Issue 91 Spring 2014 Staff Newsletter of Thamesdown Transport Ltd

Update

continued on page 2 . . .

On 27 May Thamesdown Transport will be increasing daytime frequencies on two of its routes, Services 2 and 16, along with a number of other changes to its network. This follows on from the extension of Service 15 to Middle Wichel last month and the enhancement of certain evening services in January. The enhancements are a continuation of the Company’s policy of returning to a position of profitability by making incremental improvements to its commercial network and anticipating demand as a result of new building development.

Unfortunately, the May changes will also see the withdrawal of the Service 20 Saturday timetable which has not been

earning enough from bus fares to cover the cost of operation.

The proposed changes were put out to public consultation. Sixty-three people responded and T.T. replied individually to each respondent with a summary of the comments received and the Company’s response.

T.T.’s Managing Director, Paul Jenkins, told

Update: “I think the consultation has been a valuable exercise. In the light of the feed-back received, we have modified our plan for Service 16, which was going to call at all bus stops from 27 May. It will now only call at New College to pick up and set down, replacing Service 3. We have looked carefully at the loadings on Services 3 and 16, and whilst many Service 16 buses have spare seats available during the day to accommodate students, we will be putting extra buses on prior to 0900 and after 1600 to cope with peak hour loadings.

T.T. had also proposed to withdraw Service 24 – which, not surprisingly, attracted most comment. Paul Jenkins said: “We liaised with Swindon Borough Council (SBC) about the future of Service 20 on Saturdays, which runs from the bus station to Greenbridge Retail Park via Stratton, and Service 24 from Fleming Way to Blunsdon. We confirmed to SBC that we could no longer run these services on a commercial basis after 24 May because the revenue from passengers was not meeting the costs of operation, and forwarded all comments about these routes to the Council. Whilst SBC did not feel able to support the Saturday timetable on Service 20 they will be supporting Service 24 to Blundson on a new two-hourly frequency which will run via ASDA Walmart.”

The proposals for Services 2 and 19B and the withdrawal of Service 3 will go ahead as proposed (see summary on next page).

As well as seeking the views of borough and parish councillors, Thamesdown provided leaflets on its buses listing the proposed

Further incremental service enhancements reaffirm T.T.’s recovery plan

Thamesdown score a second-half goal against Stagecoach on 2 March. See page 7 for full story.

2 3

ReliabilityDuring the period 29 December 2013 to 31 March 2014 the Company operated 99.68% of its scheduled mileage. It’s punctuality during this period was 93.22%.

Managing Director, Paul Jenkins, commented: “We just missed our reliability target this quarter, with 0.32% of our mileage not operated against a target of 0.2%. Delays to our services caused by traffic congestion was the main reason for services not running, with road works causing us particular problems this quarter.

“Our punctuality was short of target for the same reason, with only 93.22% of services departing their origin point no more than five minutes late or one minute early, compared with our target of 95%.

“We will continue to liaise with the highway authority to try to minimise the impact of road works on the public transport network”.

WELCOMEUpdate welcomes the following staff who’ve joined or re-joined

Thamesdown Transport since the last edition and wishes them well

in their new jobs . . .Joshua Annetts, William Ashby,

Nicholas Banda, Mark Clifford, Mark Crannis, Paula Dawson, Uttam Gurung,

Gary Harvey, Frances Johns, Peter Johns, Douglas Lane, Robert Macharia,

Jason Moss, Martin Newman, Paul Paver, Dilbahadur Rana, Janet Rogers, Tomasz Rymwid-Mickiewicz and Jose

Rubio-Reyes

Alongside the selective fares increase on 27 April, Thamesdown launched a new ticket to encourage travel within Swindon in the evenings. At just £2.50, the new ‘EveningRider Plus’ is valid after 1900 any night of the week.

Explaining the reasons for introducing the new ticket, Paul Jenkins told Update: “The Evening Rider Plus is aimed at stimulating additional business on our evening services, which were

T.T. launches new ticket product alongside fares revision

strengthened earlier in the year with extra journeys on services 19 and 22.

“It is hoped that the opening of the new cinema at Regent Circus in October will signal the start of a resurgence in Swindon town centre’s evening economy and thereby increase the demand for bus travel. So not only are we putting on new services but targeting promotional fares as well.”

The main features of the fares revision were a 10p increase on single fares and the DayRider, and an increase in the price of the Young Person’s TravelPass. n

Thamesdown Transport has negotiated a rectification programme with Wrightbus following water ingress problems on the Company’s StreetLite vehicles.

