Cotswold Green

Rail Replacement

2012-01-23T05:10:00.000-08:00

Not an emergency arrangement to replace a failed train or blocked line, as maybe suggested in the title, but an accurate description of our recently acquired route 881!

As a bit of a transport history anorak, I am very much aware of where railway lines used to run and two branch lines that have always fascinated me are those that used to run from Kemble to both Cirencester and Tetbury.

The 881 service acts as an effective replacement for both! It runs from Tetbury to Cirencester via Kemble station, serving the towns and villages that both lines were perported to serve. The obvious advantage of the bus is that it can actually serve these locations whereas the stations and halts on these lines could be some distance away (especially noticable in the case of Rodmarton where the halt was well over a mile away from the village!).

If only the passenger numbers were comparable to the final days of the rail services in 1964!

I have now driven this route a few times and find it to be one of the most enjoyable routes that we currently operate. The only down side is that whilst travelling into and out of Kemble Station, we are forced to travel the length of a huge car park that during the week is always filled to capacity! After all, the car is our biggest competitor and whilst I fully understand that most of these drivers have no realistic alternative to car use due to the rural nature of the territory, I am sure that a small percentage might find using the bus a convenient and less stressful option! What a difference a few extra regular passengers could make!

Doing what we can to right the wrongs of the Beeching era!

Photo Number 11 - Another Yard View

2012-01-20T16:11:00.000-08:00

I am again tempted to illustrate how fortunate we are to have an operating centre in such a nice part of the world! This view shows vehicles poised for their next days work and facing the exit. Our yard is on the edge of a small industrial estate, but contained within a valley, on the outskirts of Nailsworth.

Just for the sake of completeness, the vehicles shown are N411 MBW, L118 HHV, N806 DNE and R976 XVM.

Cotswold Lament

2012-01-17T16:29:00.000-08:00

After posting and commenting on the photo of N951 NAP at Bibury, I have been reflecting on the group of routes that this bus regularly used to operate. These routes all passed through what most would consider the touristy parts of the Cotswolds.

I have already alluded to the 860 between Cirencester and Bibury (extending to Aldsworth at peak times) but this route was attached to route 864 (Yanworth to Cirencester) and route 866 (Southrop to Cirencester).

All three routes made a full weeks work for one vehicle and one driver and all were lost in November 2011. We were not so careless as to lose the bus or driver, both of which have been redeployed!

The tender for these routes was the first won by the recently formed Cotswold Green Ltd in January 2007 (not the first operated as most of our work was acquired with the business of Ebley Bus Ltd), they were also the first routes that I had won for Ebley Bus! I had also managed these routes for Stagecoach during my stint as Operations Manager at Stagecoach in the Cotswolds! Just to add to to the above, I also drove the predecessors to these routes in the early 1990's in the very early stages of my career!

During the early days, operating the route for Ebley Bus, I would drive these routes at least once per week. You get to know all of your regular passengers by name and they, in turn, get to know you. In a not so rare moment of reflection, I remember those regular passengers who passed away during my association with these routes and how especially on the 864 and 866, where the same people travelled most days, you really could feel the sense of loss. It also could really change the feel of the service when it was one of the more dominant characters that had passed on.

These services acted not only as a means of transport but as a mobile social centres allowing people who, as it seemed to me, would not normally associate with each other to meet! The advent of free travel for the elderly broadened the circle a little but thankfully did not change the atmosphere.

It may be a cliche, but you really can feel a part of the communities that you serve!

In the last weeks of our operation of these routes I made sure that I would have one last opportunity to drive them and it was comforting that I was not only recognised but that many still remembered my name!

Photo Number 10

2012-01-17T14:45:00.001-08:00

N951 NAP whilst parked in the centre of Bibury, next to the river Coln and with the delightful Arlington Row just visible in the background. The vehicle was in service at this time (route 860 from Bibury to Cirencester) and parked here because the driver's bladder was hurting and so the opportunity was taken to use the Public Convenience en-route (a little expensive at 20p a go!).

The 860 was my favourite route but sadly lost to Pulham's Coaches on re-tendering in November 2011 (it is now combined with route 855 between Cirencester and Northleach).

Who Wants To Go To Caudle Green?

2012-01-16T13:23:00.000-08:00

One of the effects of the major service change in November was that route 23 was changed quite substantially to absorb as much of route 232 as possible (as this was being cancelled).

Route 23 is a once a week shoppers bus from Stroud to Cheltenham whilst route 232 was a once a week shoppers bus from The Camp to Cheltenham. Both travel via many villages way out in the sticks and it is the choice of villages that once again causes an issue!

In November the villages on the 23 route were Slad, Sheepscombe, The Camp, Bisley, Miserden, Whiteway, Caudle Green, Brimpsfield and Birdlip whilst route 232 served The Camp, Miserden, Whiteway, Cranham, Brimpsfield, Birdlip, Winstone, Elkstone, Cowley, Cobberley and Ullenwood.

Out of all these locations Bisley, Cowley and Cobberley have alternative services and so were immediately dropped from the new route 23 and, because it is important that the service is no longer than 50km in each direction, there was a choice to be made between Caudle Green and Elkstone.

At the time we chose Elkstone, because having had experience of operating both routes over many years, I remembered that there were regular passengers at Elkstone but Caudle Green was a lengthy hike off of the main road for no passengers. How ironic that all of a sudden the opposite appears to be the case!

And so we are soon to change the route to correct this!

I will be pleased to be returning to Caudle Green if only to give a possibly unique sign its purpose back. The sign, located at the only possible point at which you can turn a bus reads 'no parking on Thursday'. Also another sign in Brimpsfield can be returned to a purposeful existence, this one reads 'bus route to Caudle Green'.

I am glad that the 232 did not survive as leaving Cheltenham with a destination display proudly proclaiming 'The Camp' does not sit comfortably with me!

And So What Is Wrong With This One?

2012-01-11T13:28:00.000-08:00

After selecting and collecting N912 ETM from Purfleet, I am then forced to subject my new purchase to the scrutiny of our maintenance contractors.

I knew that there was a little corrosion on one of the wheel arches and that a new battery would be required (thanks to Ian's accidental diagnosis).

