Evil Bus Companies

[Mark Thompson]

My cunning justification for spending money on a bike was
that I would save on bus fares. But how depressing is it to
find that a weekly pass for my bus route now costs just TWO
POUNDS A WEEK! Whatever happened to inflation?!?

On the plus side my legs have got to the stage where female
friends have started commenting on them so maybe I've
discovered a replacement motivation.

The most important motivation (all the extra exercise
enables me to eat more pies, cakes, chocolate, ice cream
etc) is of course still there so I'll definately still
be riding.

Mark.

[Dr Curious]

"Mark Thompson" <pleasegivegenerously@warmmail.com> wrote in message
news:Xns9514BF3FEE871pleasegivegenerously@195.92.193.157...

> My cunning justification for spending money on a bike was
> that I would
save
> on bus fares. But how depressing is it to find that a
> weekly pass for my bus route now costs just TWO POUNDS A
> WEEK! Whatever happened to inflation?!?

<snip>

>
>
> Mark.

Just treat yourself now and again, by cycling past the
queues at the bus stop. All those happy smiling faces.

Now you're on a bike, you may have found a quicker route,
and so its easy to forget.

Curious

[Soup]

Soup popped his head over the parapet,saw what was going
on and said

> My cunning justification for spending money on a bike was
> that I would save on bus fares. But how depressing is it
> to find that a weekly pass for my bus route now costs just
> TWO POUNDS A WEEK! Whatever happened to inflation?!?
>
>
Where do you live that a pass is only two pounds a week
around here it is (pass with the most discount) 98p a day.

--
Yours S. addy not usable (not that you would try it) ( ) Non
plaudite. Modo pecuniam jacite / \

[Mark Thompson]

> Where do you live that a pass is only two pounds a week
> around here it is (pass with the most discount) 98p a day.

Wilmslow/Oxford Road route into central Manchester. Buses
every 30 seconds, run 'til at least 4am in the morning
(well, that's the latest I've caught a bus anyway) but I did
have to wait a good fifteen minutes when I used it.

[Soup]

Soup popped his head over the parapet,saw what was going
on and said

>Buses every 30 seconds, run 'til at least 4am in the
>morning

Spoilt rotten. rofl

--
Yours S. addy not usable (not that you would try it) ( ) Non
plaudite. Modo pecuniam jacite / \

[Audrey]

On 27 Jun 2004 10:17:47 GMT, Mark Thompson
<pleasegivegenerously@warmmail.com> wrote:

>Wilmslow/Oxford Road route into central Manchester. Buses
>every 30 seconds, run 'til at least 4am in the morning
>(well, that's the latest I've caught a bus anyway) but I
>did have to wait a good fifteen minutes when I used it.

mutter mutter bloomin buses for bloomin students how many
bloomin number 42 buses do they need and how long do I have
to stand at this bus stop till a bus that isn't going to
Owen's Park comes along grr mutter
--

email = audmad aaatttt hhhottt mmmaailll dddoottt ccccoommm

[-Lsqnot Respond]

On 26 Jun 2004 17:48:02 GMT, Mark Thompson
<pleasegivegenerously@warmmail.com> wrote:

>My cunning justification for spending money on a bike was
>that I would save on bus fares. But how depressing is it to
>find that a weekly pass for my bus route now costs just TWO
>POUNDS A WEEK! Whatever happened to inflation?!?
>
>On the plus side my legs have got to the stage where female
>friends have started commenting on them so maybe I've
>discovered a replacement motivation.
>
>The most important motivation (all the extra exercise
>enables me to eat more pies, cakes, chocolate, ice cream
>etc) is of course still there so I'll definately still
>be riding.
>

All I can say is that you have an outrageously cheap bus
service. Round here a month pass on one company alone is
46ukp (OK, it does cover two cities and the bits in
between). Day passes are 3.90 ukp or 5ukp for an all-
companies day card.

I'm exceedingly jealous of your later post saying that buses
run until 0400. In south hampshire we must be expected to
have a lot of early nights; the buses tend to dry up after
1830. I suppose I am in the sticks a bit, though.

However, it's still cheap as chips compared to running a
car. Incidentally, since getting rid of the car in Feb, I'm
better off to the tune of 1,300 ukp. That's after I've
shelled out for buses, taxis and trains and includes all of
26 miles on a bike.

Doesn't include 330ukp for a new bike, though. Shopping
logic means that I have actually *saved* money by not buying
a Thorn Raven (which I'll get later, anyway) and, therefore,
no real costs need be reflected in the domestic accounts.

[Steph Peters]

"[Not Responding]" <not_responding@dev.null.invalid> of wrote:

>On 26 Jun 2004 17:48:02 GMT, Mark Thompson
><pleasegivegenerously@warmmail.com> wrote:
>
>>My cunning justification for spending money on a bike was
>>that I would save on bus fares. But how depressing is it
>>to find that a weekly pass for my bus route now costs just
>>TWO POUNDS A WEEK! Whatever happened to inflation?!?

>All I can say is that you have an outrageously cheap
>bus service.
And so do I, living on the same bus route. It is
(allegedly) the most frequent and most heavily used bus
route in Western Europe.

>I'm exceedingly jealous of your later post saying that
>buses run until 0400.
Actually I don't think they stop at all - I've caught one at
5 am to get an early train.

