Gatwick Fastway (Fantasy?)

Phase one of Gatwick Fastway, the £32m hi-tech guided bus scheme for
Crawley, Horley and Gatwick was apparently officially opened on Monday
1 September 2003.

Described as the 'faster, smarter way to travel', Fastway was
specially designed to speed past traffic congestion hotspots and
benefits from the latest intelligent transport systems (ITS)
technology.

The Phase One services operated between Bewbush in Crawley and Gatwick
North Terminal, 7 days a week, up to 20 hours a day. Adult fares on all
buses operated by Metrobus in the Crawley area, including Fastway, were
70p for a short hop or £1.10 for a longer journey. For further details
about Fastway services, contact 01293 449191. For general information,
contact 0800 3898 146.

Fastway vehicles travel along dedicated bus lanes and specially
constructed 'guideways'; purpose-built tracks formed of two
concrete running strips with raised kerbs on either side, which prevent
use by unauthorised traffic and provide an effective means for buses to
bypass traffic queues, without causing delay to other traffic. A
guidewheel mounted on the steering mechanism of the bus runs along the
face of the kerb, guiding the bus on its journey and resulting in a
smoother, faster ride.

The distinctive silver and blue vehicle livery makes the buses
'smart' [**] and easily recognisable and was developed in
consultation with local people.

The bus features dual doors; comfortable individual seating; full
wheelchair access and space inside for wheelchairs and pushchairs; CCTV
for passenger safety and driver awareness; and Real Time Passenger
Information. The Scania Ominicity vehicle selected by Metrobus for the
Fastway fleet was chosen following consultation with potential users
including commuters, schoolchildren and passengers with disabilities.

Fastway is the first service of its kind in the South East, the first
outside a major city, the first to serve a major international airport,
and the first to be developed by a number of local authorities working
with private-sector partners.

British Airways sees Fastway as a key contributor to achieving the
objectives, set in its Company Travel Plan, of addressing issues of
congestion and air quality through reducing dependence on the private
car generally and drive-alone commuting in particular. Fastway will
offer staff and passengers seeking to access Gatwick, from the areas it
serves, a very real and convenient alternative to the car.

Britsh Airways is part of the public-private partnership which has
developed the service. The other parners are West Sussex County
Council, Surrey County Council, Crawley Borough Council, Reigate &
Banstead Borough Council, BAA Gatwick, and Metrobus, the bus operating
subsidiary of public transport group Go-Ahead.

[** Hmm - excuse me - but what make a bus 'smart' if its painted silver
and blue. I've heard of smart computers etc., but not smart buses.
Perhaps they automatically kneel to help you get on board? And perhaps
they wish you a happy Christmas (or whatever) at holiday time. I wonder
if anyone has experienced a trip on this service. Are guided buses
successful? But then aren't all buses 'guided' being steered by a human
driver? Reminds me of the similar sounding pioneering 'busway' that
used to serve the Millemium White Elephant - those buses were steered
by human drivers too. So much for automation.]

"CJB" wrote in message
oups.com...

what make a bus 'smart' if its painted silver and blue.
I've heard of smart computers etc., but not smart buses.

If it was that smart, it would guide itself away from Crawley.

--
John Rowland - Spamtrapped
Transport Plans for the London Area, updated 2001
http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Acro...69/tpftla.html
A man's vehicle is a symbol of his manhood.
That's why my vehicle's the Piccadilly Line -
It's the size of a county and it comes every two and a half minutes

"CJB" wrote:

Hmm - excuse me - but what make a bus 'smart' if its painted silver
and blue. I've heard of smart computers etc., but not smart buses.


Assuming this wasn't a rhetorical questions, note definition 4 below:

smart (smärt) pronunciation
adj., smart·er, smart·est.

1.
1. Characterized by sharp quick thought; bright. See synonyms at
intelligent.
2. Amusingly clever; witty: a smart quip; a lively, smart conversation.
3. Impertinent; insolent: That's enough of your smart talk.
2. Energetic or quick in movement: a smart pace.
3. Canny and shrewd in dealings with others: a smart negotiator.
4. Fashionable; elegant: a smart suit; a smart restaurant; the smart set. See
synonyms at fashionable.

On Wed, 21 Dec 2005, Clark W. Griswold, Jr. wrote:

"CJB" wrote:

Hmm - excuse me - but what make a bus 'smart' if its painted silver and
blue. I've heard of smart computers etc., but not smart buses.