The maintenance contractors began with their customary 'Oh dear, I hope you didn't pay much for that' followed by sharp intakes of breath inbetween much pointing, prodding and muttering.

I have to say that I am used to this approach with any new arrival but the criticism was a bit harsher than usual this time! The upshot is that we have come to the conclusion that the Luton area must spend a considerable part of the year below sea level (explaining the corrosion which was a bit more extensive than I had anticipated) and that the wiring was done by an enthusiastic amateur (meaning that it had to be pretty much rewired from front to back before it could be allowed to leave the workshop).

And so now the prep work for painting has begun so hopefully it will be earning some money for us next week!!

An Incredible Journey

2012-01-10T17:19:00.000-08:00

Another visit to the used bus emporium at Purfleet with cheque book in hand and the inevitable happens!

I must admit that I had already made up my mind that I was going to buy a bus, the biggest clue was the fact that I had only bought a single ticket from Gloucester to Rainham (£22.50 bargain!).

The day began badly. Strong winds and driving rain showing how badly designed Gloucester railway station is. Couple this with conflicting information about which platform my train was to depart from and large puddles on the undulating platform surface, causing me to get rather wet, and you can understand my already worsening mood. The scheduled departure from platform 1 and its redirection to platform 4 could not have been worse under the circumstances, all caused by the train that should have been going to Cardiff sitting idly in platform 2 (its path blocked by fallen trees near Lydney). Platforms 1 and 4 could not be further apart!

My train arrives and we depart only 10 minutes late in a South West Trains liveried unit working a First Great Western service.

I sit back in a surprisingly comfortable seat and enjoy the view. We pass Stonehouse without incident and at Stroud I notice the 35 service from Nympsfield at the end of Cainscross road at 1017 (meaning it should arrive on time at Cornhill at 1020). Onwards to Kemble, where I am always surprised by the number of passengers joining and alighting each train, and then the guard makes an announcement!

The gist of this long winded and pause ridden statement was that there was disruption across the entire network due to the weather, the London Underground was in turmoil and that we were running 10 minutes late whilst our connection was not! The tone of his statement was that we were going to miss our connection to Paddington. Much muttering and rustling then took place within the carriage.

We arrived at Swindon and as it appeared most of the passengers on our train intended to make this impossible connection, there was a scramble for the doors. How i miss the days when there were more than two door per carriage and you could just reach out of the window and open the door to enable you to begin your sprint before the train had even stopped! Luckily, however, the guard had missed the fact that 10 minutes late meant that we still had a good 10 minutes to wait for the Paddington train!

Having just dried out I was once again lauched into the driving wind and rain to ensure further discomfort. I even had time to buy a paper from the newsagent before my train arrived.

I have learnt through bitter experience that all trains heading into and out of Paddington will be horrendously overcrowded and so I made sure that I reserved a seat. I also chose the quiet carriage as an excuse to turn off my mobile and enjoy some peace before being launched into the unmitigated chaos that is London. I was astounded to find the train almost empty and only about 10 people occupying the quiet carriage. I looked for my reserved seat and I was astounded to find somebody sitting in it! How on earth could this be! Out of all the available seats, only mine and nine others were occupied! But being English, I carried on past and found another seat and did not make a fuss. On the other side of the train was a lady who I guessed to be in her mid fifties. Just as the train departed from Swindon her mobile rang! She answered it and then proceeded to talk into it saying such gems as " hold on a sec, I am in the quiet coach" and "nearly there" as she wandered down the aisle to the end of the carriage. I thought that the whole point of being in the quiet carriage was that you turned these infernal devices off! She eventually returned to her seat without displaying any shame and in no way looking apologetic adding to my growing sense of injustice. I am sure that if my phone had rang she would have been the first to point out that this was the quiet carriage, a place that she had deliberately chosen to sit!

We arrived at Paddington on time but the rain was still torrential and I had by this point noted that the quiet coach was at the back of the train giving me a longer walk along the platform. This gave me time to reflect on the grandeur of the train shed and more importantly that it was impossible to walk to the exit without walking through several waterfalls, which I am sure were not in Brunel's original design, caused by stratigically placed holes in the roof. Thankfully First Group had provided several helpful yellow signs informing me that there was water on the floor and that there was a risk of slipping. How amusing it was to see someone trip over one of these signs! If only there had been a sign warning people that there were signs on the platform!

I made for fresh air, extra fresh due to the wind howling through the concourse, and made my phone calls. I phoned Paul at Ensign Bus to say I was at Paddington and to arrange a lift from Rainham Station and then phoned the wife.

The underground was running well, not in chaos as previously warned, and the familiar journey across London to Tower Hill ensued. Whilst underground, the weather had miraculously cleared up and blue skies greeted me on my emergance to the surface. From Tower Hill it is just a short walk to Fenchurch Street and onto the train bound for Grays.

Another smooth and punctual journey and I arrive at Rainham. The ticket barrier refuses to let anyone out unless they have a pass but by using the gate that says no exit I am out! Now I am confronted by a lake where once there was car park which can only be crossed by getting your feet wet (again!). Only five minutes wait and the familiar blue and silver colours of the Ensign Bus van appears. In no time I am in used bus heaven!

I had come to see two Mercedes automatic minibuses both of which were waiting for me in 'the shed'. Both were running and awaiting my inspection. I was only allowed to buy one and so the selection process began. There was not much between them except that on one the passenger doors would not work properly so decision made! N912 ETM was going to join our fleet.

My choice was adorned with trade plates and made ready for a test drive. This passed without incident except that I wanted to try its hill climbing ability. This part of Essex is devoid of such geographical features and so I had to make do with a mild gradient. I already knew that this aspect of performance was likely to be dissapointing and so it proved to be. Test drive completed, it was back to the yard for paperwork.

After an attempt was made to sell me a low floor dart from Veolia in South Wales and I had made sufficient disparaging comments to show that I was not going to spend any money on such a monstrosity it was time to leave.

I had already worked out that my new steed was not going to proceed faster than about 50 mph, less on an incline, and so a painfully slow journey was in store for me. Nearly four hours of tedium later, including a stop for fuel at South Mimms, I arrive at Nailsworth. Ian had waited for my arrival (Ian is our only driver with an automatic only licence) and so was most eager to see my latest purchase. I parked it and Ian jumped aboard. He scuttled around it and inevitably ended up in the cab where he attempted to start it. All of a sudden, despite no problems other than lack of speed on its mammoth journey from Essex, the battery was flat.

