Bus Journey Prices

[700c]

The last time I brought up similar findings I was ridiculed by "meic" (since that time he/she has mostly been on ignore) for simply stating that the car is the more cost-effective option.

[thirdcrank]

... I was shocked at the cost of bus journeys.
No wonder there are so many cars on the roads.

You have made a comparison between buses and taxi's (private hire?) and used that to make a point about cars. Apart from the social arguments about public transport, once many people have moved away from urban areas, encouraged largely by the availability and convenience of the motor car, a bus will rarely seem so attractive and will be less attractive as the services are cut. Around here and I suspect elsewhere, taxi's and private hire are becoming the de facto public transport for many especially when things like parking at the destination or the trip home from the licensed premises is taken into account. For anybody without a bus pass, they are not much dearer per trip and immeasurably more convenient and for two or more travelling together, the taxi /private hire will become comparatively cheaper..

[661-Pete]

Gunnislake Square to Callington New Road cost her £2.20. Going in and out of the villages and hamlets, the journey was just short of 11miles.

Count yourself lucky. I just checked on the fare for our local service into the town centre (about ½ mile). Without concession, £1.80. Any cyclist of average ability can cycle it in 5 minutes.

[PH]

I too wince when I see the cost of bus journeys. In view of congestion and pollution I think taxes should be increased significantly on private motoring by taxing fuel more heavily. Do away with VED and make heavy use of cars much more expensive. Also reduce fuel tax for commercial transport by having seperate pumps like they do in France. The increased tax should subsidise bus and train travel with the aim of reducing it to continental levels. Perhaps cyclists should be paid a transport subsidy per mile

Al

I've long felt that it's the frequent short journeys that could easily be replaced by public transport, cycling or walking that should be the main focus for reduction. IMO increasing fuel duty wouldn't do this, what would is a per journey tax, if say it cost a fiver every time a car was moved it would deter those who use it to take the kids a mile to school without having too much impact on the sort of journey where the car is often the only practical solution. We have the technology to do this, there's also several low tech steps we could take along the way, do away with free parking to start with, supermarkets, town centers, workplaces, none of these are really free, it's just someone other than the end user paying.
I've sort of imposed this on myself by not owning a car and hiring when I think it's most practical. I have a ten minute walk to the hire place, a bit of form filling and I can hire by the half day, weekend or week. I have no moral high ground, but after 25 years as a 12,000+ mile a year driver I've found the last 16 years without owning a car required very little adjustment, which surprised me.

[PH]

Another problem with public transport is that it simple doesn't join up. I can get a ticket to travel all day in Derby for a reasonable cost if I'm making a couple of journeys. But to get to work, I need to use two bus companies which don't accept each others tickets. It works out at 72p a mile, £36 a week, takes more than an hour a day longer than cycling (Which thanks to the cycle paths is quicker than driving) If the choice was bus or drive, I'd buy a car.

[al_yrpal]

Just a moneysaving tip whilst this subject is being discussed -

A ' two together railcard' costs only £15 in Tesco Clubcard points giving you 30% off. Cheaper than Senior Railcards £15 per person if you often travel with a partner.

Al

[yakdiver]

In my area a 14 minute ride, 2.7 miles cost £3.0

[Mick F]

You have made a comparison between buses and taxi's (private hire?) and used that to make a point about cars.

Yes I have.
Cars, be them private hire or personally owned, are cheaper to use than the busses. (in my limed experience)
It never used to be so.
Busses used to cost pennies per journey, but now it quids.
Yes, you can say everything is like that nowadays, but some things have gone up more than other things.
A mate of mine says that a loaf of bread used to cost the same as a pint of beer ............ for instance.

Bus travel seems to me to be terribly expensive compared to other travel methods, and that's sad.

[mercalia]

Just a moneysaving tip whilst this subject is being discussed -

A ' two together railcard' costs only £15 in Tesco Clubcard points giving you 30% off. Cheaper than Senior Railcards £15 per person if you often travel with a partner.

Al

another saver - if you are a member of the YHA you can get a 10% off a rail card

[tanglewood]

I too wince when I see the cost of bus journeys. In view of congestion and pollution I think taxes should be increased significantly on private motoring by taxing fuel more heavily. Do away with VED and make heavy use of cars much more expensive. Also reduce fuel tax for commercial transport by having seperate pumps like they do in France. The increased tax should subsidise bus and train travel with the aim of reducing it to continental levels. Perhaps cyclists should be paid a transport subsidy per mile

Al

But do we really want more diesel powered vehicles in our cities? Who knows what damage we are doing to our lungs? I'd rather cycle past 4 Prius taxis (which only move when they have passengers) than one nearly empty bus that moves whether there are passengers on it or not.


I'm a trendy consumer. Just look at my wobbly bog brush using hovercraft full of eels

[pete75]

Our local bus company charges £4.80 for a return Bourne - Peterborough a round trip of about 33 miles. A lot of local people work in the centre of Peterborough and the bus fare seems good value at less than a day's car parking. A weekly ticket with 7 days travel at £19.50 or a whole month for 69 quid are even better value. There's a bus every 30 minutes and it takes just over 40 minutes. Driving can take almost as long at work travel times. First bus in leaves at 6:20 and last bus back 20:15. Maintenance , cleanliness and timekeeping standards are much higher than the big companies. It's a family owned company that has been running motor buses since 1919. Pictures of most of them on their website too http://www.delaineheritagetrust.org/fle ... llery.html

[thirdcrank]

You have made a comparison between buses and taxi's (private hire?) and used that to make a point about cars.

Yes I have.
Cars, be them private hire or personally owned, are cheaper to use than the busses. (in my limed experience)
It never used to be so.
Busses used to cost pennies per journey, but now it quids.
Yes, you can say everything is like that nowadays, but some things have gone up more than other things.
A mate of mine says that a loaf of bread used to cost the same as a pint of beer ............ for instance.

Bus travel seems to me to be terribly expensive compared to other travel methods, and that's sad.

But your calculation seems to be restricted to what might be called "at point of use." The total costs of car ownership are not restricted to the fuel used on a journey. Once you have shelled out for a car, it's a lot less attractive to use anything else because that "wastes" the money already shelled out or "invested." That's why I mentioned things like parking at the destination and returning from licensed premises. FWIW, I don't think car ownership is always economically rational. In the UK, the decision is also blurred for many by the various forms of company car scheme.

[Mick F]

Yes.
Point of use.
If you own a car, you should use it.

My point was that the single bus journey for two people was £15.
The taxi fare was £20 ........... and that was door to door, and a quarter of the journey time.

[mercalia]

Yes.
Point of use.
If you own a car, you should use it.

My point was that the single bus journey for two people was £15.
The taxi fare was £20 ........... and that was door to door, and a quarter of the journey time.

taxi tip not included? or dont taxis get tips these days?

[pwa]

Last week I was in Bridgend and needed to get home. My wife had the car and for reasons too boring to mention it was not practical to cycle. So I did something i rarely do and went to the bus station. When I got there I found that the bus to my village would be along in about 50 minutes. Oh, well, never mind. I sat down and resigned myself to waiting. Then the family from hell sat opposite. A loud argument ensued, concerning a lost ticket. They used words I can't use here without putting Vorpal's blood pressure up. Then a very large gentleman sat beside me. He was very smelly. Yes, I'm sure he had lots of other good qualities, but he did need a bath. I decided I was unwilling to sit in such a depressing environment and walked over to Tesco, where I sat in the cafe and phoned my wife to ask her to pick me up on her return from a course she was on in Cardiff. SoIi never got to find out the price of a bus ticket.