Cardiff Bus (Welsh: Bws Caerdydd) is the main operator of bus services in Cardiff, Wales and the surrounding area, including Barry and Penarth. The company is wholly owned by Cardiff Council[3][4] and is one of the few municipal bus companies to remain in council ownership. Unlike municipal bus companies elsewhere in Britain, Cardiff Bus is unique in that it is directly managed by Councillors who sit on its Board, rather than as an Arms Length Organisation as other municipal bus companies in Great Britain are run.[5]
History
A line of preserved buses at Cardiff Bus' Open Day in September 2022
While horse buses (and later horse trams) had run in the city since 1845, Cardiff Bus can trace its history back to May 1902, when Cardiff Council took over and electrified a tram line between Roath and the city centre. It had been previously run by the Cardiff Tramway Company. The resultant Cardiff Corporation Tramways spent the next three decades extending its electric tram network, and at its peak in 1927 ran 141 electric trams over 18 miles of line. On Christmas Eve 1920, the corporation introduced its first bus, although the first motor bus route was operated by the Tramway Company from 1907.[6]
Cardiff Trolleybus 259 rounding the Bute Monument roundabout, 1966
The first Cardiff trolleybuses were introduced in 1942, their introduction having been delayed by the outbreak of World War II. The intention was to convert the remaining tramway system to trolleybus operation, then to extend the network. While the first stage was completed in 1950, the only extension made to the system was to Ely which took place in 1955. Although powers had been obtained to considerably expand the network, a policy U-turn occurred in 1961 when the decision was made to replace all the trolleybuses with motor buses. This task was completed in 1970, bringing to an end 68 years of electric traction on the streets of Cardiff.[6]
The Transport Act of 1985deregulated bus services outside London and required all Local Authorities to establish private "arm's length" bus companies. In October 1986 the council established a subsidiary company.[7] In 1992, the closure of the National Welsh bus company led Cardiff Bus to extend and intensify its network in the areas and towns surrounding Cardiff, including Barry, the Vale of Glamorgan and Caerphilly. The Caerphilly local network of services including links between Cardiff, Caerphilly, Blackwood and Tredegar were discontinued in 2001 and are now provided by Stagecoach in South Wales.
Some loss-making services have been withdrawn and are now operated under local authority tender by other operators, including Watts Coaches and first group cymru
The former Capital Links liveried bus
From September 2016, four of Cardiff Bus' services (routes 51/53, 86 and X91) were transferred to its new Capital Links sister brand,[8] with a further four services transferring over to Capital Links two months later.[9] Vehicles used on these services are in either an orange or green base livery, and as of July 2017, Capital Links operate seven routes.
In the crossover of the years 2018 and 2019, Capital Links collapsed, and many of the routes were then dropped, with the exemption of route 51 and 53, which still run, as of Christmas 2020. Many of the capital links wrapped buses, are still wearing that vinyl, just not in service, and across the road from Cardiff Buses main depot on Sloper Road. [citation needed]
The company made a purchase of several battery-electric buses in April 2021 in their effort to modernise their fleet and transform how their network is delivered. The purchase comes with a successful bid from the Department of Transport to the city's ultra low emission zone scheme.[10] These buses will have a range of 370 miles and were delivered at the end of 2021.[11]
Operations
Cardiff Bus has a turnover of £27million, employs around 705 people, on an average weekday carries around 100,000 passengers.[12] In 2009 the company started to operate the park and ride service from Cardiff City Stadium to the city centre.
Fares
Cardiff Bus operates an exact fare policy and no change is given. The city used to be divided into four fare zones, but on 5 April 2009, Cardiff Bus introduced a flat fare of £1.60 for a one-way journey or £3.20 for all-day travel in Cardiff and Penarth, or £1.40/£2.80 for travel within Barry. This has since been increased to £2.00 for a one-way journey or £4.00 for all-day travel in Cardiff and Penarth, or £1.90 and £3.80 in Barry (£3.20/£5.50 Cardiff and Barry). A weekly ticket can be purchased for travel within Cardiff for £15, but an "iff card" will need to be presented as this type of ticket is not printed out on their machine. Tickets can also be purchased on the mobile app (available for iOS and Android).
