Shorelink Review Inplementation.

[Fleet Lists]

Picked up from the Shorelink website today
The following 22 new timetables commence on 23rd March 2009 thereby implementing their region review.
Route 556 Timetable East Killara to Lindfield or Killara
Route 558 Timetable Lindfield to Chatswood via East Lindfield & Roseville
Route 560 Timetable Gordon to Macquarie University via West Gordon, West Pymble & Macquarie Centre
Route 565 Timetable Macquarie to Chatswood via West Lindfield, Lindfield & UTS
Route 571 Timetable Turramurra & South Turramurra
Route 573 Timetable Turramurra to Fox Valley via Warawee Valley & Sydney Adventist Hospital
Route 575 Timetable Macquarie University to Hornsby
Route 576 Timetable Wahroonga to North Waroonga
Route 577 Timetable Turramurra to North Turramurra or East Turramurra
Route 579 Timetable Pymble to East Turramurra
Route 582 Timetable Gordon to St Ives
Route 586 Timetable Pennant Hills to Westleigh
Route 587 Timetable Hornsby to Westleigh via Normanhurst
Route 588 Timetable Hornsby to Normanhurst West via Normanhurst
Route 589 Timetable Hornsby to Sydney Adventist Hospital via Normanhurst, Woodlands Estate & Thornleigh (SanLink)
Route 592 Timetable Brooklyn to Mooney Mooney
Route 594 Timetable North Turramurra to City via St Ives & Killara (Please note 194 is operated by Forest Coach Lines)
Route 595 Timetable Hornsby to Mt Colah via Hornsby North
Route 596 Timetable Hornsby to Hornsby Heights via McKay Road & Somerville Road
Route 597 Timetable Berowra to Hornsby
Route 598 Timetable Hornsby to Asquith
Route 599 Timetable Berowra to Berowra Heights

[robert]

I can access all the new timetables, except, for some reason the very last one, Route 599.

[Ken]

Without looking at all the timetables, I think the main change is the major alteration of route 575 (currently Turramurra-East Wahroonga-North Wahroonga) to have it operate from Hornsby to Macquarie Centre & Uni via Hornsby Hospital, East Wahroonga, Turramurra Stn, South Turramurra and West Pymble.

Route 571 Turramurra-South Turramurra has been reduced to a peak hour only service as a result. The Canoon Rd & Carina Rd areas are not serviced by the new 575 so now only get a peak hour service now but given that they are only a short walk from the roads serviced by the expanded 575 that is a more than an acceptable trade-off.

Also just noticed that in the new list of timetables that 560 is shown as "Gordon to Macquarie University via West Gordon, West Pymble & Macquarie Centre" but when clicked on the actual timetable is only Gordon-West Pymble loop. As suggested previously the 560 Macquarie trips were to be converted into route 197 services so we'll wait and see if the 197 is altered in conjunction with the Shorelink changes.

[robert]

Other significant alterations are:

Routes 597/599
The previous Hornsby-Berowra Heights route has been split into two, with 597 being Hornsby to Berowra (including diverting via Parklands Rd, Mt Colah, which was previously part of the 593) and 599 Berowra-Berowra Heights.

Route 598
598 takes over the part of 595 through Hornsby North and most of 593 (except the Parklands Rd bit, mentioned above). It is a loop route, Hornsby-Asquith-Mt Colah-Hornsby North-Hornsby, running anti-clockwise in the morning and clockwise in the afternoon. This would produce a saving of approx one bus all day, as two routes have been rolled into one.

Route 590
The last remaining vestige of old Route 55 (the "Highway" bus), between Turramurra and Chatswood, has been discontinued. Sad for me, as I used to catch it frequently when living at Roseville as a boy.

Routes 575/6
Another result of the extension of 575 as Hornsby-Macquarie is that North Wahroonga now receives only a peak hour service on 576.

Other more minor changes as well.

[crimsontide]

595 Now direct from Hornsby to Mt Colah Loops and v.v & no Sunday/Public Hol service

597 Reduced to a skeleton service

Interesting to see the frequency of services on the expanded 575, I guess in line with opening hours of Mac Centre.

