A new off-peak daysaver for 4 pounds (down from 4.20 now)
"Upgrade" your off-peak daysaver by adding children for just a pound each (ie adult + child = 5 pounds)
Retain the popular £1 city hop and £8 family daysaver
In part responding to drivers' feedback, the 1.90 short hop is frozen, and becomes off-peak only; and there will be just one child fare of 1.15 at all times (ie no child short hop). Off-peak is defined as per OAPs: everything after 0930, and all day weekends
Peak daysaver increasing to £4.40, Single to £2.30, travelcards up 50p
Is this real or...?
Quote from: pndriver on December 04, 2015, 11:34:09 AM
Yeah, in this week's business brief email
So in effect then the daysaver is £4 and people will throw in £2 without saying what ticket they want.
That well-abused city hop still exists I see.
"Any journey WITHIN the ring road - but you'll get away with maybe you know 3 or 4 stops outside the ringroad too "
Quote from: Liverpool Street on December 04, 2015, 11:38:09 AM
So in effect then the daysaver is £4 and people will throw in £2 without saying what ticket they want.
That well-abused city hop still exists I see.
"Any journey WITHIN the ring road - but you'll get away with maybe you know 3 or 4 stops outside the ringroad too "
Or to Coventry
So
@pndriver does that mean in the peak hours, just to go one fare stage will be £2.30?
Quote from: Stuharris 6360 on December 04, 2015, 01:24:22 PM
So @pndriver does that mean in the peak hours, just to go one fare stage will be £2.30?
I assume so, it'll disappoint the residents of wrens nest though. They pay £1.90 to go from wrens nest road to laurel road to get to the school. 4 stops when it would take less than 10 mins to walk.
Quote from: Liverpool Street on December 04, 2015, 11:38:09 AM
So in effect then the daysaver is £4 and people will throw in £2 without saying what ticket they want.
That well-abused city hop still exists I see.
"Any journey WITHIN the ring road - but you'll get away with maybe you know 3 or 4 stops outside the ringroad too "
There's a few people pay £1 into city from broad street that are still on when you get to Quinton
Quote from: pndriver on December 04, 2015, 01:38:17 PM
I assume so, it'll disappoint the residents of wrens nest though. They pay £1.90 to go from wrens nest road to laurel road to get to the school. 4 stops when it would take less than 10 mins to walk.
So for them it's an above 20% rise in fare.
No doubt NE will say that the decrease in the price of the off peak Daysaver balances out the rise in the fare.
However I cannot see how NE can justify keeping the £1 City Hop fare, it discriminates against everybody in the rest of the West Midlands, it's like they are saying we need to look good in Birmingham, so we will charge less, and sod the rest of the West Midlands.
Quote from: Stuharris 6360 on December 04, 2015, 01:51:37 PM
So for them it's an above 20% rise in fare.
No doubt NE will say that the decrease in the price of the off peak Daysaver balances out the rise in the fare.
However I cannot see how NE can justify keeping the £1 City Hop fare, it discriminates against everybody in the rest of the West Midlands, it's like they are saying we need to look good in Birmingham, so we will charge less, and sod the rest of the West Midlands.
There's cheaper fares in Coventry, cheaper bus passes and some cheaper fares in the Black Country. Does that discriminate me as a Birmingham resident? I live outside the city ring road, so I can't buy a city hop. Does that discriminate me too?
Quote from: Gareth on December 04, 2015, 02:18:59 PM
There's cheaper fares in Coventry, cheaper bus passes and some cheaper fares in the Black Country. Does that discriminate me as a Birmingham resident? I live outside the city ring road, so I can't buy a city hop. Does that discriminate me too?
IMO, Yes to me it does.
If your are going to have a fare of £1 for what is normally 2/3 stages, then it should be across the whole of the NE operating area, not just in Birmingham.
To me this whole fare thing is out of date, they should go back to the old days and you get charged more for the greater the distance travelled.
NX West Midlands here:
http://nxbus.co.uk/west-midlands/news/national-express-west-midlands-fares-changes-2016/
NX Coventry here:
http://nxbus.co.uk/coventry/news/national-express-coventry-fares-changes-2016/
Quote from: Stuharris 6360 on December 04, 2015, 02:27:03 PM
IMO, Yes to me it does.
If your are going to have a fare of £1 for what is normally 2/3 stages, then it should be across the whole of the NE operating area, not just in Birmingham.
To me this whole fare thing is out of date, they should go back to the old days and you get charged more for the greater the distance travelled.
Yeah £2 everywhere really.
Scrap all these fares.
How do you feel about this, Stuharris6360?
Pay as you go fare?
Is that to do with the Swift cards?
Usual negative comments I see, Interesting that the first two are one complaining about not having a cheap short distance fare and another complaining because there is one!
Now on NX website.
Just wondering, do the WM prices also affect CV journeys on the 11 outside the West Midlands?
This is going to go down well with certain followers of my WMBU Facebook page! :D
However, looking at the bigger picture, I can see what NX are doing here, and actually people are saving money.
For starters, I'm pleased to see that SWIFT pay-as-you-go fares have been frozen, thus incentivising passengers to switch to using smartcards instead of cash.
And the off-peak Daysaver is a welcome addition for anyone travelling after 9:30am, for whom the cost of travelling has come down in price.
But I'm expecting the usual round of hatred-fuelled bile once I share the link there, from people who forget that other smaller operators will also be increasing their fares. :(
My pass has gone up £1.50!