A ‘float’ vehicle, registration SK63 GAA (Fleet No. 417), has been provided by the manufacturer to cover for vehicles when they go off for rectification at their maintenance facility in Wembley.

Head of Engineering, Dave Spencer, told Update: “The main problem is water ingress into the air-conditioning

StreetLite rectification work underwayunit. Because the unit housing is rigid, when the vehicle body flexes as it’s designed to do – especially when going round corners – this causes the seal between the unit and the vehicle body to break open, allowing water to get in.

“The manufacturer has recognised this to be a design flaw and has agreed to rectify the problem under warranty. We are sending one vehicle at a time to Wrightbus and anticipate that the rectification work will be completed by the end of June.”

The Company now has suggestion boxes in place at both Barnfield Road and The Parade to make it even easier for staff to feed-back.

If you have a question about any aspect of the Company and the way it is run, or wish to offer suggestions as to how we might improve what we do, you can either drop a note into one of the suggestion boxes or, if you prefer, you can e-mail s taff@thamesdown-transport .co.uk.

Suggestion boxes now in place

Please remember that Stored Value on smartcards can now only be used to purchase a paper ticket and not to add a Travelpass, Networkpass or Multi-Dayrider to the smartcard.

This follows numerous incidents where a pass was loaded onto the smartcard but no credit was deducted from the passenger’s stored value.

It is planned in due course to provide an on-line top-up facility instead for passengers who prefer to pay other than by cash. n

Important update on smartcard procedure

Nigel Kane with T.T.’s Employee Director Dave Hall on the first day of operation to the new Waitrose store at Middle Wichel

Phot

o by

Pau

l Jen

kins

Extension of 15 route to Middle Wichel lays the foundation for further recovery for T.T.

Incremental service enhancementscontinued from front page . . .

Service 2 will be enhanced to run every 12 minutes (currently every 15 minutes) on Mondays to Fridays, between 0745 and 1800.Service 3 will be withdrawn. Service 13 commuters will benefit from additional buses from Dorcan to Fleming Way at 1605 and 1705 on Mondays to Fridays following requests for return journeys from Murdock Road to match the outbound journeys in the morning. This will also assist in providing extra capacity for New College students in the afternoon.Service 15 Following separate feed-back from customers, T.T. will be extending some of the short workings between Nationwide and Fleming Way to provide extra journeys to Haydon Wick at 1704, 1724 and 1744 to cope with increased demand.Service 16 will be enhanced to run every 12 minutes instead of every 15 minutes on Mondays to Fridays, between 0630 and 1800, but will call only at New College to pick up and set down. Service 19/19A There will be a minor redistribution of running time between Link Centre and Sparcells to reflect actual operating conditions. Service 19B from Sparcells to New College, which runs on college days only, will run five minutes earlier from 27 May. Service 20 Saturday service will be withdrawn. There will be some revised times to improve timekeeping on Mondays to Fridays before 0900.Service 24 will be revised to run every two hours, with off-peak journeys via ASDA Walmart, supported by SBC.Service 25 will see extra journeys supported by SBC.

Thamesdown’s Managing Director, Paul Jenkins, told Update: “With the extension of Service 15 to Middle Wichel, we are ‘in at the ground floor’ in providing a bus service to what will become the centre of this substantial development, and we hope to increase the level of service to the area as the development proceeds.

“Wichelstowe is being designed to encourage the use of sustainable forms of transport and will be an increasingly important part of our strategy for growing the business. The existing bus stop is a

temporary terminus, and when the next building phase is complete we will be continuing on over the canal into the new District Centre.”

Swindon Borough Council’s own report on the development at Wichelstowe states: “The completion of the Waitrose store signals the start of development in Middle Wichel and the next phases of Wichelstowe. It is hoped that Waitrose will be a catalyst for the Middle Wichel District Centre, and that other commercial operators will come forward with firm interest in the development on the canal frontage opposite the new supermarket.”

The number of houses completed so far at Wichelstowe amounts to just one-fifth of the eventual development, and whilst the Waitrose store is currently surrounded by empty space, it is located in what will be the middle of the area earmarked for development.

“Once finished, Wichelstowe will be the equivalent of adding a town bigger than Devizes onto Swindon, and this will provide significant opportunities for us as a commercial business,” said Paul Jenkins. n

The extension of Service 15 to the new Waitrose store at Middle Wichel on 6 April marks the start of the next phase of the 4,500-home development on Swindon’s ‘front garden’.

Summary of the 27th May service changes

changes and there was coverage in the Swindon Advertiser inviting comments from the public. A feedback form was available on the T.T. website and staff also were invited to participate in the consultation.

