General Chat

No need to apologize Florence. I wasn't offended at all :-)

Round our way, there are 2 bus stops, both 7 minutes from where I live, but about 11 minutes apart by bus. The fare is different from both stops, but I get a 'dayrider'.

A few weeks ago, I caught the bus from the 'nearer' (first) bus stop at 09:26.
All the pensioners got on at the other bus stop - at 09:37 - but it didn't matter, as the machine didn't work! :-( A couple of pensioners said 'It never works on this bus'

So, there were 26 people on that bus.

Twenty four pensioners weren't 'registered' as using the bus.
Two people who had weekly tickets weren't registered (the machine didn't work for their tickets either), so they, apparently, weren't there.
So, only the 2 of us who actually bought tickets were, apparently on that bus!

What's important about this, is Councils are trying to cut spending, and taking little-used 'funded' buses off is one way to do this.
If machines don't register the number of passengers, it gives them a wonderful excuse :-0 :-|
This is where technology can be used against us,

That is interesting Maggie, you must then wonder if that is deliberate. Strangely yesterday the machine coming home wouldn't register my pass.

Florence I was not offended but it is strange that you can say that. I didn't work when I had my children but I did have my own car and learnt to drive when I was married and 22 years old. I can only think of a couple of people of my age who didn't learn to drive. This would be in the 50s/60s but if you go back a generation you would be right, my Mum didn't even think about driving and neither did any of her friends/family except the men.I do know of one or two in my generation and a bit younger who are not computer literate and never want to be. I also think maybe smart phones is a 'cost' problem, they are not cheap. that may be true of a lot of things like tablets, laptops etc. And, even when I was young learning to drive and owning a car was not cheap.

Maggie
Aren't you now entited to an oldies bus pass?

The National bus pass allows you to to travel after 9.30. Some areas, like London, allow you to travel any time. :-P

Try explaining to some bus drivers that you want to pay for the first half of your journey, before 9.30, and use your bus pass for the other half. Some just say "just go and sit down, love



Try explaining to some bus drivers that you want to pay for the first part of your journey, until 9.30, and use your bus pass for the second part. Some say "just go and sit down, love", others understand and charge for the first part, others make a real fuss at which point I tell them that I am going to volunteer and usually "quieteness them down".

We used to be able to use our Freedom Passes 24 hours Names, but since the pandemic it has been restricted.

I am sure we cannot use the passes until after 9.30, although the website says 9am.

If your pass has the red rose logo in the top left hand corner, it can be used on local buses in England.

I know we have used them on the South Coast when on holiday.

In England you can get a senior bus pass when you are of state pension age and as MG says you can use them anywhere in England. We can buy a £1 ticket if we want to start a journey before 9.30 am . We do have a good service here usually.

In Scotland you can get a travel pass at 60 (original pension age!). It can be used on the buses at any time, for reduced train tickets at off-peak times and for a fixed 50p fare on the Clockwork Orange. (Underground in Glasgow).

The cost is paid nationally to the various companies involved and when, occasionally, somebody complains about the cost, the government answer is always that enabling pensioners to get out of the house and meet their friends saves the NHS money, that they then go and spend their pensions in the local shops, which keeps town centres thriving and is good for the economy and overall brings in a lot more than it costs.

I learnt to drive when I left school and so did many of my friends. When I started work in Winchester most of the women could drive but I found when I moved to Scotland in the early 80's and was transferred to Greenock that very few of the women could drive. This i think was partly traditional and partly financial, as it was not an affluent area. Those of us who could drive had either moved from elsewhere or lived outside the town.

My mother got a driving licence as soon as she could (no driving test required) but never learnt to drive. My father had a company car which she wasn't allowed to drive, so she watched what he did and then many years later, after they had gone their separate ways, she hired a car one day and drove from London to Southampton for a day out!! :-0 I was horrified! After that she bought a car and drove everywhere for the rest of her life.

Some buses to use my bus pass on would be good!
My bus pass doesn't get much use, unfortunately. A car is essential.

Although the Scottish bus pass (National Entitlement Card) allows free travel on any normal service bus at any time of day (except night buses in cities), I really only use mine if I go to Glasgow - and even then it means going by car for the first 7 miles, to join the Glasgow bus route.

The reduced train fares mentioned by Andysmum are only for travel within the region where your card was issued.
Here in the Highland region, that's pretty useless. In any case, I'm 20 miles from the nearest station.

I wish we had any local buses before 9.30!

There are two buses daily in each direction through the village, Mon-Sat. None on Sundays.
The northbound one goes at 10.20am and 4.45pm, and the southbound one at 1.15pm and 6.45pm.

Assuming you want to come home again the same day, only the first bus in each direction is of any use for going to the nearest towns - 20 miles to the north, or 25 miles to the south.
If you go on the second bus in either direction, the last bus back from the south leaves before you've even arrived, and the last bus back from the north only allows 15 mins in town.

Going on the first bus allows either about 1.5 hours in town, or else nearly 7 hours.

Impossible to commute to work by bus, and impossible to go to hospital appointments, for instance, unless they're in the early afternoon in the town to the north.


And then the bus company says it's not worth putting more buses on because not enough people use the existing ones!



