Romania 2023

In early October 2023, the opportunity arose to take a road trip through central Romania from Bucharest in the south, north through Transylvania, Moldavia and Bukovina. Public transport information on major cities/towns is readily available on line for pre-planning and use a similar online format including comprehensive timetables, route maps and ticketing arrangements. However, the smaller towns have little information and timetables are focused towards the local populations. Transport interchanges and bus stations are easily found using Google maps and street scene.

What was totally unexpected was the modern fleets of buses/trolleybus/trams. In Bucharest, Sibiu and Brasov, major investment in recent years, and still ongoing investment, has seen large fleets of non-fossil fuel vehicles delivered. A great deal of the funding required comes from central government and the EU.

Despite traffic being a major problem throughout the country, cities suffer congestion throughout the day and traffic heading out of town at weekends cause miles of queues, local public transport is popular with heavy loads observed throughout the day and evening.

Romania is a country well worth a visit: beyond the public transport there is wonderful history, architecture and scenery. Not forgetting the food, wine and beer.          

SC Tursib SA, Sibiu. SB 03TSB, fleet number 804, TEMSA LD 12 SB, new in 2022. Sitting between journeys in front of the overhead recharging point at Sibiu station - note the bicycle rack being towed. SC Tursib SA have a modern depot six kilometres from the city centre, close to the airport on Strada Munchen 1, in the Vest Industrial Zone. The company currently operate 148 vehicles. 119 new buses have been purchased in the last three years.

SC Tursib SA, Sibiu. SB 46SBT, fleet number 223, Anadolu Isuzu Citiport 12. Built in 2017, entered service in 2020. Approaching the Zidul Cetatii stop (the old walls) on a route 5 outward journey, the high frequency route has a 10-minute morning peak and 15-minute daytime headway.

SC Tursib SA, Sibiu. SB25SBT, fleet number 309, Menarinibus Citymood 18 II. Built in 2018, entered service 2020. SC Tursib SA operate 17 of these vehicles, although on a Sunday this was the only one that appeared to be operating. The only other articulated bus seen on that day was one of the recently delivered CNG powered Mercedes Benz. Photographed departing Zidul Cetatii with a standing load.

SC Tursib SA, Sibiu. SB 12SBT, fleet number 906, Solaris Urbino IV 12 electric, new in 2022. Photographed at the recharging point outside the central railway station, having just released the roof mounted pantograph. The bus was about to depart on service 5 between Valea Aurie and Gara with a 10-minute peak headway reducing to 15 minutes in the off peak.

SC Tursib SA, Sibiu. SB 70TSB, fleet number 129, Mercedes-Benz Conecto III NGT., new in 2021. Entered service May 2022. Photographed on Bulevardul Victoriei returning to the city centre.

SC Tursib SA, Sibiu. SB 74SBT, fleet number 902, Karsan Jest electric new in 2021. Operating a loop through the historic centre of Sibiu, the minibuses can carry 21 passengers, 10 of them seated. Two recharging points are located opposite the railway station entrance on Piaţa Gării (Train Station’s Square). The charging points look similar to those used for recharging cars and the buses park nose into the pavement, this facility allows for greater utilization throughout the day without the need to return to the depot.  

STB SA, Bucharest. B 03826, fleet number 5321, Astra Irisbus Citelis 12T, built 2007. Route 69 operates from Valea Argeșului Metro station via the university to Baicului. During the late evening this route still has seven buses per hour. Bucharest will receive 100 new Solaris trolleybuses in 2024.

STB SA, Bucharest. B 635STB, fleet number 6635, Otokar Kent C12, new in 2019. Operating route 368 Valea Oltului  to Piata Romana, the peak vehicle requirements being between 06.00-07.00 hours and 19.00 to 21.00 hours. Photographed passing the Parcul Ateneului Park and Garden. STB SA has 320 Otokar Kents in service.

STB SA, Bucharest. B 703PMB, fleet number 7003, Mercedes-Benz Citaro C2 hybrid, new 2020. Route 205 operates north from the old town to Straulesti. Photographed passing the National Museum of Art. The Bucharest Transport Company (STB, Societatea De Transport Bucuresti) was formed on the 13th of September, 2018 after a reorganisation of the financial structure of its predecessor RATB.

