Have free bus pass, want to travel.

MarkyMarkD

EdInvestor I would suggest that most people travel where they need to travel, not just in a direction which is free. :rolleyes:

Farway At 0920, I'd suggest that the pensioner was leaving their own house and hence that they'd have a bit more of a clue about the bus ticket rules applying from that stop.

Islandman I agree. Bus operators need to monitor the usage of their services, and they need to obtain payment from the local authority for the number of pensioners travelling on concessionary passes.

donnajunkie

MarkyMarkD wrote: »

One of the more annoying consequences of devolution, I suppose, and not one which is fair in any way shape or form.

If you live in the far north of Scotland, or west of Wales, or south of England, you can travel hundreds of miles for free. But if you happen to live anywhere near any of the borders, you can't go far at all.

Madness!

well you can just not in every direction.

donnajunkie

Farway wrote: »

Or in my case, my local authority allows free bus travel 24/7 within it's boundaries for residents

However my nearest bus stops, and towns are "over the border" so I can't use my all day pass until 0930 anyway.

are you sure it is like that? its just my local authority has made it possiblel for free travel before 9.30am but it isnt restricted to journeys within the local area. the only restriction is the journey has to start in the local area. so for example i can get the bus to newcastle from teesside before 9.30am but i cant get a bus from newcastle onto somewhere else before 9.30am. i also wouldnt be able to do the reverse and get a bus from newcastle to teesside before 9.30am. yes that is a bit long winded isnt it. basically i can start a journey within my area before 9.30am and whether the bus crosses the boundary is irelevant.

Night-owl_6

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/7323688.stm

harryhound

So without a "Swipe Reader" all the bus driver can do is record that a free pass has climbed aboard.

Can I thank all those lovely people in Greater London & Essex who have been subsidising my travels.

In the local borough, I still tend to use a push bike, it is quicker, more reliable, does not need a parking space and takes me door to door.

Harry.

PS A bike keeps you fit too; but what is the weather forecast today?.

brightonman123

there was a new feature about a guy who went full length of the UK with a free bus pass- was only valid for England, but Scottish buses let him on too, to see if he could do it.. wouldn't be so lucky around here though!

MarkyMarkD

I think "the powers that be" are quite well aware that councils in popular tourist areas will, to some extent, be cross-subsidising those from less popular areas. London must have more visitors than any other part of the country, and hence its buses will be used by non-London residents to a huge extent - many with their free bus passes.

At the end of the day, though, what does it matter? The visitors from out of town will provide a boost to the local economy through their spending, which will in turn give the businesses money to pay their business rates. What goes around, comes around.

MarkyMarkD

brightonman123 wrote: »

there was a new feature about a guy who went full length of the UK with a free bus pass- was only valid for England, but Scottish buses let him on too, to see if he could do it.. wouldn't be so lucky around here though!

Funnily enough, I travelled from South Cheshire to West Wales when I was 14, travelling only by local bus and using Explorer tickets (or the equivalent in different parts of the country). It was quite a feat to organise given that the Internet hadn't been invented in the early 1980s, although at least it was (then) possible to get a National Bus Company map of routes across the whole of England & Wales which it obviously won't be now. I think it took about 10 days.

Farway

islandman wrote: »

Might I dare to suggest that drivers make a hand movement and register a free user has just boarded their bus. I've seen this and enquired for myself and have been told they NEED to record every passenger, paying or not.

Sorry, sloppy posting by me, what I should have said was show pass & get a ticket

So the issue of a "free ride" is recorded, but details of the person travelling are not

LesD

One other point to add to this thread is to note the availability of low-cost fares on some National Express coach routes.

Their 'Funfares' are availale to over 50 destinations (it says!) from only £1.

And, of course, there are also Megabus fares from £1 on many routes. And often low-cost train offers around.

With fuel prices being what they are, maybe public transport is becoming an attractive alternative!