The next day it was to go into the workshop for a full inspection and so I knew we would be fitting a new battery at least. And so I went home after another fun packed day in the world of buses.

Home At Last

2012-01-10T17:06:00.000-08:00

Another significant event that occurred during the later part of 'The Dark Ages' was that we finally had scheduled bus services (other than schools services) in our home town of Nailsworth!

Not satisfied with just an occasional visit to this rural metropolis we now operate what is left of a once generous level of local services as well as a six day per week link to Minchinhampton and Stroud. It only took 5 years to achieve this!

Nailsworth still has what I call a proper bus station! Quite a luxury these days in our area when compared to the larger nearby town of Stroud which now has to make do with a collection of laybys on a main road!

The Dark Ages

2011-12-07T01:22:00.000-08:00

And so it continues! Two years on and now not so blinded by the anger and frustration that the bus industry can cause, I return to the blog.

I shall refer to this time as the Dark Ages!

I think, although I cannot quite remember, that it all started with what I can only describe as a confrontation with South Gloucestershire Council over route 620. Needless to say, the end result was that we withdrew from the service and have not undertaken work for this particular authority since!

This was followed by uncertainty over the future of supported bus services and an expensive visit to a Public Enquiry and I am sure there was something else...Oh yes, I got married!

What has improved my mood recently, improved enough to even think about returning to the blog, is that we appear to have crossed a major hurdle caused directly by the Government spending cuts. The entire Gloucestershire supported bus service network was reviewed and subsequently re-tendered. We made our bids and were more successful than I could have hoped!

Lets Try A Volvo This Time!

2009-11-10T12:15:00.000-08:00

Bye bye Scania, hello Volvo! H431 EFT is departing soon, already replaced by a Volvo B10M (L310 PSC). They look the same but the volvo has a vicious tail!! N384 PNY has also departed recently, bought by Gloucester Limos for a school contract in the Gloucester area.

Another Departure

2009-09-22T04:55:00.000-07:00

And so H430 EFT leaves for pastures new across the Severn Bridge to Chepstow Classic Buses. It has a gearbox fault that was uneconomic for us to attend to so I don't know what the future holds for it!

Photos Number 8 and Number 9 - WX59 BWB

2009-09-05T14:59:00.000-07:00

The new arrival just after delivery parked next to a Bristol RE for contrast! And a shot of the light and airy interior!

The New Additions

2009-09-05T14:39:00.000-07:00

And so they have all arrived in the nick of time!

Our new MAN Centro is now registered WX59 BWB and the Ugly Ducklings (which don't look so bad in the flesh) are V682 FPO and W483 OUF. Did I mention that there is another Dart (N64 KBW) nicknamed Dino due to the fact it has arrived in Jurassic Coast promotional livery!

The Centro is now painted but still needs its vinyls fitted. It will hit the streets during the week ahead!

As well as the vehicles there are also new routes. The 130 and 131, with a 29A in the afternoons, will serve Sir William Romney's School in Tetbury.

The Ugly Ducklings

2009-08-30T15:10:00.000-07:00

Success!

I have found two low floor vehicles under 12 years old and within our price range! The only problem is they are ugly! The Caetano Compass body certainly was not in the running for any design awards but beggars cannot be choosers!

And so on Tuesday I will head off to the Ensign used bus emporium to complete the deal! Fortunately delivery is included in the price as there are few more boring tasks than driving a bus for a long distance on the M25 and M4!

Added to the fact that our new MAN arrives next week sees nearly a fifth of the fleet converted to low floor in a week!

The Forsight Saga

2009-08-30T15:03:00.000-07:00

And so the 620 saga is nearly at an end! The route was put out to competitive tender a little while ago causing mild distress to myself as losing it would have caused chaos! And so the only alternative to chaos was to win the route back!

And so an alternative timetable was promptly dispatched with an attractive price in the appropriate box leading to success! We have now been awarded the contract although the 620 service will now only run between Bath and Chipping Sodbury. The 29 route will now extend southwards to Yate.

The only problem now is finding appropriate vehicles! The contracts now require low-floor vehicles less than 12 years old and so the search for something in this catagory continues!

More Route Changes

2009-08-11T13:58:00.000-07:00

Not only the vehicles are changing! September will see two new routes (130 and 131), a new variation (29A) and also changes to route 620!

Add to this the change to route 864 through Chedworth village (starting today) and I now realise that is a lot of paperwork!

The changing or creation of a route has become a tedious process! Gone are the days of excitement about how it was going to perform, replaced by the laborious process of negotiation and registration.

The change to the 864 for example was initiated by Chedworth Parish Council who, if looking at a map, wanted the route moved a little to the right! So Chedworth Parish Council contacted us and, as the route is effectively owned by Gloucestershire County Council, then contacted them. Gloucestershire County Council then contact us leading to the postal and email systems being overloaded for a while asking if we thought this was a good idea! Whether or not we considered this to be of any benefit will become less relevant as time progresses and it becomes more of a political issue! To be perfectly honest this change, being of a minor nature, meant that there was no issue to us if it happened or not however I personally don't see any possibility of this change increasing patronage! But the machine of change continues and so a change date is agreed and the paperwork may begin as follows: -

Fill out the registration form (4 pages)
Fill out the supplimentary registration form (2 pages)
Provide a scale map of the route (8 pages)
Write a route description (1 page)
Create a timetable (1 page)
Write a cheque for £60.00

And so my 18 pages must now be copied 3 times, 1 for the Traffic Commissioners Office, 1 for the Local Authority and 1 for the file. So thats 54 sheets of paper and a good quantity of printer ink!

Fortunately the Council will print the timetables!!!!!

More Vehicle Changes

2009-08-11T13:47:00.000-07:00

My addiction to fleet changes has reared its ugly head again! M588 UBA (affectionately known as Muba) has now been sold to Ebley Coaches so that they have an appropriate vehicle for a new school contract in September.

