Thanks for the welcome grahame! Things like smart cards are needed across the board on all buses by all bus operators, and First has promised to introduce them by next summer. They have promised them before though, and nothing happened so we need to hold them to account!
Other bus companies manage to provide vehicles with lowering floors for disabled bus users, but First gets away with using some 15 year old buses on some routes and they only have steps. They do have until 2015 I think to change this, because in the 21st century lack of disabled access should not be acceptable!
I don't understand why First can't publish fare prices on their website as they are the dominate provider and face no competition on most routes.

While the fare changes are a good step forward Bristol still needs Oyster^▸ (Smartcard system used by passengers on Transport for London services) style smart cards, and better disabled access on all bus routes so disabled passengers no longer feel like second class passengers. First should publish their single and return fares on their website so people know how much to expect to pay before boarding a bus, and we need lower fares outside of the new inner zone.

The fare changes are great for children, young people and students. Not so good for adults who now have to get either two singles for ^1.50 (when before a return cost ^2.90) or a day rider for ^4.00. It also seems to depend on the driver how far the 3 mile radius is, but hopefully this is just teething problems, and they will sort themselves out in time.

Hello,

I am new to this forum, and while I know its mainly about trains I wanted to say hello & spread the word about my campaign.

I founded the Make Fares Fair Campaign after years of being a disgruntled commuter which attracted over 4,000 people to sign an e-petition I started calling for lower bus fares, and this pressure led to First Bus holding a public consultation during the summer that resulted in the fare changes which were recently announced - a 50% discount for children, 30% for young ppl/students, & ^1.50 for a single 3 mile journey.

While this is a big step forward it's not the end, and there is still work to be done. You can follow the campaign by visiting our website www.bristolbususers.co.uk or by following us on Twitter @BristolBusUsers or follow me @Beardyeyes

Many thanks for reading this

Dan