Does anybody have any thoughts on the 2014 fare structure?
Personally I feel that the West Midlands will have a flat-fare for single journeys, say £2, like the Coventry services. My reasoning behind this is twofold;
Firstly, it would cut-out overriding, which is a plague from the scum of the nation, wanting something without paying for it.
Secondly, and probably more importantly looking forward, will be the use of the Swift product for single journey use. Now it is physically possible to have an option for the driver when a smart card is produced for different fares, but surely it would just make sense to have a flat-fare "bang, two pounds, thanks very much" type of approach.
Day tickets will probably rise by the general 10p-20p, with weekly, bi-weekly and monthly passes following suit.
I'm sure that there will be an official announcement relatively soon, just wondered if anyone had any other ideas on what may come next year.
I hope they do scrap the following:
£1.70 'Short Hop' - As mentioned above ref overriding and also, any services from the city shouldn't be able to issue £1.70 from the first stage as the 'City Hop £1' goes the same distance usually
Daysaver Scratch Cards - Dreadful Idea and one which Tony has mentioned previously regarding giving it to the people who will abuse it most.
Fingers crossed once the Swift is known about the ordinary DaySavers will be eliminated; but it is only guess work.
I hope the Swift card wouldn't open the floodgates for even more fraud!!
I dare say the fares will be as follows for 2014 season
£2 - Adult WM Max
£1 - Child WM Max
£1.80 - Adult Short Hop
0.90p - Child Short Hop
£4.00 - Adult Day saver
£2.80 - Child Day saver
This is based on common trends and I can't really see the £2 fare going up next year. Could it be £2.10? Doubt it.
Quote from: Liverpool Street on December 02, 2013, 04:08:55 PM
I hope they do scrap the following:
£1.70 'Short Hop' - As mentioned above ref overriding and also, any services from the city shouldn't be able to issue £1.70 from the first stage as the 'City Hop £1' goes the same distance usually
Daysaver Scratch Cards - Dreadful Idea and one which Tony has mentioned previously regarding giving it to the people who will abuse it most.
Fingers crossed once the Swift is known about the ordinary DaySavers will be eliminated; but it is only guess work.
I hope the Swift card wouldn't open the floodgates for even more fraud!!
I dare say the fares will be as follows for 2014 season
£2 - Adult WM Max
£1 - Child WM Max
£1.80 - Adult Short Hop
0.90p - Child Short Hop
£4.00 - Adult Day saver
£2.80 - Child Day saver
This is based on common trends and I can't really see the £2 fare going up next year. Could it be £2.10? Doubt it.
The City Hop fare of £1 is totally unfair, to me it should be either extended around the whole network for travel in 1 fare stage, or the city hop should be the same price of a short hop journey.
Quote from: Liverpool Street on December 02, 2013, 04:08:55 PM
I can't really see the £2 fare going up next year.
I think i'll fall over with shock if it doesn't!
I would do:
Adults single £2
Child's single £1.50
Daysaver I would scrap in favour of smartcards with a £4 daily cap with weeklies going smart for a freeze or paper ones getting a 10% increase in price. That would also remove the need for scratchcards.
They will inevitably keep one price the same as it is now (presumably the £2 single fare) and make a song and dance about some fares remaining the same, and that there will be "no other price increase until 2015" (omg that sounds amazing how can they keep suchn low fares for a whole year?)
...and of course everything else in life keeps getting more and more expensive while people's wages stay pretty much where they are
Quote from: Kevin on December 02, 2013, 06:26:56 PM
They will inevitably keep one price the same as it is now (presumably the £2 single fare) and make a song and dance about some fares remaining the same, and that there will be "no other price increase until 2015" (omg that sounds amazing how can they keep suchn low fares for a whole year?)
...and of course everything else in life keeps getting more and more expensive while people's wages stay pretty much where they are
Hence my post. What will they do with the £2 fare? £2.15? In the hope people will just put in £2.50 so they get grey profit?
Quote from: Liverpool Street on December 02, 2013, 06:30:44 PM
Quote from: Kevin on December 02, 2013, 06:26:56 PM
They will inevitably keep one price the same as it is now (presumably the £2 single fare) and make a song and dance about some fares remaining the same, and that there will be "no other price increase until 2015" (omg that sounds amazing how can they keep suchn low fares for a whole year?)
