[Travel] Massively unfair’ gulf in bus fares between London and rest of England

[Stat Brother]

I kind of felt obliged to bring you this, but it's actually quite an interesting read

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news...on-and-rest-of-england?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

Analysis of a snapshot of five-mile bus trips in local authorities across England found that while a single bus ticket in London costs £1.50, passengers elsewhere pay far more despite often experiencing worse services.

The research showed the most expensive fare for a five-mile journey was in Hampshire, where a single ticket from Winchester The Broadway to Matterley Farm, Tichborne, costs £5.65...

For the record, from B&H Buses website

Standard fare
Fares from 15 January 2019

We try to make paying for bus travel as easy as possible.

There's a standard single journey fare of £2.60 throughout the Brighton & Hove area, stretching from Shoreham in the west to Falmer and Saltdean in the east. With £2.20 fares available for short hops or in the central area of the city.

...Anyone can apply to set up a bus company in most of England. They simply need to give the local authority £60 and 28 days’ notice before applying to the traffic commissioner, which regulates and licenses buses. To cancel the service, they must give just 42 days’ notice to the traffic commissioner.

 

[Guy Fawkes]

I kind of felt obliged to bring you this, but it's actually quite an interesting read

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news...on-and-rest-of-england?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

Analysis of a snapshot of five-mile bus trips in local authorities across England found that while a single bus ticket in London costs £1.50, passengers elsewhere pay far more despite often experiencing worse services.

The research showed the most expensive fare for a five-mile journey was in Hampshire, where a single ticket from Winchester The Broadway to Matterley Farm, Tichborne, costs £5.65...

For the record, from B&H Buses website

Standard fare
Fares from 15 January 2019

We try to make paying for bus travel as easy as possible.

There's a standard single journey fare of £2.60 throughout the Brighton & Hove area, stretching from Shoreham in the west to Falmer and Saltdean in the east. With £2.20 fares available for short hops or in the central area of the city.

...Anyone can apply to set up a bus company in most of England. They simply need to give the local authority £60 and 28 days’ notice before applying to the traffic commissioner, which regulates and licenses buses. To cancel the service, they must give just 42 days’ notice to the traffic commissioner.

Surely down to usage?

The more passengers they pick up means they can charge less per passenger to cover costs (fuel, drivers wages, bus purchase and maintenance costs, etc)

I can't imagine a rural route with one man and their dog using it could ever break even if they charged the same as London (or would rely on more hand outs of tax payers money to further subsidise it) so they have to rely on higher fares and subsidies whereas London buses will be substantially fuller as it's impossible to get anywhere fast by car so can get away with a smaller fare

 

[Seagrrl]

It's a problem. I'm 51 and only bought a car 5 years ago so very used to public transport. I got talking to a woman at a bus stop in rural Norfolk and because she couldn't afford a car and had to get the bus, with a baby in a push chair, she could only carry a couple of bags of shopping and couldn't take advantage of offers. She also had the added expense of bus tickets every couple of days.
Poorer people in cities are badly served but in the countryside they are absolutely f**ked.

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[drew]

Surely down to usage?

The more passengers they pick up means they can charge less per passenger to cover costs (fuel, drivers wages, bus purchase and maintenance costs, etc)

I can't imagine a rural route with one man and their dog using it could ever break even if they charged the same as London (or would rely on more hand outs of tax payers money to further subsidise it) so they have to rely on higher fares and subsidies whereas London buses will be substantially fuller as it's impossible to get anywhere fast by car so can get away with a smaller fare

Nail on the proverbial head. Thought it was obvious.

 

[Sussex Nomad]

Can we abandon the 700 bus please. At least 6 an hour trundle through our village, sometimes having a race to see who can win. No-one is ever on them.

 

[zefarelly]

Country folk should be riding wild animals. Mum on a badger, and toddler and shopping perhaps on a little chariot towed by squirrels.

Poorer people in cities are badly served but in the countryside they are absolutely f**ked.

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[clapham_gull]

Worth pointing out that the buses although run by private companies didn't suffer the deregulation up.

