Things which cause bus boarding/alighting to be slower now than 40 years ago.

[Bletchleyite]

Surely you announce the destination as you approach the driver, as the previous passenger is moving away whilst moving your card towards the reader.

Not now screens are in place, they wouldn't hear.

 

[BuhSnarf]

Not now screens are in place, they wouldn't hear.

Never had a problem myself, maybe you just need to speak a bit louder.

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

The British-style double decker isn't suitable for urban use in the current style of operation. Famously route 18 now leaves people at the stop since it reverted to double decker. Look at where they use double deckers in the Netherlands. Only 2 routes, and both of them are express routes where boarding time is much less of an issue. Although even these have two doors!

You've not been to Berlin? Or to Singapore? As @Bletchleyite states, the reason why mainland Europe doesn't have double deckers is that they work to a standard height of 4m. We work in the UK to 4.9m.

Looking online it's estimated from the sources I can see that using a contactless card to board (stating destination) is roughly 4 seconds and just tapping on is 2 seconds. So certainly not 10 or 0!

That would be my experience.

Anyone taking 10 seconds to get board a bus and grab a ticket is very much the exception and if they are, it's because they're fishing around in some voluminous handbag to find a purse, or they're a tourist and asking other questions than just getting a ticket.

I don't doubt there are some improvements that could be made, but ultimately, they are likely to cost large amounts for minimal gain, compared to other traffic flow issues. Like the recent changes to road layout on my local bus, which now means buses and other large vehicles can no longer pass each other "mobile" at certain spots. Barely an inch was added to pavement widths, but trees were planted, and at one point, a bus stop box was painted half on a speed hump). We also have 5-way traffic lights for the first three weeks of summer: delays are averaging anywhere between barely any and 9 minutes per trip, with up to 30 minute delays at peaks (for a 25 minute journey). Today, a further set of two-way traffic lights has sprung up a matter of minutes along the route. One of the "local" (i.e. single track ratrun) diversionary routes is due to be closed next week. Lost time through boarding (including from ENCTS passholders not having them ready) is a rounding error compared to those other factors!

Bang on. I was on a late running bus on Saturday that progressively lost time against schedule (and it was a limited stop too). The reasons... traffic congestion caused by a set of roadworks, and a poorly designed stop at a retail park that it couldn't access without compromising a box junction as there were two buses already there - one loading, one laying over.

 

[johncrossley]

London Routemasters are certainly in the memory of many of us, certainly mine. My memory of them was that they were slightly slower to board/alight than a dual or three door bus with tap on tap off is now. That is because they only had one door, so alighting had to be completed before boarding could start, and the choice of up and downstairs was immediately at boarding rather than being able to get everyone on and then they decide where to sit, plus moving through the bus was awkward due to the low ceilings.

In terms of pure speed the three door bendies were best, same as a tram in effect. But obviously they lost a lot of revenue.

Routemasters were considered to be much speedier than normal double deckers but that was before Oyster. There was a short-lived experiment with conductors on normal buses.

The main reason for the lack of double deckers on the mainland is less what you say and more that standard bridge heights are lower than the UK (basically the same as the reason we don't have double decker trains). Berlin does have them though (and they are a bit lower than UK ones, though some are UK built by Alexander Dennis so look oddly familiar!)

They are also long wheelbase tri-axle vehicles with two staircases, which does improve things a bit in terms of passenger turnover times.

Just to be clear, I was criticising the way double deckers are used in the UK. Tri-axle and two staircases make a massive difference, meaning that the problems we have highlighted in this thread don't apply in Berlin. They also have three doors which is another huge difference.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 24 Jul 2026 ==

Tap in tap out is beneficial but the tap out as typically implemented in the UK using the Ticketer system is much worse than in other countries. In the Netherlands, for example, there are normally multiple exit readers around the exit door(s) and you are allowed to touch out after the bus has left its previous stop. In the UK the lack of separate exit door and use of only one exit reader makes it considerably more tedious.

 

[Bletchleyite]

Routemasters were considered to be much speedier than normal double deckers but that was before Oyster. There was a short-lived experiment with conductors on normal buses.

Indeed, and it was in part Oyster that killed this idea.

Just to be clear, I was criticising the way double deckers are used in the UK. Tri-axle and two staircases make a massive difference, meaning that the problems we have highlighted in this thread don't apply in Berlin. They also have three doors which is another huge difference.

