Press release 02 September 2016
http://www.abellio.co.uk/news/abelli...hange-release/

Abellio Surrey from 31 December 2016 intends making changes to two services
run on a commercial basis. Service 446
(Woking to Heathrow Terminal 5) is to be withdrawn between Staines and
Heathrow and service 461 (Kingston to Staines) is to be withdrawn between
Addlestone and Staines.

At the same time, Abellio has sought to be released from county council
contracts for nine services that are subsidised by the council, none of
which are part of the ongoing Local Transport Review.

These a 81 Woking-Barnsbury Estate (Sundays only), 436 Woking-Brooklands
(Sundays only), 458 Kingston-Staines, 514 Kingston-Addlestone, 515
Kingston-Guildford, 555 Heathrow-Hersham, 556/557 Woking-Chertsey/Sunbury
and 663 Walton on Thames to Esher High School.
==
No reasons are known to me.

--
Mike D

In message , at 16:23:04 on Mon, 19
Sep 2016, Michael R N Dolbear remarked:
Press release 02 September 2016
http://www.abellio.co.uk/news/abelli...hange-release/

Abellio Surrey from 31 December 2016 intends making changes to two
services run on a commercial basis. Service 446
(Woking to Heathrow Terminal 5) is to be withdrawn between Staines and
Heathrow and service 461 (Kingston to Staines) is to be withdrawn
between Addlestone and Staines.

At the same time, Abellio has sought to be released from county council
contracts for nine services that are subsidised by the council, none of
which are part of the ongoing Local Transport Review.

These a 81 Woking-Barnsbury Estate (Sundays only), 436
Woking-Brooklands (Sundays only), 458 Kingston-Staines, 514
Kingston-Addlestone, 515 Kingston-Guildford, 555 Heathrow-Hersham,
556/557 Woking-Chertsey/Sunbury and 663 Walton on Thames to Esher High
School.
==
No reasons are known to me.

It's probably because the profits from those services are too high.
--
Roland Perry

"Michael R N Dolbear" wrote in message
...
Press release 02 September 2016
http://www.abellio.co.uk/news/abelli...hange-release/

Abellio Surrey from 31 December 2016 intends making changes to two
services run on a commercial basis. Service 446
(Woking to Heathrow Terminal 5) is to be withdrawn between Staines and
Heathrow and service 461 (Kingston to Staines) is to be withdrawn between
Addlestone and Staines.

I lived in Woking for 10 years and traveled to Heathrow frequently in that
time

and I never knew that there was a "normal" bus that did the route :-)

(If I missed the Rail-Air bus when they were in the hourly part of the
schedule I got the Walton bus and completed the journey on the train)

tim






---
This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software.
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Nice one, sir. Very dry.

On Thu, 22 Sep 2016 17:44:41 +0100, "tim..."
wrote:


"Recliner" wrote in message
...
tim... wrote:

"Recliner" wrote in message
...
tim... wrote:

"Robin9" wrote in message
...



Another point you seem to be overlooking is that Uber
now find it necessary to advertise regularly for drivers on
LBC and on the Internet. Why do they? Almost certainly
because they are losing drivers. If drivers are being
subsidised and/or paid 80% of the fare paid, why are they
leaving Uber? Why do so many phone-in programs on the
radio have drivers complain that they can't make a living
working with Uber?

Because they aren't subsidising London anymore.

It is now a mature market (FSVO).

It is (subset of) RoW that gets the subsidies.

Here's another part of the Uber business model: leasing cars to drivers.
It's not quite a subsidy, but it looks like Uber just about breaks even
on
it. It's another way of maximising the supply of drivers, many of whom
are
immigrants without enough credit history to buy new enough cars
themselves:


http://www.cnbc.com/2016/06/07/uber-...-industry.html


The simple solution to that is not to insist on such a ridiculously high
spec car (as I have read that they do)

it is cheap and cheerful taxi service FFS, not a limousine service

What's wrong with a 5 year old Mondeo?

Uber started up as a limo service. The later UberX introduced cheaper
cars,
but the idea is still that they're clean and new.

and of a minimum size (4 , not 3 passengers) and an up market brand,

Well, cars like the Toyota Prius are allowed. That seems to be the
preferred choice of other mini cab firms.

"tim..." wrote

"Michael R N Dolbear" wrote

Press release 02 September 2016
http://www.abellio.co.uk/news/abelli...hange-release/

Abellio Surrey from 31 December 2016 intends making changes to two
services run on a commercial basis. Service 446
(Woking to Heathrow Terminal 5) is to be withdrawn between Staines and
Heathrow and service 461 (Kingston to Staines) is to be withdrawn between
Addlestone and Staines.