“We recognised that these proposed changes will affect a large number of our passengers and thought it important to receive their views before finalising our plans,” said Paul Jenkins. “Hopefully, we can incorporate a period of stakeholder

consultation for all future major network changes.

“Further to what we said in the Winter Update, these changes are a continuation of our policy of enhancing our commercial operations. It is significant that in the past twelve months, we have increased the number of drivers (full-time equivalent) by eight. This is a clear indication that the journey of recovery to a profitable position by making the most efficient use of our existing fleet is well under way.”

4 5

As a child, my original ambition was to be a trolleybus driver in Reading but I was only 15 years old when they ceased operation in 1968. Whilst still at school – but with my sights still set firmly on a career in the transport industry – I started working part-time in the garage office at Smith’s Luxury Coaches in Reading, becoming full-time a year later. My responsibilities included rostering drivers for contract work, excursions and schools’ swimming trips, and although I was only the office junior, I also had to cover for the garage manager whenever he was off work.

In 1972, I took up a post in the accounts department of British Transport Hotels at Paddington where I was responsible for paying the invoices for all the food and drink taken on board the Midland Region restaurant cars. Promotion followed a year later, working in British Rail’s engineering training department where I organised training courses and accommodation for the apprentices.

In 1977 I joined the operations department at Western Region’s head office in Paddington, compiling statistics to help calculate the cost of operating goods and passenger trains. This led to further promotion to the finance department. I moved to Swindon in 1984 with the relocated Western Region HQ and became involved with various computer systems’ initiatives.

In 1989 I returned to my previous finance job and was promptly promoted into the investments department. About this time I became involved with setting up a database of the GWR pension fund members and pensioners. I also learnt book-keeping and was responsible for producing the annual accounts and getting them audited.

I was made redundant with the dissolution of the GWR pension funds in 1996, although my involvement with the rail industry continued on a temporary basis. One of my jobs was dealing with insurance claims both for and against Railtrack. One of those claims involved Thamesdown Transport when, in 1998, a Dennis

Dominator crashed into Whitehouse Road Railway Bridge, destroying the roof of the bus. I sent a bill for £2,500 to Thamesdown Transport to cover the costs of the bridge examination fee and for train delays.

In July 1999 I successfully applied for the job of Accident Investigation Manager. I’d only been in the job two months when, on 5 October, two trains collided at Ladbroke Grove killing 31 people. For the next nine months I was responsible for obtaining evidence for the Police, Public and Rail Inquiries that followed.

As a consequence of that accident, Railtrack and subsequently Network Rail were required to appoint full-time people to undertake formal inquiries and investigations. I volunteered for the job and, after training and passing the exams in 2001, I became one of three people appointed to this role on the Western Region.

However, in 2006, Network Rail decided to return to the old system of investigations and I decided that the time had come to take redundancy and try and get a job driving buses in Swindon.

Why did you choose bus driving?

Although I wasn’t able to follow my childhood ambition of being a trolleybus

driver, thirty-six years later I thought bus driving was the next best thing. I passed my test at the third attempt in March 2007 and the rest, as they say, is history!

You were nominated for the role of employee director by UNITE. Twelve months on, is the role what you expected it to be?

Yes, I’d been well-briefed by my predecessor, the late Bernie Beauchamp, so it’s roughly what I expected. I’m not there to discuss the day-to-day operational requirements; rather, my role is more involved with company policy and finance.

What qualities do you think you bring to the Board?

I’ve served the public transport industry all my life in a variety of roles, including middle management, and now as a bus driver. I believe that my experience enables me to better understand the issues facing the Company, especially in the current financial climate.

Do you feel your views help to shape Board decisions?

As employee director, I contribute to discussions from an employee perspective. I am able to make a valid contribution to

In spring last year Unite nominated Dave Hall as Employee Director. Update asked Dave to talk about his career and his role on the Thamesdown Board . . .

Thamesdown’s employee director, Dave Hall

I caught the No.22 bus at 8.06 on Okus Road on 7/1/14. The weather was awful and as a result the bus was severely held up by traffic. My young son was getting very irritable and the driver was very understanding. He tried to cheer him up by talking to him and singing (still concentrating on the road of course) which was much appreciated. Unfortunately, it didn’t work and I had to get my son out of his pushchair to calm him down. This meant I couldn’t get off the bus easily, so the driver got out and helped take the pushchair off the bus whilst I carried my son. I would like to praise the driver for being so helpful, it made a bad day much better.