While it's not a tri-axle, the much maligned "Borismaster" does have these features and I agree they make a difference. Whether the vanity project should have gone ahead in that form is for debate, but a three-door, two-staircase, relatively long double decker is definitely a good thing in my eyes for London operation. A door all the way to the rear is a particularly good thing as it encourages people to move down the bus.

Tap in tap out is beneficial but the tap out as typically implemented in the UK using the Ticketer system is much worse than in other countries. In the Netherlands, for example, there are normally multiple exit readers and you are allowed to touch out after the bus has left its previous stop. In the UK the lack of separate exit door and use of only one exit reader makes it considerably more tedious.

I'd agree the Ticketer implementation is not as good as it could be.

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

Just to be clear, I was criticising the way double deckers are used in the UK. Tri-axle and two staircases make a massive difference, meaning that the problems we have highlighted in this thread don't apply in Berlin. They also have three doors which is another huge difference.

As I stated above...

• Dual door vehicles cost more to purchase
• Dual door vehicles cost more to operate
• Dual door vehicles have a lower seated capacity which is a challenge in terms of older passengers who make up much of the travelling public
• Dual door vehicles are more prone to fare evasion
• Dual door vehicles are lower seated capacity so when cascaded onto provincial/school services, that makes them less efficient
• Dual door vehicles are not suited to many provincial bus stations and bus stops
• Dual door vehicles DO permit faster boarding/egress but in most places, passenger flows and volumes are insufficient to obtain the savings to offset all the additional costs and operational compromises that they bring

Routemasters were considered to be much speedier than normal double deckers but that was before Oyster. There was a short-lived experiment with conductors on normal buses.

That short lived experiment lasted years with LT as they struggled to role out one person operation

 

[PeterC]

We can argue about the numbers but buying a ticket inevitably takes lo ger tha just tapping on. Onthe other hand I certainlycouldn'ttap on without breaking stride on our local GoAhead services. You have to reach under the QR reader. Oyster readers are another matter.

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

We can argue about the numbers but buying a ticket inevitably takes lo ger tha just tapping on. Onthe other hand I certainlycouldn'ttap on without breaking stride on our local GoAhead services. You have to reach under the QR reader. Oyster readers are another matter.

Yes but those numbers are important.

Consider this... If operators had this fantastic opportunity to speed up operations and reap the benefits that, in a deregulated world, they would pocket, then why aren't they?

 

[Bletchleyite]

That short lived experiment lasted years with LT as they struggled to role out one person operation

It was done again more recently, I think it was on the 30 or the 73, I distinctly remember it being Stagecoach operated for some reason. Oyster properly got rid of any reason for it.

 

[johncrossley]

We can argue about the numbers but buying a ticket inevitably takes lo ger tha just tapping on. Onthe other hand I certainlycouldn'ttap on without breaking stride on our local GoAhead services. You have to reach under the QR reader. Oyster readers are another matter.

I agree. Having the card reader horizontal is pretty stupid and is another flaw with the Ticketer system. When travelling abroad as far as I can remember they are all vertical or slightly off vertical like Oyster.

 

[Bletchleyite]

I agree. Having the card reader horizontal is pretty stupid and is another flaw with the Ticketer system. When travelling abroad as far as I can remember they are all vertical or slightly off vertical like Oyster.

The horizontal ones are designed for this process:

1. Card is placed on horizontal reader
2. Fare is rung up
3. Ticket is issued and taken
4. Card is retrieved

...however since Ticketer gained TOTO support it doesn't work like that and so is flawed.

 

[py_megapixel]

The horizontal ones are designed for this process:

1. Card is placed on horizontal reader
2. Fare is rung up
3. Ticket is issued and taken
4. Card is retrieved

...however since Ticketer gained TOTO support it doesn't work like that and so is flawed.

It was already flawed IMO as it's not how passengers expect a contactless payment reader to work. In a shop, or indeed on most other public transport, the fare is selected, you wait for the price to be displayed and then present the card.

 

[Bletchleyite]

It was already flawed IMO as it's not how passengers expect a contactless payment reader to work. In a shop, or indeed on most other public transport, the fare is selected, you wait for the price to be displayed and then present the card.

That's actually how it does work, but it being flat sort of nudges you to put your card on it early, which doesn't break a shop one (it just doesn't read it until ready) but does confuse a Ticketer machine even if TOTO isn't enabled.

