Merry Christmas from all at SPT MyBus!

Wishing you a very Merry Christmas from all at SPT MyBus!

 
Our contact centre will be re-open on Wednesday 28th December.  Until then have a great Christmas!

SPT MyBus Web Booking Facility – Christmas and New Year Arrangements

SPT MyBus Web Booking Facility – Christmas and New Year Arrangements     

The Web booking facility will be available at all times over the Christmas and New Year holiday with the exception of the following periods:-

Christmas

Web bookings will not be available from 1500hrs on Friday 23 Dec till 0001hrs on Wednesday 28 December 2011.

New Year

Web bookings will not be available from 1500hrs on Friday 30 Dec till 0001hrs on Wednesday 4 January 2012.

Uptake of our Web Booking facility continues to grow with over 100 journeys per week now being booked via web rather than through our contact centre.

To register or for more information about the web booking facility visit our link: -

http://mybus.spt.co.uk:8080/

SPT MyBus Partner Christmas & New Year Arrangements

SPT MyBus Partner Christmas & New Year Arrangements

Coalfield Community Transport

No service will operate between Friday 23rd December 2011 until Wednesday 4th January 2012.

Argyle & Bute Cowal MyBus

No service will operate on Monday 26^th December 2011 and Monday 2^nd January 2012.  Normal service operates on all other dates.

Evening Hospital Visiting Service

No service will operate on Monday 26^th December, Tuesday 27^th December 2011 and  

Monday 2^nd January.  Normal service operates on all other dates.

British Red Cross Arran MyBus

No service will operate on Monday 26^th December & Tuesday 27^th December and Monday 2^nd January & Tuesday 3^rd January 2012.  Normal service operates on all other dates.

Adverse Weather Conditions Friday 16th December

Adverse Weather Conditions Friday 16^th December

UPDATE: 0830

Please be aware that due to adverse weather and poor road conditions all journeys on MyBus services may be subject to delay or cancellation.

Where locations are inaccessible to vehicles customers may be requested to make their way to alternative pick-up points.

At present all services remain in operation.

Reported Issues

R700 Carrick Connector: Road conditions mean travelling to Barr is currently inaccessible.

MyBus - December Blog

To some MyBus is simply perceived as a transport medium that gets people from A to B.

Whilst that is of course true everyone involved in the provision of MyBus, and we would hope our service users also, would agree, that MyBus is more than just a bus service.

To label MyBus as “just another” transport service fails to take account of the type of the journeys that are undertaken on a daily basis and just as importantly, the people making them.

There are many for whom MyBus is their lifeline in helping them carry out activities such as their weekly shopping, attend appointments with their GP or aiding their personal development at college courses or classes. Trips that many of our users would otherwise have great difficulty in making.

Of course there are a great many trips made on MyBus for social purposes too. It's important to acknowledge that for some that trip to the local community centre, lunch club or afternoon at bingo may be their only face-to-face social interaction of the week.

One recent incident highlighted how MyBus proved to be a lifeline, in the truest sense of the word, for one of our users.

Having established a good relationship with the gentleman concerned over a long period of time, the MyBus driver noted that when boarding the bus, the customer was not of his usual demeanour.

Growing increasingly concerned as the journey progressed the driver, noticed his passenger looking increasingly uncomfortable and ill at ease. The driver stopped his vehicle and attended to the gentleman quickly realising medical attention was required.

An ambulance was called for and the driver alerted MyBus staff of the incident, so that the gentleman's daughter could be made aware of what had transpired.

A day or so later the gentleman's daughter called MyBus to express her gratitude to the driver for his swift intervention, which according to the medical staff at hospital had saved her father's life; and to the MyBus staff which meant she was able to quickly be at her father's side when taken to hospital.

Whilst clearly not an every day occurrence the incident illustrates exactly why MyBus is more than simply a bus service. There's a personal touch to MyBus, where relationships are built up between customers, drivers and booking staff; and a level of care exists that struggles to be matched on standard bus services.

We would like to think this is partly why demand for MyBus continues to grow month on month, year on year and why a record number of trips will be carried out by our service users this year.

Compliments of the season to readers of our blog, our partners who help bring you the MyBus service and of course our many service users. See you in 2012 for first blog of the New Year!!

