The perpetual pain of convincing bus drivers of the validity of your ticket.

[Polarbear]

Been many an occasion when I’ve had the validity of tickets questioned/challenged by bus drivers.

I used North & Mid Wales a lot 15 or so years back. Although advertised as valid on buses, Arriva drivers based at Wrexham rarely accepted them. When I complained to Arriva (who at the time, held the rail franchise), they told me that they were two separate companies! After replying to challenge that on the basis that they both said Arriva & were painted the same colour, they assured me drivers would be briefed.

Express Motors (now defunct) we’re also notorious for not accepting these tickets.

 

[MrJeeves]

I was wondering if there was any data sharing with the railways about where passengers travel. I know a code being scanned on a ticket barrier for example is logged. Do the bus companies also provide any data back or is it just to confirm validity?

My understanding is, yes, the scans are recording similar to scanning a ticket at a ticket barrier or it being scanned on board a train.

 

[duncombec]

I am due to buy Discovery tickets twice this coming July and am dreading operators, especially independent Compass Travel, not recognising it.

Compass Travel actively promote the Discovery ticket themselves, so I'd hope you don't have issues.

I had no issue using an Arriva-issued ticket extensively on Metrobus services yesterday as soon as they saw the Discovery logo (no QR code)

 

[Bletchleyite]

I used North & Mid Wales a lot 15 or so years back. Although advertised as valid on buses, Arriva drivers based at Wrexham rarely accepted them. When I complained to Arriva (who at the time, held the rail franchise), they told me that they were two separate companies! After replying to challenge that on the basis that they both said Arriva & were painted the same colour, they assured me drivers would be briefed.

Express Motors (now defunct) we’re also notorious for not accepting these tickets.

That's been a problem since I first started using these tickets aged about 16 - that's 30 years ago near enough. "That's a train ticket, this is a bus" was the usual sort of quip, you can imagine that in your own Welsh accent

Express Motors were notorious for everything, basically a Welsh version of the "Aylesbury triad" (Red * etc). I can't say I shed much of a tear when they disappeared, and I think Conwy Valley loadings have certainly improved by their absence (their managing director seemed to give the impression of wanting it closed so he could profit from running buses instead - the whole thing having rather a feel of the BBC drama Donovan Quick from some years back*, but with the roles of the train operator and bus operator somewhat reversed).

* A fairly well worth watching drama serial about a plucky local bus company that stepped in against "evil" "Windmill Transport" (clearly intended to be FirstGroup) who had just taken over the railway and removed the stops at a reasonably well used local station. It's probably online somewhere.

 

[317 forever]

Compass Travel actively promote the Discovery ticket themselves, so I'd hope you don't have issues.

I had no issue using an Arriva-issued ticket extensively on Metrobus services yesterday as soon as they saw the Discovery logo (no QR code)

That should help.

My first Discovery ticket is one I shall buy on a Stagecoach bus and use on Brighton & Hove, and maybe Compass.

My second one I buy on Metrobus and use on Stagecoach, B&H and Compass.