What's the deal with the 176 route lately? I come home on the 176 towards Penge every weekday between around 3-4pm and you really take your chances. It can approach my bus stop saying 'Penge' on the front, and then the Driver boots you off either at Sainsbury's in Forest Hill or Cobbs Corner in Sydenham. One night I had to get THREE buses home, when I live on a direct bus route!?
Has anyone experienced the same lately? Is there a shortage of 176s or something? When they throw us off at Cobbs Corner, they go round the roundabout and straight back in the other direction with 'Oxford Circus' on the front!??? ? Grr... It's so annoying!
I had exactly the same experience but going in the opposite direction. Boarded a 176 at Cobbs, destination board said Oxford Circus. Reached Camberwell and told the bus wasn't going any further. Everyone then descended only to watch the bus cross over the traffic lights and then commence its journey towards Oxford Circus. Is this some devious plan by TfL to get people to pay double fare?
It generally means that there is a problem somewhere back along the route into or out of central London.
Buses get "turned" in order to comply with the agreed contractual service to provide a bus every so many minutes along the entire route. If all the buses are at one end of a route then gaps grow the other end. Heavy congestion around Leicester Square and Trafalgar Square is usually the culprit.
"Turning" takes place at Camberwell, the Plough, FH and Cobbs and is not funny late at night, especially in the cold and the rain, as those who have experienced it well know.
The 176 is a long route, if the bus gets held up in roadworks, demos or just recently gridlock round Trafalgar Square, the bus is late getting to Oxford Circus, late leaving and eventually its so late Arriva has to turn the bus so it can get back on time, drivers have to change over at Camberwell. Any time a bus is turned if the destination is changed when you are on the bus you can ask for a transfer ticket, you don`t have to pay twice.
On the subject of the 176 bus, which I have often used and found to be a great service (or at least no worse than any other!) I do wish it headed a little further into Sydenham before turning off to Penge- living in Lower Sydenham can be a bit depressing on the bus front as there are no services that head further into town than the edge of zone 2. Sometimes it feels like they are keeping Sydenham residents isolated!
Re transfer tickets, I sat for 10 mins on a 75 in Catford (around lunchtime)while they changed drivers then I gave up and said please nicely to the 202 driver behind to let me on with my ticket, which he did, though somewhat reluctantly. That wouldn't have worked if I'd paid with my Oyster card, so pleased to hear about these "transfer tickets"
Hug to Richie re Lower Sydenham. Perhaps someone on here might know who to make representations to?