[hubert]

595 Now direct from Hornsby to Mt Colah Loops and v.v & no Sunday/Public Hol service

597 Reduced to a skeleton service

Interesting to see the frequency of services on the expanded 575, I guess in line with opening hours of Mac Centre.

A crap frequency and non-memory timetable (45 min off peak, 30 min peak). I'd love to see what the patronage is.

[Glen]

Route 571 Turramurra-South Turramurra has been reduced to a peak hour only service as a result. The Canoon Rd & Carina Rd areas are not serviced by the new 575 so now only get a peak hour service now but given that they are only a short walk from the roads serviced by the expanded 575 that is a more than an acceptable trade-off.

I notice the area serving Turramurra High School etc got left in, it was going to be cut off in the original proposal.

Interesting choice of PM peak departure times ex Macquarie Uni 0/30 - I thought classes tend to finish on the hour and half hour so a departure about 10/40 might have been better?

Interesting to see the frequency of services on the expanded 575, I guess in line with opening hours of Mac Centre.

A crap frequency and non-memory timetable (45 min off peak, 30 min peak). I'd love to see what the patronage is.

In the 90's they tried a through run from North Turramurra to Macquarie either via South Turramurra or Gordon. Admittedly the frequency was much worse than what they now offer.

Looks like a tight 2 hour round trip Hornsby - Macquarie - Hornsby off peak, but noted it blows out to 1 hour 20 one way in PM peak in that awful traffic.

Love the inconsistencies in 575 running times! Check out weekday off-peak sectional times c/f Saturdays.

Also noted 576 got Boundary Rd put back in. I expected that as it is used by kids.

I noted 597's appear to lay up for around 20 mins at Berowra Station. I wonder if they do a 599 during this time and if so, why that isn't advertised as a through run?

Funny lay out on 596. Instead of showing McKay Rd diversion timing point twice, as it is an inbound AM / outbound PM arrangement, they show the terminus Black Ash Place twice. Wouldn't have been the way I would have done it. (Or did it, for that matter)

[Ken]

A crap frequency and non-memory timetable (45 min off peak, 30 min peak).

It is only 45min between about 10am and 1pm, and after about 7pm. Every 30min outside that. It even runs till 9pm and on both Saturdays and Sundays. Given some of the woeful operating hours and frequencies that have been trotted out on various other new routes I think the proposed timetable is quite satisfactory.

Funny lay out on 596. Instead of showing McKay Rd diversion timing point twice, as it is an inbound AM / outbound PM arrangement, they show the terminus Black Ash Place twice.

Have to say I agree.

Interesting to see Shorelink still offering their FareSaver card. They're obviously realistic about the timeframe for a replacement system to be implemented by the NSW government.

[crimsontide]

A crap frequency and non-memory timetable (45 min off peak, 30 min peak).

It is only 45min between about 10am and 1pm, and after about 7pm. Every 30min outside that. It even runs till 9pm and on both Saturdays and Sundays. Given some of the woeful operating hours and frequencies that have been trotted out on various other new routes I think the proposed timetable is quite satisfactory.

How very true, would kill for that sort of schedule up around my way on 595 or 597.

[Glen]

It is only 45min between about 10am and 1pm, and after about 7pm. Every 30min outside that. It even runs till 9pm and on both Saturdays and Sundays. Given some of the woeful operating hours and frequencies that have been trotted out on various other new routes I think the proposed timetable is quite satisfactory.

How very true, would kill for that sort of schedule up around my way on 595 or 597.

On a quick glance, 575 certainly seems to be the only 'star' improvement in the new network, unless I am missing something?

[crimsontide]

On a quick glance, 575 certainly seems to be the only 'star' improvement in the new network, unless I am missing something?

I must be missing the the same things. , so much for hoping for a decent bus service up this way..they have managed to make it worse.

[Glen]

On a quick glance, 575 certainly seems to be the only 'star' improvement in the new network, unless I am missing something?

I must be missing the the same things. , so much for hoping for a decent bus service up this way..they have managed to make it worse.

A case of "kilometre neutral" perhaps?

