(02 Aug 2021, 7:49 pm)deanmachine wrote Is it really that confusing that Newcastle isn't in Gateshead though? Really? I could maybe understand people thinking a Newcastle ticket would be valid in Gateshead if they didn't know the area, but not the other way round. I've had plenty of passengers do this with different zones and I really struggle to understand they don't seem to realise this. South Tyneside passes not working in Sunderland and vice versa too, do people just not understand Geography?

You have to take into account that not everyone understands ticketing to the degree that you (or other members of this forum) may do. Offers such as these are designed to encourage non or irregular bus users to use the bus, hence the savings/value element of the offer.

These are people who may currently use a car, and their car doesn't just stop working when they pass the 'Welcome to the City of Sunderland' sign between Whitburn and Seaburn. They shouldn't need to have to understand geography in order to use the bus. They should be able to look at clearly presented information, and then decide which ticket is correct for the journey(s) that they want to make today. When its not clear and leads to an incorrect ticket being purchased and sold, it inevitably ends up in a bad customer experience. That isn't going to encourage people to switch to the bus. 

At least the map has been updated to remove the ambiguity and its now abundantly clear that Newcastle is outside the validity of the ticket zone. Although I'd have personally referred to the purple Go Zones ticket remaining the best option for those in Gateshead wanting to travel to Newcastle, otherwise looking at the 'Summer saving fares' page alone, you'd think the only option was an All Go Zones ticket..!