I am fairly certain I've mentioned this before but thankfully the news has FINALLY picked up on this bullshit policy change by First Bristol that has hidden motives written all over it. This change is that when bus drivers don't have enough money on them to give you the change you are due, they can give you change tickets as they always have done, but now you can only redeem those at a travel store that are located in only two places in the City of Bristol.

Given that prices have gone so high that the it's actually easier to carry a fiver around than to carry loose change (£2.20 for a single journey for myself to get from my house to the city centre) it is unsurprising that this move is unpopular as it opens up all kinds of questions as to just how much change bus drivers are supposed to have and just how the company would use any profits made from money they keep unclaimed from within the scandalously short 7 day period.

What happens when you have someone who is partially disabled and needs to go to hospital one day a week and you give them a change ticket? Are they then to make the potentially painful journey out of their way spending god knows how much on the only transport they can use just to get their 20p or 40p back? Surely First, as money hungry a company as they are, haven't sat down and not discussed the extra revenue this will bring from people that just can't be bothered to trek all the way to an office to reclaim their small change. In the case of the poor in society, though I doubt they can actually afford public transport in Bristol any more anyway, I'd say First's change in policy is actually unethical due to essentially putting a cost barrier in front of the lowest socio-economic groups in this city to actually go and claim any money that might mean so much to them.

Apparently it's to combat fraud. Is this an admittance by the company then that bus drivers are unable to tell a fraudulent change ticket from a real one yet obviously highly trained staff in a first shop will be able to tell any quicker? I just can't believe for a second that bus drivers are supposedly so inept that they can't be trusted to use their own judgement on this matter.

To those in Bristol, I would say try to use the ULink service wherever it is available for you. Increased usage of this service can only lead to increased service being provided, and at £3 for a day ticket compared to at least £3.70 (£2 instead of £2.80 for children) for the comparable First ticket it is a start in cutting bus costs in Bristol. I stopped using buses in favour of walking and cycling years ago, but it's not right that passengers that need the bus are forced to succumb to such unfair charges that First are now imposing one way or the other.

I've written to my councillors, I suggest others annoyed by this do the same and don't let this kind of issue lie while the city council so readily takes the advice from this corrupt company.