(27 Oct 2020, 9:36 pm)Adrian wrote I think travel patterns will dramatically change, now that employers are seeing the benefit of homeworking - something that was once seen as a skive opportunity.

But that isn't the biggest barrier; its people's perceptions of travelling on public transport and the cleanliness. Operators are doing a lot, some a lot more than others, to ensure high cleaning standards, but the message just isn't reaching the people that it needs to. Or convincing those it is.

Channel 4's Dispatches were out swab testing several public places - Buses actually came out really positively from it: https://metro.co.uk/video/dispatches-swa...e-2277984/

You're also right that creativity is required. The 24 hour ticket that GNE has introduced is great and offers a bit more flexibility. The evening ticket is also a positive, but only because you now pay a representative fare for the level of service received after 7pm. As you would in any other walk of life. It doesn't actually encourage me to use a bus on an evening though, because I still know that I'm going to spend most of my time waiting around in the cold! 

Perhaps a different kind of creativity is needed? Operators of course need people back on their buses, but businesses are going to need people back in their workplaces and councils/retail alike needing people back on their high streets, maybe we need to consider something like local transport taskforces? Get all the key stakeholders together and work on a mutual way forward.

This is what is needed imo. 
Seeing more of the same old service offer - with or without the new ticket offers won't be the magic pill that fixes everything. 
The evening and 24 hour tickets are only part of the solution.