Kind regards

Claire Higlett of Okus

I have used bus No. 12 this morning. The driver, Driver Hall 3, is a perfect gentleman; so polite and helpful. He lowered the platform – unusual – and deserves an award for kindness. I have been using the bus for seven years.Richard Hanley of Haydon End

I’d like to recommend Driver Bill Mortimore for his smiling way on bus 13 or 14.

Good bloke. Give him a raise!

Mr Alan Swinney of Rodbourne

May I say how nice it was to meet a driver that was not only tidy in appearance but also well mannered and helpful. As I am unable to walk that well, being a pensioner, he waited a little while until I reached the bus stop. I don’t know his full name, only that it was Steve.

So hoping that if you’re his boss, please say thank you.

Mrs Smith of Park North

CUSTOMER feedback

Dave with the book on Reading Trolleybuses which he had published in 1991. Another book followed seven

years later

the discussions that take place at Board level, and can also raise problems and give possible solutions to operational matters where necessary.

I can give an insight into how proposed changes to operating practices, or difficulties being faced by the company, would affect matters from both a staff and customer point of view, whilst also appreciating the issues from a management perspective. I think the ability to see both sides of the coin enables me to make valid contributions when discussing any policy changes or difficulties the Company is facing.

When I’m aware in advance that issues which could affect staff might be discussed, I will canvas opinion from employees whenever possible. For example, we have had some issues on the Taw Hill section of Route 15 where some of the local people do not want buses running through their estate as they considered the roads to be too narrow and dangerous. I asked a number of drivers for their views about driving through this area and presented a report to the Board.

To give another example, a driver suggested to me that route 18, which at the time ran one-way along Cranmore Avenue, should be reversed so that pensioners could carry their shopping home from Cavendish Square rather than travelling light the other way. I also suggested an alternative to that and although neither suggestion was adopted at the time, the route was amended in 2013 and now runs both ways along most of Cranmore Avenue, which solved the problem. The Board have also adopted my suggestion for introducing an ‘EveningRider’ ticket which starts on 27 May for a trial period.

What do you like most about your job as a bus driver?

I enjoy the freedom to get on with the job to the best of my ability without interference. The majority of passengers are friendly and I have built up a rapport with a number of them during my seven

years in the job. I also enjoy the banter and humour in the mess room – especially on Monday mornings when Reading FC have won and some of the big teams have had bad results.

. . . and least?

Impatient motorists who can see you are struggling to get around corners or trying to pull out from bus stops but will not give way. I also dislike people who have no manners.

What are your interests outside of work?

For all my adult life I’ve been very much involved with the British Trolleybus Society (formerly the Reading Trolleybus Society) for which I am archivist and webmaster. I serve on a panel that produces books on trolleybus histories. I also work at the Trolleybus Museum at Sandtoft, which is recognised as the largest operational trolleybus museum in the world. If I’m not having to work, on bank holiday open days I present film shows at the museum.

I’m a keen supporter of Reading Football Club and used to be a season ticket holder, but that’s no longer an option as shift work prevents me from getting to see a lot of the matches. I love most forms of music and have a comprehensive collection of music from the mid 1950s onwards. I also enjoy eating out at country pubs. Lastly, I enjoy travelling around Europe by train. n

6 7

Kev’s Transport Art Salisbury-born Kev Sheahan, who joined Thamesdown Transport as a fitter in 1990 from Hants and Dorset Motor Services, is arguably as talented with pen and brush as he is with a torque wrench.

Encouraged to draw and paint by his grandfather, William, Kev demonstrated a keen talent for art as a schoolboy, and this grew into a lifelong hobby.

Kev told Update: “I’ve always had an interest in transport and I’m also a keen photographer. Over the years I’ve taken lots of photos of old vehicles in scrapyards and then gone home and done drawings or paintings based on them.

“I set up Memory Art (more recently re-named Kev Sheahan Transport Art) in 1999 and started to get commissions to paint specific vehicles. Of course, I still draw and paint for my own pleasure and complete about 10-15 paintings a year.”

Kev’s subjects are mainly trucks and buses, and in 2001 he presented a

painting of a Dart to Thamesdown’s then Managing Director, John Owen. However, Kev’s portfolio also includes vintage cars, steam traction engines, steam locomotives, motorbikes, and canal boats; he has even done an atmospheric painting of Concorde.

“Each painting takes about three to four weeks to complete. I work in both watercolour and acrylic, and occasionally pen and black ink. Over the years, I must have done about 500 paintings and drawings.”

If you see a painting of a bus or truck on the wall of a company or for sale, you’ll know whether it is a genuine ‘Sheahan’ by looking for his trademark ‘three birds in flight’ in the sky.