RATBV SA, Brasov. Left: BV 18FIP, fleet number 820, Menarinibus Citymood 18I, new in 2019. Right: BV 01514, fleet number 2025, Solaris Trollino IV 18 Škoda, new in 2020, currently 26 are in operation. Photographed in the Castel Bus Station, a large interchange with eight stands.

RATBV SA, Brasov.  BV 22TOC, Karsan e-ATA 18, new 2022. There are currently 12 in operation. Photographed negotiating the roundabout at Nicolar Titulescu Park on route 5 towards Roman.

RATBV SA, Brasov.  BV 19WEL, fleet number 2132, SOR EBN 8, new 2021. There are currently 10 in service.  These buses are 8m in length, seating 16, fitted with Winston Battery / Lithium-ion with a capacity of 172 kWh. Departing Castel Bus Station on route 50, heading south west to the hills and beauty spot of Solomon's Stones Spring.

RATBV SA, Brasov. BV 01483, fleet number 2003, Solaris Trollino IV 18 Škoda, new 2020. One of 26 in service. Departing Castel Bus Station on trolleybus route 6 towards Saturn, a large bus station south east of the city. Shortly after departing the city centre the trolleybus reverts to overhead power.

RATBV SA, Brasov. BV 20FYS, fleet number 2179, Mercedes-Benz Citaro C2 hybrid, new 2021. Photographed on stand in Castel Bus Station, about to depart on route 28 to IAR Ghimbav, an industrial estate and airfield north of the city centre served only at peak times. The service normally terminates at Fundaturii a couple of kilometres short of the airfield.

SC Transport Local SA, Târgu Mureş. MS 82TGM fleet number 109, BMC Procity 12, new 2021. Currently 20 in service.

SC Transport Local SA, Târgu Mureş. MS 83TLM, fleet number 83, Mercedes-Benz O405G, new in 1997. Arrived into the fleet in 2020 from SC Siletina Impex SRL where it was registered MS 41 TLS having been in their fleet since 2016. Delivered new to RBS Regionalcenter Lauda, Stuttgart, Germany as S-RS 738 in October 1997. Sold in July 2012 to Franz Scharnagel, Ansbach, Germany and registered AN-VA 612.

SC Transport Local SA, Târgu Mureş. MS 19 TGM, fleet number 201, Solaris Urbino IV 12 Electric, new in 2022. The city has 32 in service. Route 20 is a convoluted cross city service with a 15-minute headway between 05.00 and 22.15 hrs. The city of Târgu Mureş has a population of 116,000 located in the Transylvania region of central Romania.

SC Apă Termic Transport SA, Sighișoara. MS 38 ATT Mercedes-Benz O530 Citaro, built 2004, arrived in Sighișoara 2020. New to Verkehrsbetriebe Brandenburg an der Havel GmbH as BRB-VK 134. SC Apă Termic Transport SA currently operate 18 vehicles of which 14 are second hand. Despite the number displayed in the windscreen this bus appears to be on route 1. The town has two routes numbered 1 and 2 which both do variations throughout the day. Route 1 has eighteen variations and route 2 twenty variations plus a more regular route listed as ‘Baragan Bus Schedule’.

BMC Romania has its import centre in the north of Bucharest at Ciorogarla, importing two models, the Procity and Neocity.  100 new BMC electric buses will start running in Bucharest by the end of 2023. The first batch of 51 buses arrived in the port of Constanta in October 2023 with the rest scheduled to be delivered in November. The buses are 12 meters long and have a range of at least 200 km between charges, and are produced in partnership with the Chinese company ZTE Smart Auto. Future production of the buses could start in Ciorogârla.

Gura Humorului, Romania. SV 22PGH, Karsan Atak electric, new in 2022. This is one of four acquired by the town. Photographed on route 2 heading towards Voroneț. Gura Humorului is a small town of approximately 17,000 inhabitants located in the north of Romania some 60 kms south of the Ukraine border.

