On Thursday, September 13, 2012 11:37:21 PM UTC+1, wrote:
On 13/09/2012 23:32, Tim Roll-Pickering wrote: wrote: I suppose it makes sense to remove the machines as it will cut costs for staff or contractors to go to each of these machines, carry out maintenance and effect any needed repairs. Coin transport costs are also not cheap, AIUI. For presumably those reasons they've been withdrawn from stops outside the cashless zone when the buses were debendified. One of the harshest memories from when they were first brought in was when machines broke down and drivers refused to take would-be passengers who said this. A particular bad one involved a mother with a pushchair. The driver should have just waved the mother on board in that case, at least as a one-off. The others could have gone to the newsagent and bought tickets or topped up their Oysters.

It is not always the case that there is a newsagent open near the bus stop at the time you want to travel. Even if there was, you can't buy single tickets.

There will always be someone who needs to pay by cash, for a variety of reasons. (eg lost/stolen Oystercard, no Oystercard to begin with, or wanting to travel at 5am when there is no money on the card, and no means of topping up the card nearby. )

Many bus operators in Europe will sell single tickets on the bus, usually at a slight premium, and you cannot pay with anything greater than a €10 note. (eg in Belgium a single from the station in Bruges to the city centre costs €2 if bought on the bus, or €1.20 if bought in advance from the kiosk or machine)

Part of the problem is that the cash fare in London is considerably more expensive than the Oyster fare.

On 13/09/2012 21:11, wrote:
On 13/09/2012 13:29, Neil Williams wrote:
wrote:

And I guess you've never seen the fuss when someones Oyster card
doesn't work
and they stand there for 5 mins arguing with the driver?

Which is one issue that the current policy causes, and a return to
allowing
cash fares will solve, particularly where a group is travelling and the
last one to board has a card problem.

Neil


It always seems to happen in the morning when some woman has to fumble
through her purse looking for an Oystercard, and then starts yelling at
the driver when he says that he needs to drive off.

It's amazing how many people stand at the bus stop for 5 minutes and
only remember that they have to pay just as they board the bus.

On Fri, 14 Sep 2012 13:20:36 +0100
Tony Dragon wrote:
through her purse looking for an Oystercard, and then starts yelling at
the driver when he says that he needs to drive off.

It's amazing how many people stand at the bus stop for 5 minutes and
only remember that they have to pay just as they board the bus.

Probably the same idiots who get to the supermarket checkout and only then
start excavating their handbags for their purse.

B2003

On 14/09/2012 13:20, Tony Dragon wrote:
On 13/09/2012 21:11, wrote:
On 13/09/2012 13:29, Neil Williams wrote:
wrote:

And I guess you've never seen the fuss when someones Oyster card
doesn't work
and they stand there for 5 mins arguing with the driver?

Which is one issue that the current policy causes, and a return to
allowing
cash fares will solve, particularly where a group is travelling and the
last one to board has a card problem.

Neil


It always seems to happen in the morning when some woman has to fumble
through her purse looking for an Oystercard, and then starts yelling at
the driver when he says that he needs to drive off.

It's amazing how many people stand at the bus stop for 5 minutes and
only remember that they have to pay just as they board the bus.

It really is. Speaks levels about the degrees of self-absorption, if you
ask me.

d writes:

On Fri, 14 Sep 2012 13:20:36 +0100
Tony Dragon wrote:
through her purse looking for an Oystercard, and then starts yelling at
the driver when he says that he needs to drive off.

It's amazing how many people stand at the bus stop for 5 minutes and
only remember that they have to pay just as they board the bus.

Probably the same idiots who get to the supermarket checkout and only then
start excavating their handbags for their purse.

Or get a statement out of a cash machine and stand there reading it,
oblivious that they are preventing those behind her using the machine.

On 16/09/2012 20:02, Phil wrote:
d writes:

On Fri, 14 Sep 2012 13:20:36 +0100
Tony Dragon wrote:
through her purse looking for an Oystercard, and then starts yelling at
the driver when he says that he needs to drive off.