 

[BuhSnarf]

That's actually how it does work, but it being flat sort of nudges you to put your card on it early, which doesn't break a shop one (it just doesn't read it until ready) but does confuse a Ticketer machine even if TOTO isn't enabled.

Plenty of early retail contactless machines used to also get confused if the card was presented too early, thankfully most of that has been resolved now so hopefully we'll see similar in new versions of Ticketer.

 

[py_megapixel]

That's actually how it does work, but it being flat sort of nudges you to put your card on it early, which doesn't break a shop one (it just doesn't read it until ready) but does confuse a Ticketer machine even if TOTO isn't enabled.

The difference is the driver cannot select the card payment option until the machine detects that a card is there. In a shop the cashier selects card payment before the card is presented.

I hadn't realised you could confuse a Ticketer machine by putting a card on too early. That's not great.

 

[Bletchleyite]

The difference is the driver cannot select the card payment option until the machine detects that a card is there. In a shop the cashier selects card payment before the card is presented.

Ah. That is poor design.

I hadn't realised you could confuse a Ticketer machine by putting a card on too early. That's not great.

It thinks you're doing TOTO if you touch it before the driver selects a fare for manual issue.

 

[johncrossley]

Some bus companies have a sign telling you to speak to the driver first if you want to buy a paper ticket.

If most bus companies continue to persevere with single door, GPS mobile check in and out may well be a better solution. Notably Denmark have ditched their original smartcard in favour of this, although they continue to maintain a separate smartcard option for those who don't want to use a smartphone. Other places have used this for some time, for example Switzerland, but Denmark seems to be the first place where it is now the mainstream option.

 

[RT4038]

I think there's a fair problem here in that a chunk of forum members won't actually remember when conductors were "every day" to really experience what it was like in comparison. Yes, there were Routemasters in London (which I just about remember using... maybe once... in normal service), but that's a small subset of use compared to other cities, or even rural areas. As such, it's hard to make comparisons as to what has actually changed, versus what we perceive has changed, or personal hobbyhorses based on an equally small set of experiences. (Insert my usual statement about my past German town's bus services which connected perfectly well with each other but failed miserably to connect with any rail service, or inter-urban bus, whatsoever, nor was the bus station near the train station, nor was it in either of the next biggest towns North, South or East...)

No doubt there is a chunk, ever increasing I expect. But I certainly remember Conductors - I worked as one too. However, any comparison to those days with the present is pretty meaningless because so much else has changed on the interim. The buses in those days were slower, in acceleration, in top speed and in braking. Passengers could easily and safely get to and from their seats whilst the bus was moving, and an experienced Conductor could get round to collect the fares without too much holding onto grab rails. Aside from the virtual impossibility of rapidly accelerating a crash 'box 5 potter, or trying to stop a vacuum braked bus on a sixpence; woe betide any driver jerking the bus from the wrath of the Conductor's choice language at the end of the trip! Ringing the bus away when the first foot of the last boarding passenger touched the platform was commonplace, but they would be well inside the saloon or half way up the stairs before the bus got much above 10mph. In order to maintain crew bus running times on anything but bucolic country runs, the 'one-manners' had to be more powerful in acceleration, top speed, braking and (for the sake of exhaustion) fluid flywheel. All developments which enabled drivers to give the passengers a less comfortable ride.

The other main thing changing completely out of recognition is the state of the roads - not just potholes, road humps, speed tables, uneven road work re-instatements, but the sheer quantities of parked vehicles, chicanes, pedestrian islands, lay bys, roundabouts etc etc which have proliferated in the last 50 years, which buses have got to wind themselves in and out of. Couple that to other developments - by passes, housing estates - requiring much more turning than ever before. In 1974 the 53 miles from Northampton (Derngate) to Cambridge Station the 128 bus turned off twice (Denton and Yardley) and negotiated roundabouts at Warrington Toll Bar, Prebend Street and outside the bus station at Bedford, Black Cat and Caxton Gibbet and the bottom of the Fen Causeway in Cambridge. Now look at it, if all the villages on the original route were to be served! I don't think in the 58 miles on the 131 from Oxford to Bedford there was a roundabout between Kidlington and Prebend St, Bedford No wonder @Bletchleyite complains about ride quality. (Maybe I have missed remembering something in the intervening years, and it is a bit of a moving feast anyway!)

