I have been complaining to both First and South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive about the continuing poor service on the No 4 and 6 bus-routes.

Originally, this was meant to be a 20 minute frequency route throughout the day, but the service was so dreadful that passengers could only treat the timetable as a work of fiction.

First South Yorkshire then changed this to a 30 minute frequency, using smaller buses, and promised that the service would improve significantly. But, passengers are still getting the same poor service. Only now, when a bus goes missing, people know they’re in for an hour’s wait instead of forty minutes.

I simply cannot understand how the service continues to be so dreadful. It’s time First got its act together.”


Local residents have also been persistent in their complaints, but see no improvement in reliability.

Mrs Hobson of Calvert Road said:

“Rarely a day goes by without one, and often more, of the buses just not appearing. The worst case was when we saw an elderly pensioner wait an hour and fifty minutes for a bus to arrive.”

Mrs Goodison of Calvert Road said:
“It seems that, whenever there is a shortage of drivers or a problem with a vehicle, First just treat this route as dispensable.

This is the only practical bus-route for lots of elderly and disabled people. It simply isn’t fair on them to be left waiting so often.

It sometimes seems that you’ve got more chance of winning the lottery than in getting a No 6 bus to arrive on time.”