...and of course everything else in life keeps getting more and more expensive while people's wages stay pretty much where they are
Hence my post. What will they do with the £2 fare? £2.15? In the hope people will just put in £2.50 so they get grey profit?
It depends on whether they want people on PAYG swift instead of cash. If they do then you use the trick London did which is increase cash fares bu offer the option of no increase if you go onto swift
Surely it would be better to bring back the old, further you travel, the more you pay policy.
Quote from: Stuharris 6360 on December 02, 2013, 06:35:04 PM
Surely it would be better to bring back the old, further you travel, the more you pay policy.
no, no, no. Nightmare to enforce, gives more ways to avoid payment of the full fare, and causes arguments when one driver cannot read fare charts properly and charges one fare and another charges the correct
The single journey flat fare does make sense, they do it down in London for example. And yes, it removes the abuse from those who pay a short hop fare and then travel the whole length of the route.
And it keeps the whole fare structure simple. And yes, the short hop £1.70 fare could be scrapped, and the £2 single retained as the 'big news, fares frozen' PR coup.
The big problem with the short-hop fare to me has always been the fact it is not obviously clear how far this gets you, without actually asking the driver (it is of course printed on the ticket, but this could be incorrect if the driver hasn't updated the Wayfarer to show which fare stage he/she's currently at before issuing the ticket). And it ends the arguments along the lines of 'another driver told me it was only £1.70 to Oldbury' when another driver insists the fare is £2.
While I like the idea of SWIFT being able to eliminate some fraud, its is still theoretically open to abuse. What happens if someone touches an 'empty' (or even fake) SWIFT card on the reader and then walks off down the bus?
Quote from: Stu on December 02, 2013, 07:01:29 PM
The single journey flat fare does make sense, they do it down in London for example. And yes, it removes the abuse from those who pay a short hop fare and then travel the whole length of the route.
And it keeps the whole fare structure simple. And yes, the short hop £1.70 fare could be scrapped, and the £2 single retained as the 'big news, fares frozen' PR coup.
The big problem with the short-hop fare to me has always been the fact it is not obviously clear how far this gets you, without actually asking the driver (it is of course printed on the ticket, but this could be incorrect if the driver hasn't updated the Wayfarer to show which fare stage he/she's currently at before issuing the ticket). And it ends the arguments along the lines of 'another driver told me it was only £1.70 to Oldbury' when another driver insists the fare is £2.
While I like the idea of SWIFT being able to eliminate some fraud, its is still theoretically open to abuse. What happens if someone touches an 'empty' (or even fake) SWIFT card on the reader and then walks off down the bus?
That is a good point, that quite often happens in London and also quite often the drivers seem to let it go. Will the revenue inspectors be getting a reader to check Swift cards have been "touched in" and if any travelcards on it are valid?
I expect theres no manual way to input these Swifts? (I'm thinking like a shop barcode entered manually sort of thing)
Well I have to say sometimes I have my doubts when people use a smart card and I see the screen flashing red, they just walk on anyway... There is no real way to stop people abusing the fares system short of police on every bus or mass culling of the scum
Quote from: Liverpool Street on December 02, 2013, 07:13:15 PM
I expect theres no manual way to input these Swifts? (I'm thinking like a shop barcode entered manually sort of thing)
Correct, there is no way to enter them manually. Yes it is open to the 'Just Walk on brigade' but so is every system. The other thing Swift stops is people putting £3 in 5p in the vault and insisting there is £3.90 there for a daysaver. As long as there is credit on the card the correct amount is taken.
Yes revenue are getting card readers. In London about the only offense Revenue Inspectors issue 'Standard Fares' for is not scanning your Oyster on the way onto the bus if it does have credit on (And then only for the first time caught). All other fiddles like scanning an empty card or any deliberate fraudulent use are immediately reported for private prosecution by TfL
Quote from: Kevin on December 02, 2013, 07:51:03 PM
Well I have to say sometimes I have my doubts when people use a smart card and I see the screen flashing red, they just walk on anyway... There is no real way to stop people abusing the fares system short of police on every bus or mass culling of the scum
Haha, that would be good. But at least with the OAP/Dis you can enter it manually and the company still gets its 80p
Quote from: Tony on December 02, 2013, 07:54:55 PM
Quote from: Liverpool Street on December 02, 2013, 07:13:15 PM
I expect theres no manual way to input these Swifts? (I'm thinking like a shop barcode entered manually sort of thing)
Correct, there is no way to enter them manually. Yes it is open to the 'Just Walk on brigade' but so is every system. The other thing Swift stops is people putting £3 in 5p in the vault and insisting there is £3.90 there for a daysaver. As long as there is credit on the card the correct amount is taken.