4. Fashionable; elegant: a smart suit; a smart restaurant; the smart
set. See synonyms at fashionable.

Funny you should mention that - i was looking at an Oyster ad on page 5 of
the latest London Pravda:

http://www.london.gov.uk/londoner/06...oner-jan06.pdf

Which, for those not wanting to DL and have a look at the PDF, looks like:



[picture of loose change]

Slower Messier Pricier

[picture of OYSTER CARD yay!!!]

Faster Smarter Cheaper



I'm used to seeing Oyster described as a smartcard, and thus, by
implication, smart, but i'd always assumed that referred to it having a
microchip, that famously intelligent component, in it - apparently, no,
it's smart because of those clean lines and elegant shades of blue.

Other particularly entertaining bits in the latest issue include the
letters, in which Ken basically says "I AM GREAT AND EVERYTHING THAT SUCKS
SUCKS BECAUSE PEOPLE DO NOT DO WHAT I SAY", and the whole of page 15,
which is dedicated to newts.

The one bright spot is on page 11, where there's a nice, if small, 3D
graphic of what Victoria will look like after they've built this new
ticket hall. The version in the PDF is pretty rubbish, but the one in
print is okay - interestingly, the Distric/Circle platforms are drawn not
as solid cylinders, like the deep platforms, but as boxes made of an open
mesh of struts. This is, of course, how they're built, but i was surprised
that they'd gone to the trouble of drawing them like that - does this mean
that the picture is derived from an engineering model?

tom

--
When you mentioned INSERT-MIND-INPUT ... did they look at you like this?

| [** Hmm - excuse me - but what make a bus 'smart' if its painted silver
| and blue. I've heard of smart computers etc., but not smart buses.
| Perhaps they automatically kneel to help you get on board? And perhaps
| they wish you a happy Christmas (or whatever) at holiday time. I wonder
| if anyone has experienced a trip on this service. Are guided buses
| successful? But then aren't all buses 'guided' being steered by a human
| driver? Reminds me of the similar sounding pioneering 'busway' that
| used to serve the Millemium White Elephant - those buses were steered
| by human drivers too. So much for automation.]

Hmm, yes. I went for a ride on one of these buses. It was a nice bus.
Admittedly I only made one trip, but I did wonder if there was much point in
all the hype. The amount of actual guideway seems very minimal, and by the
time the driver moved into place to get us on to the guideway, seconds later
we were off it again. All seemed like hype to me...


--
Keith Spink
InfoTransport (http://www.infotransport.co.uk)
Transport Images (http://www.transportimages.com)

CJB wrote:

Gatwick Fastway (Fantasy?)

Phase one of Gatwick Fastway, the £32m hi-tech guided bus scheme for
Crawley, Horley and Gatwick was apparently officially opened on Monday
1 September 2003.

Described as the 'faster, smarter way to travel', Fastway was
specially designed to speed past traffic congestion hotspots and
benefits from the latest intelligent transport systems (ITS)
technology.

The Phase One services operated between Bewbush in Crawley and Gatwick
North Terminal, 7 days a week, up to 20 hours a day. Adult fares on all
buses operated by Metrobus in the Crawley area, including Fastway, were
70p for a short hop or £1.10 for a longer journey. For further details
about Fastway services, contact 01293 449191. For general information,
contact 0800 3898 146.

Considering the success of London's flat fare system, it's surprising
that Metrobus Crawley has not followed suit.

Fastway vehicles travel along dedicated bus lanes and specially
constructed 'guideways'; purpose-built tracks formed of two
concrete running strips with raised kerbs on either side, which prevent
use by unauthorised traffic and provide an effective means for buses to
bypass traffic queues, without causing delay to other traffic. A
guidewheel mounted on the steering mechanism of the bus runs along the
face of the kerb, guiding the bus on its journey and resulting in a
smoother, faster ride.

That's interesting because the description matches that of an O-bahn.
Does this mean that the Adelaide O-bahn is no longer the only one in the
world?*

The success of Adelaide's O-bahn is due to its high speeds (reaching
100km/h in places) and most of the rest of the world's guided busways
are unsuccessful because they are slow. Is Gatwick Fastway actually
fast? Or is it just trying to trade on the image?


* As it has been since the Essen O-bahn closed.