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[Stat Brother]

Surely down to usage?

The more passengers they pick up means they can charge less per passenger to cover costs (fuel, drivers wages, bus purchase and maintenance costs, etc)

Nail on the proverbial head. Thought it was obvious.

I think the point is, deregulation for all buses except London has meant anyone with £60 and a desire to fill out forms can set up a bus company and attempt to make a profit from the routes available.

Whereas regulated London Buses (for all the obvious reasons) gets to make a massive profit and reduce fares.

But not being a transport expert I'm happy to be wrong.

 

[clapham_gull]

Nail on the proverbial head. Thought it was obvious.

As obvious as the huge subsidy London bus operators get ?

Buses in London and the rest of the country are run on completely different principles.

Generally FOR the people...

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[zefarelly]

No doubt there are some experts involved. This needs correcting pronto!

Generally FOR the people...

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[Guy Fawkes]

It's a problem. I'm 51 and only bought a car 5 years ago so very used to public transport. I got talking to a woman at a bus stop in rural Norfolk and because she couldn't afford a car and had to get the bus, with a baby in a push chair, she could only carry a couple of bags of shopping and couldn't take advantage of offers. She also had the added expense of bus tickets every couple of days.
Poorer people in cities are badly served but in the countryside they are absolutely f**ked.

Sent from my SM-G960F using Tapatalk

Subsidised Uber (or similar) trip once in a while instead? rather than running a bus that's normally empty running a route several times a day instead in case the handful of people living on that route decide that they wont take their car out but use public transport instead

Maybe even making use of sites like liftshare instead to help get about?

 

[dejavuatbtn]

Subsidised Uber (or similar) trip once in a while instead? rather than running a bus that's normally empty running a route several times a day instead in case the handful of people living on that route decide that they wont take their car out but use public transport instead

Maybe even making use of sites like liftshare instead to help get about?

Yes, it looks like there are opportunities for Uber lift share arrangements for people in rural communities where they can share trips and costs. Maybe there’s an app or website out there already for them.

 

[Guy Fawkes]

Yes, it looks like there are opportunities for Uber lift share arrangements for people in rural communities where they can share trips and costs. Maybe there’s an app or website out there already for them.

Like this?
https://liftshare.com/uk

 

[drew]

As obvious as the huge subsidy London bus operators get ?

Buses in London and the rest of the country are run on completely different principles.

Generally FOR the people...

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True but don't rural bus services get a subsidy as well?

 

[essbee1]

And a hugely flippant point on my part - but outside London people don't pay 5-6 quid for a pint in a boozer (if they travel by bus and drink)!

 

[Justice]

Bus

 

[clapham_gull]

True but don't rural bus services get a subsidy as well?

Not as much as London which I think is 45 percent.

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[Live by the sea]

London bus fares are cheaper than most other places but that's because it is subsidised slightly which the council can afford to do because of the millions of people that live there and that contribute towards the council tax etc.

The downside to London is that unless you are a millionaire and can afford to live in the.nicest parts, ie Hampstead, Highgate, Chelsea, Kensington, primrose hill etc, most of the other parts are quite rough with high levels of crime and not pleasant places to live. You can count the nice places to live in South and East London with one hand. North and west London is admittedly much.nicer although still has some dangerous areas. We don't have that in Brighton, even East Brighton is not dangerous.

 

[clapham_gull]

The downside to London is that unless you are a millionaire and can afford to live in the.nicest parts, ie Hampstead, Highgate, Chelsea, Kensington, primrose hill etc, most of the other parts are quite rough with high levels of crime and not pleasant places to live.

What a prize plum you are





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[AmexRuislip]

As obvious as the huge subsidy London bus operators get ?

Buses in London and the rest of the country are run on completely different principles.

Generally FOR the people...

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Please correct if I'm wrong, but don't most people in London walk to their destinations these days.
I'm talking of getting there, instead of wasting time queueing for the bus.
When I did jury service at the OB, a couple of years back, I found the it quite liberating just walking, instead of getting the bus.
This is even to tube stations that were further down the line.