[robert]

It even runs till 9pm and on both Saturdays and Sundays. Given some of the woeful operating hours and frequencies that have been trotted out on various other new routes I think the proposed timetable is quite satisfactory.

From my reading of the 575 timetable, the last departures are 9pm from Macquarie Uni on weekdays, but 6pm on Saturdays and 4pm (!) on Sundays.

Hardly what was originally envisaged as the frequency and hours of service for a Strategic Corridor Route.

[crimsontide]

I must be missing the the same things. , so much for hoping for a decent bus service up this way..they have managed to make it worse.

A case of "kilometre neutral" perhaps?

Obviously not Hillsbus type demand up here, but the services provided under the current timetables are while not what I call ideal, sufficient enough for the pax loadings which I have seen.
Wonder how many people esp in the Berowra/Berowra Heights area realise there is a limited service to Hornsby now.

[Ken]

Wonder how many people esp in the Berowra/Berowra Heights area realise there is a limited service to Hornsby now.

Yes, but 599 Berowra-Berowra Heights has a considerably increased frequency to every 30 min Mon-Sat.

[Glen]

Yes, but 599 Berowra-Berowra Heights has a considerably increased frequency to every 30 min Mon-Sat.

It's a shame however the buses miss the trains by 27 minutes! For example:
train arr 1.17 bus dep 1.14
train arr 1.47 bus dep 1.44
train arr 2.17 bus dep 2.14
etc etc
train 3.33, bus 3.34

Even on Saturdays they don't allow enough time to connect to the train, bus arr 13/43, train dep 16/46 is too tight in my view.

[crimsontide]

Wonder how many people esp in the Berowra/Berowra Heights area realise there is a limited service to Hornsby now.

Yes, but 599 Berowra-Berowra Heights has a considerably increased frequency to every 30 min Mon-Sat.

Indeed but are really going to use the service where they would have to pay a bus fare to Berowra Stn, train fare to Hornsby and v.v (PETs excluded of course)

[Glen]

Yes, but 599 Berowra-Berowra Heights has a considerably increased frequency to every 30 min Mon-Sat.

Indeed but are really going to use the service where they would have to pay a bus fare to Berowra Stn, train fare to Hornsby and v.v (PETs excluded of course)

Given the choices available I would have thought a 30 minute shuttle would be more attractive than the 2 hourly direct Hornsby service they will now be offering. And the direct Hornsby bus isn't even advertised from Berowra Heights though I presume, looking at the timetable, that some 599's may be worked by 597 buses whilst the 599 has a meal break or whatever.

[crimsontide]

Certainly more attractive in terms of the timetable, but are they going to be happy with the connecting (or as the case appears non connecting) train times, and having to pay the seperate fares.
And yes looks like the 599 will form the 597 on all but two services

[crimsontide]

Less than a week to go, and no signs in the buses advising people of the change. (Unless they have appeared overnight.)

[crimsontide]

Some interesting bits from the new timetables thus far.

Apparently a reprint is needed for 597 timetables after a error lisitng the order of stops around Berowra Heights.

595 now shows Mount Colah Loops via Pacific Highway (ex Hornsby), which for the most part is all well and good except when there is a diversion such as the 1455 which picks up the school kids (and takes 40mins to a destination the most direct route would take around half that. )

[Glen]

599 has also changed to fix some of the train connections I mentioned above.

[Fleet Lists]

My contributions to the timetable comments:-

"All timetables with routes which operate on Sunday show the heading for that timetable as “Sunday & Public Holidays *”, except for the timetable for route 560 which shows it just as “Sunday”. However like the other timetables it contains the note: ”Easter Saturday services run to Public Holidays timetable. No service on Christmas Day”. This is confusing as there is no Public Holidays timetable defined. Hence If this timetable is to be reprinted in the future it should be amended to also show “Sunday & Public Holidays *” "

[Glen]

Would Shorelink be one of the few (only?) metrop Operators still running their Sunday services on Easter Saturday ?

I think most Ops treat it as a normal Saturday these days.

[hubert]

Would Shorelink be one of the few (only?) metrop Operators still running their Sunday services on Easter Saturday ?

I think most Ops treat it as a normal Saturday these days.

Punchbowl?