Quote from: Westy on December 04, 2015, 09:47:24 PM
My pass has gone up £1.50!
Based on someone working 5 days a week that comes out at an increase of about 7p per day, or if you catch 4 buses like you do less than 2p per journey
Also in the same email was mention of the 97 getting rebranded with crimsoned tridents!
Personally I think that passengers should pay more to travel during the peak, afterall jjourneys take longer and this is using more fuel, and costs more in drivers wages
I think that the Walsall low fare zone should be extended to cover Aldridge and brownhills too, ive had loads of people try to buy it and then I have to explain it doesn't cover there
Quote from: BU07 LGO on December 04, 2015, 09:51:47 PM
Also in the same email was mention of the 97 getting rebranded with crimsoned tridents!
Personally I think that passengers should pay more to travel during the peak, afterall jjourneys take longer and this is using more fuel, and costs more in drivers wages
I think that the Walsall low fare zone should be extended to cover Aldridge and brownhills too, ive had loads of people try to buy it and then I have to explain it doesn't cover there
I thought the 97 was getting replaced with newer buses sometime soon, not rebranded Crimson Tridents lol!
Quote from: Ronnoc on December 04, 2015, 09:59:09 PM
I thought the 97 was getting replaced with newer buses sometime soon, not rebranded Crimson Tridents lol!
Why do you think the 97 branded Tridents were going into Crimson then? As Tony has stated before, buses are being painted on a route by route basis.
Quote from: Tony on December 04, 2015, 05:10:07 PM
Usual negative comments I see, Interesting that the first two are one complaining about not having a cheap short distance fare and another complaining because there is one!
Yes
@Tony but a cheap short distance fare that applies only in Birmingham which it seems like old and new drivers don't like because people cheat.
Quote from: Stuharris 6360 on December 04, 2015, 10:35:30 PM
Yes @Tony but a cheap short distance fare that applies only in Birmingham which it seems like old and new drivers don't like because people cheat.
And also other places, so your claim of Birmingham Bias doesn't apply.
The Mass fraud is a fallacy as well, in all my time in revenue I only knew of one Standard fare issued for over-riding a city hop. The revenue team this year have already recovered a record amount in standard fares paid, but a minute number are for City Hop over-riding.
It just seems a lot of moaning because there is something new to moan about.
As for the suggestion of reverting back to the multiple fares depending on distance travelled, well that just gives even more scope for over-riding!
Quote from: Nathan on December 04, 2015, 10:04:09 PM
Why do you think the 97 branded Tridents were going into Crimson then? As Tony has stated before, buses are being painted on a route by route basis.
Think about the route and what rules are coming in to play in the future.
Quote from: Liverpool Street on December 04, 2015, 04:10:10 PM
Yeah £2 everywhere really.
Scrap all these fares.
How do you feel about this, Stuharris6360?
I don't like any of this
@Liverpool Street !
On the NX bus website, they haven't mentioned that the short hop fare is now Off Peak in the introductory comments, except the words Off Peak by the fare. They just want you to look at the positives. So they are just hoping that people just accept it. Look at it, who is likely to want to travel a couple of stages Peak times, moms on the school run and elderly people who are both being discriminated at.
However if you happen to live in the centre of Birmingham, then you are ok, just a quid.
That is why NE need to take a long look at the fare system and reintroduce the policy, the farther you travel, the more you pay.
Quote from: Ronnoc on December 04, 2015, 10:49:19 PM
Think about the route and what rules are coming in to play in the future.
It has already been suggested previously that some Euro 3 vehicles could be fitted with exhaust traps, thus making them compliant with the Birmingham emissions zone.
Quote from: Tony on December 04, 2015, 10:44:21 PM
And also other places, so your claim of Birmingham Bias doesn't apply.
The Mass fraud is a fallacy as well, in all my time in revenue I only knew of one Standard fare issued for over-riding a city hop. The revenue team this year have already recovered a record amount in standard fares paid, but a minute number are for City Hop over-riding.
It just seems a lot of moaning because there is something new to moan about.
As for the suggestion of reverting back to the multiple fares depending on distance travelled, well that just gives even more scope for over-riding!
But why do we need a city hop fare, why not just have a standard one off fare
if we must go in that direction, £2.30 aduly, £1.15, then everybody pays the same cash wise, nobody has to worry about over riding
@Tony
Quote from: Nathan on December 04, 2015, 10:53:28 PM
It has already been suggested previously that some Euro 3 vehicles could be fitted with exhaust traps, thus making them compliant with the Birmingham emissions zone.
This was discussed as an option, but a very expensive one at that
Quote from: BU07 LGO on December 04, 2015, 09:51:47 PM
Also in the same email was mention of the 97 getting rebranded with crimsoned tridents!
Personally I think that passengers should pay more to travel during the peak, afterall jjourneys take longer and this is using more fuel, and costs more in drivers wages
I think that the Walsall low fare zone should be extended to cover Aldridge and brownhills too, ive had loads of people try to buy it and then I have to explain it doesn't cover there
How come the Walsall Low Fare Zone doesnt match the borough boundary?
I would be willing to say that the reason the city hop fare exists is, much like in Coventry, to aid travel around the city centre, ie station to station or to markets, coach station to rest of the city centre etc.
