(01 Jun 2015, 3:54 pm)Cock Robin wrote I look at the service number on the front.

(01 Jun 2015, 5:06 pm)Cock Robin wrote I'm sure they'd rather be 'deprived' of the 'Max standard' than be deprived of a seat or worse still deprived of the chance of getting on at all.

I don't suppose you've ever considered a career as a marketing consultant have you? You'd save businesses an absolute fortune in their marketing budget, as it's clearly all irrelevant. I mean what did marketing a product ever do?

Some members (and don't get me wrong - I'm not pointing fingers at you here) are really quick to jump down other members throats when it comes to the matter of whether or not a service is commercially viable for example. Well the operators are marketing a commercial service to try and both retain existing custom and to also attract new custom. Hence the provision of WiFi, plug sockets and other on board technology. It's not done because the bosses think it's a great idea - it's because the marketing value of such features outweigh the initial expense. 

As a customer and someone with no involvement in the industry, I expect the operator to provide a bus that is suitable for demand, but not at the expense of the service advertised. We really need to get past this 'you get what you're given' approach that seems to still exist in the industry. It's a business that's being ran since deregulation, and not a public service, as is quickly pointed out in other posts...