Stagecoach MCSL - Chester & Wirral Depots

[Barney]

RE: Stagecoach Chester & Wirral

(19/08/2015 18:48)wirralbus Wrote:  Barney , another thing to ask is how many of them are actually paying a commercial fare and are not using a Disabled/ Pensioners Bus Pass during the daytime .

My experience out of Chester is the X22 and its previous incarnations all leave with a very decent load and by Neston Cross have lost the vast majority of passengers .

All of the buses I saw carried a mixed load and with modern ticket technology it should be easy to ascertain the passenger profile. There were a few grey heads on these services but also a fair few mothers with children. Are you are suggesting that bus companies can't make a profit because they are expected to carry the elderly and the disabled? If you follow that logic then ALL passengers, including school children aged 5-16, should pay the full adult fare. That policy was adopted briefly by some operators shortly after deregulation but was quickly reduced to a two thirds fare. Compare that to Arriva's recent decision to allow students up to the age of 18 to pay half fare, roughly the amount of remuneration that it receives for accepting passes.