(10 Jun 2014, 11:46 am)aureolin wrote But - a posh new bus. Not a posh new Mercedes Citaro. People probably said similar about the Solos when the dreaded Metroriders were phased out of Washington.

I do agree with the WiFi point though, as I can understand that perception with what's new technology for our buses (when it's working )

Of course they won't know the model of the bus, but they will be able to differentiate between a heavy weight bus and a light weight bus on the simple basis of one being more comfortable and having less rattles - their passenger experience is massively enhanced by having heavy weight vehicles.

Although I don't think passengers will be able to recognise a bus as a Mercedes, Go North East and other operators have marketed bus services in the past by including 'Take the Mercedes' and such, as Mercedes is obviously somewhat iconic for being a more upmarket brand, as well as providing superior quality and comfort to other manufacturers.

(10 Jun 2014, 12:47 pm)Andreos Constantopolous wrote As will happen during the day on certain runs.
They aren't axed, nor do the operators run to Nexus, with their begging bowl, asking for support.

Because they make the profit back later in the day (perhaps even on the return journey). For example, I know that a number of the X85s run with very few passengers (and as such will probably make a loss), but their return journeys in the opposite direction carry more than sufficient passengers to break-even and in most cases, make a profit.

This can only be done to a certain point, and this is when operators withdraw certain runs as they're not commercially viable.

Surprised you resisted the urge to reply about the Fuel Duty Rebate as mentioned in citaro5284's post! Haha!