Our new Plaxton Centro has arrived at the MAN dealership in Swindon for pre-delivery checks and should be delivered on time for September 1st!

The hired Mercedes Vario will almost certainly return in September bringing a not entirely happy association with the type to a close.

But whats next? Changes to the 620 route contract will specify low floor vehicles but there is never a suitable one around when you want one! No doubt three will come along when its too late!! So the shopping continues...

The Life Of The Parasitic Operator

2009-07-10T10:02:00.000-07:00

An unpleasant title but an accurate description of a smaller operator that feeds off of a larger operator nearby. By feeding I mean undertaking work when the larger operator is above its capacity as opposed to consuming items of plant and machinery!

In our case we are the larger operator but are receiving a reasonable quantity of work from Ebley Coaches at the moment, both in driver and vehicle hire. I remain confused as to why such a volume of work should be available when surely it makes little sense to take on work when you know that you have neither the drivers or vehicles to cover it! I doubt that they are making any decent profit margin for this work but perhaps it has more to do with the competition for coaching work in the Stroud area?

In the main though, we restrict ourselves to covering school runs so as not to get involved in the messy business of tachographs!

Making hay while the sun shines as inevitably this source of work will dry up at the end of term!

Shopping, Shopping and More Shopping!

2009-06-01T08:29:00.000-07:00

The cheque book has definately come out of hibernation! We have confirmed the order for an MAN chassied Plaxton Centro today and paid the required deposit. Whilst I had hoped to order two, I think a couple of low-floor, second hand vehicles would prove more prudent at this stage!

Tomorrow sees a trip to the Ensign Bus used bus emporium at Purfleet to look at some vehicles from the Capital. The cheque book will travel with me so who knows!

Whilst on this spending spree, the original office computer saw its oportunity to commit suicide and cause a moderate panic due to the fact that it is the one used for wages payments! Jim to the rescue again to provide a temporary computer whilst a new one is ordered.

Photo Number 7 - M588 UBA

2009-05-28T07:55:00.001-07:00

Our latest vehicle but by no means the newest. Bought simply to enable the last of the Varios to leave! I don't think she will be with us for long - possibly just up until the summer holidays.

Window Shopping

2009-04-20T08:40:00.000-07:00

An excursion to the local MAN dealership in Swindon with a surprisingly enjoyable test drive in the Palxton Centro pictured above. The search for vehicles continue but I have to say I am tempted! It looks likely that one or two new vehicles will be joining us later this year!

The Calm Before The Storm 2

2009-04-20T08:30:00.000-07:00

And so another school term begins! We have not re-tendered for route 5 from Thomas Keble School to Miserden due to a number of reasons (which I will not go into here) but be assured that my comments have been noted by several of the involved parties! Needless to say, therefore, I am very happy that we no longer operate this service!

This has led us to be temporarily embarressed by being overloaded with drivers! But two new contracts to Sir William Romney's School in Tetbury should start in September and the commencement of driver CPC training means that they will not be under-utilised for long!

Two Down One To Go!

2009-04-20T07:48:00.000-07:00

After my previous rant about the Mercedes Vario, I have now sold the two at the farm (R630 YOM and R816 LFV). They departed on Friday to an unknown home! It is rumoured that R816 LFV will see further service but I hold out little hope for R630 YOM.

R629 YOM is away at Swanbrook to see if they want to buy it, but as I cannot now offer the buy one get two free deal, they might! In the meantime we have M588 UBA on loan to us from Swanbrook - a standard Mercedes 814D with no computerised engine management system!

Also worthy of note is the departure of L101 HHV to the great scrapyard in the sky! After donating many parts and its rear end to its sister L118 HHV there was no further use. L101 HHV RIP.

Bloody Varios!

2009-03-09T16:18:00.000-07:00

And now I have had enough! Cotswold Green owns three Mercedes Varios and we have another one on hire. How many of these masterpieces of unnecessarily complicated engineering were available for service on Saturday? NONE! How many were available for service today? ONE!

And so R630 YOM has been sent to the farm in disgrace, soon to be joined by R816 LFV whilst I consider what punishment should be metered out. Selling them appears to be the only practical solution although I have several volunteers should a more destructive approach seem suitable!

But what to replace them with?

Another Brace Of Darts

2009-02-19T14:14:00.000-08:00

And so, after thawing out the cheque book, I have been off again on a little spending spree to pander to my hobby of changing the fleet every five minutes!

Two more Dennis Darts enter the fold (N464 TPR and N468 TPR), this time with East Lancs bodies.

One of these will replace L101 HHV, destined soon to make its final journey, and the other because why buy one when you can have two at twice the price!

Myself and Glyn drove the pair back from Bournemouth (Transdev Yellow Buses) today at a sedate pace!

I may also have forgotten to mention that we have sold F705 BAT to Ebley Coaches who, in their own individual style, have not bothered to paint it or remove the vinyls!

Snow & Grit

2009-02-19T13:42:00.001-08:00

Now that I have calmed down I feel able to write about the battle that we have been fighting against mother nature. For anybody who cannot guess the result, we lost!

Snow in Gloucestershire generally only appears in quantities that hinder rather than prevent bus operation but, for what seems like the most part this month, we became a late morning/early afternoon bus operator! This applies to what I shall now refer to as the week of unpleasantness at the beginning of the month. Even where routes did operate it was not always possible to access all of the villages - Frampton Mansell, Sapperton and Miserden being obvious examples.

The gritting of the roads all but ceased during this particular week as, aparently, grit could not be delivered to the distribution depots due to high demand! This lead to the interesting situation of gritting only taking place on 'A' roads when we needed it most. Only route 54 benifitted in part from this arrangement!

Gritting has been a 'hot topic' locally during January as freezing temperatures and the consequent appearance of ice caused us nearly as much difficulty as the snow. Particular problems with the road between Frampton Mansell and Sapperton, which during winter months remains sheltered from sunlight, was avoided on occasions and claimed a victory against us when it captured the 128 service at 0800 and refused to let it pass until around 1100! With the aid of the local constabulary and the 54A service, the passengers were able to complete their journey.

The upshot of the gritting debate was the publicising of the policy that no bus route in Gloucestershire is prioritised nor is likely to be in the near future!

