Bikes on buses

[Brandane]

Rear hangers:

I would be too worried it wouldn't be there when I got off the bus

Exactly! That might work well in Switzerland or other European countries, but I can just imagine trying that in most British cities. First traffic lights or bus stop and your bike would be gone!

 

[Cerdic]

...or embedded into the front of a transit!

 

[Mike_P]

The free OAP bus pass was one of the few indisputably great things that Blair did in my opinion.

Not exactly well thought out though with some Councils paying operators pennies per concessionary passenger such that even a full bus ran at a lost, and the service withdrawn as a result. IMO a reduced fare should apply outside of the holders own area.

 

[Ming the Merciless]

Rear hangers:

View attachment 589245


View attachment 589246

They‘d get nicked off there in the UK

 

[scoobs]

Not exactly well thought out though with some Councils paying operators pennies per concessionary passenger such that even a full bus ran at a lost, and the service withdrawn as a result. IME a reduced fare should apply outside of the holders own area.

In Derbyshire:

Residents of Derbyshire and Derby who qualify by age or disability can apply for a Gold Card, which is valid for free travel on buses between 9:30am and 11pm on weekdays and all day at weekends.


Gold Card holders are also entitled to free local bus travel in the rest of England, under the English National Concessionary Travel Scheme. The same time restrictions apply. Train travel is not included in this scheme.


Holders of Gold Cards are also offered discounts at hundreds of businesses around Derbyshire. For more information visit our Gold Card section or contact Call Derbyshire tel: 01629 533190.

 

[Hover Fly]

Stagecoach 599 Kendal, Windermere, Grasmere has space for bikes,
https://tiscon-maps-stagecoachbus.s...es/Cumbria/Lakes Connection/599_Summer 21.pdf

 

[KnittyNorah]

Free passes in london come at 60 of course. Bus, train, tube, etc etc.

'Twas funny when I lived in the Forest of Bowland and a bunch of London OAPs on a holiday up here in the frozen north tried to get on the ten past nine bus through the village with their passes. Most indignant they were that they couldn't use their pass at that time of the morning and had to either pay like the rest of us - or wait two hours for the next bus. I think real life came as a bit of an unpleasant shock!

 

[Blue Hills]

'Twas funny when I lived in the Forest of Bowland and a bunch of London OAPs on a holiday up here in the frozen north tried to get on the ten past nine bus through the village with their passes. Most indignant they were that they couldn't use their pass at that time of the morning and had to either pay like the rest of us - or wait two hours for the next bus. I think real life came as a bit of an unpleasant shock!

yep a massive imbalance between london and the north west in public transport - basic availability and cost.
Can I ask where in Bowland? - I've used a lot of the buses round there - a full time job keeping up with route revisions and cuts.

 

[KnittyNorah]

yep a massive imbalance between london and the north west in public transport - basic availability and cost.
Can I ask where in Bowland? - I've used a lot of the buses round there - a full time job keeping up with route revisions and cuts.

This was a few years ago when I lived near Hurst Green, and there were still regular bus services from Clitheroe up to Dunsop Bridge going on a lovely circular route past Bashall Eaves, Whitewell and round that way. I left the area - VERY much to my regret - when I had to give up driving and the bus services were being removed at a rate of knots. A few (only a few) have actually returned, believe it or not! The Londoners were staying at the Shireburn Arms in Hurst Green, on a walking holiday. This was a Tuesday and they were planning to go to the market in Clitheroe to get some 'local colour' - which they were quite out-and-loud about. The bus driver got cross with them when they were faffing about, didn't know who/how much cash they had, and expected to be able to pay by card - on a bus which goes through many areas where there was no mobile signal at all … He told them to either get on the bus, sit down and sort out the payment before we got to Clitheroe, or get off and wait for the next one … hahaha, two hours! They got on, managed to sort out the cash between them, and got a kindly - though effective - 'telling off' from a rather posh older lady who regularly used the bus to go into Clitheroe where she used to 'do the windows' of a couple of charity shops on a weekly basis, being a retired designer of some sort.
A few weeks later a sort-of similar thing happened except that the people concerned were on a long weekend stay from somewhere in the Midlands and they were like, wow this is a great bus service, every two hours even through this little village, and only four pounds eighty! Talk about the differences in expectation. And so of course they were treated to a nice running commentary along the route, better than any commercial coach trip!

 

[ColinJ]

This was a few years ago when I lived near Hurst Green, and there were still regular bus services from Clitheroe up to Dunsop Bridge going on a lovely circular route past Bashall Eaves, Whitewell and round that way.

I usually cycle there 4 or 5 times a year but haven't for over 18 months because of the pandemic. It is definitely time for me to cycle over there again!