SC Troleibuzul SA, Piatra Neamț. On the left, NT 48TPN, Irisbus Crossway LE 10.8M, new in 2012 to Arriva Lelystad as 85-BBB-4. Purchased by SC Troleibuzul in 2022. On the right, an Isuzu Novociti from 2018. Much of the town centre is undergoing major road works with most bus services being on divert. Piatra Neamț is the capital city of Neamț County, in Western Moldavia the north eastern area of Romania.

SC Transmixt SA, Bistrița. On the right, B 158TMX, Güleryüz Ecoline 12, new in 2016. On the left, BN 09 TMX, Irisbus Crossway 12.8M, new in October 2023. The buses converge on the roundabout at Calea Moldovei and Strada Nasaudului.

SC Transmixt SA, Bistrița. BN 04TMX, Mercedes-Benz O530 Citaro, new in 2003. Arrived into the fleet February 2018. New to Havelbus Verkehrsgesellschaft mbH, Potsdam, Germany as P-AV 340. Later became PM-RB 340 at Regiobus, Potsdam Mittelmark GmbH before joining SC Transmixt SA. 

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The Maritimes: Nova Scotia.

Acadian Lines 205, MCI 102-A3 in the Antigonish terminal adjacent to Highway 4 at 53 James St, 160 kilometres northeast of Halifax. Antigonish has a population of 4,656.

The Atlantic coast of Nova Scotia, Canada has weather conditions at the best of times described as changeable, however, in 2023 it was more biblical. As we stood at the bus stop, rain lashed down whilst just a few miles away and in the direct line of our bus route, wild fires raged. Having booked and paid for a pick-up (Coach Atlantic requires a minimum three hours’ booking notice), we had little choice but to travel. The omens were good, as our Ford E450 cutaway arrived on time from Lunenburg, having made an intermediate stop in Bridgewater. The service joined highway 103 for the remainder of the journey into Halifax, making just one stop on route at the Valerie Avenue car sharing park adjacent to the highway. On approach to the Halifax suburbs, the driver received a State Government warning message on his mobile devise advising him of impending road closures due to the proximity of the wild fires. Over the previous few days, we had become used to these messages appearing on tv screens and mobile phones: they let out a loud klaxon sound followed by the screen turning red and a warning message. The highway remained open for us, although the junctions off were closed and we soon arrived at the first city centre stop, a large edge of town shopping centre. Next stop, rather unusually, was the car park of a drive through burger restaurant, followed by the hospital and finally to the downtown terminus on Hollis Street, adjacent to the Via Rail station. In four decades of travelling this route, 2023 was exceptional although passenger transport in this part of Canada has seen its fair share of trials and tribulations.  

 

Left: Acadian Lines, a 1989 MCI MC-9 Special. Acadian had exclusive rights to operate on condition that the more profitable routes would subsidize the less profitable ones. Prince Edward Island had no regulations over the service, but in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, it could take five to eight months to get permission for a fare or route change. In 2010 it applied to reduce service between Sydney and Halifax from three trips a day to two, its 51-seat coaches were carrying an average of 12 people. Right: Acadian Lines 205. MCI 102-A3 on highway 4 heading towards Cape Breton Island.
   

In August 1938 Nova Scotia Coach Lines, a division of United Service Corporation of Halifax, was formed. It was renamed Acadian Coach Lines in 1947. The coach company provided intercity and charter service within the province of Nova Scotia. In December 1955, Acadian Lines was purchased from United Service Corporation by George C. Thompson, Ralph A. Pepper, and Gordon H. Thompson. Expansion followed with the purchase of the bus operations of Fleetlines Limited of Halifax and Highland Lines of Sydney, the largest urban area on Cape Breton Island. Other associated companies have included including Acadian Travel Agency, Wagner Tours and McKenzie Bus Lines. By December 1995, the Irving Transportation Group subsidiary SMT (Eastern) had acquired Acadian Lines and its charter coach subsidiary Nova Charter Services. SMT (Eastern) Ltd was established in 1937 by K.C. Irving.