Yes revenue are getting card readers. In London about the only offense Revenue Inspectors issue 'Standard Fares' for is not scanning your Oyster on the way onto the bus if it does have credit on (And then only for the first time caught). All other fiddles like scanning an empty card or any deliberate fraudulent use are immediately reported for private prosecution by TfL
I think it'll be more secure then some other 'systems' (cough cough scratchcards...)
Wonder whether diamond will be keeping the £2.50 day return but I imagine the rest of their fares will match NXWM.
Well yes, like I said, SWIFT would be good to stop the 'Oh I put in £1.50, isn't that how much it is?' brigade, as well as the 'here's £3.00, give me a Daysaver and let me off the rest' types, as when you tap your card the correct amount would be charged.
It's quite sad that as an honest traveller, I'm sitting here listing ways that SWIFT can be abused by those who think they're entitled to travel for free (when they're not of course) on our buses, or think that it's okay to make a 'token donation'.
Maybe a way could be found for a speaker to be installed, so if someone tries touching an invalid SWIFT card an announcement come out stating 'FARE DODGER ON BOARD', don't know if that would be enough to shame anyone though. :(
Quote from: Tony on December 02, 2013, 07:54:55 PM
Quote from: Liverpool Street on December 02, 2013, 07:13:15 PM
I expect theres no manual way to input these Swifts? (I'm thinking like a shop barcode entered manually sort of thing)
Correct, there is no way to enter them manually. Yes it is open to the 'Just Walk on brigade' but so is every system. The other thing Swift stops is people putting £3 in 5p in the vault and insisting there is £3.90 there for a daysaver. As long as there is credit on the card the correct amount is taken.
Yes revenue are getting card readers. In London about the only offense Revenue Inspectors issue 'Standard Fares' for is not scanning your Oyster on the way onto the bus if it does have credit on (And then only for the first time caught). All other fiddles like scanning an empty card or any deliberate fraudulent use are immediately reported for private prosecution by TfL
Will it be similar to the London Midland 'the key' readers where you scan it and it tells you what product it on it (in this case how much is on Swift and where it was last used)?
Quote from: Stu on December 02, 2013, 08:09:29 PM
Maybe a way could be found for a speaker to be installed, so if someone tries touching an invalid SWIFT card an announcement come out stating 'FARE DODGER ON BOARD', don't know if that would be enough to shame anyone though. :(
You jest but I honestly reckon that could work
But then going on the way some of the scum behave when challenged they'd probably start on the driver anyway
Quote from: Kevin on December 02, 2013, 09:31:19 PM
Quote from: Stu on December 02, 2013, 08:09:29 PM
Maybe a way could be found for a speaker to be installed, so if someone tries touching an invalid SWIFT card an announcement come out stating 'FARE DODGER ON BOARD', don't know if that would be enough to shame anyone though. :(
You jest but I honestly reckon that could work
But then going on the way some of the scum behave when challenged they'd probably start on the driver anyway
Something less abrupt, and I think it could work also.
"Swift Card Invalid. Please Pay In Cash" possibly..
Or even just "Beep* Beep* Beep*.. Invalid!"
As a matter of interest - I've never had an Oystercard or similar - how can you (the passenger) tell when the darn thing has run out of credit? ???
Quote from: Ossie on December 02, 2013, 11:08:10 PM
As a matter of interest - I've never had an Oystercard or similar - how can you (the passenger) tell when the darn thing has run out of credit? ???
- You can check at top-up machines
- I think the check-in machines tell you if you're running low
- I think there is an option to have it automatically top up by direct debit
I don't go to London that often but did get an oyster card with 20 quid on it, I have no idea how much is left but know how to check whenever I go next
Quote from: Ossie on December 02, 2013, 11:08:10 PM
As a matter of interest - I've never had an Oystercard or similar - how can you (the passenger) tell when the darn thing has run out of credit? ???