.. I lived in Woking for 10 years and traveled to Heathrow frequently in
that time
.. and I never knew that there was a "normal" bus that did the route :-)

..(If I missed the Rail-Air bus when they were in the hourly part of the
..schedule I got the Walton bus and completed the journey on the train)


Back then there wasn't, the extension of the 446 from Staines to Heathrow
and the 557 from Chertsey to Woking were quite recent (after the opening of
Terminal 5).


--
Mike D

"Roland Perry" wrote

==
No reasons are known to me.

It's probably because the profits from those services are too high.

Ho Ho.

But why sign a contract and then ask to be let off early ?


--
Mike D

In message , at 00:21:39 on Sun, 25
Sep 2016, Michael R N Dolbear remarked:

It's probably because the profits from those services are too high.

Ho Ho.

But why sign a contract and then ask to be let off early ?

Because you misquoted the price, and have second thoughts?
--
Roland Perry

"Paul Corfield" wrote i

On Mon, 19 Sep 2016 16:23:04 +0100, "Michael R N Dolbear" wrote:

Press release 02 September 2016
http://www.abellio.co.uk/news/abelli...hange-release/

At the same time, Abellio has sought to be released from county council
contracts for nine services that are subsidised by the council, none of
which are part of the ongoing Local Transport Review.

These {include} 458 Kingston-Staines, 514 Kingston-Addlestone, 515
Kingston-Guildford, 555 Heathrow-Hersham,
==
No reasons are known to me.

There was a BBC Radio Surrey interview with a rep from the bus user
group and from Surrey CC a few weeks ago.

You can guess what the bus user rep wanted. The man from SCC was not
sympathetic. He said cuts to date had all been very marginal and that
SCC had been in discussion with Abellio for months. Tellingly he said
the Council had already made extra interim payments to Abellio to
"keep them going". This rather suggests to me that something's gone
badly awry somewhere - costs, revenues, ridership. Several of the
routes in question have been moved off clockface timetables to help
reliability but once people can't easily remember when the bus is due
they stop using them. We have the same issues now on a small number
of TfL routes where run times became unsustainable so buses are every
65, 70, 80 or 90 minutes.

I've also seen a suggestion that funding from HAL may have been
reduced or simply declined as was intended and this has imperiled some
of the routes into Heathrow from Surrey. Any way round it doesn't
look very hopeful at all. In more "financially flush" times you might
seen TfL do something about the Portsmouth Rd corridor out to Esher or
even the bits of the 514/5 around Thames Ditton / West Molesey but not
now.

Thanks for the tip, my Googling kept getting hung up on last March's
consultation.

https://twitter.com/nwsurreybug gives NW Surrey Bus Users �@nwsurreybug Sep
21

Danny Pike, {Wed} 21/09/2016 http://bbc.in/2ck5MXl NWSBUG Chair in
discussion about upcoming Abellio Surrey cuts. 8 min item starts 10 mins in.

And BBC iPlayer Radio finds it

As to reasons, the timetable changes of 9 April 2016 can't have helped nor
the mechanical breakdowns and as you say BAA/HAL may have withdrawn support
of the 555. Not sure about the industrial action.

--
Mike D

"Michael R N Dolbear" wrote

On Mon, 19 Sep 2016 16:23:04 +0100, "Michael R N Dolbear" wrote:

Press release 02 September 2016
http://www.abellio.co.uk/news/abelli...hange-release/

At the same time, Abellio has sought to be released from county council
contracts for nine services that are subsidised by the council, none of
which are part of the ongoing Local Transport Review.

As to reasons, the timetable changes of 9 April 2016 can't have helped nor
the mechanical breakdowns and as you say BAA/HAL may have withdrawn support
of the 555. Not sure about the industrial action.

Just to update

https://www.surreycc.gov.uk/roads-an...etable-changes
https://www.surreycc.gov.uk/roads-an...-december-2016

Surrey have contracted for replacement services from a number of operators,
are paying more than at present and have had to accept frequency reduction
from 2 per hour to hourly on the 555 and 458. On the bright side clockface
timetables have returned.

So from 31 December 2016 bus spotters will be able to see Hallmark , First
Berkshire, Stagecoach in Hants and Surrey and Cardinal regular services in
North Surrey inside the M25.

--
Mike D