Between each stop the bus pretty much went in a straight line (curvature of the road excepted) for much of the route. Roundabouts are just terrible for bus / coach ride quality, and Milton Keynes is the king of those......

 

[johncrossley]

Some people argue that today's driver only buses are ripe for fare evasion, but I'm pretty sure that conductors often didn't collect all the fares. They certainly didn't always check my ticket. Most of the time I was on a Travelcard or a Bus Pass but I could easily have got a free ride a lot of the time.

 

[Bletchleyite]

Some people argue that today's driver only buses are ripe for fare evasion, but I'm pretty sure that conductors often didn't collect all the fares. They certainly didn't always check my ticket. Most of the time I was on a Travelcard or a Bus Pass but I could easily have got a free ride a lot of the time.

A key disadvantage with conductor operation is that you can't have many standees if revenue is to be done. In those days it would be common to be refused at busy times in places like Oxford St - these days not being able to cram on the first bus to arrive is rare and only really happens when stuff like concerts and football matches tip out. Classic Blackpool trams were similar, if you were somewhere like South Pier you'd be stood there watching a constant procession of trams go through without stopping as they were full. The modern ones which do use conductors can usually cram everyone on, though it does mean no revenue is done in such cases.

 

[GusB]

Agree with all your points, the one thing I would add is that cash was much quicker because as people approached the driver they would state their destination and the ticket would be out as the cash arrived, this cannot be done with card payments.

The fastest I've ever seen buses being loaded was on routes where it was exact fare only and people dumped their change into the hopper. Get on the bus, say "50p please", drop your cash in and collect your ticket from the printer behind the driver. Sure, you'd get people who weren't sure exactly where they were going and would have to ask the driver, but this is true for any payment method.

It wasn't even that big an issue on routes where change was given, except perhaps on Mondays when a higher percentage of people presented notes rather than coins. It was to be expected, though, and people just got on with it.

Bus services have become tediously slow because of passengers insisting on waiting until the bus stops before getting up, I don't know what's wrong with them as back in the better days you learned how to walk downstairs as the bus was moving, you learned to hang on when the bus braked sharply and so on. My view is simple, if passengers have to remain seated until the bus stops, what about standing passengers?

This was actually in one of the announcements I heard on the bus the other day, and I agree that it slows things down. However, we're in the era of "where there's blame there's a claim" and I assume that this is to minimise potential injuries in case the bus has to brake sharply. I agree with your point about standing passengers.

Didn't buses accelerate slower back in the good old days? Less chance of being jolted. Perhaps brakes weren't as good too

Buses tend to be quicker off the mark these days, but don't underestimate the ability of older vehicles to pull away quickly at the hands of the wrong (or right ) driver!

In terms of fares etc and interactions with drivers...

• Anyone would think that passengers are getting on with a jar full of coppers and placing them individually on the drivers cash tray, indulging in an extended conversation about fares and West African politics, or paying with a credit card that requires the use of a 1980s counterfoil
• My experiences (and I do keep tabs on this when I travel) is that the majority of passengers are a) ENCTS pass holders so very quick in that respect (though they may be slower to fish their pass out, physically move on board etc) b) have existing m-tickets and passes that scan
• Cash is relatively small amount and, of course, operators would love to remove it as a payment method because a) reduces risk of fiddling b) reduces risk to staff and c) the physical costs of handling money could be removed. That they haven't is because it is still important to a significant demographic and whilst there are trials, it's small beer.
• TOTO is coming in and operators do want it as again they want the benefits. For Stagecoach, it's been technologically more fraught but it's now fairly common elsewhere. However, it's more challenging for smaller operators for whom the cost of the tech just doesn't make sense - the volumes and benefits don't outweigh the cost.

Now here's an example. First West of England in Bristol (under the leadership of James Freeman) DID all the things that you espouse. They had the Metrobus routes with the m3 from Emersons Green. No onboard fares - buy before you board. New vehicles with dual doors. It still didn't stop South Gloucestershire Council removing a crucial bit of bus lane on the outer ring road so vehicles were stuck in glue pot traffic conditions. That bus lane still hasn't been reinstated. So much for leverage and being "in the right".

The fact is that operators make calculations based on costs vs. benefits. Councils make decisions based on politics and a diverse range of views. Not all of those are consistent with faster public transport.