The Oyster touch-in readers have a display, when you touch in it shows on the display the balance remaining on your card.
Quote from: Liverpool Street on December 02, 2013, 09:50:30 PM
Quote from: Kevin on December 02, 2013, 09:31:19 PM
Quote from: Stu on December 02, 2013, 08:09:29 PM
Maybe a way could be found for a speaker to be installed, so if someone tries touching an invalid SWIFT card an announcement come out stating 'FARE DODGER ON BOARD', don't know if that would be enough to shame anyone though. :(
I had a problem with my swift where it went red 3 times sufficient credit and cause of swift t and c the journey was free :-) but I also suspect some people may abuse the negative balance feature and never pay it back
You jest but I honestly reckon that could work
But then going on the way some of the scum behave when challenged they'd probably start on the driver anyway
Something less abrupt, and I think it could work also.
"Swift Card Invalid. Please Pay In Cash" possibly..
Or even just "Beep* Beep* Beep*.. Invalid!"
Of note:
1. Sticker spotted on Johnsons Coaches bus on the X20 this morning advising of a "Fares Revision with effect from Monday 6th January 2014".
2. Posters appearing on NXWM buses advertising the discounted Daysaver scratchcard tickets available in packs of five from the travelshops, but in the small print on the poster advising they will only be sold at the current price til the 31st December 2013.
Are we due a NXWM fares rise? Is the company waiting until just before Christmas to sneak out the details once again? ::)
I have noticed that have started removing the £3.90 daysaver advertising from B7RLE's and Omnilinks presumably down do fare increases in January
Quote from: Trident 4609 on December 09, 2013, 09:48:40 PM
I have noticed that have started removing the £3.90 daysaver advertising from B7RLE's and Omnilinks presumably down do fare increases in January
I just saw a B7RLE from my window going past on the 241 without the £3.90 ad.
Quote from: nitromatt1 on December 09, 2013, 09:54:05 PM
Quote from: Trident 4609 on December 09, 2013, 09:48:40 PM
I have noticed that have started removing the £3.90 daysaver advertising from B7RLE's and Omnilinks presumably down do fare increases in January
I just saw a B7RLE from my window going past on the 241 without the £3.90 ad.
Well most B7RLE's at WN have had them removed but I have seen some B7RLE's at PN with it removed too
BC fare tables on the cab doors are being withdrawn. Or it might've been a one off? 4324.
Quote from: Trident 4609 on December 09, 2013, 09:59:28 PM
Quote from: nitromatt1 on December 09, 2013, 09:54:05 PM
Quote from: Trident 4609 on December 09, 2013, 09:48:40 PM
I have noticed that have started removing the £3.90 daysaver advertising from B7RLE's and Omnilinks presumably down do fare increases in January
I just saw a B7RLE from my window going past on the 241 without the £3.90 ad.
Well most B7RLE's at WN have had them removed but I have seen some B7RLE's at PN with it removed too
Most if not all of BY's Omnilinks have lost the £3.90 ads aswell and some of AG's B7RLE's have too I think 2107 is one of them :)
Is it gonna be £4 now for Daysaver and £4.30 nBus respectively I wonder?
Quote from: Liverpool Street on December 09, 2013, 10:02:16 PM
BC fare tables on the cab doors are being withdrawn. Or it might've been a one off? 4324.
4828 has lost its cab door fare table
Quote from: nitromatt1 on December 09, 2013, 10:06:07 PM
Quote from: Liverpool Street on December 09, 2013, 10:02:16 PM
BC fare tables on the cab doors are being withdrawn. Or it might've been a one off? 4324.
4828 has lost its cab door fare table
Think 4828 was already without a fare table on the cab iirc. 2064 and 4561 are also without fare tables (Been like this for months now)
The Black Country and Coventry nBus Swift Smart Card direct debits increase £2.00 per month.
(source: here (http://tickets.networkwestmidlands.co.uk/CT_Ticketdetail.aspx?TicketID=611) and here (http://tickets.networkwestmidlands.co.uk/CT_Ticketdetail.aspx?TicketID=610))
A single fare going up to £2.10 according to the Express & Star
The comments underneath have quite a few people in support (I think the recent news articles on Government cuts may have been useful!), my favourite quote so far is:
Ryan Pitt @Ryatagarasu
@nxwestmidlands @ExpressandStar Fare increase because of £14.6m cuts is realistic. Yet people can spend around £3 on a drink at Starbucks?
