MidlandRed.net

I missed this one, but Diamond withdrew return tickets on many services including my local 303 from 10 October 2022 which means passengers for the 2.5 mile journey into Worcester city must now pay £2-90 or is that now £3-00 each way making £6-00 instead of £4-50 day return, presupposing they don't realise there is a City Connecta ticket still available at £5-50 for use on all operators buses within the city limits; sadly this ticket is very badly promoted by operators and the Worcestershire County Council. Either way it seems a strange way to encourage existing and new passengers to use the bus, especially as I see many now walking or using a bike or car.

(Extract from Diamond Bus Worcestershire website)
Service Updates
Withdrawal of Return Tickets 04/10/2022 15:29:31

From Monday 10th October 2022
Return Tickets will be withdrawn from on-bus sales from Monday 10th October
(except for West Midlands Bus Partnership Routes 31, 32, 40, 42, 43 where return tickets will continue to be available).

We still have a great range of Day Tickets and period products available that offer value for money with unlimited travel on Diamond Bus Services*.

For full details of our Regional Day Tickets and passes available, please visit our Tickets pages

* Some restrictions may apply depending on travel area & product purchased.

Affected Services: 7 52 52A 125 149 149S 150 183 182 192 202 202S 292 292S 302 303 580

Badly promoted and Worcestershire C.C, in the same sentence . . . .. . . . . .

Really Diamond ticket machines should have it built in that if a Connecta ticket is cheaper for the passengers needs, then that should be offered.

Not sure if they have the technology for that, and certainly in Kidderminster, the last time I tried to buy a Kidder Connecta ticket, the driver couldn't even find the option on his machine!

Ridercross wrote: ↑

11:48 Thursday 13th October 2022

Really Diamond ticket machines should have it built in that if a Connecta ticket is cheaper for the passengers needs, then that should be offered.

It is not in their best interest to do this. If they sell two £3.00 tickets for a return journey, they get to keep 100% of that money for themselves. If they sell a Connecta ticket some of the money may have to go to WCC.

Don’t expect any operator to promote the ticket unless it’s written into the contract with WCC that they should do so.

From my point of view, in the short term on most occasions I use the bus my concessionary pass will suffice, but an early morning journey to a hospital appointment involves paying for the tickets and a change of buses and operator. When the 37 was running it was possible to buy a First Bus £4-50 day ticket through to any destination in the City hence my insistence on the City Connecta ticket being in FULL PUBLIC VIEW following the Worcestershire County Council decision to replace the 37 with Diamond's 303. If paying passengers use other means to reach their destination then the current HOURLY 303 service which is the only one running along the Ombersley Road will most likely be withdrawn. I would add that all other major city service routes run at a minimum 30 minute frequency including the 32 which was also under threat of withdrawal by First Bus along with the 37 and 31A back in May/June 2022. At present I still own a car and being disabled it has become a necessity with the way that public transport has been chopped and changed, not to mention the extortionate early morning fares now in force.