My earlier reference to 'having calmed down' refers to the lack of takings for the week of unpleasantness. Not a good week for Cotswold Green! We may have saved on fuel but not on wages or standing costs (rent, insurance etc) so a little financial pain has been experienced! Not to worry though as we are now catching up and will be firmly back on track by the end of the month!

Busy Busy

2009-01-23T10:24:00.000-08:00

I know it has been a long time since I posted and have been reminded by several people recently and so to redress the balance I begin the long process of catching up with recent events!

The fleet has not changed much except for accident damage to L101 HHV and L118 HHV causing them to remain out of service for some time. L118 HHV is booked for surgery within the next couple of weeks but L101 HHV could take a bit longer!

To cover for the absence of the Northern counties twins we have had to resort to hiring a vehicle from Next Bus Vehicle Rentals otherwise known as Faresaver! We have hired a Mercedes Vario which has changed identies from V251 BNV to PSV 444, back to V251 BNV and now T436 EBD.

We have aquired another Mercedes minibus (N969 NAP) but this was bought as a non runner and will gradually disappear as it donates various parts to its sisters!

The Empire Grows

2008-11-26T13:24:00.000-08:00

More success in the competitive tendering process means more routes!

I had bid on a schools service between Frampton Mansell and Cirencester which I proposed to start in Minchinhampton and number it 128. I received the call to say that our bid was successful and started to make plans for its introduction in January. I was then tactfully informed that this was an emergency tendering arrangement and that it starts on Monday! Note to self: read documents properly in the future and do not assume anything!

I also put in a bid to operate route 278 between Tetbury and Malmesbury. I knew this was a short notice arrangement and that it starts next Wednesday. It only runs two days per week and fits nicely inbetween a school bus!

Its Quads!

2008-11-26T13:15:00.000-08:00

The cheque book fell into my hands today with disastruous consequences! Once I have this little book in my hand and a writing implement (pen, pencil or crayon) money tends to disappear from the company bank acount at an alarming rate! I am sure these two events are somehow connected.

The result of this lack of security was the arrival of another Dennis Dart (M94 WBW) and the purchase of L720 JUD. Our collection of larger darts has now increased to four.

M101 WBW has been repainted into fleet colours and fitted with a new LED destination kit and should be in service on Monday. M94 WBW will head to the painters on Friday evening!

Another Family Member

2008-11-21T07:56:00.000-08:00

And so my enthusiasm for updating the fleet bears fruit again!

M101 WBW joins the fleet. Another Dennis Dart with Plaxton bodywork. H886 LOX has been sold for preservation to John Potter and now resides with the Stroud RE Group collection in rural Gloucestershire. It left the yard last Friday to begin its new life.

We can now afford to buy vehicles with larger capacity as the PSV seating capacity restriction in Stroud town centre is about to be lifted! HURRAH!

In other news, our bids to operate some St Peter's School buses appears to have been unsuccessful but we have a bid in for another service to the Cirencester schools which has more of a chance of being successful. We also are in line to operate route 278 (Tetbury to Malmesbury) from the beginning of December. Should have that confirmed early next week!

Photo Number 6 - P637 ARN

2008-10-28T04:41:00.000-07:00

The Metrorider. Before the fitting of its new wheels and some vinyls. Already a hit with some after its first outing yesterday afternoon! If this overwhelming enthusiasm continues then I cannot see why this vehicle will not be with us for some time to come!

The Changing Of The Fleet

2008-10-21T09:55:00.000-07:00

Again I cannot resist the temptation to buy more vehicles. The age profile of the fleet improves a bit more with the latest purchases!

New in is our first (and probably only) Optare Metrorider P637 ARN from Lancashire United ( a part of the Transdev group) and another Dennis Dart L720 JUD from Chepstow Classic Buses. I am hoping that another Scania will follow soon as F705 BAT is due for withdrawl at the end of the week! H886 LOX is also not long for this world (at least in service) and should be out of the fleet by mid November.

I cannot bear to part with H843 NOC or H886 LOX and so I am trying to negotiate some secure storage for them until I decide what to do!

Another One Bites The Dust

2008-10-12T14:49:00.000-07:00

And so it is a sad farewell to another Carlyle Bodied Dart. H887 LOX has now made its final journey to the great bus depot in the sky (well, actually a scrapyard in Barnsley but I prefer the poetic version!).

After months of sitting in the corner, quietly donating parts to other vehicles, the opportunity of creating more parking space could be avoided no longer. It was the last vehicle remaining in the former Ebley Bus colour scheme (not sorry to see the back of that).

The reign of the Carlyle bodied darts is now coming to an end. Already H887 LOX and H889 LOX have journied to Barnsley, H843 NOC is delicenced and sits out of action in the corner soon to be joined by H886 LOX. I am still hoping to keep one but not in active service, purely as a preservation project!

Ebley Bus did have another one of these darts (H142 MOB) but this went to Barnsley some time before the company was sold.

The Day The Earth Stood Still

2008-10-10T06:29:00.000-07:00

A title from one of my favourite old sci-fi movies and also a good description of the beginning of the new school year where an otherwise stable bus network can descend into chaos!

The problem, as always at this time of year, is passenger numbers. We carry many students to school who, because of their parents choice of schools, are not entitled to a bus pass or dedicated school transport. There is no way of knowing how many new students will travel, how many will change from one form of transport to another or which route(s) will begin to burst at the seems!

Early indications showed that Cirencester Deer Park School would be up and Thomas Keble School would be down. If this became reality, then a simple switch of resources and problem solved. Every year, no matter where I have worked, I find that it can never be that simple!

Cirencester Deer Park School's numbers travelling were up! so that's one point to me! However Thomas Keble Schools numbers were static with the exception of route 5 which shot up by about a third! The terrain this service negotiates means that it has been difficult to find a bus small enough to go round the route but big enough to carry the required number of passengers! I believe I have found one and so should be able to sort that one out by half term. I am hoping to go and pick it up on Monday!

So that is one of the many issues that have stopped me from attending to the important business of updating the blog. Look out for more posts that I intend to publish over the next week or so including the following subjects:

our new pet duck
fleet changes
more school route tales of woe
two new drivers
fuel duty rebate
the night bus
fuel
Stroud Town Centre
return of the squirrel

and I am sure many more!