The full NXWM fare changes are detailed here.
http://www.expressandstar.com/news/transport-news/2013/12/13/bus-fare-increases-full-list/ (http://www.expressandstar.com/news/transport-news/2013/12/13/bus-fare-increases-full-list/)
Quote from: Roy on December 13, 2013, 04:50:00 PM
The full NXWM fare changes are detailed here.
http://www.expressandstar.com/news/transport-news/2013/12/13/bus-fare-increases-full-list/ (http://www.expressandstar.com/news/transport-news/2013/12/13/bus-fare-increases-full-list/)
Or on WWW.nxbus co.uk
If it had been me, i would have altered prices as follows:-
Adult Maximum fare - £2
Adult Short Hop - Abolished
Birmingham City Hop - Abolished
Day Return (available
all routes) - £3.30
Daysaver - £4.20
Child Single Fare - £1.30
Child Daysaver - £3
Day Return would get abused, unless the driver withdraws a part of the ticket?
Quote from: Liverpool Street on December 13, 2013, 05:53:24 PM
Day Return would get abused, unless the driver withdraws a part of the ticket?
Maybe the driver could take the ticket off the customer and issue a zero fare ticket saying "RETURN TKT RETURN HALF" for the journey so that they have a valid ticket to finish the journey.
Quote from: Stuharris 6360 on December 13, 2013, 06:06:29 PM
Quote from: Liverpool Street on December 13, 2013, 05:53:24 PM
Day Return would get abused, unless the driver withdraws a part of the ticket?
Maybe the driver could take the ticket off the customer and issue a zero fare ticket saying "RETURN TKT RETURN HALF" for the journey so that they have a valid ticket to finish the journey.
Other alternatives are stamping the ticket, or holepunching it, when boarding on the return journey
Quote from: Liverpool Street on December 13, 2013, 05:53:24 PM
Day Return would get abused, unless the driver withdraws a part of the ticket?
The drivers on WN 59 take the ticket, Tear it down the middle then they keep half of the ticket then the other half is given back to the passenger so they can't use it as a daysaver
Personally I can't wait until Swift (or equivalent) becomes the sole method of paying for bus travel, it will do so much to reduce fraud. It will also be a lot easier to pay directly from a bank account, rather than searching the house for change/notes for tickets/passes.
Not that it matters but IF it was upto me, The daysaver would still go up to £4, most people who don't have change just put that it anyway so I don't really see an issue with that price, I'd get rid of the city hop and just freeze the £2 fare as it is now.
Quote from: trident4370 on December 13, 2013, 08:24:19 PM
Not that it matters but IF it was upto me, The daysaver would still go up to £4, most people who don't have change just put that it anyway so I don't really see an issue with that price, I'd get rid of the city hop and just freeze the £2 fare as it is now.
If I could have my way...
...keep the max adult single fare at £2.00. This would be the big PR move, bus fares frozen etc.
...scrap the short hop ticket. This would pay for the max single fare to be retained, and reduce fraud from people not paying enough for a single journey
...keep the £1 City Hop fare. It would be interesting to see the sales figures for this ticket, and likewise how many people are caught by inspectors with one outside the middle ring road area. That would determine whether it's worth scrapping or not.
...increase the Daysaver price to £4.00. Most people seem to put in £4 anyway, and it makes the fare structures nice round figures, instead of hunting for 80 or 90ps worth of change.
As a monthly direct-debit ticket holder, its disappointing to see my monthly price will rise to £51 from £49.50. But it has to be said, it still offers excellent value for money really. At an average of 30 days in a month over the course of a year, that works out to £1.70 per day, up from £1.65 a day.
It will be interesting to see what discounts NX offer once their products are available to purchase and use with SWIFT...
Quote from: Trident 4609 on December 09, 2013, 09:59:28 PM
Quote from: nitromatt1 on December 09, 2013, 09:54:05 PM
Quote from: Trident 4609 on December 09, 2013, 09:48:40 PM
I have noticed that have started removing the £3.90 daysaver advertising from B7RLE's and Omnilinks presumably down do fare increases in January
I just saw a B7RLE from my window going past on the 241 without the £3.90 ad.
