Norfolk bus stop glitches leave passengers frustrated

Bus information screens sometimes see services 'drop off' the live feed

Commuters have said a glitch affecting real-time information screens at local bus stops is frustrating.

Norfolk County Council runs the system in the county, which tells passengers when the buses are expected.

Issues with the global positioning system connections (GPS) meant information could disappear from the screens.

The council said it was aware of the issues and was working with all bus operators to improve the system.

Any significant delays and cancellations cannot currently be sent to the boards by the bus operators.

Barry Waterson says the information glitch causes frustration when services disappear

Barry Waterson, 63, is a supermarket delivery driver and relies on the bus to get to work from his home in Thorpe St Andrew on the outskirts of Norwich.

He said: "When the bus disappears from the screen, you get this sinking feeling and think 'oh no, not again'.

"It's really annoying [and] frustrating. You're tired. You want to get home and you've got to wait for another half an hour, three quarters of an hour, sometimes an hour for another one."

Karen Smith, 63, lives in Lingwood, which is served with an hourly bus to Norwich.

"Very often I can be standing here and your bus will just disappear," she said.

"You have no knowledge of whether it's broken down, whether it's going to be late, whether it's been held up in traffic; you don't know whether it's coming or not."

Karen Smith, 63, said she had several occasions where buses 'disappeared'

Kyle Thompson, 20, from Spixworth, said: "Sometimes you have a bus [due] in, say ten minutes, and as soon as it hits that time it completely goes off the screen and there is no sign whatsoever of where it's gone or even if it's on the app or anything."

Julie Roberts, 59, from Hellesdon, said: "It's very frustrating, especially when it's cold and you're just standing at the bus stop."

Kyle Thompson says sometimes buses "drop off" the information screens

Julie Roberts says it is frustrating not knowing when the next bus will come

Piers Marlow, managing director of First East of England, said: "We are aware of the issue of buses dropping off information boards at bus stops, and we apologise to those who are affected by it.

"This is an issue that affects bus operators across the East of England, and in many other areas of the UK."

Norfolk County Council said: "We are working in collaboration with operators across Norfolk to find a solution.

"We hope to enable a system that allows operators to manually update the live information screens when buses are cancelled or significantly delayed."