The only problem I see with the fare is the fact that there aren't really enough routes to make it useful, yeah there's the 16 to the markets and the 82/87 and now 22/23/24/29 loops which provide those sort of links, but nothing really out to Aston Uni and Eastside or to the Jewellery Quarter when the Paradise diversions finish
Are diamond changing their fares??? Hope not
60.50 for a months bus pass, I soon be better of not working,
Quote from: wembley86 on December 05, 2015, 10:36:02 AM
60.50 for a months bus pass, I soon be better of not working,
Go direct debit, it's cheaper. My monthly nbus swift card is £57 by direct debit.
I think this is a mostly good move! But I'd have it as £2.40/50 with change and £2 with a Swift card to make it a real incentive to get one. People who live here or visit regularly have no excuse not to get one, as they're free with a £10 top up and it stays on there. Those are the only PAYG fares I'd have, apart from group/evening savers. The off-peak short hop just seems pointless to keep - I'm hoping this is to phase it out for 2017. In the long term I hope we simplify it more and don't have any off-peak fares like London, but have a job seeker's pass for 12 months use only (although we do have WorkWise).
I probably wouldn't mind removing the £1 city hops, but then I'd also remove the Walsall low fare zone and the lower pass prices for the Black Country and Coventry. These people moaning can't have it only suit them. Due to the size of Birmingham city centre and the fact that there isn't a free bus, like other major cities, then this is the next best thing.
To be honest I still think its good value
I get a d/d regional pass soon to be 54.50
I work 5/6 day weeks. Daysaver instead of pass will be £4.40 x 5 x 4= £88
Saving me £33.50 and with minimum wage going up I'm not spending more money just the same amount % wise going out my wages per month
Quote from: Chris on December 05, 2015, 02:53:52 PM
To be honest I still think its good value
I get a d/d regional pass soon to be 54.50
I work 5/6 day weeks. Daysaver instead of pass will be £4.40 x 5 x 4= £88
Saving me £33.50 and with minimum wage going up I'm not spending more money just the same amount % wise going out my wages per month
I travel to/from work 5 days a week, and then often use the bus at weekends.
£54.50 a month x 12 months = £654 a year
Divided by 365 possible days a pass can be used (2016 is a leap year, so 366 days minus Christmas Day when there are no buses) = £1.79 a day.
So I'm seeing an increase from £1.73 a day to £1.79. I'm not on minimum wage, so an extra 6p a day isn't going to hurt me! ;)
Hopefully the child's monthly pass doesn't increase to above £30.
Quote from: Ronnoc on December 05, 2015, 04:39:31 PM
Hopefully the child's monthly pass doesn't increase to above £30.
Direct debit child faresaver is frozen at £26.50. The 4-week faresaver increases to £30.25
http://nxbus.co.uk/west-midlands/news/national-express-west-midlands-fares-changes-2016
Seems there are numerous ways to beat fare increases, yet people have already jumped on the "single fare jumping to £2.30 is blatant profiteering" bandwagon it seems. (Not here I must add, but on my FB page).
It's always funny how the same people never complain about other operators (using older even-tattier buses) when they put their prices up too!
Quote from: Stu on December 05, 2015, 04:47:01 PM
Direct debit child faresaver is frozen at £26.50. The 4-week faresaver increases to £30.25
http://nxbus.co.uk/west-midlands/news/national-express-west-midlands-fares-changes-2016
Seems there are numerous ways to beat fare increases, yet people have already jumped on the "single fare jumping to £2.30 is blatant profiteering" bandwagon it seems. (Not here I must add, but on my FB page).
It's always funny how the same people never complain about other operators (using older even-tattier buses) when they put their prices up too!
@Stu I think people especially on your page (which I'm a member of) don't realise that yeah there's a 10p increase on single fare. They don't realise the savings on off peak daysavers and other deals available and oh wait the amount of investment nx has put the last few years?
I happy paying what I pay out to nx every month my service to merry hill has nice 61/12 plate buses which are nice clean and reliable service (when merry hill traffic flows properly).
20p on a peak daysaver is nothing I had to put up with First Kernow. I used to work in Truro and live in Redruth (2010) The return went up from £4.80 to £5.60!!
Quote from: Stu on December 05, 2015, 04:47:01 PM
Direct debit child faresaver is frozen at £26.50. The 4-week faresaver increases to £30.25
http://nxbus.co.uk/west-midlands/news/national-express-west-midlands-fares-changes-2016
Seems there are numerous ways to beat fare increases, yet people have already jumped on the "single fare jumping to £2.30 is blatant profiteering" bandwagon it seems. (Not here I must add, but on my FB page).
It's always funny how the same people never complain about other operators (using older even-tattier buses) when they put their prices up too!
That's highly inconvenient, especially if you've only got £30 on you.
Quote from: Ronnoc on December 05, 2015, 05:06:58 PM
That's highly inconvenient, especially if you've only got £30 on you.
@Ronnoc Have you got the facility to set up a direct debit? It's a lot cheaper and get more for your monies. The Renewal date is set to a certain day I.e. mine starts on the 24th of each month so runs 24th November to 23rd December so that's 30 days travel for 54.50 compared to 60.50 for 28 days.
Quote from: Ronnoc on December 05, 2015, 05:06:58 PM
That's highly inconvenient, especially if you've only got £30 on you.
If you can't set one up yourself, your parents should be able to set you up with your travelcard by direct debit. Just tell them how much they'll be saving and they'll jump at it! ;)
Quote from: Stu on December 05, 2015, 06:07:39 PM
If you can't set one up yourself, your parents should be able to set you up with your travelcard by direct debit. Just tell them how much they'll be saving and they'll jump at it! ;)
Lol thanks, I'll give it a try.