Well most B7RLE's at WN have had them removed but I have seen some B7RLE's at PN with it removed too
Yeah some PE B7RLE's have had it removed. You can see still see where the ad's were.
Quote from: Stu on December 13, 2013, 09:05:18 PM
Quote from: trident4370 on December 13, 2013, 08:24:19 PM
Not that it matters but IF it was upto me, The daysaver would still go up to £4, most people who don't have change just put that it anyway so I don't really see an issue with that price, I'd get rid of the city hop and just freeze the £2 fare as it is now.
If I could have my way...
...keep the max adult single fare at £2.00. This would be the big PR move, bus fares frozen etc.
...scrap the short hop ticket. This would pay for the max single fare to be retained, and reduce fraud from people not paying enough for a single journey
...keep the £1 City Hop fare. It would be interesting to see the sales figures for this ticket, and likewise how many people are caught by inspectors with one outside the middle ring road area. That would determine whether it's worth scrapping or not.
...increase the Daysaver price to £4.00. Most people seem to put in £4 anyway, and it makes the fare structures nice round figures, instead of hunting for 80 or 90ps worth of change.
As a monthly direct-debit ticket holder, its disappointing to see my monthly price will rise to £51 from £49.50. But it has to be said, it still offers excellent value for money really. At an average of 30 days in a month over the course of a year, that works out to £1.70 per day, up from £1.65 a day.
It will be interesting to see what discounts NX offer once their products are available to purchase and use with SWIFT...
Yeah that is where I got my idea, round figures are much better for the passengers, having to find the extra 10p in change could well make the difference for some between walking home and bussing it home after they've been shopping. The only reason I'd keep the short hop going is purely because I live 5 stops from Kings Heath high st so for us, that fare does save us some money, and I know that when the ticket is not being abused by the chavs, it does make a difference!
On a slightly different note, I've noticed this week Diamond have reprogrammed some blinds to now display a "2 Journies for £2" offer, it will be interesting to see if they come up with any more tempting offers once the main fare increases for both companies have gone through in January.
Any idea on the 301 / 302 return fare?
Quote from: Westy on December 13, 2013, 09:30:58 PM
Any idea on the 301 / 302 return fare?
It will probably go up to £3.10 (Up by 20p like it usually is)
Quote from: trident4370 on December 13, 2013, 09:18:08 PM
Quote from: Stu on December 13, 2013, 09:05:18 PM
Quote from: trident4370 on December 13, 2013, 08:24:19 PM
Not that it matters but IF it was upto me, The daysaver would still go up to £4, most people who don't have change just put that it anyway so I don't really see an issue with that price, I'd get rid of the city hop and just freeze the £2 fare as it is now.
If I could have my way...
...keep the max adult single fare at £2.00. This would be the big PR move, bus fares frozen etc.
...scrap the short hop ticket. This would pay for the max single fare to be retained, and reduce fraud from people not paying enough for a single journey
...keep the £1 City Hop fare. It would be interesting to see the sales figures for this ticket, and likewise how many people are caught by inspectors with one outside the middle ring road area. That would determine whether it's worth scrapping or not.
...increase the Daysaver price to £4.00. Most people seem to put in £4 anyway, and it makes the fare structures nice round figures, instead of hunting for 80 or 90ps worth of change.
As a monthly direct-debit ticket holder, its disappointing to see my monthly price will rise to £51 from £49.50. But it has to be said, it still offers excellent value for money really. At an average of 30 days in a month over the course of a year, that works out to £1.70 per day, up from £1.65 a day.
It will be interesting to see what discounts NX offer once their products are available to purchase and use with SWIFT...
Yeah that is where I got my idea, round figures are much better for the passengers, having to find the extra 10p in change could well make the difference for some between walking home and bussing it home after they've been shopping. The only reason I'd keep the short hop going is purely because I live 5 stops from Kings Heath high st so for us, that fare does save us some money, and I know that when the ticket is not being abused by the chavs, it does make a difference!
