Paul Corfield wrote:
On Sat, 1 Oct 2016 08:58:11 +0100, Walter Briscoe
wrote:

In message of Fri, 30 Sep
2016 16:34:43 in uk.transport.london, Paul Corfield

Even though we are nearing the end of NB4L production (hooray) the
wretched things are to be inflicted on two routes, 48 and 76, that I
do use from Central London if I don't fancy a train or a tube ride. So
that's two more bus routes that I can't use come next year.


Where do you find the plans to change 48 and 76 to NB4L?

I participate in forums where the tender results are announced almost
as soon as the info is released inside TfL. I also usually get to see
the official award notice. That's how I know about things like
vehicle type conversions. With the 48 and 76 the operators are also
changing with Arriva taking on the 48 from Ash Grove and London
General the 76 from Northumberland Park. Bang goes decades of
accumulated operating experience with the existing operators but hey
that's the tendering system for you.

Is it like railway TOCs, where most of the staff and management stay put
when the ownership of the franchise changes? If so, most of the operational
experience shouldn't be lost.

In message of Tue, 18 Oct
2016 18:41:48 in uk.transport.london, Paul Corfield
writes

This is not directly relevant, but is typical of mismatches between bus
services on the ground and on tfl.gov.uk/buses. https://tfl.gov.uk/mode
s/buses/?cid=buses contains a rectangle entitled "Bus service changes"
which has a link to https://tfl.gov.uk/cdn/static/cms/documents/bus-
service-changes.pdf
Several routes now run between different termini. The lists of stops do
not reflect those changes.

OTOH, they eventually updated the 78 stop list to reflect the
consequences of the Tower Bridge closure.

Operators and CentreComm seem REALLY good at tracking road changes.
There seems little effort to keep service information correct on the web
site.
--
Walter Briscoe