(21 Nov 2019, 9:31 pm)Andreos1 wrote I'm not sure anyone said it would be like the glory days. The reflection was in response to your comments regarding the spec that we see currently (that we as taxpayers are part funding anyway).

I'm sure they have done their sums to cost it out. I'm also pretty sure they will have looked at similar schemes which exist across Europe and carried out a cost benefit analysis of it too. 

The current system is broken. Its not working. Passenger numbers are falling. Something needs to be done. Let's do something radical and make travelling by bus attractive and affordable. 
Or shall we just continue with the status quo and pump a sh!T load of money at private companies, shareholders and bus lanes?

I doubt it. The reason this will have been put in the manifesto is to target the 'youth' (of which I am very much the target), young people these days want everything for nothing, and it's just yet another 'free' thing that they are offering.

I agree that the system is broken, but I don't think nationalising it will help. What we need to do is stop pumping this 'sh!t load of money' into the companies, they are perfectly capable of funding it all themselves, but why would they when we offer them money to do it.
If Arriva was owned by a company that wasn't in it just to suck as much money out of it as they could, services in County Durham would be a hell of a lot better.

I believe that we need more competition in the North East, part of the reason services are so bad is because each company has their own area. I don't know how this could be done without having a system like London where each route is tendered out, but I don't think that's the right solution either.