During my uni days, I used to have the student card which was £3xx a year which was a massive saving ! Shame I've graduated ...
Quote from: Chris on December 05, 2015, 04:58:35 PM
@Stu I think people especially on your page (which I'm a member of) don't realise that yeah there's a 10p increase on single fare. They don't realise the savings on off peak daysavers and other deals available and oh wait the amount of investment nx has put the last few years?
I happy paying what I pay out to nx every month my service to merry hill has nice 61/12 plate buses which are nice clean and reliable service (when merry hill traffic flows properly).
20p on a peak daysaver is nothing I had to put up with First Kernow. I used to work in Truro and live in Redruth (2010) The return went up from £4.80 to £5.60!!
Thanks Chris, I agree and I even pointed out in my original post there that people should look at the whole picture before jumping to conclusions and slamming NX.
As I see it:
- there is no fare increase if you switch to paying with Swift
- people who buy Daysavers after 9:30am actually get a fare decrease (from £4.20 to £4.00)
- which is decreased even more if they switch to Swift (from £4.20 to £3.80)
As for other comments that have been raised:
- buses are only as dirty (internally) as the people who use them
- NX operate much newer and better presented buses, as well as a bigger fleet of vehicles and services operated, than some other operators, who will also be increasing their fares at the same time, yet no-one slams them for blatant profiteering
- buses don't run on time because of heavy traffic caused by people not choosing to use public transport because of the pre-conceptions that all public transport users are smelly weirdos who stab and murder everyone who uses buses, or that all buses are full of cannabis smokers. And then there are regular bus users who complain that the buses never run on time because they don't understand that buses are not magical beasts that can effortlessly glide across the traffic jams to keep to their timetables.
Sorry for the mini-rant, but just wanted to get that off my chest! ::)
I understand why buses are late, eg merry hills a nightmare peak times and other drivers do not know the keep clear sections of the roundabout by the cinema is there to allow cars/buses through to keep the systems moving yet they park on them waiting to get to the multi storey hence making everything late.
Concerning rubbish, the buses don't have time to get cleaned during service unless its at wolves (if they still getting cleaned I.e. 529/126 etc) and some services in Birmingham. And if some people like some school children and other people that seem to use the bus as a bin, they would be alot cleaner.
Nx uses a good portion of the profit they generate into refurbs, with people mistaking the crimson 57/09 buses as brand new. They are probably going to purchase around 150 new double deckers next year to get the majority of the old tridents out of city centre before 2017. So in my view that £2.30 (increase of 10p) will give newer buses, more platinum routes that give a higher standard of bus for the same price of £2.30 as a normal, refurb existing buses and maybe more new services for that price.
I do not mind paying an increase that happens once a year. I think NX is doing a grand job of modernising a fleet with the money they make.
These fare changes seem fair to me - good idea to reduce the daysaver to £4 after 9:30 certainly; also the idea of £1 extra for an accompanying child. It will encourage the move to SWIFT, which works well I must add, considering the prices for that are remaining at £2.20 etc. The low fare zone that is present in Walsall is also an excellent initiative and it would be good, if practical, for similar schemes to occur elsewhere.
Went into Solihull today and impressed by the change in just a few months - the Platinums on the 957 and host of new Crimson E200MMCs look excellent and create a good impression of NX. Saw a Crimson Gemini and again good to see some of the older members of the fleet being updated to fit in. The YW Tridents having been done up by now all looked good. Will be even better when the 6 Scanias are refurbished into Crimson - Solihull bar a few routes will be pretty much Crimson and Platinum. The transformation over the last 12 months is excellent - long may it continue. In relation to this, hopefully more road infrastructure schemes can be pursued with by Centro etc. to improve reliability by improving traffic flows.
Another operator will no doubt push up their fares, yet will continue to perform to their usual standards, or less; evident by the lack of iniatives or action in regards to joining up to the Alliance.
how long before the Express and Star describes there increases as 'inflation busting'?
Quote from: BU07 LGO on December 04, 2015, 09:51:47 PMPersonally I think that passengers should pay more to travel during the peak, afterall jjourneys take longer and this is using more fuel, and costs more in drivers wages
But by doing that anyone who can possibly avoid travelling in the peak will do, and then at the moment off-peak fares become available all and sundry then want to travel at once.
The railways (and Virgin WC in particular) seem unable to grasp this concept. Whenever I catch a peak time train (at no less than £126 for a walk-up standard class fare, albeit on expenses) they are usually half full at best. Then as soon as the clock ticks into off-peak territory it's a scrum to get on otherwise you'll be standing all the way to London.
Quote from: wembley86 on December 05, 2015, 10:36:02 AM
60.50 for a months bus pass, I soon be better of not working,
Yup, two quid a day. However will you manage?
Quote from: Other Walsall Tony on December 06, 2015, 08:25:42 AM
how long before the Express and Star describes there increases as 'inflation busting'?
Will probably be in Monday's edition! I can also guarantee they'll use a really old picture to illustrate the article, and will fail to mention that Swift fares won't be increasing. ;)
Quote from: Stu on December 06, 2015, 11:56:43 AM
Will probably be in Monday's edition! I can also guarantee they'll use a really old picture to illustrate the article, and will fail to mention that Swift fares won't be increasing. ;)
Same in Worcester too with the Worcester news, any excuse to knock the buses without ever highlighting the good things. Clearly easier to work up the complainers and fill the letters pages (no doubt concessionary holders) who fail to understand that buses cannot fly over traffic and that it is the city council who is at fault for failing to provide infrastructure for transport in the city and actually encouraging car use by closing the park and ride site and having cheap car parking. Just easy to criticise the bus company though!
