Kenneally's Bus Service - Always late, but trying to fix it.

wmpdd3

The Ferrybank Community Newsletter asked for feedback on the current service, I dont think there was one positive reply.

I often take the bus, but the timetable is non existent.

The newsletter contacted the company directly and they replied in a timely manner.

STATEMENT FROM KENNEALLYS BUS SERVICES LTD
We are sorry to learn that many of our customers are very unhappy with
the service at the moment. We have been working on new ideas on how
to improve the service for everyone; however these have been proven to
be very challenging over the last 2 years.
In the last 2 years we have been meeting with local authorities in trying
to improve the traffic situation in Waterford which seems to be the main
issue at the moment with providing a reliable service. Unfortunately the
traffic situation has gotten worse with the introduction of the new layout
on the quays and also the introduction of more traffic light systems within
the Waterford area.
We have also applied to have a bus lane put in on the ferry bank
carriageway into Waterford, as this road seems to be the main problem in
the mornings when the traffic is at his heaviest between 8 am and 9 am.
We applied to see if a bus lane could be introduced in the mornings only
between 7 am and 10 am. At all other times normal traffic could use this
lane. Unfortunately this was rejected by authorities in Dublin.
We will continue to work with the local authorities to try and improve the
bus service on our routes around Waterford and the surrounding areas.
It is not acceptable for any driver to speak to any of our customers in an
unprofessional manner. Please report any driver to us who is acting in an
unprofessional manner. We have introduced a few new faces on these
routes over the last 3 months; I hope these drivers have been more
pleasant towards to our customers.
At the moment we are working on a new schedule to try and introduce
and more reliable and efficient service for our customers. We hope to
have this completed by September of this year. If you have any ideas or
comments about the new schedule then please let us know.


Alan Mackin
Transport Manager
Kenneallys Bus services Ltd.
Waterford.

It's a bad sign if a route like this with a bus lane most of the way can't keep to the time table.


http://www.raincloudwebdesign.com/Statement_Kenneallys_Bus_Service_Ltd.pdf

https://www.facebook.com/TheFerrybankCommunityNewsletter/timeline

TheQuietFella

To be fair to them how do you expect a bus driver to keep on time?
The constant 'archaeological digs' on Irish roads is a nightmare.
Some road users who view it as an inconvenience to allow you back
in to traffic. Elderly passengers who take forever to get to their seats and then to disembark the bus. I think all buses should be fitted with a siren and blue
flashing lights. That might move them along quicker!

deisemum

Their bus service is dreadful and very unreliable not just over the last 2 years.

obezyana

deisemum wrote: »

Their bus service is dreadful and very unreliable not just over the last 2 years.

I agree. I can remember years ago having to get that bus nearly everyday and it was hardly ever on time and that was before any works on the Quays or Dunmore rd. They provide a poor service and it comes across that they don't give a toss either.

Wanderer78

TheQuietFella wrote: »

To be fair to them how do you expect a bus driver to keep on time?
The constant 'archaeological digs' on Irish roads is a nightmare.
Some road users who view it as an inconvenience to allow you back
in to traffic. Elderly passengers who take forever to get to their seats and then to disembark the bus. I think all buses should be fitted with a siren and blue
flashing lights. That might move them along quicker!

hahaha i hear waterford whispers a calling

JourneyMan8

Iv been getting this bus for 15/16 years, always been fine, the time table is non-existent and always have, people that get the bus religiously know that. if you asked the busdriver when the bus was he'd always tell you every 20 minutes, and they were always good with them times. if you are following a time table then you are always going to be disappointed. 12/12.20/12.40 and repeat is the real timetable.

Wanderer78

JourneyMan8 wrote: »

Iv been getting this bus for 15/16 years, always been fine, the time table is non-existent and always have, people that get the bus religiously know that. if you asked the busdriver when the bus was he'd always tell you every 20 minutes, and they were always good with them times. if you are following a time table then you are always going to be disappointed. 12/12.20/12.40 and repeat is the real timetable.

hahaha very irish isnt it!

obezyana

JourneyMan8 wrote: »

Iv been getting this bus for 15/16 years, always been fine, the time table is non-existent and always have, people that get the bus religiously know that. if you asked the busdriver when the bus was he'd always tell you every 20 minutes, and they were always good with them times. if you are following a time table then you are always going to be disappointed. 12/12.20/12.40 and repeat is the real timetable.

But the timetable or lack of is the problem. Alot of the times the bus is more than 20mins between stops. Just because others are used to it doesent make it ok for the service to be so sporadic. When i did use it i always gave myself half an hour extra time just so id be on time to where i was going.