Quite. The biggest factors affecting dwell time that I see whenever I travel are pensioners getting to their seats and the occasional boarding of wheelchairs, none of which I'm being critical. I see the odd tourist or someone who isn't sure exactly where they're going and this requires them to ask the driver, but it's not a very regular occurrence. As far as ticketing is concerned, smart-cards and contactless cards can cause as much dwell as paying by cash in my experience.

My regular bus route has a fair bit of padding in the timetable so that any extra time at stops can usually be made up quite easily, but it all falls apart when the bus gets into town and gets snarled up in traffic; even if we invented telepathic ticketing that worked in the blink of an eye it still wouldn't fix that problem.

I also think that people in general are a little less patient these days. Those who are less able still need to get to their seats safely before the bus moves off and this is unavoidable. I honestly don't think that dwell time is as big an issue as some people make it out to be.

 

[LiviCrazy]

My observation not of now vs 40 years ago but even 10-20 years ago. 10-20 years ago most people bought week or month tickets, so most of the week, most of the journeys just involved people flashing the pass at the driver.

Now, with the prevalence of tap tap cap on non-flat fare bus routes, every single journey involves an interaction with the driver.

I compare travelling on the old First 27/28 in West Lothian compared to the nearly identical Lothian Country X27/X28 of now and the length of time spent at every stop is so long now.

Another factor though is the younger generation for some reason often don’t stand up until the bus has come to a stop where standard practice has always been to be stood waiting to get off (in fact in the past if you weren’t waiting the driver would usually go past assuming an erroneous press)

 

[johncrossley]

Another factor though is the younger generation for some reason often don’t stand up until the bus has come to a stop where standard practice has always been to be stood waiting to get off (in fact in the past if you weren’t waiting the driver would usually go past assuming an erroneous press)

Unfortunately some bus companies now insist that passengers are seated until the bus comes to a complete halt at the bus stop (see earlier in the thread). If this becomes the norm it will really mess up boarding times, especially where you have single door operation. At least with two door operation you have some chance of the alighting time overlapping with the time that passengers are boarding.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 24 Jul 2026 ==

I have just noticed that Belfast has introduced a huge number of double door electric buses in recent years, so they probably have more double door buses than anywhere else in the UK outside London. Of course, they have the Glider bendy buses as well. This shows Manchester up badly as it is a much bigger urban area and has many routes between recognised urban/suburban centres. Therefore there are many stops where passengers board and alight at the same time and it no longer has the excuse of deregulation holding it back. Bus stations are not as excuse either. They can use the front door at bus stations and middle door everywhere else.

 

[GusB]

Unfortunately some bus companies now insist that passengers are seated until the bus comes to a complete halt at the bus stop (see earlier in the thread). If this becomes the norm it will really mess up boarding times, especially where you have single door operation. At least with two door operation you have some chance of the alighting time overlapping with the time that passengers are boarding.

I suspect that most of us here would think that the policy of remaining in one's seat until the bus stops is rather silly. From a company point of view, however, all it takes is one passenger to have a fall and injure themselves as they're getting up from their seat to generate a "blame-claim".

I have just noticed that Belfast has introduced a huge number of double door electric buses in recent years, so they probably have more double door buses than anywhere else in the UK outside London. Of course, they have the Glider bendy buses as well. This shows Manchester up badly as it is a much bigger urban area and has many routes between recognised urban/suburban centres. Therefore there are many stops where passengers board and alight at the same time and it no longer has the excuse of deregulation holding it back. Bus stations are not as excuse either. They can use the front door at bus stations and middle door everywhere else.

I don't think that anyone would disagree that dual-door buses are effective within a city environment. The main problem is, as @TheGrandWazoo has explained, that those vehicles cannot easily be cascaded onto secondary routes.

Back in the "Old Days" we had separate "town" and "country" bus operators and it was more or less expected that vehicles would be run for a certain amount of time before being scrapped or sold on to smaller outfits for schools contracts.

There's now no real demarcation between city and out-of-town operators and the financial mechanism that allowed operators to purchase vehicles has largely disappeared (bus grant), so operators have to buy buses that can serve one purpose for a few years and then send them off to the sticks to live out the rest of their lives.

 

[Simon75]

My partner is very nimble on her feet, much more than me - I'd say it shows that sometimes you just can't anticipate the driver is going to stomp on the gas just as you descend the stairs!