On a slightly different note, I've noticed this week Diamond have reprogrammed some blinds to now display a "2 Journies for £2" offer, it will be interesting to see if they come up with any more tempting offers once the main fare increases for both companies have gone through in January.
I think round fares are much earier, people are also less likely to try & put less in the fare box than they should because it is easier to spot!
i agree putting the daysaver up to £4. i think the max fare should stay as is. short hop should go though. i wonder however, if the people who fraudulantly deceive the bus companies (fare dodgers) and the vandals/trashers didnt do it, where would the fares be now? i bet if the revenue and expensiture from that was totted up, it would give the rest of decent bus users less of a financial burden.
Quote from: mranon on December 13, 2013, 09:47:54 PM
i agree putting the daysaver up to £4. i think the max fare should stay as is. short hop should go though. i wonder however, if the people who fraudulantly deceive the bus companies (fare dodgers) and the vandals/trashers didnt do it, where would the fares be now? i bet if the revenue and expensiture from that was totted up, it would give the rest of decent bus users less of a financial burden.
True, how much money is lost by
People in the city putting £1 in and travelling much further than allowed
People putting a load of coins in hoping the driver doesn't check it
people using out of date travelcards/Daytrippers/Daysavers
and of course the biggest one, the 1/2 fare 20 year olds!
Sure Swift will stop a lot of this activity especially if cash fares are no longer allowed, but it does come with drawbacks like when someone has genuinely forgotten there card and need to get somewhere urgently. Hopefully rules will be in place to cover for genuine problems whilst discouraging those who want to defraud the system.
I have to say I am disappointed the £2 has gone up to £2.10 but at the same time not at all surprised. Let's face it, they usually have something to say "(yes the bus fares have gone up again but) LOOK!! this fare is the same as before and this fare is a nice round £2!"
So this year it'll be "LOOK!! the city hop is still £1 and a daysaver is now a nice round £4"
And Joe Public will say "another fare increase and still no better bus service"
....far too cynical for my age
I've yet to see any prices for nBus passes. Does anyone know what this will change to if at all?
I'm still waiting for the price reduction planned for April 2013!
So as always NXWM continue to rip us all off by raising the fares again
here are some key bits of info:
ADULT MAX £2.10
CHILD MAX £1.05
ADULT DAYSAVER £4.00
CHILD DAYSAVER £2.00
CHILD REGIONAL WEEK (bus pass) £8.00
Cant remember any others and cba to look lol
This is being talked about in General Discussion.
oh sorry didnt see
http://www.expressandstar.com/news/transport-news/2013/12/14/transport-bosses-defend-10p-west-midlands-bus-rises/
Some great comments from the clearly ill-informed readers...
"Didnt bus use to be 35p" - yes, and cans of pop used to cost 20p ::)
"it will be cheaper to hire a private jet than to catch the bus soon. Absolutely ridic" - I imagine hiring a private jet costs a little more than £2.10 ::)
"yh price rise for unreliable, late buses, it will soon be cheaper to get taxis every where" - and taxis don't ever put their prices up?
I'd keep the £2 fares as well as easy to remember and in terms of cash. I'm currently very pleased with NXWM; the buses are in a better condition than ever before, on time 95% of the time on the routes I use them on and most of the drivers are polite and good drivers. They're investing in new buses as well although I would like to see the back of the Tridents as I can't stand the plastic sheds. Considering the system though made £34.1 million profit back in 2012 I understand why some may become annoyed at the price rise and that this is more than enough of a profit to be sustainable for the future. 10p more isn't much but it's the whole notion of the fares going up that annoys people. The fare structure is good value for longer journeys; and the (not necessarily connected) network daytripper for the bus, train and metro I used today cost only £6. This is excellent as it got me from Dorridge to Wolverhampton on the train and metro, plus 6 bus journeys. However short journeys are a rip off; I live on a blue Diamond route and it costs £3.40 return to get just from near Dorridge to Solihull, a short 10 minute journey. This has put my mother off and is now using the car to get there as it's cheaper. I'd advocate a more variable price structure such as Stagecoach but the only problem is that boarding times are much slower.