It's amazing how many people stand at the bus stop for 5 minutes and
only remember that they have to pay just as they board the bus.

Probably the same idiots who get to the supermarket checkout and only then
start excavating their handbags for their purse.

Or get a statement out of a cash machine and stand there reading it,
oblivious that they are preventing those behind her using the machine.


Or those that sit there for a while, trying to figure out what to do
once they have keyed in their PIN.

On 2012-09-14 19:32:08 +0000, said:

On 14/09/2012 13:20, Tony Dragon wrote:
On 13/09/2012 21:11, wrote:
On 13/09/2012 13:29, Neil Williams wrote:
wrote:

And I guess you've never seen the fuss when someones Oyster card
doesn't work
and they stand there for 5 mins arguing with the driver?

Which is one issue that the current policy causes, and a return to
allowing
cash fares will solve, particularly where a group is travelling and the
last one to board has a card problem.

Neil


It always seems to happen in the morning when some woman has to fumble
through her purse looking for an Oystercard, and then starts yelling at
the driver when he says that he needs to drive off.

It's amazing how many people stand at the bus stop for 5 minutes and
only remember that they have to pay just as they board the bus.

It really is. Speaks levels about the degrees of self-absorption, if
you ask me.

It's actually worse than has been stated. It goes like this: get on
bus; look at driver quizzically; fumble in shopping bag for handbag;
open handbag; fumble and locate purse; open that; spend five minutes
gathering shrapnell.

I remember when many London buses had a ticket machine inside the
right-hand leaf of the entrance door, so those with the right money
could bypass the queue for the driver. The really slow ones were the
worst at having a go at 'queue jumpers".

Ken Wheatley wrote:

I remember when many London buses had a ticket machine inside the
right-hand leaf of the entrance door, so those with the right money could
bypass the queue for the driver. The really slow ones were the worst at
having a go at 'queue jumpers".

It would to me make sense to have an Oyster pad there. Hamburg is slightly
similar - driver side leaf for paying cash, other side for getting past
while people pay cash (you don't have to show your ticket). It is
extremely efficient, and as London has disabled access at the rear door the
centre rail could be reinstated to help "marshall" it.

Neil
--
Neil Williams in Milton Keynes, UK. Put first name before the at to reply.

In article

, (Neil Williams) wrote:

Ken Wheatley wrote:

I remember when many London buses had a ticket machine inside the
right-hand leaf of the entrance door, so those with the right money
could bypass the queue for the driver. The really slow ones were the
worst at having a go at 'queue jumpers".

It would to me make sense to have an Oyster pad there. Hamburg is
slightly similar - driver side leaf for paying cash, other side for
getting past while people pay cash (you don't have to show your ticket).
It is extremely efficient, and as London has disabled access at the rear
door centre rail could be reinstated to help "marshall" it.

That last suggestion is stunningly unhelpful for disabled users and parents
with babies in buggies who need to buy tickets!

--
Colin Rosenstiel

In message , at 20:02:59 on Sun, 16 Sep 2012,
Phil remarked:
through her purse looking for an Oystercard, and then starts yelling at
the driver when he says that he needs to drive off.

It's amazing how many people stand at the bus stop for 5 minutes and
only remember that they have to pay just as they board the bus.

Probably the same idiots who get to the supermarket checkout and only then
start excavating their handbags for their purse.

Or get a statement out of a cash machine and stand there reading it,
oblivious that they are preventing those behind her using the machine.

At the supermarket self-checkout yesterday I observed someone paying in
coins, one at a time, looking at the display in between each one to see
how much more was required. She was putting in over a fiver in small
coins! Even if you over-pay, they return the balance to you as change.

And when finally paid up, she carefully took every item individually off
the bagging area and placed it in her rucksack. Which took another
several minutes.
--
Roland Perry