MyBus Christmas and New Year Holiday Booking Arrangements

A reminder that from today (Thursday 15th December) onwards additional bookings are being taken to cover dates over the Christmas and New Year period.

Check your leaflet for details of when you need to call and dates the MyBus booking office will be closed over Christmas.

Need a leaflet?  Bus operators have been supplied with copies to pass to service users.  Alternatively call our enquiry line to have a copy posted or emailed to you.

Don't worry if you've missed the day for booking for your preferred date of travel, we'll still try to help slot you in if time allows!

Severe Winds - Thursday 8th December

SEVERE WINDS

UPDATE: 1145

Please be aware that a “red warning” alert has been issued by the Met Office with winds of up 90mph expected across central Scotland on Thursday 8^th December.

Winds of such an extent are liable to cause considerable disruption with travel conditions expected to be extremely poor.

MyBus services may be subject to delay or cancellation.

Services currently withdrawn:

M13 South Ayrshire

Services running to amended timetable:

M1 East Ayrshire

Customers’ may wish to consider if their journey is absolutely necessary.

Antcipated Severe Winds - Thursday 8th December

ANTICIPATED SEVERE WINDS

UPDATE: 1400 (Wednesday 7^th December)

Please be aware that a “red warning” alert has been issued by the Met Office with winds of up 90mph expected across central Scotland on Thursday 8^th December.

Winds of such an extent are liable to cause considerable disruption with travel conditions expected to be extremely poor.

MyBus services may be subject to delay or cancellation.

Customers’ may wish to consider if their journey is absolutely necessary.

Adverse Weather Conditions - Tuesday 6th December

ADVERSE WEATHER CONDITIONS

UPDATE: 1400

Please be aware that due to continuing adverse weather and poor road conditions all journeys on MyBus services may be subject to delay or cancellation.

Customers’ may wish to consider if their journey is absolutely necessary today.

Where locations are inaccessible to vehicles customers may be requested to make their way to alternative pick-up points.

At present all services remain in operation.

Delays of the following timescales have been reported on services:

M92 Clydebank/Scotstoun – delays of up 35 minutes

M91 Glasgow South West – delays of up to 20 minutes

M98 Motherwell – delays of up to 10 minutes

M99 Monklands – delays of up to 20 minutes

R400 North Lanarkshire Ring-n-Ride – delays of up 10 minutes

M13 South Ayrshire – delays of up to 20 minutes

M94 Glasgow South East – delays of up to 10 minutes

M85 Paisley – delays of up to 10 minutes

M18 Maryhill/Bearsden – delays of up to 15 minutes

Delays of an as yet unspecified timescale have been reported on services:

M1 East Ayrshire – operating to slightly revised timetable

Adverse Weather Conditions - Monday 5th December

UPDATE: 1100

Please be aware that due to adverse weather and poor road conditions all journeys on MyBus services may be subject to delay or cancellation.

Customer's may wish to consider if their journey is absolutely necessary today.

Where locations are inaccessible to vehicles customers may be requested to make their way to alternative pick-up points.

At present all services remain in operation though delays of up to 50 minutes are being reported on some services:

M99 Monklands – Delays reported of up 50 minutes.

M93 Glasgow North East – Delays reported of up to 30 minutes.

M92 Clydebank/Scotstoun – Delays reported of up to 15 minutes.

M94 Glasgow South East – Delays reported of up to 10 minutes.

Delays as of yet unspecified time-scales have been reported on services:

M19 Wishaw/Shotts

M98 Motherwell

Public Sector Workers Strike - Wednesday 30th November

Public Sector Workers Strike

Despite the public sector workers strike MyBus services will operate as normal on Wednesday 30^th November.

The MyBus booking office will also remain open but waiting times to make bookings are expected to be considerably longer than normal.

To assist, bookings for Thursday 1^st December will be processed on Tuesday 29^th November.

MyBus - November Blog

There’s a lot in the media these days about the importance of resources being shared and partnerships developed to help offer better value for money and more efficient public services.  Naturally SPT and within that MyBus are no different. 

In recent years MyBus have been at the heart of a number of partnerships and programmes designed to offer the kind of benefits many of our politicians are seeking.

For example in conjunction with the NHS and Community Transport, MyBus provide their contact centre  experience and scheduling skills to provide the daily manifests for the Evening Hospital Visiting Service across the Glasgow, East Dunbartonshire and Renfrewshire areas. 