Quote from: Stu on December 05, 2015, 06:46:14 PM
Thanks Chris, I agree and I even pointed out in my original post there that people should look at the whole picture before jumping to conclusions and slamming NX.
As I see it:
- there is no fare increase if you switch to paying with Swift
- people who buy Daysavers after 9:30am actually get a fare decrease (from £4.20 to £4.00)
- which is decreased even more if they switch to Swift (from £4.20 to £3.80)
As for other comments that have been raised:
- buses are only as dirty (internally) as the people who use them
- NX operate much newer and better presented buses, as well as a bigger fleet of vehicles and services operated, than some other operators, who will also be increasing their fares at the same time, yet no-one slams them for blatant profiteering
- buses don't run on time because of heavy traffic caused by people not choosing to use public transport because of the pre-conceptions that all public transport users are smelly weirdos who stab and murder everyone who uses buses, or that all buses are full of cannabis smokers. And then there are regular bus users who complain that the buses never run on time because they don't understand that buses are not magical beasts that can effortlessly glide across the traffic jams to keep to their timetables.
Sorry for the mini-rant, but just wanted to get that off my chest! ::)
Sometimes even without any traffic you can still run late due to high passenger load ! The times don't factor stopping for every bus stop!
Quote from: BU07 LGO on December 06, 2015, 05:24:06 PM
Sometimes even without any traffic you can still run late due to high passenger load ! The times don't factor stopping for every bus stop!
I can't think of anything more infuriating from both passenger and driver perspective than a bus making every damn stop along its route.
Also noticed the journey is often rougher due to the constant stopping, nothing wrong with the driver, just the stop-start-20mph-stop-start gets old fast.
Quote from: Liverpool Street on December 06, 2015, 06:01:50 PM
I can't think of anything more infuriating from both passenger and driver perspective than a bus making every damn stop along its route.
Also noticed the journey is often rougher due to the constant stopping, nothing wrong with the driver, just the stop-start-20mph-stop-start gets old fast.
I pretty much know I'm in for a long ride home when the bus leaves the City Centre packed !
On Topic: I'm happy to pay my monthly installment for my bus pass as I believe you'll get more out of it the more you use it. The £4 daysaver whilst a good saving is remarkably expensive IF you use it once. It's all about careful journey planning and ultimately if more people use the bus, I like to think the fares may potentially go down with increased revenue although that may not be the case with extra buses being required.
My only gripe with any NX fare payment is my daily £6 to Amazon despite possessing a bus pass. To my knowledge isn't not something I can fully blame on NX as I believe Amazon themselves aren't running the service but a recruitment agency there is and they're making employees pay, NX just want the payment regardless of where it comes from I suppose.
What a surprise - Birmingham Mail use an old photo (must be 2008-2010) and fail to explicitly mention the fact that Swift cards' prices will be frozen.
http://www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/midlands-news/bus-fares-going-up-west-10573239
Quote from: Liberator9 on December 09, 2015, 10:02:55 PM
What a surprise - Birmingham Mail use an old photo (must be 2008-2010) and fail to explicitly mention the fact that Swift cards' prices will be frozen.
http://www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/midlands-news/bus-fares-going-up-west-10573239
Extract from the article you added...
He said: "Overall a quarter of passengers will benefit from reduced or frozen fares.
"We have cut the price of the off-peak daysaver to just £4 to make it even cheaper and easier to go shopping or have a night out and it will always be best value to pay with the new Swift smartcard.
I know that, but the article hardly makes the fact clear near the start that Swift fares are frozen; NX clearly having to defend themselves in what can be taken as a criticising article.
Quote from: Liberator9 on December 10, 2015, 04:05:22 PM
I know that, but the article hardly makes the fact clear near the start that Swift fares are frozen; NX clearly having to defend themselves in what can be taken as a criticising article.
I get what you mean, you have to read the article to know about it... Not good for NXWM, with this confusion.
Quote from: Liberator9 on December 09, 2015, 10:02:55 PM
What a surprise - Birmingham Mail use an old photo (must be 2008-2010) and fail to explicitly mention the fact that Swift cards' prices will be frozen.
http://www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/midlands-news/bus-fares-going-up-west-10573239
I had a little moan to the 'writer' of this article and they've changed the photo... It's not much better, but at least it's more recent!
From seeing the new fares on the side of the bus and a rear promotion for the £4 off-peak Daysaver, it doesn't look like NX are showing off the Swift card prices - They must've been in much smaller print if they were on there. I think they're missing a trick - have the lower Swift card price in the larger font because it's not like anyone can't use one.
The more people with a card would mean more people being able to hop on a bus on the off chance it's raining (Ha!) or something. I have a train pass, but my Swift card has enabled me to visit friends and family without having to get driven the final bit.
Quote from: Oozells on December 31, 2015, 06:34:09 PM
From seeing the new fares on the side of the bus and a rear promotion for the £4 off-peak Daysaver, it doesn't look like NX are showing off the Swift card prices - They must've been in much smaller print if they were on there. I think they're missing a trick - have the lower Swift card price in the larger font because it's not like anyone can't use one.
I saw the new fares stickers today. Aesthetically, they're really nice - I agree, there are some information which would've been helpful that isn't there, but there's only so little that they could fit on them, eh?