Stick with the not sitting in queues and getting there
faster motivations. I'm one of the slowest cyclists ever,
averaging under 10mph usually, but even I can beat the bus
into or out of Manchester from Didsbury. And today even at
3pm on Sunday afternoon there was a half mile slow moving
queue leaving the city centre.
--
Fashion is what you adopt when you don't know who you are. Quentin Crisp
Steph Peters delete invalid from incm@sandbenders.demon.co.uk.invalid
Tatting, lace & stitching page <http://www.sandbenders.demon.co.uk/index.htm

[Cookie]

"Mark Thompson" <pleasegivegenerously@warmmail.com> wrote in message
news:Xns9514BF3FEE871pleasegivegenerously@195.92.193.157...
> My cunning justification for spending money on a bike was
> that I would
save
> on bus fares. But how depressing is it to find that a
> weekly pass for my bus route now costs just TWO POUNDS A
> WEEK! Whatever happened to inflation?!?
>
> Mark.

Nothing to do with inflation, just deregulation and "fair"
competition.

Along the Oxford/Wilmslow Road corridor, there is a
plentiful market and numerous companies, all competing with
each other to increase market share.

Stagecoach, Magic Bus (ex-GM Stagecoach), R. Bullock's,
Fingland's, U.K. North all compete on the 42, and
competition is healthy, resulting in lower prices for
the customer.

I think this is the only place in the UK where the "ideal"
deregulated market actually works. You can wait for a bus at
01:00am and four will turn up (at the same time of course)
to choose from.

Of course, it'd be far better if GM Buses was still running
the show, they'd be able to run non-stop from East Didsbury
and make them all walk/cycle.

Charley

[Pete Whelan]

Mark Thompson wrote:
> My cunning justification for spending money on a bike was
> that I would save on bus fares. But how depressing is it
> to find that a weekly pass for my bus route now costs just
> TWO POUNDS A WEEK! Whatever happened to inflation?!?

Inflation is what you do to your bike tyres

[Mark Thompson]

> H'mmm. I was trying to justify myself a BOB Yak on the
> grounds that it would save on shopping trips. Tesco charge
> us £4 for a delivery, and it's hugely convenient because
> you don't have to go into a town at all. If we're feeling
> guilty about buying from Tesco and go into the Co-op,
> that's sixteen miles at say 30p a mile so about a fiver
> and it takes me about an hour all in. So I'd have to get
> the shopping with it every week for a year, come rain,
> come shine before I broke even. If I only got every second
> weeks shop (which seems much more likely), it would be two
> years...
>
> Tricky.

Ok. two choices.

1. Decide to buy a ferrari. Then don't. Instantly you have
fifty grand or so to spend guilt free. Even if you spend
£40000 you've still saved money :-)

2. Desperately try to think of other benefits. Whilst they
may not have a monetary value, things like the extra
exercise, environmental benefits etc can be factored in.

3. Have you factored in the savings made due to the lower
amount bought? the trailer will carry less than a car so
you'll save money by never having ridiculous shopping
sprees. (just try not to realise that this applies to the
internet shopping too).

Good luck.

[Audrey]

On Sun, 27 Jun 2004 18:45:26 +0100, "cookie"
<charles.ashbury@nospamthellworld.com> wrote:

>Stagecoach, Magic Bus (ex-GM Stagecoach), R. Bullock's,
>Fingland's, U.K. North all compete on the 42, and
>competition is healthy, resulting in lower prices for the
>customer.
>
>I think this is the only place in the UK where the "ideal"
>deregulated market actually works. You can wait for a bus
>at 01:00am and four will turn up (at the same time of
>course) to choose from.

It is indeed ideal if you want a no. 42. However in the
unlikely event of wanting a different bus, the frequency of
42s (and other numbers doing the Oxford Road/Owen's Park
route) can be pretty annoying. And gets more so as you stand
at the bus stop watching numerous near-empty 42s pass,
getting colder and wetter while waiting for your own bus. It
is the about the only time that I am tempted into a 'bloody
students grrr' type rant.

Audrey
--

email = audmacd aaatttt hhhottt mmmaailll dddoottt ccccoommm

[Tony Raven]

audrey wrote:
>
> It is indeed ideal if you want a no. 42. However in the
> unlikely event of wanting a different bus, the frequency
> of 42s (and other numbers doing the Oxford Road/Owen's
> Park route) can be pretty annoying. And gets more so as
> you stand at the bus stop watching numerous near-empty 42s
> pass, getting colder and wetter while waiting for your own
> bus. It is the about the only time that I am tempted into
> a 'bloody students grrr' type rant.
>

When I lived there I never took the bus, preferring to
cycle instead. My cycle always went where I wanted
whenever I wanted.

Tony

[Audrey]

On Mon, 28 Jun 2004 11:56:39 +0100, "Tony Raven"
<junk@raven-family.com> wrote:

>audrey wrote:
>>
>> It is indeed ideal if you want a no. 42. However in the
>> unlikely event of wanting a different bus, the frequency
>> of 42s (and other numbers doing the Oxford Road/Owen's
>> Park route) can be pretty annoying. And gets more so as
>> you stand at the bus stop watching numerous near-empty
>> 42s pass, getting colder and wetter while waiting for
>> your own bus. It is the about the only time that I am
>> tempted into a 'bloody students grrr' type rant.
>>
>
>When I lived there I never took the bus, preferring to
>cycle instead. My cycle always went where I wanted whenever
>I wanted.
>
Indeedy. But as I don't drink and cycle, there are
times I have to throw myself on the mercy of stagecoach
to get me home.

A
--

email = audmacd aaatttt hhhottt mmmaailll dddoottt ccccoommm

[Tony Raven]

audrey wrote:
>
> Indeedy. But as I don't drink and cycle, there are times
> I have to throw myself on the mercy of stagecoach to get
> me home.
>

IIRC the gutter was always a popular alternative in
those circumstances. Marginally more comfortable than
the bus as well

Tony ;-)