With the 2022 Commonwealth Games taking place from 28th July to 8th August, you may have noticed the above posters start to be stuck up on bus shelters across the region.
This Summer the Commonwealth Games will take place across the region.
Roads and public transport will be busier. Plan ahead for a smooth journey.
Consider how and when you travel
West Midlands Mayor posted the following image on Facebook a couple of days ago:
It seems that if you have bought a ticket to attend one of the events taking place, you also get free public transport included.
Granted, there will be a number of shuttle buses in operation to ferry spectators between park-and-ride sites and event venues (which have been contracted to Stagecoach).
So the expectation is that most spectators will be travelling to event venues via public transport. The notices at bus shelters are warning passengers to expect buses and trains to be busier than normal.
Ironically, from Sunday 24th July, summer holiday timetables are to be introduced for many services in Birmingham and the Black Country, on the basis that “traffic levels are lower, and fewer people are using buses”.
Does anyone else see the lack of “joined-up thinking”?
I appreciate that this event only lasts for a week and a half, but if the anticipation is that traffic levels will be higher, and the number of people using public transport will be higher, why not postpone the holiday timetables until the 9th August, after the Games have finished? Or at least for those routes that would be serving event venues?
Despite all their best intentions, I have a feeling that TfWM’s “expectations” aren’t going to match up to reality. Hopefully I’m wrong about this, but perhaps passengers who use certain bus services may want to brace themselves for crowded buses and late running / unreliability.
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Interesting as no bus from our sections of Smethwick will serve the Aquatic Centre so you have to walk if you have ticket anyway. So much for improving transport by Aquatic Centre gets worse every year
Well considering the bus routing in residential parts of Smethwick and parts of Warley is so poor. You have no choice but to walk to 87 and 12 anyway. Virtually cutting off the disabled and elderly who cannot walk the extra and cannot access their local centres might as well get a car 👍😉
Well considering only one bus is serving my section every 30mins (when there used to be 3!) All 3 served the trains near to the Aquatic Centre, shuttle bus will be the only option. After the games I can see people driving or taxi to centre. I cannot see people walking to it (which they advised people to do) especially the elderly or disabled. People have to walk much extra to 48 cannot see them happy with more overcrowding. Not very thought through see locals being ignored again as per normal. We have to walk to trains much extra now anyway due lack of service
Very subtly I have noticed in the last week the 12 12A 13 & 13A are mainly double decked again; not a B7 or Scania in sight; obvious waiting for the avalanche of folks visiting The Sandwell Aquatic Centre bearing in mind there will be no chance to see Tom Daley doing his knitting diving off the high board or Andy Peatey powering down the pool with his broken foot .Mind you things might not be that busy there is still shed loads of tickets of tickets at the Aquatic Centre unsold………….