On another note, was purchasing my new Term Plus travelcard today, and overheard another customer enquiring about the Swift Card. Not too sure what the vendor(?) had replied with, but my question is this: can you purchase the PAYG Swift Card from the NX Travelshop?
Quote from: clayderman on December 31, 2015, 11:19:46 PM
I saw the new fares stickers today. Aesthetically, they're really nice - I agree, there are some information which would've been helpful that isn't there, but there's only so little that they could fit on them, eh?
On another note, was purchasing my new Term Plus travelcard today, and overheard another customer enquiring about the Swift Card. Not too sure what the vendor(?) had replied with, but my question is this: can you purchase the PAYG Swift Card from the NX Travelshop?
I believe so.
According to this:
http://nxbus.co.uk/west-midlands/swift-smartcard/where-can-i-buy-edaysavers/
Incorrect, the SWIFT PAYG card is only available online or from a Centro Travel Information Centre:
http://swiftcard.org.uk/buy-and-top-up.aspx#1300
EDIT: I believe you can also get the PAYG cards from PayZone outlets.
They need to hurry up and sort out child swift passes
the whole lot doesn't seem very "swift" in clear terms or where you can or cannot get them or top up.
Quote from: Stu on January 01, 2016, 12:24:26 PM
Incorrect, the SWIFT PAYG card is only available online or from a Centro Travel Information Centre:
http://swiftcard.org.uk/buy-and-top-up.aspx#1300
EDIT: I believe you can also get the PAYG cards from PayZone outlets.
I managed to top up at Walsall TS the other day, but I got my Swift Payg when Centro came to town in November.
Does this normally mean I could not have got a new Swift Payg from the TS?
Strange if not.
Quote from: Westy on January 01, 2016, 04:38:07 PM
I managed to top up at Walsall TS the other day, but I got my Swift Payg when Centro came to town in November.
Does this normally mean I could not have got a new Swift Payg from the TS?
Strange if not.
There appears to be a conflict of information, the travel centre map shows the NX Travel Centres as not offering PAYG, while the Swift FAQ page says all 8 Travel Centres provide them:
http://swiftcard.org.uk/faqs.aspx#faq4
So can anyone clear this mystery up for us all? :D
3Rd day of the new fares and some buses still don't have the new fare stickers. 4581 is one of them
Quote from: WN on January 04, 2016, 07:42:34 AM
3Rd day of the new fares and some buses still don't have the new fare stickers. 4581 is one of them
Quite a few WN buses are behind at having the fare tables applied. Many of the Tridents and Hybrids don't.
Quote from: WN on January 04, 2016, 07:42:34 AM
3Rd day of the new fares and some buses still don't have the new fare stickers. 4581 is one of them
Better than not having the machine updated; which happened to me!
The fact that a child short hop is still on the wayfarer considering it isn't available anymore
As I said to my 'friendly' bus driver this morning on the Walsall to Dudley rota, you've got to remember to issue the cheaper Daysaver after half nine!
(Hadnt seen her for a bit, as she told me she'd been on the 4 recently!)
Quote from: WN on January 04, 2016, 12:29:52 PM
The fact that a child short hop is still on the wayfarer considering it isn't available anymore
Child short hop isn't on there, it's city hop now
Loving all the usual vitriol on facebook along the lines of "it's disgraceful" "another hike in fares and still the same smelly people using the buses" "why aren't you using the extra money to put more buses on" "cheaper to drive than pay £4.40 every day"
God some people are thick....
Quote from: Kevin on January 04, 2016, 01:05:54 PM
Loving all the usual vitriol on facebook along the lines of "it's disgraceful" "another hike in fares and still the same smelly people using the buses" "why aren't you using the extra money to put more buses on" "cheaper to drive than pay £4.40 every day"
God some people are thick....
There's also a Change.org petition to try and get the prices lowered.
Quote from: Kevin on January 04, 2016, 01:05:54 PM
Loving all the usual vitriol on facebook along the lines of "it's disgraceful" "another hike in fares and still the same smelly people using the buses" "why aren't you using the extra money to put more buses on" "cheaper to drive than pay £4.40 every day"
God some people are thick....
Similar to the person arguing with me on facebook that it is disgusting that 11% of train fares goes on leasing costs, seems to think that whole 11% is profit for the leasing companies and cannot see that if it was still BR and they owned all the trains there would be depreciation on all the trains which would take almost as much out of the accounts
I have seen one person saying price of oil has gone down therefore the fares should decrease. My reply was that £2.30/£4.00/£4.40 fare goes towards diesel, maintence of vehicles, staff (engineers, drivers, inspectors whos wages go up every year in line of minimum wage and living wage), insurance on the buses, continous investment in new buses, money to use to pay centro to use their bus stations? So to me the rise is fair. With another 150ish buses (not sure on the exact quota) due this year they are not cheap either.
And yes National Express is a business and they prefer to make a profit not losses like most other companies. With the profits they can invest!
Quote from: Chris on January 04, 2016, 01:41:17 PM
I have seen one person saying price of oil has gone down therefore the fares should decrease. My reply was that £2.30/£4.00/£4.40 fare goes towards diesel, maintence of vehicles, staff (engineers, drivers, inspectors whos wages go up every year in line of minimum wage and living wage), insurance on the buses, continous investment in new buses, money to use to pay centro to use their bus stations? So to me the rise is fair. With another 150ish buses (not sure on the exact quota) due this year they are not cheap either.
