[Albion] Special Buses: Negotiations Ongoing with Alternative Bus Co + "supporter contributiion"

[martyn20]

As a transport operator, with some knowledge of the cost of running buses (and hiring in other companies to run them), I've been giving some thought to this question.

Without knowing exactly how much Brighton & Hove Buses were charging the Club to provide the Special Buses, and without knowing exactly how much Seagulls Travel are paying their contractors to run the replacement services, but making an informed guess ... I would estimate that the Club are probably saving themselves something around £50,000 a year by pulling out of the deal with B&H Buses, and transferring a risk to Seagulls Travel (who will pass on most of their costs to supporters).

The Club is quids in, unless ... the effect of the change is to reduce the volume of match ticket sales at the stadium. In round figures, £50,000 worth of ticket sales (allowing for concessions, children, etc) probably amounts to about 100 tickets a game.

Of course, if the replacement buses run with markedly lower numbers of passengers (quite possible if significant numbers of existing Special Bus users switch to B&H network buses), Seagulls Travel will end up losing money.

There are, therefore, three sorts of potential losers from this new arrangement ... Seagulls Travel, the supporters who will be paying more for their travel, and the Club. But the Club's risk is confined to the potential that they might sell fewer match tickets (and that effect is unmeasurable, of course, and will never appear in any statement of accounts).

Outcome ... the Club will be able to claim that "costs have come down".

Obviously the whole figure for travel includes the money paid for the rail as well as bus travel

 

[BensGrandad]

Is it too simple to just make the travel available on the trains only from either Brighton and intermediate stations or Lewes stations. At the worst many more would travel by train from those stations.

 

[Spun Cuppa]

Why not just abandon the transport levy? You now can't park anywhere near the Amex unless you are 1901 or pay for the uni or the Bridge car park. No dropping off should be easily enforceable on the A27. So what's the problem? Other than walking or cycling you can only realistically get there by train, bus, coach or park and ride. Drop the levy (which is an unfair tax as everyone pays it, not everyone benefits from it) and then everyone just pays the actual fare/fee for the mode of travel they use.

I should imagine this is where we are heading, but with the (un)surprising twist that the transport levy money will just be assimilated into the ST price, meaning there will be no pro-rata reduction in ST prices, and no free transport to/from the ground, meaning an in-effect large price rise for however many games we have to play...

 

[Beach Hut]

Why not just abandon the transport levy? You now can't park anywhere near the Amex unless you are 1901 or pay for the uni or the Bridge car park. No dropping off should be easily enforceable on the A27. So what's the problem? Other than walking or cycling you can only realistically get there by train, bus, coach or park and ride. Drop the levy (which is an unfair tax as everyone pays it, not everyone benefits from it) and then everyone just pays the actual fare/fee for the mode of travel they use.

The bleeding obvious however much too difficult for the club to consider and I suspect Southern Railway will hide behind some health and safety rule however 72,000 get to Old Trafford for every home game with no travel subsidy.

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

Club could just say it's up to the train company to find a solution.

They'd stop the service if it became diffucult. They have a history of waving the white flag instead of rising to the challenge.

 

[Beach Hut]

I think one of the problems with this is the huge numbers travelling by train. They wouldn't want the crowding at the ticket booths/gates as people go through the barriers etc.

What utter tosh, have you not heard of the Key where you load fares electronically ?

 

[Thunder Bolt]

What utter tosh, have you not heard of the Key where you load fares electronically ?

It's only available for season tickets at the moment rather than day returns.

 

[Westdene Seagull]

So some are now thinking legal action and not lambasted like I was over the initial travel tax being enforced - expect the other subsidy to rocket next season to around £100 plus

As one of those people that "lambasted" you I apologise - you were ahead of the game. That game has now changed significantly !

 

[Guinness Boy]

What utter tosh, have you not heard of the Key where you load fares electronically ?

Have you never heard of the infamous ticket barrier at Reigste station that can't even process 40 odd 6th Formers in 10 minutes because the clowns that run the railways installed it broken?

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

As one of those people you "lambasted" you I apologies - you were ahead of the game. That game has now changed significantly !

Same here.

 

[Beach Hut]

Apologies accepted, I had a nasty feeling where this was all going and now look at it.

 

[The Merry Prankster]

The bleeding obvious however much too difficult for the club to consider and I suspect Southern Railway will hide behind some health and safety rule however 72,000 get to Old Trafford for every home game with no travel subsidy.

Quite.

 

[Westdene Seagull]

Only wish Herr Tubthumper had quoted my edited post !

 

[seagullsovergrimsby]

The bleeding obvious however much too difficult for the club to consider and I suspect Southern Railway will hide behind some health and safety rule however 72,000 get to Old Trafford for every home game with no travel subsidy.

A substantial number of them travelling to Old Trafford from all over the country will have never heard of a travel subsidy before.

 

[Beach Hut]

FFP is clearly the thing to use like my company uses the recession as an excuse for a very poor pay rise when in effect we are making record profits.

 

[Guinness Boy]

FFP is clearly the thing to use like my company uses the recession as an excuse for a very poor pay rise when in effect we are making record profits.

You should probably look for another job then. Would you lose your golden first class rail travel boxes?

 

[Beach Hut]

You should probably look for another job then. Would you lose your golden first class rail travel boxes?

Don't have boxes, even better than that............

Why would I do that when I consider what I am paid is very good.

 

[gripper stebson]

Superb work from our man Walt Jabsco.

Barber replies...

http://notworththat.wordpress.com/2...-and-increasing-cost-of-following-the-albion/

 

[supaseagull]

Special Buses: Negotiations Ongoing with Alternative Bus Co + "supporter contri

I understand the break even figure of 15,000 attendances was based on the stadium only costing £54M to build , what nobody knew at the time was the price of steel going through the roof and construction costs rocketing. Shall we ask Tony to demolish The Amex so we can build a 8,000 capacity stadium at Withdean ?

Don't be so ridiculous, you know what I'm alluding to.

 

[Guinness Boy]

Don't have boxes, even better than that............

Why would I do that when I consider what I am paid is very good.

Because you complained about your very poor pay rise and your company lying about it. Wonder how that would go down with your direct manager / boss? Have you raised it with him or just taken the cash and bitched on here?