Kev admits that he’d love to have his own gallery to display his artworks. He’s also hoping to get his own web site, so if anyone knows a reasonably priced web designer, please let him know. n

PHOTOS (clockwise from top left):

Kev with his painting of Thamesdown’s recovery truck (acrylic)

A preserved 1960 Metro Cammell Weymann Orion Highbridge Daimler UMR 112 (watercolour)

A Thamesdown Dominator (watercolour)

Kev’s own preserved ERF B-series tractor unit (acrylic)

A derelict Scammell tipper truck (black ink)

Thamesdown’s old Ford D2817 recovery truck at the old Corporation Street depot (black ink)

Hearing that staff at Swindon’s other main bus operator, Stagecoach, had put together a football team about a year ago, not to be outdone, Thamesdown driver Chris Pearson and a number of his colleagues thought it would be a good idea to challenge them to a game.

As Chris told Update: “We also thought it would help with fitness and we started training about five months ago. We already had a match fixture in the diary against Stagecoach – our first official eleven-a-side game – for Sunday 2 March. Then, when ex-Thamesdown driver, Colin Daley – who was also a keen Manchester United

5-4 win against Stagecoach sees Thamesdown off to a great start

fan – died in February aged 69, we agreed with Stagecoach that we would make the match a memorial game in Colin’s honour.”

Despite what turned out to be a particularly wet day, the game was keenly contested. At half-time, Thamesdown was 3-1 down but the lads rallied in the second half, going on to win 5 - 4.

A collection from spectators raised £67.85 on the day for The Prospect Hospice in Wroughton, who cared for Colin in his final weeks.

“I’m very pleased with the outcome,” said Chris. “We’ve come a very long way in a short space of time. Once we got into the rhythm of things we started to come out on top. I couldn’t have asked any more from the players.”

The 11-a-side squad is made up of a core of 15 Thamesdown staff, boosted by a handful of friends and family. When Update went to print, no further 11-a-side games had been played, although a match was being planned for 11 May

against the BMW factory where Colin Daley’s son works.

Chris told Update: “We were a bit late in the season to arrange any more 11-a-side fixtures but we hope to get some organised when the new season starts.

“Everyone is keen to carry on and we’ve been playing five-a-side matches in League One of the Swindon Futsal Tuesday League, and it’s going well. We train on Sunday evenings and play on Tuesday evenings.”

Thamesdown won their first Futsal match on 8 April 6-2 . . . against a team calling themselves Expected Toulouse! The other Futsal results when Update went to print were:

Thamesdown 7 : Priory 11 Thamesdown 2 : This Could Get Messi 4 Thamesdown 6 : Coombe Stallions 10

The Thamesdown FC team strip has been sponsored by the Company. n

Stagecoach’s captain, Duane Maslen, presents Chris Pearson with the

winner’s trophy

Phot

o by

Sha

ron

Rand

lePh

oto

by S

haro

n Ra

ndle

Update is the staff newsletter of Thamesdown Transport Ltd of Barnfield Road, Swindon, Wiltshire, SN2 2DJ

It is edited and designed by Dick Fancutt of Connect Business Publishing Services: Telephone 01635 845693 e-mail r.fancutt@ntlworld.comUpdate

£60 TO BE WON!!!Spot the ten differences between the two pictures below of the harbour side at Minehead and mark them on the right-hand picture. The sender of the first correct entry drawn from the hat wins £40. £10 goes to the first two runners-up. Only one entry per person. Entries to be sent to Damon Swatridge by 30 July 2014.

This competition is open only to staff of Thamesdown Transport and their immediate families.

Full NameJob Title/relationship to staff member

Congratulations to Keith Sharland whose correct solution to last edition’s Spot the Difference competition was first out of the hat to win him £40. Runners-up John Land and Kirsty Coward’s daughter, Linda, each win £10.

Sharon to get in the saddle for 100km overnight challengeThamesdown driver Sharon Randle will be joining 2,000 others in one of a series of women-only ‘Women V Cancer’ cycle challenges in aid of three British charities: Breast Cancer Care, Jo’s Cervical Cancer Trust and Ovarian Cancer Action.

Sharon will be cycling 100 kilometres through the night in London on Saturday 31 May, starting from Windsor Castle at 9 p.m.

So far Sharon has raised over £200. If you can spare some money for these good causes, you can sponsor her in person or donate via the following website: www.justgiving.com/womenvcancer-ridethenight/

All donations will be distributed equally between the three charities.

Good luck, Sharon.