And yes National Express is a business and they prefer to make a profit not losses like most other companies. With the profits they can invest!
I agree the fare rise is fair. Too many people do not consider the total cost of running buses, and I suspect many do not even know the cost of running their own car if they have one.
Well today ive had loads of people paying £4.40 after half 9, then ask me if its the right ticket, with one lady arguing with me for not telling her it was only £4!, I said ,"I don't know what coins your going to put in!"
Had a couple of kids do the £1 trick they all do and then have to pay the extra!
I think its a good idea though to encourage more people to travel out of the peaks, when buses are mostly empty to try to boost numbers.
The one thing im shocked at is how short lived the £2.50 Walsall off peak return was, they have took all the adverts off the ns windows now as its no longer avaialble
Quote from: Kevin on January 04, 2016, 01:05:54 PM
Loving all the usual vitriol on facebook along the lines of "it's disgraceful" "another hike in fares and still the same smelly people using the buses" "why aren't you using the extra money to put more buses on" "cheaper to drive than pay £4.40 every day"
God some people are thick....
Yes, I see it on the Birmingham Mail and Birmingham Updates pages, always the same responses as you quoted. But it's always funny how people never whinge about the smaller operators who also put their prices up, and presumably have much lower running costs.
And it's also funny how people moan about the single fares going up, but fail to notice the REDUCTION in fares for those travelling after 9:30am and at weekends (cheaper Daysavers).
I'd also like to find the numbers of these taxi companies that are so much cheaper than the bus too! :D
Quote from: BU07 LGO on January 04, 2016, 05:32:53 PM
Well today ive had loads of people paying £4.40 after half 9, then ask me if its the right ticket, with one lady arguing with me for not telling her it was only £4!, I said ,"I don't know what coins your going to put in!"
Had a couple of kids do the £1 trick they all do and then have to pay the extra!
I think its a good idea though to encourage more people to travel out of the peaks, when buses are mostly empty to try to boost numbers.
The one thing im shocked at is how short lived the £2.50 Walsall off peak return was, they have took all the adverts off the ns windows now as its no longer avaialble
They kept that quiet!
The 301/302 return is still available as the blanking is still on the windows!
Quote from: Stu on January 04, 2016, 07:01:38 PM
Yes, I see it on the Birmingham Mail and Birmingham Updates pages, always the same responses as you quoted. But it's always funny how people never whinge about the smaller operators who also put their prices up, and presumably have much lower running costs.
And it's also funny how people moan about the single fares going up, but fail to notice the REDUCTION in fares for those travelling after 9:30am and at weekends (cheaper Daysavers).
I'd also like to find the numbers of these taxi companies that are so much cheaper than the bus too! :D
Fair enough *Clap Clap* Well done NX, but this is wrong. My mom for example, she has to get the 0557 81 from Roseville and finishes at 10. This means she has to spend an extra 40p just because she has to go to work in peak. It is slightly unfair.
Before you all complain at me and say its only 40p, its 5 times a week which equals £2. That's almost an adult single, thats what some people live on for christ sake
Quote from: WN on January 04, 2016, 07:19:06 PM
Fair enough *Clap Clap* Well done NX, but this is wrong. My mom for example, she has to get the 0557 81 from Roseville and finishes at 10. This means she has to spend an extra 40p just because she has to go to work in peak. It is slightly unfair.
Before you all complain at me and say its only 40p, its 5 times a week which equals £2. That's almost an adult single, thats what some people live on for christ sake
Bus pass....
Quote from: WN on January 04, 2016, 07:19:06 PM
Fair enough *Clap Clap* Well done NX, but this is wrong. My mom for example, she has to get the 0557 81 from Roseville and finishes at 10. This means she has to spend an extra 40p just because she has to go to work in peak. It is slightly unfair.
Before you all complain at me and say its only 40p, its 5 times a week which equals £2. That's almost an adult single, thats what some people live on for christ sake
I can understand that, i have to get the 05.30 to Brierley Hill to walk to Merry Hill. I finish at 12pm and usually get the 12.13 X96 home. I weighed the price of just getting day savers for the 5 days a week and the travel card of 54.50 works out a hell of a lot cheaper. No offence
@WN but would the d/d black country faresaver work out cheaper for your mother in the long run?
Quote from: Chris on January 04, 2016, 07:39:51 PM
I can understand that, i have to get the 05.30 to Brierley Hill to walk to Merry Hill. I finish at 12pm and usually get the 12.13 X96 home. I weighed the price of just getting day savers for the 5 days a week and the travel card of 54.50 works out a hell of a lot cheaper. No offence @WN but would the d/d black country faresaver work out cheaper for your mother in the long run?
Thats what i'm sorting for her. The black country nBus on swift. I'm not being funny but people can just be expected to know about all of this, Swift is poorly advertised by NX a couple of logos here and there and not everyone is on social media so not good by NX IMO. Prepared to be slaughtered
There's a chap on my road who used to buy daysavers six days a week for work etc. I told him he could save at least half by getting a Travelcard. Eventually he did get one.
Quote from: WNPrepared to be slaughtered
Those sort of threats in this current world is disgusting.
Quote from: WN on January 04, 2016, 12:29:52 PM
The fact that a child short hop is still on the wayfarer considering it isn't available anymore
only £1.15 showing on both my buses
Quote from: Westy on January 04, 2016, 12:50:15 PM
As I said to my 'friendly' bus driver this morning on the Walsall to Dudley rota, you've got to remember to issue the cheaper Daysaver after half nine!