MacKenzie Bus Line No.30 MCI MC-5B at Lunenburg. MacKenzie Bus Line was a coach operator based in Bridgewater, Nova Scotia beginning operations in 1933 by transporting residents to and from Halifax. During the war years, there was a lack of available housing in Halifax and people moved to the surrounding area and Mackenzie’s thrived - in its heyday, carrying up to 100,000 passengers a year. A garage was established on York Street, Bridgewater: this was a former WWII aircraft hangar transferred from the north shore region of Annapolis Valley by means of a flatbed truck. In addition to the route from Halifax, the buses also ran between Bridgewater, Crescent Beach, Petite Riviere, as well as Riverport, Lunenburg, Mahone Bay, Hubbards, and Peggy's Cove. Unfortunately, by the early 1990s, low ridership eventually forced the company to discontinue its services along Nova Scotia's south shore between Halifax and Yarmouth via Bridgewater and ceased operations in 1998. De-licencing of the schedule service was granted by the Nova Scotia Government on September 23rd 1998. A short-term replacement was granted to DRL Coachlines Ltd.

By 2003 Acadian Lines now based in Moncton, New Brunswick operated intercity bus service between New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia. However, in 2004 Acadian Lines, now the largest intercity bus service in the Maritimes, once again changed ownership, being purchased by Orléans Express an intercity and charter coach operator based in Montréal, Québec, a subsidiary of Keolis Canada (formerly Groupe Orléans). In September 2009 Groupe Orléans reorganized and in August 2012, it was announced Acadian Lines would shut down as it was no longer deemed profitable, the company losing $12 million since the acquisition in 2004 and having recently seen 59 drivers, maintenance staff and customer agents vote to strike. Provincial statistics show that in 2009, 171,000 passengers were carried, down from 500,000 in 1986. By 2011, the numbers were down to 148,000. The last day of operations was November 30, 2012 with a loss of 120 jobs.

Left :Nova Charter Services 4763, MCI 102 C3 resting in downtown Halifax. Right: Nova Charter 4726, MCI MC9. Photographed at the Alexander Graham Bell National Historic Site, Baddeck, Cape Breton Island. Once a major destination for coach tours, locals now blame deteriorating roads on the Island for the lack of visitors.    

The next chapter of bus and coach operations in Nova Scotia would begin with Mike Cassidy, owner of Trius Tours in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, introducing the Maritime Bus brand on the 1st December 2012, picking up the services and promising a seamless transition. Trius Tours operate under various brands; Coach Atlantic; Prince Edward Tours; Gray Line and T3 (Take Transit Today) for local services in Charlottetown, Cornwall, Stratford, and Summerside, all on Prince Edward Island. Trius Tours was started by George Brookins in 1986. On April 1, 2005, Mike Cassidy and Bill Keith purchased Trius Tours from Brookins for $500,000. Keith soon sold his shares to Cassidy.  Brookins was hired as general manager. However, not all has been plain sailing and in 2010 Brookins was found guilty of defrauding the company of $203,728.90. 

SMT (Eastern) 4803, Setra S215 HDH waiting at the Caribou Ferry terminal on route Prince Edward Island. Before the opening of Confederation Bridge in 1997 this was one of two ferry crossings - the other being at Cape Tormentine closer to New Brunswick. 

During September 2019 Dennis Campbell, proprietor of Absolute Charters, sold out to Mike Cassidy. Mike Cassidy’s Group had a record year in 2019 with revenues reaching almost $45 million. The company had a fleet of 275 vehicles and employed 515 people across the Atlantic Maritimes. In April that year, the company carried 19,000 passengers. A year later, when Covid struck it carried only 650 people during the same month. Both 2020 and 2021 were disastrous for the Group, financial losses were reported of $33 million in 2020 and $25 million in 2021 as Transport Canada enforced a Covid cruise ship ban in the Maritimes. Things were looking up in May 2022 as Cassidy signed a contract with Prevost for the supply of 50 Prevost H3-45 coaches over a five-year period. In June 2022, 10 Prevost H3-45 were delivered. 

