De Lijn Bus 42 (Breskens-Brugge)

[Segedunum]

Hello all,

Just a quick question about this bus route - which links Breskens (NL) with Brugge (BE).

The De Lijn website states that two tariffs apply - so if you're travelling between the two countries, there are two different readers:

• Between Brugge Station and Sint Anna Ter Muiden Havenstraat De Lijn fares apply. That means that you can
  • use a travel pass on a MOBIB card. Hold the card in front of the yellow scanner when you get on.
  • use a ticket on an electronic card, purchased via text message, the app or the website.
  • buy a ticket on the bus itself. Do this at the white terminal using a contactless payment method.*
  
  
• From the border stop Sint Anna Ter Muiden Havenstraat to the final stop Breskens Veerhaven, Connexxion fares apply. Buy a Connexxion ticket contactlessly* at the black check-in post. Please note: when you get off the bus in the Netherlands, you must check out.

So, if I'm understanding this correctly, if I was to board in Breskens, I'd have to get up at the border, check out, and then go and check in on a different reader?

Thanks in advance.

 

[DanielB]

According to the page for this route at the OV in Nederland wiki it should also be possible to check in/out at the black card reader whilst in Belgium, but nothing is charged as the De Lijn fares are the only thing valid there.
So I presume (but I cannot find any clear information about it) that a check-in in the Netherlands and a check-out in Belgium, or the other way around, charges nothing for the kilometres in Belgium and the Dutch fare for the Dutch part of the route. The chipcard system is at least capable of doing so, as it's done elsewhere on interprovincial routes with multiple kilometre-fares.

But I'm not aware if this also works for Belgian tickets when boarding in Breskens.
So at least coming from Belgium it may be possible to check in at both the Belgian and Dutch card reader and only check out at the Dutch one in Breskens (no need to check out with Belgian tickets).

 

[johncrossley]

According to the page for this route at the OV in Nederland wiki it should also be possible to check in/out at the black card reader whilst in Belgium, but nothing is charged as the De Lijn fares are the only thing valid there.
So I presume (but I cannot find any clear information about it) that a check-in in the Netherlands and a check-out in Belgium, or the other way around, charges nothing for the kilometres in Belgium and the Dutch fare for the Dutch part of the route. The chipcard system is at least capable of doing so, as it's done elsewhere on interprovincial routes with multiple kilometre-fares.

But I'm not aware if this also works for Belgian tickets when boarding in Breskens.

Presumably you still need to get a ticket for Belgium even if you do this?

Also, you could have a Connexxion Zeeland dagkaart (day ticket), and therefore you wouldn't need to touch out (as the day ticket only requires to be shown or scanned on entry) but you would still need to visit the driver at the border to validate your Belgian ticket, or if you don't have one, tap in on the white contactless reader with a bank card. Presumably it isn't possible to do this until you get to the border.

 

[DanielB]

Presumably you still need to get a ticket for Belgium even if you do this?

Obviously you will, had just added that to my message.

Also, you could have a Connexxion Zeeland dagkaart (day ticket), and therefore you wouldn't need to touch out (as the day ticket only requires to be shown or scanned on entry) but you would still need to visit the driver at the border to validate your Belgian ticket

According to Connexxion it's possible to already buy a Belgian ticket from the driver upon boarding.

 

[Segedunum]

Thanks @DanielB. I've messaged De Lijn on Twitter and they've advised "when you cross the border you buy the other ticket".

Which sounds a bit of a farce. But if I choose to go this way (pondering travelling Vlissingen - Breskens - Brugge - Brussels) I suppose I'll just see what everyone else does or ask the driver.

 

[johncrossley]

This is an unusual situation. If you look at https://www.grenstreinbus.be/ most of the other cross-border routes are run by one operator or the other, so either Dutch or Belgian ticketing applies for the whole route.

 

[DanielB]

Route 42 is actually the only route where Dutch buses run a significant length in Belgium (or Belgian buses in the Netherlands). Most other routes just make a short hop across the border, so fares are not much of an issue as you can't really travel any significant distance within the neighbouring country.
Route 19 used to have a special fare for passengers to Antwerp, but now no longer stops there.

AFAIK there's one neighbourhood in Vaals which is only served by German and Belgian buses, but the most complicated one is 44 from Heerlen to Aachen where the German buses have no validators and passengers within the Netherlands can buy a ticket for the Dutch fare by showing their chipcard to the driver. As there are no means of proving what's loaded on the card, you'll get 20% off peak discount by showing a personalized card even when you haven't got the product "Dalkorting Limburg".
Here however cross border travel is possible with one ticket bought from the driver.

 

[dutchflyer]

THis route has 2 buses from NL-Connexxion (+TRansDEV) and 1 of de flemish deLIJN.
Its in practice much easier: driver will tell-you wont be only pax with same situation.
You can use your bank/cr.cd for payment and no (printed) tickets are used.
As I assume noone wants to stay in Bresjes forever-one has to take the ferry across to Vlissingen, where the train starts. These connect with one another.

 

[rvdborgt]

Thanks @DanielB. I've messaged De Lijn on Twitter and they've advised "when you cross the border you buy the other ticket".

Which sounds a bit of a farce. But if I choose to go this way (pondering travelling Vlissingen - Breskens - Brugge - Brussels) I suppose I'll just see what everyone else does or ask the driver.

Sounds to me like someone who doesn't know how it really works. You also used to be able to buy a single combined ticket for the whole journey from the driver but I'm not sure if that's still the case. It wasn't the cheapest option if you had a Lijnkaart and could travel on a chipcard (previously strippenkaart) but it was convenient for occasional passengers.

This is an unusual situation. If you look at https://www.grenstreinbus.be/ most of the other cross-border routes are run by one operator or the other, so either Dutch or Belgian ticketing applies for the whole route.

Although the majority of the cross-border bus lines are one operator, having 2 operators, or one operator and 2 different fare systems (because 2 transport authorities are involved), does occur here and there and I wouldn't call it unusual. I've also seen that for similar lines across other borders.

Route 19 used to have a special fare for passengers to Antwerp, but now no longer stops there.

Before that, when De Lijn was still involved in the operation, you could use either a strippenkaart (NL) or a zonekaart (De Lijn) for any journey crossing a border. But at that time, prices per zone were quite similar on both sides of the border. That all changed when De Lijn's fares dropped and they eventually stopped participating in that line.