They're Here!

2008-09-03T04:25:00.000-07:00

The ticket machines have arrived and are up and running!

The software works fine and now I have a staggering amount of information at my fingertips. The concessionary fare reports do, however, depress me. It reminds me of the phrase 'here's what you could of won!' from the classic gameshow Bullseye!

Onwards and upwards!

EU Legistlation Thwarts Progress!

2008-08-21T06:42:00.001-07:00

Our ticket machine system has been delayed!

All we are apparently missing is a depot reader which, as it contains lead, cannot now be sold by the manufacturers under EU legislation.

My sense of dissapointment cannot be explained by mere words but the sight of me pacing up and down the yard often leads to people to avoid me, as they know that this represents a time when I am best left alone! Eventually the pacing turns to mumbling choice phrases under my breath before heading slowly towards a form of normality, or at least as close as I am likely to get.

Possibly up to another three weeks to wait!

The Bus Station?

2008-08-21T04:53:00.000-07:00

Anybody famaliar with Stroud over the past few years will remember that it had a Bus Station. It was not a pretty place. In fact Dank, Grubby even threatening after dark but it was a proper bus station with loading bays, information and ample parking. Although Merretts Newsagent had disappeared from the bus station some years before and the empty shop was boarded up the rest of the adjacent shopping centre was refurbished leading to the replacement of the often not working escalator with stairs and an often not working lift!

The site was located on top of a culverted brook, which due the age and instability of the culvert, led to bus parking being withdrawn and replaced with a pay and display car park which in turn left less bus parking.

Judgement day occurred when Stagecoach sold the remainder of the site lease to the District Council for a reasonable sum (leading to anguished cries of 'assett strippers' by some) and the idea of redevelopment of the site came to be a reality, it was just a question of time. By this stage, services were departing from the town centre and the bus station was a signing on/off point with driver facilities and also a schools service interchange point. Even the travel shop was relocated to John Street.

Services eventually returned to the bus station after the District Council enforced a restriction of PSVs in the town centre meaning that vehicles above 33 seats in capacity could not access Russell Street (with the exception of buses involved with rail replacement services). The travel shop also returned.

And then the redevelopment came!

The existing bus station was replaced by a series of 'on road' stops as a temporary measure whilst a new interchange was to be built at the railway station. STILL WAITING!

Is there another bus station in the country with an 'A' road passing through the middle! The safety fears of people being run over passed without realisation although this perhaps due to the fact that traffic rarely moves at a significant speed due to congestion!

To illustrate how it is, I provide a picture of an ordinary weekday, taken at a quite random moment from the adjacent car park. Please note the delivery lorry illegally parked and the Stagecoach double deck parked up on bay N in the foreground!

The original bus station used to be to the right on a site now occupued by a cinema.

Advertisement Break

2008-08-18T05:37:00.000-07:00

The advertising deal that I am so proud of displayed on L718 JUD. There are three versions of side adverts but only one version of the rear advert.

The property version on the side of F705 BAT.

The Camera Never Lies

2008-08-18T05:24:00.000-07:00

More CCTV being fitted today! N913 NAP today joins the ranks of H430 EFT, H431 EFT, L101 HHV and L118 HHV.

The system uses a high capacity hard drive instead of the old video technology that I had been familiar with in the past and the results are impressive. The system has been bought for us by Gloucestershire County Council as a part of the BUSCAM project.

The BUSCAM project is to be launched in a blaze of publicity in mid september at a Sir William Romney School in Tetbury.

Noc Knock Knocking On Heavens Door!

2008-08-16T07:10:00.000-07:00

H843 NOC is now withdrawn from service! I cannot justify the expense of putting it through an MOT for another year as I believe it will need an engine change. It will be up for sale soon unless it is used as a part exchange on another vehicle.

H886 LOX has just had its head gasket replaced and so should be back in service on 1st September to keep the Carlyle bodywork prescence in the Stroud area going for another couple of months.

H886 LOX will probably last until November when its MOT expires.

One Small Step For Man, A Giant Leap For Cotswold Green!

2008-08-15T11:22:00.000-07:00

The ticket machines are coming! Not a cry of alarm concerning the invasion of the planet by errant items of ticket issuing technology (although what a 'B' movie that would be!), but a call to say that our Wayfarer TGX system is due for delivery next week!

So at long last, the old Wayfarer 2 machines can be consigned to history or more realisticly the bin! I just wish I had not ordered so many ticket rolls!

The Beast Of Nailsworth Mills

2008-08-15T10:46:00.000-07:00

Today has proved to be an odd day! Glyn has had his gaze fixed on a tree all afternoon. A small crowd had gathered to witness the sight of a strange animal hitherto unknown to man. The desription was of a white animal with a huge black tail and large head!

The prospect of ridiculing Glyn was too much to resist for several people in the yard. The conclusion was swiftly drawn that he had inhaled a substance with similar properties to LSD causing halucinations on a grand scale!

I finally could not resist and so gazed upon the tree only to see a squirrel going about its normal business of gathering food. I immediately feared for the squirrels safety with this mythical beast lurking somewhere in the depths of the foliage! I now realise that the beast in question was actually the squirrel!

Despite photographic evidence being acquired, Glyn would still not beleive that this was an ordinary squirrel but the size of its head and tail, not to mention the colouration, gave the impression that this was evidence of some grotesque mutation currently afflicting the squirrel population.

I maintain that it was just a squirrel and here is the photograph as evidence of this fact!

What Do You Mean 2 Months Since I Last Posted?

2008-08-02T06:29:00.001-07:00

Two months is not a long time! I regret that I have completely overlooked the blog in recent weeks. I was reminded of this by Nigel with his helpful "when are you going to put more on the blog!" and then he told me that the last entry was 5th June!

So what happened?

Still chasing our new ticket machines! It would appear that the construction time includes mining the ore and refining it to form the raw materials ready to be made into componants!

We bid for a contract, lost it, won it and then lost it again much to my regret. It would have provided a welcome boost to the 54 service.

We won an evening contract to start in early September between Dursley and Stroud (Fridays only).

