In Edinburgh the council run the buses and it’s cheap - 1.80 flat fare everywhere - and turns a consistent profit every year. No shortage of routes or running buses.
Reading busses work really well. Not extortionate prices, fairly regular, and a bus tracking system open to the public that (mostly) works.
It always amazes me when people are surprised that an enterprise designed to primarily provide a service to the people, rather than dividends, gives better value for money.
The people win in every direction.
Money goes back into better busses, OAP bus passes cost less to the taxpayer, and Reading gets snazzy busses in cool colours.
Privatisation has been tried even more as an economic theory in America, and there it has failed even harder. We know where that path leads. Take back the buses, take back the trains, the waterways, all of it.
with people on lower incomes and those without a car disproportionately affected.
Not to mention disabled. Many disabilities both physical and mental. Make driving impossible. Not just visual impairment as I have.
But the reduction in bus services especially to smaller towns and villages. Where its often moved to 0 buses or one bus every 2 days like services.
The reduction over the last 15 years or so has become very noticeable. Forcing a huge increase in cost. As taxis that have increased hugly in price since the pandemic. Are the only option people like me have.
I am old enough to remember pre privatisation as a child. Where you could get Sunday level services everywhere, even on Xmas day. When there really were few places apart from very extream areas. Where commuting via public transport was not an option.
What ever way you look at it. The tory privatisation of buses has failed miserably.
Private bus companies exist for profit. The only routes they’re willing to run must be profitable. Just the result of private ownership over a public service.
A public/council owned and run bus company would serve routes people need in theory
We have a tory government though. Im surprised they don’t make the council pay the private bus company to run routes at extortionate rates. we just have extortionate rates regardless
Counterpoint- the council can mandate routes and frequency in the contract and put it out to tender. The idea is that the private sector is better an innovating to be efficient, though I’m not sure that has ever really been demonstrated
I’d say that the railways were probably more likely to fail because you have the added complication of the rail infrastructure company on top, plus the need for through-ticketing and timetable coordination. Those factors magnified the sheer amount of shit in the show
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