Left: Maritimebus Ford truck cutaway conversion photographed at the Catholic Church of St. Peter on Prince Edward Island, June 2015. The church stands next to the Confederation Bridge view point. The world's largest bridge over icy waters opened in 1997 joining Prince Edward Island to New Brunswick. Right: Coach Atlantic PR49187 a Ford cutaway at the Halifax terminal awaits the author for the return journey to Lunenburg. The service still operated a Covid timetable of three return journeys a week, although this was due to increase to five from July 2023. Two semi-retired drivers alternate week about to cover the service.   

In June 2023, we found Nova Scotia much quieter than previous occasions and compared to the 1980s and 1990s the range of express services and excursions on offer were greatly reduced. The focus is now on cruise ship passengers. 

Left: Ambassatours, seventy-four seat Van Hool Astromega photographed June 2019 at the Fisheries Museum of the Atlantic in Lunenburg. For visitors staying in the capital, Halifax, this is a popular destination as part of “Nova Scotia South Shore in a day” excursion. Right: Trius Tours Ltd 809, Setra S417 C56Ft fitted with Detroit Diesel Series 60 engine. The Company was founded in 1986 and is now part of the Coach Atlantic Group. Photographed at Peggy’s Cove information centre, rather than using the coach park at the lighthouse.

Left: Coach Atlantic 1901, MCI J4500 photographed June 2019. Maritime Bus does C$42 million in total sales, half of that is related to cruise ships and multi-day tours. Peggy’s Cove, just a short drive from Halifax, is the most popular destination for day tours with the coach park at the highest point, next to the lighthouse. Right: Absolute Charters 2006, MCI J4300. Absolute Charters (Ambassatours) had a temporary licence for twelve full size coaches between September and October 2018 providing services for cruise ship passengers. 2006 waits on the quay at the Fisheries Museum of the Atlantic in Lunenburg adorned with a livery depicting various sights along the South Shore.

Left: Coach Atlantic 1924, Prevost H3-45 dating from 2019. Photographed in a very wet downtown Halifax, having departed the Hollis Street terminus. 

Right: Coach Atlantic 1024 a Prevost X3-45 on the stand at the Halifax Terminal, 1161 Hollis Street, awaits passengers for the 3pm bound departure to Sydney, Cape Breton Island. 

Left: Rear view of Coach Atlantic 2030, Prevost H3-45. On route from Lunenburg to Halifax, passengers get the opportunity to visit Amos Pewter and take a stroll around Mahone Bay. Right: Trius Tours Prevost H Series in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island. Covid proved a difficult time for the company. In Charlottetown where Maritime Bus has its depot, there were around 30 buses parked-up between early November 2019 and April 2021.

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Southampton, First departure.

Saturday 18th February 2023 saw the final day of operations by First Bus in Southampton, it removed the last vestiges of what had been Southampton Corporation Transport, admittedly now in a very sorry state. The occasion begs the question, does Southampton get the bus service it deserves?

Can the foundations of Saturday the 18th be found back in deregulation or even earlier. The council in Southampton has ebbed and flowed in its support for public transport and the associated infrastructure. In early 1970s to great fanfare, a major bus priority scheme was introduced from the eastern edge of the city all the way to Six Dials, just a short distance from the city centre. This turned out to be the last major support for public transport by the council and today all that remains of this scheme are a few traffic light priority measures. Subsequent attempts to introduce bus lanes or priority schemes have meet with resistance from council members. Only the bus gate at the cenotaph and a short stretch of the Avenue shows any initiative by the council to accommodate buses. In recent decades the city centre has undergone major redevelopment, however no provision was made for a central bus station, but 16,450 parking spaces were created, 6790 of those managed directly by the council. The metrics used by the council in their transport policy, place the city as the cheapest place to park compared to other in the table.    

The Corporation invested heavily in new buses at the end of WW2 after which a gap occurred until the mid-sixty’s and continued with Atlanteans to facilitate OMO operations, this left an aging fleet at the time of deregulation and ultimately for the staff buyout.