Looks like the 620 service contract will be extended for another 12 months which is very good news! I don't think the Varios (R629 YOM and R630 YOM) will make it though. I am, however, not aversed to a bit of bus shopping!

Many hours completing our claim for rebate of some of the fuel duty that we have paid.

Painted the National (VAE 499T) but not too happy with the job!

Exibited at the Stroud Running Day (H843 NOC, F705 BAT and H430 EFT). H843 NOC working a Cashes Green free bus run as part of the event.

And much, much more!

I promise that more posts will follow!

Sleeper

2008-06-05T14:13:00.000-07:00

I have a reputation for being able to sleep for large amounts of time, even in the most trying of circumstances. This morning was a classic example!

If needed I can rise early and complete a full days work, but if I don't set the alarm who knows when I will wake up! If I was ever needed to work through the night, that would be no problem! Possibly a throw back to a period of my career operating nightclub buses in the early hours. My favourite of which picked up in Swindon at around midnight and then set back from Milton Keynes at around 0600! Seeing the sunrise at the end of my working day has always felt comforting!

This morning I was woken by a phone call just after midday!

After a short 'milling about the house' session in the hope of acheiving some form of conciousness, I headed to the yard.

My arrival after midday is no longer a surprise to anybody. The occasional use of the greeting 'morning' at two in the afternoon still amuses me no end! Wendy was running the show as usual and absolutely nothing was happening (it would not dare!). A note was left for me to ring John Groves Ticket Systems which I did immediately in the desperate hope that the ticket machine order was in production and due imminently! It isn't! Possibly still six weeks away.

The on bus advertising deal is about to bear fruit and most of our vehicles will be adorned with side and rear adverts at the end of next week. The interior adverts will follow at a later date.

I have noticed that I have not replaced many vehicles this year so far and so I think some bus shopping is in order! A call has been made to our secret contact, who has access to two of the big groups disposal lists, hoping to find either a suitable dart or Mercedes 811D in good condition to replace H843 NOC. I love the Carlyle body darts, and they have certainly earned their money, but the time has come to replace them. H886 LOX is already in the 'reserve fleet' whilst H887 LOX is semi-dismantled to provide spares for the other two. I will try to find a way of keeping one on as a preservation project!

The rest of the day continued with the usual paperwork pressures, disturbed by a fleeting visit from our accountant, until I felt it was time to go home at about six. Wendy is doing the late shift tonight!

Time Flies!

2008-06-04T09:26:00.000-07:00

I can't believe that it was the 17th May since I last posted on the blog.

Part of the reason for this was my holiday in Jersey where public transport really is a viable alternative to the car. We either walked or caught the bus!

Cotswold Green however continued without me for a week with not too much extra paperwork to complete on my return. We have retained the 256 service which had been recently retendered although the Saturday journeys have been removed due to the usual budget pressures. I have taken the opportunity to introduce a new 63 route to cover some of the territory. The choice of number is a reminder of the old 63 route that used to run between Dursley and Cheltenham many years ago!

The new ticket machines have not arrived yet whilst our existing system (Wayfarer 2) has pretty much given up! This is going to cause me a headache when it comes to getting all of the figures together at the end of the month!

Photo Number 5 - The Yard

2008-05-17T13:09:00.001-07:00

A broad view of the entrance to the yard taken in the evening when all of the buses are home. The Leyland National in the corner (VAE 499T) is not a part of the fleet but is part owned by myself.

That Was The Week That Was!

2008-05-05T15:10:00.000-07:00

And so I now admit to not having enough time to publish blog posts on a daily basis and must resort to sumarising the week just passed!

The new ticket machine system order has had the final configuration set, three new LED destination kits are on their way, an on bus advertising deal has been signed, we have bid to retain our route 256 and L718 JUD has now been repainted!

A quiet week!!!!!

The Days All Merged Into One

2008-04-26T12:39:00.001-07:00

Not enough hours in the day to keep this blog maintained!

Thursday was bus shopping day! A trip to Chepstow in the morning gave me a chance to peruse some more Mercedes 709D's. N963 NAP looked promising but too small to justify its acquesition! On to Devon and another Dart has joined the fold (L718 JUD), a forty seater for the Gloucester services. It drove back from Devon without any problems whatsoever even though a 50mph journey behind it on the M5 was a little tedious. After arrival at the depot, the pleasant task of vinyl stripping began prior to sanding down and repainting. The first vinyl to go was the rear advert for a care service in Torbay that I had now read so many times! The bus was collected from Winkleigh where many First vehicles are in storage (mainly Dennis Lances and Darts). It also happens to be the site of a large vintage vehicle collection that took and hour to get round with our impromptu guided tour! The Mercedes Vario that I had gone to see had been stripped of too many parts and so I quickly walked away from it!

Friday gave me the chance to drive routes 11 and 241 again. Starting them off myself and then being joined by route learners until I left them to it. I was collected from Gloucester at 13:00 and returned to Nailsworth HQ. Just time to load the new destination software and read the instruction book before hometime! H430 EFT and H431 EFT now have working destination kits but due to an access code problem L118 HHV now does'nt! Must phone for help on Monday!

Saturday is usually a quiet day for me and today was indeed no different! A little bit of paperwork in the morning and away by lunch time!

Photo Number 4 - L889 VHT

2008-04-23T10:20:00.000-07:00

A blast from the past! The first Mercedes 709Ds that served Cotswold Green originated from First Group. This one is illustrated fresh from repaint (27/03/2007). They were capable machines although they gave the impression that they had not been well cared for in the past and hence their replacement with ex Stagecoach vehicles. Out of the three that had been part of our fleet K693 UFV definately went to Poland where L889 VHT is rumoured to have followed and K872 NEU is rumoured to be in Kenya!

The Sun Shines On The Righteous!

2008-04-23T10:09:00.001-07:00

A beautiful sunny day in the Cotswolds! The birds were singing, the passengers were paying and all was right with the world. Well, all but N966 NAP deciding that it was too nice a day to be working! A quick bus change and back to normal.

The new routes in Gloucester were quieter today but expected to be busy tomorrow (rumoured to be pension day!).

A trip to view a potential addition to the fleet tomorrow, having so few spare buses makes me a bit nervous!