This lifeline service assists those who struggle to visit sick friends and relatives in hospital using regular public transport with anything up to 100 passengers a week taking advantage of the service.  Call 0845 128 4027 between 1300 – 1600 Monday to Friday for more details.

Through Glasgow City Council and the cities Community Transport groups the MyBus team assist with the scheduling of transport for a variety of elderly and disabled voluntary and community groups.  In fact approximately 820 passengers per week are benefiting from MyBus scheduling expertise.

Elsewhere MyBus has link-ups with Coalfield Community Transport in Ayrshire, the British Red Cross on the Isle of Arran and Argyle and has also helped the National Autistic Society with the delivery of their social programmes in the Glasgow area.

A key part of developing MyBus and Dial-a-Bus, as we were formerly known as,  over the years has been the establishment of strong working relationships not only with our customers as individuals but with many of the groups they attend and the councillors and politicians who represent them.

To give one example, in October, SPT met with Cllr. Cumming from East Dunbartonshire along with some of his constituents.  After visiting the MyBus contact centre our guests were impressed with what MyBus had to offer and having seen at first hand the workings of the contact centre have vowed to spread the word on how others could benefit from using MyBus.

With resources across all organisations being stretched MyBus are playing an ever more important role in the provision of transport both for our own customers and those of our partners.

MyBus - October Blog

The MyBus booking team returned, batteries re-charged, after the September weekend holiday.  It was a good job too as the proceeding Tuesday saw us process our highest ever number of calls in any one day. 

When it comes to placing advance bookings Monday afternoons are generally the busiest.  So when that Monday happens to be a public holiday the immediate day after that holiday sees the booking lines turn red hot with people trying to get their next set of advance bookings in place.

It’s worth remembering though that with advance bookings allowing you to book up to 28 days ahead, and that you can book them any afternoon Monday – Friday between 1400 – 1530, with a little forward planning you can avoid that Monday afternoon, or if it’s after a public holiday Tuesday, rush.

Another tip! When it comes to holiday times or more precisely school holiday times such as the October week, Easter or during summer holidays keep in mind that some of the group bookings MyBus administer don’t operate, meaning increased availability for on-spec trip requests.

Group bookings can be arranged, subject to availability of course, where there are three or more people going to the same location at the same time.  A large number of our members benefit each week from this facility.

It might only be October and with the likes of Halloween, Guy Fawkes Night and St Andrew’s Day still to come, thoughts at MyBus are already turning towards the Christmas and New Year holidays.

We have been preparing the notifications for the booking arrangements and these will go out initially to new users, through their membership packs and then towards the end of November via the usual sources such as the SPT website, on posters and handouts on vehicles, our email mailing list and  the recorded information line (0845 128 4026).

MyBus-Web Now Live!

After a successful trial MyBus are delighted to open up their online booking facility to all service users.

To use MyBus-Web you must be an existing member of the MyBus Service. Click on the Registration Link below to register:-

Click Here to Register for MyBus-Web

Once registered your unique password and further information about MyBus-Web will be sent to you.

Alternatively please contact the MyBus general information line on 0845 128 4025, which is open Monday to Friday between 0830 and 1645 to have details sent to you.

Similarly those interested in making use of MyBus-Web who are not existing MyBus service users should call to 0845 128 4025 for details on becoming a MyBus member.

Do your working hours make the contact centre opening times inconvenient for you?  Do you find you are often out on the MyBus when you when require to make your next booking? If so then MyBus-Web could be just for you.

The MyBus online booking facility has been developed to enhance the booking process for customers and enables you to book at a time convenient to you such as in the evening in midweek or on a Sunday. No longer are you restricted by booking office hours.

MyBus-Web lets you book and cancel journeys or review any future journeys.

You may book your journey the day before travel and up to one week in advance of the day you wish to travel.

Join the increasing number of service users booking via MyBus-Web today!!

MyBus Web Booking Trial

Trials will continue throughout July and August of the MyBus Web Booking Facility.

A group of around 20 service users registered their interest in taking part in our trial and have been using the Web Booking Facility to process bookings they would normally have made through the MyBus contact centre.

Users have given us invaluable feedback on their experiences using the booking system and all responses have been taken on board.

If the trial goes well MyBus would hope to roll out the Web Booking Facility to all service users in the very near future.

Look out for further details!