I often tend to only sit upstairs if my stop is a bus station for that particular reason

 

[Simon75]

My experience ive noticed delays due to either passes not read, cards/phone declining (and customer having no cash!)
Also people seem to take longer getting off. Ive often got on thinking everyone getting has, to be told by the driver they haven't

 

[Simon75]

And when they refuse? Drivers won't risk assault.

It is an actual problem, not one I'm inventing.

I was delayed a few months ago by about 10 minutes for the same reason.
Driver asked to moved, lady wouldn't, so driver switched off the engine and waited... eventually she budged

 

[Skoda99E]

As I stated above...

• Dual door vehicles cost more to purchase
• Dual door vehicles cost more to operate
• Dual door vehicles have a lower seated capacity which is a challenge in terms of older passengers who make up much of the travelling public
• Dual door vehicles are more prone to fare evasion
• Dual door vehicles are lower seated capacity so when cascaded onto provincial/school services, that makes them less efficient
• Dual door vehicles are not suited to many provincial bus stations and bus stops
• Dual door vehicles DO permit faster boarding/egress but in most places, passenger flows and volumes are insufficient to obtain the savings to offset all the additional costs and operational compromises that they bring

Most of these issues would be solved if bus travel had more investment, or if the way of operating buses in the UK was changed. Every other country with an organised bus system in most cases use buses with more than one door and have no issues with operating them.

1/2. Not really an issue, as buses themselves cost a lot of money to purchase and operate, if the large operators weren't so obsessed with cost cutting this wouldn't be an issue at all

3. This could be solved if longer 12m buses or 100% low floor buses like the Citaro and Kite Electroliner were the standard, unlike the current standard which seems to be 10m-11.5m. I understand the UK has tighter roads than most other countries, but in countries like Italy and Swizerland who in many cases have much narrower roads than the UK 12m is still the standard. And in recent years a lot of shorter single deck E200s, Streetlites, Versas ect. have been replaced by longer Yutong E12s and MCV Evoras.

4. This wouldn't be an issue if the UK, like most other countries in Europe hired ticket inspectors, (alternatively perhaps somebody could develop a CCTV system to detect fare evaders and notify the driver/operator). Or we could lower fares so theres less incentive for people to fare evade (UK ticket prices are significantly more expensive compared to our neighbours like who offer much higher quality service compared to even our best cities for public transport).
And maybe the UK bus system could realise running a bus network and maximising profit at the same time is impossible without severely limiting mobility for those without a car.

5. Adding a second door to a bus only reduces capacity by 2-4 seats which isn't very much when a double decker bus can have up to 90 seats. Single door conversions exist, and they do cost money, but ex-London buses seem to be the most popular for smaller operators who tend to operate school work. In other European countries provincial operators in the majority of cases run 2 door buses, so I don't see why it can't be the same here.

6. This only becomes an issue at a few stops, but that's just where I live. At the few stops where it is an issue, it wouldn't cost a lot to solve this, by extending the unloading/loading area, at bus stations and the few stops where it's impossible people can exit through the front door and at bus stops it isn't problem as buses wait for long periods of time.

7. This is more of an issue with the UK bus system, as buses here are seen as the main transportation into the city centre in large cities, rather than secondary to trams like in most large European cities, where a bus would normally connect outer suburbs, or take passengers from suburbs to trams stops or railway stations, where they can make their connections into the city centre while the bus continues to the centre but on a much slower indirect route.

Some could argue one door is best suited for the bus system in the UK, but the UK bus system itself is heavily flawed and UK bus networks are often look like they were designed specifically for people who don't have access to a car, rather than something that can compete with cars.

 

[AilsaBus]

Not now screens are in place, they wouldn't hear.

Yes they would, most bandit screens have holes in them so drivers and passengers can speak to each other. They aren't sitting in a soundproof booth!

What really slows buses down is the morons who'll sit at a bus stop for 10-15 minutes staring into space and then and only then when the bus actually appears, they'll board and start messing about in their bag etc looking for their ticket/pass. It's these clowns who hold up buses the most.

 

[Man of Kent]

Arguably buses have no right to demand better road conditions if they waste time themselves. The long dwell times on the Cambridgeshire busway are obscene, considering how much public money has been spent on removing the traffic issue.

The at stop ticket machines were run by Cambridgeshire County Council, not the operators.