I don't think you've got the buses entirely correct for the T5 there. You said: "4 new Optare Metorcity, 3 former TrawsCambria Optare Tempo a Wright Pulsar and a Temsa Avenue". For starters, I'd be very supprised if Richards Bros have aquired a Temsa Avenue again since they very quickly got rid of one of the two they had (which were from Arriva, but not as far as I know from Arriva Wales) and the second not long after. The buses I have seen in full T5 livery are:
That supprises me since I have seen posters on First buses advertising driver's jobs based at various places, including Carmarthen, which led me to think they might be considering reopening Carmarthen depot to save the positioning trips from Ammanford.
Arriva ran it with no subsidy at all for a while didn't they, so it can't run at that much of a loss and a low-subsidy bid might have seemed deliverable at the time?
That would be rather alot of positioning mileage I would have thought, (I think Cardigan would be their nearest depot) unless they introduce similar co-operation arangments with somebody like Mid Wales Travel.
First & MWT to operate a joint service of-sorts anyway, since First use MWT's depot and some of their drivers I think. A "Lloyds/Express Dolgellau situation" isn't a necessary outcome of joint-working, First/Arriva used to work the X40 jointly and both operator's buses ran all the way. I think the "Lloyds/Express Dolgellau situation" is more likely to happen when one operator has registered part of the route commertially, or when the vehicle 'diagrams' (does that term apply to buses or only trains?) don't work out with the vehicles ending up at the correct end of the route each night.