--
Aidan Stanger
http://www.bettercrossrail.co.uk

Aidan Stanger wrote...
That's interesting because the description matches that of an O-bahn.
Does this mean that the Adelaide O-bahn is no longer the only one in the
world?*

It hasn't been the only one for some time:
http://www.garden.force9.co.uk/OBahn.htm
http://www.busesintl.com/July_2002.htm
http://www.firstgroup.com/ukbus/yorkhumber/bradford/qualitybus/qualitybusindex.php
http://www.campaignon.com/caseforrail/Busway%20Proposal/default.aspx
--
Martin Clark

Hi,

It is now flat fare and has been for some time. (£1.30 at present).

It is known locally as "Farceway" due to a several million pound overspend
which was not noticed for some time by those who should!

The second phase, via Three Bridges and Gatwick to Horley, opened Sept 2005
but the roadworks for that phase are still not complete, so the buses join
the jammed traffic caused by the roadworks!

There has been much opposition locally due to the traffic chaos caused by
the roadworks and the fact that the guided sections are all quite short so
are of little obvious benefit. Some of the bus drivers do not even use the
guided sections! It seems a pot of paint and bus lanes would have been much
cheaper and just as effective.

The service is not enhanced by having many of the "Real time signs" being
anything but. For instance, the one at Crawley bus station does not work at
all, the one in the main shopping street is stuck on 02.01 am, my local one
is about 7 hours ahead of real time. To be fair some of this is caused by
vandalism, but not all.

The system is generally well used as the route has a short cut compared to
normal buses so is normally quicker, but considering the vast amounts spent,
it could be a lot better.

Perhaps, one day, we may be free of roadworks in Crawley, although in many
cases they have converted perfectly seviceable roundabouts into sets of
traffic lights, slowing the traffic considerably, all of which were done in
the name of "Fastway"!

Rod

Martin Clark wrote:

Aidan Stanger wrote...
That's interesting because the description matches that of an O-bahn.
Does this mean that the Adelaide O-bahn is no longer the only one in the
world?*

It hasn't been the only one for some time:
http://www.garden.force9.co.uk/OBahn.htm
http://www.busesintl.com/July_2002.htm
http://www.firstgroup.com/ukbus/york...itybus/quality
busindex.php
http://www.campaignon.com/caseforrail/Busway%20Proposal/default.aspx

I'd forgotten about the W Yorkshire busways. I wasn't sure if they were
proper O-bahns or not, but looking at the pictures on the website it's
clear that they are. That means that the Adelaide O-bahn has never been
the only one in the world, as W Yorkshire got them before the Essen one
closed.

UIVMM the Ipswich one isn't proper O-bahns because the guidewheels are
not directly connected to the steering.

Have any of Britain's guided busway promoters yet figured out that
they'd be more successrful if the buses actually went fast.
--
Aidan Stanger
http://www.bettercrossrail.co.uk

In message , Aidan Stanger
writes
Martin Clark wrote:

Aidan Stanger wrote...
That's interesting because the description matches that of an O-bahn.
Does this mean that the Adelaide O-bahn is no longer the only one in the
world?*

It hasn't been the only one for some time:
http://www.garden.force9.co.uk/OBahn.htm
http://www.busesintl.com/July_2002.htm
http://www.firstgroup.com/ukbus/york...itybus/quality
busindex.php
http://www.campaignon.com/caseforrail/Busway%20Proposal/default.aspx

I'd forgotten about the W Yorkshire busways. I wasn't sure if they were
proper O-bahns or not, but looking at the pictures on the website it's
clear that they are. That means that the Adelaide O-bahn has never been
the only one in the world, as W Yorkshire got them before the Essen one
closed.
What happened to the Essen one? Was it converted to tramway or simply
abandoned? I always thought that Essen had several of them, too. Was
that not the case?

UIVMM the Ipswich one isn't proper O-bahns because the guidewheels are
not directly connected to the steering.
I can't quite get my head around this one. Could someone explain the
difference?

Have any of Britain's guided busway promoters yet figured out that
they'd be more successrful if the buses actually went fast.
The WMPTE Tracline 65 certainly could certainly go fast.
Unfortunately, it did so on a stretch of already fast and quiet dual
carriageway, so its benefit was more or less nil. It was supposed to
be the shape of things to come but never was, of course.

I've always though that the best place for the guided technology is
inside bus stations.
--
Ian Jelf, MITG
Birmingham, UK

Registered Blue Badge Tourist Guide for London and the Heart of England
http://www.bluebadge.demon.co.uk