Our route 256 comes up for re-tendering next week and appears to be suffering from the County Councils budget cuts. The Saturday journey will be discontinued although the enevitable uproar has'nt hit the local papers yet!

Photo Number 3 - H430 EFT

2008-04-22T09:46:00.000-07:00

The superb Scanias! This photo illustartes where they come from. We now favour buying second hand from certain Stagecoach areas (Devon and East Kent are favoured at the moment) and this shows H430 EFT (13/11/2007) in Exeter coach park prior to purchase. The battery packs are not a good sign and we failed to start this one on the day despite the attentions of at least three engineering staff. A couple of days later it arrived safely in our yard.

A Tale Of Two Cities

2008-04-22T09:28:00.000-07:00

Well one town and one city!

Todays entry will have to cover for yesterday as the miles I had driven sapped my limited reserves of energy (that and the James concert I went to last night!).

Monday began with the start of a new contract. Routes 11 and 241 in Gloucester being the next phase in the expansion of the Cotswold Green empire. The passenger numbers were surprising to say the least although with the expansion of free concessionary travel, revenue was expectedly low! Being more used to rural services, more than ten passengers on the bus at any one time is a bit alien to us! The first day went smoothly with a bit of enthiast attention. We were of course not the only company to begin former Stagecoach routes in Gloucester on Monday, Independant Coaches took over route 13.

The ticket machines have now been ordered and I look forward to shiny new Wayfarer TGX machines gracing our vehicles in the not too distant future. Much work lies ahead in converting what we do into proceedures that a computer system can understand!

Tuesday meant a morning of returning the calls I had missed on Monday and then driving the almost obligatory school bus. Routes 7 and 129 with a H430 EFT and surprisingly well behaved children! The weather is good, Ebley coaches were short of vehicles and hired F705 BAT for the afternoon and no complaints or breakdowns, how could a day be better!

Photo Number 2 - N951 NAP

2008-04-18T15:31:00.000-07:00

Photographed near Bibury (16/04/08) after working the 09:00 service 860 from Cirencester before travelling empty to Fossebridge to commence service 864 back to Cirencester. I still fail to understand why Stagecoach would be selling these buses (even retrimmed) whilst in the area we serve they still operate older, shabbier vehicles on a daily basis! Still their loss I suppose. These vehicles, in my opinion, are a godsend to the small operator. Good on fuel and reliable, you don't get that with a Vario!

The Calm Before The Storm?

2008-04-17T21:32:00.000-07:00

I thought it would be a bad day and it was, but only because we were so meticulous yesterday preparing for the worst, that when the worst did not happen we had too many drivers, all of the buses available and other than the dizzying heights of 'mount paperwork', nothing to do!

The chance to discuss our presence at the Stroud Bus Running Day in June provided a surprisingly pleasant interlude and so I have now decided not to decant the entire fleet from our yard to the display area but to send possibly three vehicles for display at the main site. Two scanias and a dart seem the most popular combination so far.

Another consequence of all of this free time was that the NVQ programme made some more progress today with another two completions. More NVQs scheduled for Tuesday.

Also my obsession with finding Cotswold Green referenced on the web brought me to the realisation that not all published information is correct! The Wikipedia entry that I started has the fact that we have been awarded route 13 in Gloucester (Centre to Abbeymead) but unfortunately this is not true. My other searches yielded little in the way of new information. Nobody seems to have published fleet photos for a while!

Not much else to say today!

Photo Number 1 - H843 NOC

2008-04-16T16:39:00.000-07:00

The first of an occasional series of photos I have taken whilst at work! H843 NOC after finishing its school run near Miserden and about to run empty to Cirencester for the 1626 service 54A (31/03/08). This bus was acquired from Ebley Bus Ltd on 01/12/06 and so has been with us from the beginning. Prior to Ebley Bus Ltd this bus worked for Warrington Borough Transport. I have developed a fondness for the appearance of the Carlyle bodwork and the size of the vehicle is perfect for our operation. It is a shame that no bus currently on the market can replace these in terms of size and capacity!

An Inspector Calls

2008-04-16T16:08:00.000-07:00

The phone rings at 06:30. That is never a good start to the day! It can only mean that we are at least two drivers short today. A short conversation with the supervisor confirms my fate, I already know that the options are few at such short notice. Still, a couple of trips in the Cirencester area on a clear and sunny morning can't be all that bad. Many people would pay for an excursion around idyllic Cotswold Villages and I get all this for free! After a few phone calls duties are changed, another driver is drafted in, I am collected from Cirencester to return to Nailsworth HQ and a sense of normality returns. So much frantic activity just to make sure all of the services run and to time! What will tomorrow bring and how much did today cost?

A day of more paperwork (how many trees had to die?) follows this unexpected early start. The in-tray disappeared some time ago under a teetering mountain of paper and I often dream of the day when I may catch a glimpse of black plastic, indicating that I have nearly reached the bottom!

The good news today is that commercial advertising may soon be gracing most of our vehicles with a new contract in the offing. All the income possible is needed to offset the horrendous fuel price increases of recent weeks.

But it can also be fun to spend! Finally the finance for a new ticket machine system is coming together and an order will soon be placed! Less paperwork is promised and the data will be at my fingertips instead of deciphering endless streams of numbers which then have to be entered into a spreadsheet to make any sense of them!

Not the best of days today but certainly not the worst!

The Day Of The Blog

2008-04-15T23:04:00.000-07:00

Today is the day I have decided to start this blogging thing. I hope that there will be time enough in my hectic life to portray the trials and tribulations of running a small bus company!

Cotswold Green currently runs sixteen vehicles from its base in Nailsworth, Gloucestershire covering the southern half of the county and straying as far afield as Bath. Somewhere in the region of 26 employees inhabit our little world and maybe more about some of them another day!

Today was an ordinary low pressure day where the office was quiet except for the occasional timetable enquiry and the inevitable sales call. The final preparations for our new routes in Gloucester (241 to Sandhurst and 11 to Podsmead) should now be complete and I look forward to the start of these on Monday. The weather was nice today and reminds me that our depot sits in a really nice spot, in a valley surrounded by trees. Got to be better than the typical industrial estate location!

So that is all I have for the first installment, more another day.