Quote from: Liberator9 on December 14, 2013, 06:55:28 PM
I'd keep the £2 fares as well as easy to remember and in terms of cash. I'm currently very pleased with NXWM; the buses are in a better condition than ever before, on time 95% of the time on the routes I use them on and most of the drivers are polite and good drivers. They're investing in new buses as well although I would like to see the back of the Tridents as I can't stand the plastic sheds. Considering the system though made £34.1 million profit back in 2012 I understand why some may become annoyed at the price rise and that this is more than enough of a profit to be sustainable for the future. 10p more isn't much but it's the whole notion of the fares going up that annoys people. The fare structure is good value for longer journeys; and the (not necessarily connected) network daytripper for the bus, train and metro I used today cost only £6. This is excellent as it got me from Dorridge to Wolverhampton on the train and metro, plus 6 bus journeys. However short journeys are a rip off; I live on a blue Diamond route and it costs £3.40 return to get just from near Dorridge to Solihull, a short 10 minute journey. This has put my mother off and is now using the car to get there as it's cheaper. I'd advocate a more variable price structure such as Stagecoach but the only problem is that boarding times are much slower.
yes think NE missed out on a PR coup there, keep the maximum fare at £2, but withdraw the short/city hop fares. I would love to see how much the short hop/city hop fares are used and what the level of abuse is?
Quote from: domino.99 on December 14, 2013, 05:36:16 PM
So as always NXWM continue to rip us all off by raising the fares again
here are some key bits of info:
ADULT MAX £2.10
CHILD MAX £1.05
ADULT DAYSAVER £4.00
CHILD DAYSAVER £2.00
CHILD REGIONAL WEEK (bus pass) £8.00
Cant remember any others and cba to look lol
What? I don't see how a maximum single fair of £2.10 is a rip off, NXWM are actually one of the cheaper operators!
Perhaps do a little research into other operators such as Arriva, First and Stagecoach before jumping to the conclusion that NX are 'ripping us off'.
When I went on holiday to Cumbria, a Stagecoach Dayrider covering Cumbria and Lancashire was £7.00 child rate, and I think £10.50 adult rate. Also bear in mind that this allowed use of Stagecoach services only, and most services had a frequency of 1/2 hours.
I got a better deal in Wales though, a "West Wales Rover" day ticket cost me just £3 and allowed use of all operators' services across a large area (mostly Silcox and First). I think the adult rate was £5.
In Worcestershire, a First Wyvern Day ticket valid on all First services in Worcestershire and the 144 to Birmingham is £4 child rate and £6 adult.
My point? We cannot really moan about such small fare increases when we continue to enjoy some of the best value and most frequent services in the country.
Its like Diamond in Redditch £1.50 for value day saver but £6 for a county connect a
The 12 in Cov is good value as a £3.80 daysaver means u can easily go from Coventry to Leamington Spa cheaper than the stagecoach equivalent
Makes a glad I have a bus/train pass and don't have to worry about ticket prices. The prices of passes will probably be up next year too mind
Quote from: Sh4166 on December 15, 2013, 12:43:11 AM
Makes a glad I have a bus/train pass and don't have to worry about ticket prices. The prices of passes will probably be up next year too mind
Are nBus week/month pass prices changing this January?
Quote from: nitromatt1 on December 15, 2013, 12:44:59 AM
Quote from: Sh4166 on December 15, 2013, 12:43:11 AM
Makes a glad I have a bus/train pass and don't have to worry about ticket prices. The prices of passes will probably be up next year too mind
Are nBus week/month pass prices changing this January?
I would imagine so, yeah
Quote from: nitromatt1 on December 15, 2013, 12:44:59 AM
Quote from: Sh4166 on December 15, 2013, 12:43:11 AM
Makes a glad I have a bus/train pass and don't have to worry about ticket prices. The prices of passes will probably be up next year too mind
Are nBus week/month pass prices changing this January?
Doesn't look like it:
http://www.networkwestmidlands.com/web/FILES/_Tickets_2014.pdf
On a side note, received my new pass in the post from NXWM yesterday, and it looks like they've acted quickly, in the last couple of years the direct debit price hasn't increased until February, but this year looks like I'm paying the increase from 2nd January, as it shows £51. :-\
Seems buses are now starting to show the new prices
Was on a WB Gemini and the new prices are shown
https://skydrive.live.com/redir?resid=89496BAA5B85D386!815&authkey=!AFkxtpDSzj2ZYcA&v=3&ithint=photo%2c.jpg