(14 Dec 2022, 9:01 pm)Unber43 wrote But would you say Arriva having a monopoly is actually better for the customers, as they'll get a better service overall compared to if there was 4-5 different operators, the only downside is that there could be just arriva hiking prices, Im pretty sure its like £4.50 to go from Sunderland to Durham on the 22, whereas the the 20 is like £2.30, are people willing to pay the £4.50 and GNE are actually pricing too low.

Not sure where you have got these fares from.

It's £6.70 on the 22 from Durham to Sunderland. 

It's only £2.30 from Sunderland to Durham on the 20 in the evenings, as part of the evening fare cap. Otherwise, it's £4.20.