 

[BoldonLad]

This was a few years ago when I lived near Hurst Green, and there were still regular bus services from Clitheroe up to Dunsop Bridge going on a lovely circular route past Bashall Eaves, Whitewell and round that way. I left the area - VERY much to my regret - when I had to give up driving and the bus services were being removed at a rate of knots. A few (only a few) have actually returned, believe it or not! The Londoners were staying at the Shireburn Arms in Hurst Green, on a walking holiday. This was a Tuesday and they were planning to go to the market in Clitheroe to get some 'local colour' - which they were quite out-and-loud about. The bus driver got cross with them when they were faffing about, didn't know who/how much cash they had, and expected to be able to pay by card - on a bus which goes through many areas where there was no mobile signal at all … He told them to either get on the bus, sit down and sort out the payment before we got to Clitheroe, or get off and wait for the next one … hahaha, two hours! They got on, managed to sort out the cash between them, and got a kindly - though effective - 'telling off' from a rather posh older lady who regularly used the bus to go into Clitheroe where she used to 'do the windows' of a couple of charity shops on a weekly basis, being a retired designer of some sort.
A few weeks later a sort-of similar thing happened except that the people concerned were on a long weekend stay from somewhere in the Midlands and they were like, wow this is a great bus service, every two hours even through this little village, and only four pounds eighty! Talk about the differences in expectation. And so of course they were treated to a nice running commentary along the route, better than any commercial coach trip!

I live in urban Tyneside. We have reasonable bus services, and a Metro (which is not very extensive). Being over State Pension age, I have a Concesionary Pass, for buses, and, for £12/year, I can acquire a Gold Card, which gives me free Metro Travel. The "free" travel period starts after 09:30, week-days, for bus and metro. A major weakness in the system (IMHO), for younger people, is the lack of an "Oyster card" type system. It is possible to buy a travel pass (pay as you go/weekly/ 4 weekly/ yearly), but, it does not work on all bus services. This is, pathetic in 2021 IMHO.

 

[KnittyNorah]

I usually cycle there 4 or 5 times a year but haven't for over 18 months because of the pandemic. It is definitely time for me to cycle over there again!

A truly lovely part of the world. People zooooooooom past on the way to the honeypots of the Yorkshire Dales, the Lake District and the dreaded Blackpool, leaving the Ribble Valley and the Forest of Bowland largely in peace.

 

[KnittyNorah]

I live in urban Tyneside. We have reasonable bus services, and a Metro (which is not very extensive). Being over State Pension age, I have a Concesionary Pass, for buses, and, for £12/year, I can acquire a Gold Card, which gives me free Metro Travel. The "free" travel period starts after 09:30, week-days, for bus and metro. A major weakness in the system (IMHO), for younger people, is the lack of an "Oyster card" type system. It is possible to buy a travel pass (pay as you go/weekly/ 4 weekly/ yearly), but, it does not work on all bus services. This is, pathetic in 2021 IMHO.

I think that's how the trams work in Manchester - if you're a Greater Manchester resident with a Concessionary Pass, you can buy an annual pass for the trams. My Lancashire card is a joint project between Lancs CC, Cumbria CC, Blackpool Council and Blackburn w/Darwen Council; I think I can get reduced tram fares along Blackpool seafront as well as the National Concessionary Scheme (the after 9.30am buses on weekdays thing). The Lancashire buses between and within the main towns are OK but the rural services were very heavily cut in 2015.

 

[Blue Hills]

A truly lovely part of the world. People zooooooooom past on the way to the honeypots of the Yorkshire Dales, the Lake District and the dreaded Blackpool, leaving the Ribble Valley and the Forest of Bowland largely in peace.

it surely is - also a good base for exploring those other places of course.
Yep Blackpool is in a sad way these days - wasn't always so though - my avatar is actually a tribute to Blackpool of old.
Still, it's a great bike ride from Knott end ferry through Blackpool to Saint Annes - most of it on a traffic free prom.

 

[annedonnelly]

I live in urban Tyneside. We have reasonable bus services, and a Metro (which is not very extensive). Being over State Pension age, I have a Concesionary Pass, for buses, and, for £12/year, I can acquire a Gold Card, which gives me free Metro Travel. The "free" travel period starts after 09:30, week-days, for bus and metro. A major weakness in the system (IMHO), for younger people, is the lack of an "Oyster card" type system. It is possible to buy a travel pass (pay as you go/weekly/ 4 weekly/ yearly), but, it does not work on all bus services. This is, pathetic in 2021 IMHO.

And it's not joined up with public transport in Northumberland (and Durham).

I'm hopefull that North of Tyne Authority might do something about it.