Wanderer78

obezyana wrote: »

But the timetable or lack of is the problem. Alot of the times the bus is more than 20mins between stops. Just because others are used to it doesent make it ok for the service to be so sporadic. When i did use it i always gave myself half an hour extra time just so id be on time to where i was going.

you d nearly walk the journey faster

obezyana

Wanderer78 wrote: »

you d nearly walk the journey faster

haha yeah thats true especially if you were heading out the dunmore rd at rush hour.

crazyman

Whatever about the bus not being on time, for a bus to turn around and not complete a route is not on.
Having a special needs sibling that works with the Brothers of Charity in Belmont, and uses this bus service everyday, I have experienced first hand how un reliable this service this. It is often that the journey has taken over 2 hours to get home (Cork Road) which includes a change of bus on the quay. On one occasion I rang the bus company to find out what there was such delays to be told that the bus to Slieverue was running so far behind time that it did a U-turn on the quay and went back the opposite way, and didn't go out to Slievrue at all.
For anyone this would be an inconvenience, but for a special needs person who we try and teach independence to this is unacceptable. These kids are routine driven and are instructed them never to wander from the routine, therefore they will stand at the bus stop for an extra hour until the next 'service' arrives, even if its pissing rain.

brendansmith

Currently back from overseas for Christmas in Waterford with my folks.
I said id take them out for dinner last night (Went to Harlequin...would recommend)
There was going to be wine etc so we decided we'd take the bus down.
I checked the timetable earlier in the day and was happy to see there was a bus at 4:35, another 20 mins later and another 20 minutes after that. 'What a great service' I thought to myself.

About 4:20 we headed to the bus stop and got there about 4:25. Better safe than sorry.
50 f'ing minutes we were standing there in the cold before a bus came.
What kind of trickery are Kenneallys at?
Why are they promising buses at times they have no ability to satisfy?
I doubt my parents will try the bus again for a long time and nor would I.
Very poor service.

The Bowling Alley

brendansmith wrote: »

Currently back from overseas for Christmas in Waterford with my folks.
I said id take them out for dinner last night (Went to Harlequin...would recommend)
There was going to be wine etc so we decided we'd take the bus down.
I checked the timetable earlier in the day and was happy to see there was a bus at 4:35, another 20 mins later and another 20 minutes after that. 'What a great service' I thought to myself.

About 4:20 we headed to the bus stop and got there about 4:25. Better safe than sorry.
50 f'ing minutes we were standing there in the cold before a bus came.
What kind of trickery are Kenneallys at?
Why are they promising buses at times they have no ability to satisfy?
I doubt my parents will try the bus again for a long time and nor would I.
Very poor service.

Are those timetables pre or post new quay lay out? Also, you have shire horses slowing the quay's traffic every 10 minutes - during an already manic period. They're pretty poor, but most bus services are at this time of the year.

deisemum

brendansmith wrote: »

Currently back from overseas for Christmas in Waterford with my folks.
I said id take them out for dinner last night (Went to Harlequin...would recommend)
There was going to be wine etc so we decided we'd take the bus down.
I checked the timetable earlier in the day and was happy to see there was a bus at 4:35, another 20 mins later and another 20 minutes after that. 'What a great service' I thought to myself.

About 4:20 we headed to the bus stop and got there about 4:25. Better safe than sorry.
50 f'ing minutes we were standing there in the cold before a bus came.
What kind of trickery are Kenneallys at?
Why are they promising buses at times they have no ability to satisfy?
I doubt my parents will try the bus again for a long time and nor would I.
Very poor service.

That's a typical wait time for the bus. I'd love to be able to take the bus into town but it's no longer an option as it's too unreliable and I'm not prepared to wait an average of 50 mins. anytime I foolishly think I'll take the bus.

TheQuietFella

It took me half an hour to get from Newtown School to The Mall during the week due to the volume of traffic on the roads across Waterford City.
Looking forward to see the new plans for the changes to the roads in the new
year. How though will people adapt to one way streets remains to be seen!

cookie.monster

TheQuietFella wrote: »

It took me half an hour to get from Newtown School to The Mall during the week due to the volume of traffic on the roads across Waterford City.
Looking forward to see the new plans for the changes to the roads in the new
year. How though will people adapt to one way streets remains to be seen!

their gonna have major problems in poleberry if they don't sort the flooding problems behind tesco, road was closed for near enough a week during storm desmond

kaef

It won't be any better as long as all routes are sticked to the Quay-Dunmore Rd. horror traffic. Sometimes drivers go around the People's Park to avoid traffic at the end of Dunmore Rd. In that case I always feel sorry for people who are waiting on People's Park stop

I don't understand why never tried to change route completely. For example: from the Rice Bridge up to the Glen (Revenue) then through Ballybricken, down the Patrick Street and continue on Lady Lane to the Bishops Palace. Then at the back of People's Park and enter Dunmore Rd by the DLS College/Newtown School.

It's extra 600m and saves at least 15mins if the Quay is full.

wmpdd3

I agree, but the quay was changed to promote public transport.
It's so bad now, even public transport would be better off on a different route.

I waited 30 mins for the bus at 8 pm the other night, I gave up and walked and the bus didn't even pass. I have no idea where it ended up.

There were 20 min delays getting to town from the Ferrybank side Christmas week so that didn't help, I'm sure the Dunmore rd was the same.

cookie.monster

wmpdd3 wrote: »

I agree, but the quay was changed to promote public transport.
It's so bad now, even public transport would be better off on a different route.

