From a usable service to nothing

[whole diary]

[Fourbee]

I've just come across this blog which amongst other things details the history of the 41 route that operated around the Hampshire and Surrey border until the end of last month (March) when it was withdrawn by Stagecoach.

It's quite a lengthy read and may not be of great interest to Coffee Shoppers, but the scans of the timetables over the years at the end tell the story well.

https://handsbusblog.wordpress.com/2023/02/06/bus-stops-appear-route-to-disappear/

Ultimately whether it's a bus or a train service, I think the starting point of "this must make a profit" is not really compatible with the service that is public transport.

[grahame]

"From a usable service to nothing" - a very interesting read, and I can identify with that process - past and currently in various sad-looking stages along that way - here in Wiltshire.  But at the same time, I can look at other routes (much fewer in numbers) where frequencies have increased over the years - in some cases, dramatically.

There's all sort of social changes and "cause and effect" in play. Why is there one bus an hour from Melksham to Devizes, and one bus a day from Melksham to Calne when 30 years ago there was one bus every 2 hours on both those routes?

[Fourbee]

It was the parallels with the TransWilts whose ups and downs over the years I have followed closely on here that made me post this. For example timetabling for operational convenience, the impact a cancellation/delay has when the next service is two hours away, the knock on effect on confidence in relying on the service in the future...

Buses seem like an easy target in this day and age for funding cuts, but as seen with the £2 single fare promotion, overall ridership has increased. Hopefully the increased economic benefits of getting extra people moving are calculated as well. Rail could well benefit from a similar boost. Then that chicken and egg could grow into organic service increases.