(27 Feb 2014, 6:35 pm)Kuyoyo wrote So by all means, keep banging on about BSOG and it being taken away, but then you'll end up with only main corridor routes and very little services like the 71 and East Durham services.

Not banging on, merely thinking out loud. The gist of which, was that main corridor routes could easily live without it, but your marginal routes would still need it. Instead of giving everyone a reduced rate universally, why not concentrate it to those areas/networks that need it?

I think saying it's just operators getting their own money back is perhaps no longer strictly the case (hence the change of name from 'rebate'), a bit like saying road tax funds the upkeep of the roads....

It still comes from the public purse, regardless of how it was raised. The recent headline figure is something like 44% of operators income comes via Government (in whatever guise).

For the record, in my eyes neither BSOG nor Concessionary travel are subsidies.