(Hadnt seen her for a bit, as she told me she'd been on the 4 recently!)
at 0930 the ticket machine does it automatically
Quote from: Liverpool Street on January 04, 2016, 08:10:27 PM
Those sort of threats in this current world is disgusting.
I made no threat!? I said 'prepared' thus meaning I was ready to be moaned at for expressing my opinion.
Quote from: karl724223 on January 04, 2016, 08:36:26 PM
only £1.15 showing on both my buses
My bad I thought it was a child short hop but it's not it's City Hop. Bit stupid having it on local services that go no where near Birmingham
Quote from: WN on January 04, 2016, 08:42:48 PM
I made no threat!? I said 'prepared' thus meaning I was ready to be moaned at for expressing my opinion.
My bad I thought it was a child short hop but it's not it's City Hop. Bit stupid having it on local services that go no where near Birmingham
City hop doesn't just apply in Birmingham
Quote from: Tony on January 04, 2016, 08:51:36 PM
City hop doesn't just apply in Birmingham
Doesn't it? How unless you mean Coventry as no other town/city is big enough!
Quote from: Nathan on January 04, 2016, 09:02:42 PM
Don't Coventry have a City hop too?
It's branded as City Hop
Quote from: Nathan on January 04, 2016, 09:02:42 PM
Don't Coventry have a City hop too?
So shouldn't Wolverhampton have one to?
Quote from: Stuharris 6360 on January 04, 2016, 09:07:31 PM
It's still a City though!
Just because it is a city doesn't mean it should have a city hop
It could possibly have one like a rough circular not too far outside the city centre. Maybe 3 stops after the ring road?
City hop fare come on automatically on pensnett buses when you put stage three in sheepcote street broad st inbound and when you put stage three in outbound it goes of off
I do wonder if NE are 100% for SWIFT, or are just doing it because they have been told to?
Quote from: Stuharris 6360 on January 04, 2016, 09:22:20 PM
I do wonder if NE are 100% for SWIFT, or are just doing it because they have been told to?
I sent the NX bus pass team an email before Christmas asking if they knew when the direct debit Faresavers would be available on SWIFT, and that I'd be interested in volunteering if they wanted to do any trials. They basically responded with 'your feedback is noted, your details will be kept on file if a need for volunteers ever arises".
So my original question never got answered! (bit like asking a politician a question!)
Quote from: Stu on January 04, 2016, 09:37:34 PM
I sent the NX bus pass team an email before Christmas asking if they knew when the direct debit Faresavers would be available on SWIFT, and that I'd be interested in volunteering if they wanted to do any trials. They basically responded with 'your feedback is noted, your details will be kept on file if a need for volunteers ever arises".
So my original question never got answered! (bit like asking a politician a question!)
mmm to me they don't seem to be shouting from the bus tops about it!!
Quote from: Stu on January 04, 2016, 09:37:34 PM
I sent the NX bus pass team an email before Christmas asking if they knew when the direct debit Faresavers would be available on SWIFT, and that I'd be interested in volunteering if they wanted to do any trials. They basically responded with 'your feedback is noted, your details will be kept on file if a need for volunteers ever arises".
So my original question never got answered! (bit like asking a politician a question!)
I asked them a while back and they said it had been trialed
Could anyone in the know answer this?
Since the 2nd January Fare changes, Ihave witnessed a fair few people on WN's 59 service ask to purchase a return ticket to be told it is no longer available. There was no indication to say this was stopping? The return ticket was introduced on this service in May 2011, when Diamond started to operate a competing service. Diamond withdrew in October 2012, but the promotional return continued to be sold up to (I presume) 1st Jan 2016. My question is, has the return ticket just been scrapped from this service or has it gone completely? (WN10, 301/2, 4/H/M etc.)
Quote from: Nathan on January 07, 2016, 12:00:33 PM
Could anyone in the know answer this?
Since the 2nd January Fare changes, Ihave witnessed a fair few people on WN's 59 service ask to purchase a return ticket to be told it is no longer available. There was no indication to say this was stopping? The return ticket was introduced on this service in May 2011, when Diamond started to operate a competing service. Diamond withdrew in October 2012, but the promotional return continued to be sold up to (I presume) 1st Jan 2016. My question is, has the return ticket just been scrapped from this service or has it gone completely? (WN10, 301/2, 4/H/M etc.)
I was told yesterday that return fares are gone completely. I know the 10 and 59's returns are gone certainly
I think the 4 and 301 are still on
WN tridents are getting there fare tables applied although not all do yet.
wn 10 return is still on, as are the buses still branded
Quote from: Nathan on January 07, 2016, 12:00:33 PM
Could anyone in the know answer this?
Since the 2nd January Fare changes, Ihave witnessed a fair few people on WN's 59 service ask to purchase a return ticket to be told it is no longer available. There was no indication to say this was stopping? The return ticket was introduced on this service in May 2011, when Diamond started to operate a competing service. Diamond withdrew in October 2012, but the promotional return continued to be sold up to (I presume) 1st Jan 2016. My question is, has the return ticket just been scrapped from this service or has it gone completely? (WN10, 301/2, 4/H/M etc.)
Noticed this evening on my way home there's a notice up inside the bus that the 37 on-bus return and weekly tickets are no longer available from 2nd January, so I guess they've all been withdrawn,
The notice does also helpfully point out that the off-peak Daysaver is only £3.80 on SWIFT Pay-As-You-Go. 8)