Back to the Humber Flyer again. Earlier this week I blogged about the cutting of the 0620 from Grimsby and 1900 from Hull in April, which had got the small number of regular users understandably concerned. The latest idea to retain the 0620 is to make it exempt from the £10.90 Humber Bridge toll, which would reduce the costs of operating it.
Buses being exempt from tolls would be great on both environmental and economic grounds, and in that respect it is to be supported. But realistically the Humber Bridge Board are not going to exempt any bus service from the toll. They have a very strict remit to look at the Bridge Board finances and nothing else. So really this all seems a waste of time.
The Grimsby Telegraph article also contains information on the finances of the Humber Flyer. This year Stagecoach have received just £28,000 in financial support, down from £40,000 when it first started. North East Linconshire Council has not cut back their contribution, but North Lincolnshire Council, Hull City Council and Humberside Airport have. So far only £21,000 funding is committed for next year, and there are rising fuel costs to consider. Stagecoach have projected a £27,000 loss for the next year.
With figures like that Stagecoach should be commended for keeping the Humber Flyer going. Financially it would be very easy for Stagecoach to justify giving it up, yet they are persevering in keeping going. Yes perhaps there is political and PR sensitivity of the service to consider, but given time any backlash would probably go away. The withdrawal of the 0620 and 1900 is causing severe hardship for some, and that is to be recognised and acknowledged - no one wants that - but Stagecoach have, and will continue to, spend money subsidising a loss making service which is commendable when they have no duty to do so.
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Worth the wait, or worth waiting a bit longer?
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4 comments:
I'm shocked to read that somebody has already lost their job.
That said, i'm also shocked that people do not seem to realise there is another way to get to Hull at that time of the morning!
NO they are only scrapping them ones because hull are doing them ones and it would be daft for hull to run an empty bus to grimsby for 6:20 then the 17:30 one back to hull which would be 19:00 at hull then it would be stupid to run the 19:00 to grimsby to get here for 20:30 then to run empty back to hull
I would suggest Hull are only doing a diagram on the Humber Flyer because Stagecoach want rid of the 0620/1900, rather than the 0620/1900 going because Stagecoach want Hull to do a diagram.
And yet again we have bad reporting in the GT.
Stagecoach have said that it costs 550,000 pounds to run the service. So either the reporter misheard the 40,000 pound remark, or they are refering to the cost of the two journeys being cut. If its the later, then it is no surprise that Hull have been given one of the diagrams, and the two journeys cut!
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