My mother never drove. She did pass her test in her 40s, but my father always did the driving.
My school mates and I all had driving lessons during our late teens.
The local driving instructors' cars were always waiting outside the school at the end of the school day!

Argyll gran, I sympathise with you as also living in a rural area, our buses are nor very frequent. Workers bus at 7.45, next bus 10.45am, then 3.10pm and last i think at 6.45pm.My daughter has great difficulty when arranging hospital appointments.
Coming back from town its 1pm or 4pm, 6pm or 10pm. Her appointments to fit in with buses need to be at 12 -2pm.

Def no buses on Sunday!

When its xmas and new year, my sons father has to take him 30 miles to work, come back and then go for him at 8pm or whenever he finishes as no buses on bank holidays but the supermarkets are open and he doesnt drive!

We have a 22 seater tiny minibus and it very squashed.

However it has 4 steep steps and no ramp for disabled and so i cannot get on the bus.
They only need to provide a ramp for disabled people if the bus has more than 22 seats!

Florence in the hebrides

From where you are, Florence, I believe your bus pass allows you two free return ferry fares per year to the mainland .
Are you able to make use of that?

I havent applied yet for the buss pass as i cant get on the bus?

There is a lift on the ferry but not great if you have mobility problems and i would certainly not be able to climb up the steps on the citylink buses!

I am entitled to get a bus pass - first I need a photo!
Daughter took some a week or so ago - but they weren't any good - and I just can't take 'selfies'. :-(
Sister's coming tomorrow - hopefully I'll get one then.

Technology's all well and fine, when used properly.
I went to a protest today. Hampshire County Council wants to reduce home to school transport for SEN/disabled children. They think a child can walk up to a mile to catch a bus, This also may be a bus with non SEN children, and no escort. The Council is under the impression home to school minibuses or taxis are a waste of time and money.

The Council held a consultancy. What they could have done, using technology, was contact every parent/carer of a SEN child in the County - but they failed to do that. Instead, the consultancy was on HCC's website - so, unless you happened to visit their site, you wouldn't know about it.

Co-incidentally, I was also one of the 'coders' of the replies to this 'consultancy'. Of the, about 600 replies, about 20 were all for it - but they didn't necessarily have SEN children, they'd just found the questionnaire

Now, I've worked with SEN children, and fully understand why some need picking up from home, and why some can't be in the same proximity as 'X', 'Y' or 'Z'.
I can also understand how, to some, being on a bus full of other children would be scary.
It appears, the 'powers that be', have absolutely no idea. :-| :-|,

If they'd contacted every parent, personally, they'd have had more replies - which, obviously, they didn't want, so they decided to NOT use technology to get their own way.

That is really bad Maggie. How can they get away with that? I hope the newspapers have got hold of the story. There must be other ways of saving money.

I’ve been watching the Hampshire transport story on regional television. An absolute disgrace.

I’ve had a bus pass for over 18 years but I haven’t used it since pre-March 2020. I only ever used it for the short trip into our little city centre as it was obviously cheaper than parking fees. I have noticed recently that our LA is letting people park on-street free of charge after 2 pm but I think it may only be to encourage more into the city centre which, alas, has been going downhill for years as stores moved out because of LA rates. We have always had a good bus service into the city - every 15 minutes - less if I walk a little further to the stop on the main road. It is unchanged since lockdown.

I use my car if I want to go anywhere else.

Florence, our service buses have a big square drop-down step/platform (for want of a better description) for wheelchairs which our drivers operate should a wheelchair-bound person want to board the bus. It falls level with the footpath for wheelchair access then is raised by the driver to the level of the bus floor.

Most of our buses have platforms that can be raised and lowered and for wheel chairs there is a ramp that can be added.

Florence - (I expect you know this)

"We welcome all customers on Scottish Citylink services and do our best to assist those with walking difficulties or those who normally use wheelchairs.

If you normally use a wheelchair, we recommend that you book your coach travel online - this will provide you with the most up-to-date booking experience. If you need further information before you book your coach journey, please contact us either by calling or dropping us an email. We’re always happy to help!

Via email [email protected] - emails are monitored 7 days a week, 8am to 6pm."
https://www.citylink.co.uk/help-support/


Even though I'm still able to climb the bus steps, I would never risk trying to travel on a Citylink bus without booking - far too much likelihood of being left behind at the stop if the bus is full.


Doesn't help your local bus situation, though.

If I lived in a larger populated area such as a town,then the buses would be the bigger modern type with facs for disabled. But i live in a small rural village where less people travel on a bus, hence the small mini bus!

All the citylink buses i have ever been on did not have any ramp just steep steps up onto the bus.Any prams etc were put in the luggage space under the bus. I use to feel sorry for women with young kids struggling to climb on the bus and the seats are very small.

If you are a wheelchair user, then yes you can tel in advance and there is a ramp at the back of the bus but im not a wheelchair user.

The Citylink 961 service is a single coach and has steps up onto the bus, there is no ramp to help you get on!

I don't know the 961.
Going to Glasgow I travel on the 914, 915, or 916, all with the steep steps, though a wheelchair ramp is available if requested when booking a seat.


For people not in wheelchairs, their website says (possibly optimistically) -

"If you are a passenger with walking difficulties, your driver can assist you to board the bus or coach before helping you into your seat. ."

Hmmm - yes, I expect they would. Most of them are lovely.