I waited 30 mins for the bus at 8 pm the other night, I gave up and walked and the bus didn't even pass. I have no idea where it ended up.

There were 20 min delays getting to town from the Ferrybank side Christmas week so that didn't help, I'm sure the Dunmore rd was the same.

it took the 3:30 tramore bus two hours to reach tramore last week

lassykk

But the quay looks well and that's all that matters. There's posters on here who literally care about nothing else other than how it looks. The fact that it is completely fails in traffic management and makes public transport impossible to use is irrelevant to them.

My brother gets the Kenneally's bus from the quay to Slieverue and he literally cannot be sure when he's going to get home. Before the layout of the quay changed it was far more consistent

cookie.monster

lassykk wrote: »

This post has been deleted.

all the city council want is for everyone to use by pass even though its out of the way for most people

lassykk

cookie.monster wrote: »

all the city council want is for everyone to use by pass even though its out of the way for most people

Be tough for my brother as there's no pedestrians allowed on the bypass and he doesn't drive

MRnotlob606

It's not just a problem with the private bus service, but also with Bus Eireann. Many a time I have waited for a bus that has not showed up.

It's like that feeling you get when you ask somebody out on a date but they fail to materialise.

Andersonisgod

Can't believe how bad this service is. Waited at 9 for the 9:05 bus from Ferrybank to town, no sign of the bus and 2 people who were waiting 10 minutes before me also hadn't seen a bus and were having a right rant at the service. Waited 10 minutes then all of us walked, as I was walking over the bridge saw the Slieverue bound bus on its way to Ferrybank.
Trying to leave town at 9:50, waited till 10:15 and again no bus except for the one that I saw originally saw going to Slieverue, now on its way to Ballygunner. I can only assume that there was 1 bus running this morning, as I walked to Ferrybank and passed the bus stop by Bus Eireann's bus garage I saw 4 people standing there, pointing and waiting for a bus to come from Slieverue that was never going to materialise. I didn't have the heart to tell them it'd be a full hour till they got sight of a bus.

Maybe JJ Kavanagh regularly only runs 1 bus on Saturday mornings and it's my mistake for not knowing. However I was certainly not the only person who was completely unaware of this, for some of these people it was a major inconvenience and just another example of a service which is neglected by it's operators and whose customers have come to actually expect the worst standards imaginable.

cookie.monster

how the route is even profitable at this stage is beyond me?? its not reliable so how is the service still in operation??

bluesfan

We had the same experience just before Christmas. Going out for dinner we decided that as we both wanted a drink that we'd get the bus in and a taxi home. Looked up the website, downloaded the latest timetable and stood out under our umbrellas at 18.15 waiting for the 18.25 bus. Stayed there waiting for the 18.40 bus. At 18.50 I gave up and went back for my car and drove in. No bus passed us on the way in, in fact there was very little traffic on the road and I was able to drive into town in a few minutes.

obezyana

cookie.monster wrote: »

how the route is even profitable at this stage is beyond me?? its not reliable so how is the service still in operation??

It is strange alright and I'd be curious to know why Bus Eireann don't use that route from Ferrybank to the hospital. Seems odd they dont muscle in on it. I wonder is it a licence thing or what?

Andersonisgod

obezyana wrote: »

It is strange alright and I'd be curious to know why Bus Eireann don't use that route from Ferrybank to the hospital. Seems odd they dont muscle in on it. I wonder is it a licence thing or what?

Route's are distributed through contracts I think. As far as I know, JJ Kavanagh's contract for the Ferrybank-Ballygunner route is up this year. I heard Bus Eireann have tried several times to purchase the route but were blocked. Hopefully this will be the last year of JJ Kavanagh doing this route, they don't care about it at all and Bus Eireann's service around Waterford is, imo, far more reliable.

obezyana

Andersonisgod wrote: »

Route's are distributed through contracts I think. As far as I know, JJ Kavanagh's contract for the Ferrybank-Ballygunner route is up this year. I heard Bus Eireann have tried several times to purchase the route but were blocked. Hopefully this will be the last year of JJ Kavanagh doing this route, they don't care about it at all and Bus Eireann's service around Waterford is, imo, far more reliable.

Yeah I was thinking it may be a contract thing. Interesting to know that the contract is up maybe it would be a good thing for people if Bus Eireann got it.

cookie.monster

Andersonisgod wrote: »

Route's are distributed through contracts I think. As far as I know, JJ Kavanagh's contract for the Ferrybank-Ballygunner route is up this year. I heard Bus Eireann have tried several times to purchase the route but were blocked. Hopefully this will be the last year of JJ Kavanagh doing this route, they don't care about it at all and Bus Eireann's service around Waterford is, imo, far more reliable.

it would be no biggy for bus eireann to take over, the way i can see routes working would be ferrybank/slieverue to bus station and then hop on a connecting bus that does UHW will also cover williamstown/dunmore road problem solved and service more reliable

Wanderer78

the last i heard, BE are doing their best to off load some of their city routes onto private operators. any word on this?