I was wondering if anyone could enlighten me on when the real-time bus information boards are actually going to give us ‘real-time’ info.

A lot of money has been spent by whoever on replacing bus stop signs and installing fancy electronic signs to give the travelling public better information of the local bus services under the guise of being ready for the Olympics but with two weeks to go it seems to me that they are not working as they should.

My reasoning for this statement is as follows: Travelling between Portland and Weymouth every day I have noticed that the signs display a variety of messages. These are: due, 4 mins, 1724, SCHD.

It seems to me that all they are displaying is the scheduled time of arrival rather than the actual time of arrival, which as far as I am concerned is the whole idea of real-time information.

I passed a stop in Wyke today and there was a bus there.

The sign said that the next was due in four minutes when actually the bus was about 30 seconds away.

Now if the signs are only going to give out the scheduled times of arrival the only advantage to all this expense is that First will no longer have to employ someone to go round to all the stops and replace the timetables when they update them.

There was an accident in Easton the other week and the buses were held up because of it.

Now if these signs are so good why couldn’t they inform travellers of a delay?

There were numerous people around my area waiting for a bus that was, according to the signs, ‘due’.

Grahame Moss, Ripcroft, Southwell, Portland