On Sun, 17 Feb 2008 16:51:43 +0000, Ian Jelf
wrote:

Tour buses such as City Sightseeing also advertise "local fares
available" (I understand to get some sort of deal with diesel duty). I
wonder if that might make *them* liable to carry 60+ passengers free of
charge? Test case coming I suspect!

It's defined as those bus routes registered with the Traffic
Commissioners as local bus routes. That in itself is clear-cut, but
to the passenger it is not - for example, the Stagecoach X5 is (was) a
local bus route in places, but not in other places, and at one point
there was a bit near Cambridge for which it was subsidised to be a
local bus route on a Sunday but not on any other day.

Perhaps a requirement to display some kind of signage indicating the
bus route's status may follow.

I have no idea if tour bus operators are required to register as local
bus routes with the Traffic Commissioners, nor what special
arrangements may apply in London where such registration is redundant
because of TfL having full control of service provision. I suspect,
though, that your mention of tour buses getting diesel duty relief
would suggest that they are so registered (as I'm not aware of another
way of obtaining the bus fuel duty rebate) and thus that passes would
be valid.

Neil

--
Neil Williams
Put my first name before the at to reply.