An unfortunate set of circumstances within the transport department management structure at a vital point just ahead of deregulation helped exacerbate the situation. Mr Armstrong had retired as general manager and Bill Lewis was promoted into the post. He became a vocal opponent to bus deregulation and resigned from the general managers post. John Owen was traffic manager, he would shortly take up the post of general manager of Thamesdown, in so doing would remain with the local authority operator until retirement. Regrettably, other managers intrusted with planning for deregulation took their knowledge and formed a company to compete with their former employer, in so doing laid the foundations for what is now Bluestar. All of this left the council company in a weak position at deregulation and the decision to sale off the operation to an employee lead buyout proved eventually misguided. Insufficient funding and misguided expansion resulted in a vote to accept an offer for the business from First Bus. 

  

Initially First Bus appeared to have little enthusiasm for the business they purchased, in part this due to their desire for rapid expansion nationally. Gradually larger swathes of the city found itself without any bus service, despite many of the districts being densely populated and previously supporting a high frequency service. There was no attempt made by the council to rectify the situation and as a consequence the situation remains unchanged today. It has only been in recent years that First Bus has made any attempt to revitalise passenger numbers with a local branding for the network. However, rather than attempt to develop a more comprehensive network, they chose instead to compete with Bluestar on already well-established routes, something Bluestar themselves are guilty of. The council only supports the X12 between City Centre and Shirley, the X11 between Lordshill and the City Centre, and the three Bitterne Hoppas. Over the tenure of First Bus in Southampton the population has grown by 50,000, but passenger growth has been a mere 9% across all operators.   

The laissez faire attitude of the council towards public transport looks set to continue. Their future transport policy until 2040 gives greater weight towards walking and cycling, unless you believe their ‘aspiration’ to introduce a mass transit system. Those of us old enough will remember the 1970s headlines and graphics in the local paper proudly showing off the monorail that would run through the city centre. Grandiose statements by politicians are for their own desire create a legacy not benefit those they represent. However, there could be a bright future on the horizon in the form of Go Ahead Bluestar. Up until now Bluestar has worked hard to sustain its network and invest in their fleet, with no opposition this could be a great opportunity for both the operator and passengers in the city, provided no one ask the city council for support.    

Omnibusworld    

Bus awards, worthwhile?

 

It is very seldom that I respond to other blog post, but a recent post from Roger French in his excellent Bus & Train User ( https://busandtrainuser.com/ ) got my hackles up. Not the general content, which as usual was insightful, but the reference to industry awards and in particular UK Bus Awards.

In November 2022 Blackpool Transport won bus operator of the year, which in my experience must be one of the least deserving companies I can think of. As I said in my response to the article, on a recent visit the buses were dirty and the staff non responsive to the passenger. The whole attitude of industry awards is one I find perplexing, is the travelling public convinced by the bus and coach industry blowing its own trumpet.

The UK Bus Awards website states ‘Panels of industry experts are examining the entries and making their judgement’. This perhaps highlights the blinkered nature of those within the industry, unable to see the product from the outside, customers perspective. Or is it an indictment of the recruitment policy for senior management within the passenger transport industry. Where once recruits had enthusiasm for their chosen careers, today selection comes from anybody who has achieved a degree, regardless of the subject matter, a manager is a manager, be it buses or burgers.

It is unfair to single out Blackpool, over the years awards have been given to many operators/managers who in the world are less than outstanding. What I find more difficult to comprehend is the number of categories within these awards, twenty-one in 2022. Everybody stands a chance of winning something, some categories make little sense whilst others award achievements that in reality have minimum effect on society or the environment. Why for instance reward an operator for environmental achievement that may involve half-a-dozen vehicles in a town or city that sees perhaps a hundred operating. Is it right to award one London bus driver for their work when the majority are lacklustre, would it not be more appropriate to reward a training environment that improves the whole sector, something the travelling public might see the benefit of.

One thing is for certain, no one will stand up and denounce any of these industry awards all the time they stand a chance of winning. Puffed out chest and trumpet blowing win out every time.

    

Omnibus World