Special fares apply for travel between Cardiff and Barry.[13] Special fares also apply for Newport, with a £4.50 return ticket offered along with the Day to Go Plus ticket also being accepted.
Today, Cardiff Bus operates within three core zones, the inner-city, Cardiff & Penarth and Barry. Each with their own fare structure.
Adult single tickets are £1.90, £2.40 and £2.60 respectively.
Adult "Day to go" tickets allowing unlimited travel within each zone are £4.70 for Cardiff and Penarth or £4.60 within Barry. There are "day to go plus" tickets allowing unlimited travel across the Cardiff Bus network costing £6 for an adult.
Children and Transport for Wales' "My Travel Pass" holders are eligible for discounted fares.
Iff card is a contactless smart card introduced by Cardiff Bus in October 2010, allowing customers to travel on its services after having pre-paid. The first 30,000 cards were issued free of charge and preloaded with £3 of credit, after which the cards will be charged at £5.
An amount of money is electronically loaded onto the card, either upon boarding a bus or at the Cardiff Bus head office at Sloper Road. A passenger then chooses a ticket type. The card can also be used as a season ticket. The card should be topped-up when the balance is low, however, the card allows the customer to acquire a negative balance up to £3.[15]
The card can be topped-up in units of £1, £2, £3, £4, £5, £10, £15 or £20, up to maximum amount of £50. The card may be used by persons aged between 6 and 60. The Iff card cannot be used to pay a partial amount. The card is cancelled if not used for a continuous period of one year.[16]
The original branding in both the entire tram, trolley bus and early bus operations until the 1970s was crimson lake and cream livery. This then changed to orange with white lining, from August 1972 with "City of Cardiff" on the left hand side and "Dinas Caerdydd" on the right hand side. This changed in 1986 when the business became Cardiff Bus. However, since the 1990s the dominant colouring has been green, first with cream lining and since the introduction of modern wrapping, a return for orange in the adjustments/outline.
Just before the introduction of the Iff Card, the company started a "your bus service" campaign, fronted by a series of local people's faces being applied in large scale on the sides and rears of selected buses.
Bus 472 (CN57 FGD) a Scania N270UD Optare Olympus, had a grey vinyl wrapped livery advertising the IFF card following its launch in 2008. It was then repainted into a heritage orange and white livery to celebrate 30 years since the formation of Cardiff Bus (after the 1986 deregulation of buses) and it currently sports a vinyl wrap celebrating Cardiff's sporting success with Cardiff City F.C., Cardiff Blues, Cardiff Devils ice hockey team and Geraint Thomas winning the 2018 Tour de France. It is no longer in service.
Bus 436 (CE71 YXV) a Yutong E12 has a livery in crimson lake and cream to celebrate the 120th anniversary of Cardiff Bus in 2022.[17]
Livery to celebrate the 120th anniversary of Cardiff Bus
Cardiff Bus' low emission "Electricity" bus.
Livery to celebrate the LGBTQ+ community in South Wales
Contactless
In March 2018 the company introduced the Ticketer contactless card payment system on all its routes.[18] As well as including an EFTPOS reader for Visa/Mastercard cards, fares can be bought and scanned using the Cardiff Bus app (which on most tickets including day to go and week to go tickets is cheaper than using cash).[18] The reader can also scan QR codes from paper multi-journey tickets.[18]
Dennis Dart X1 driver training vehicle 161 (25/08/24)
Controversy
Cardiff Bus's dominant position has sometimes come in for criticism and investigation. In 2004, 2Travel,[19] a company operating significant numbers of school contract services in South Wales, launched low-cost services in Cardiff and Swansea to utilise its fleet between the school runs. Low fares were achieved by omitting major bus stations avoiding hefty access fees. Cardiff Bus launched a basic service in competition with 2Travel, using white buses bearing no livery also stopping short of the bus station. The Office of Fair Trading launched an investigation in 2007 into claims of predatory behaviour 18 months after 2Travel had ceased trading and gone into liquidation.[20][21] The investigation found that Cardiff Bus had engaged in predatory behaviour.[22]
Livery chronology
Liveries used by Cardiff Corporation through to Cardiff Bus in the present-day
A Leyland PD3A1 in crimson lake and cream livery used until 1972
A Bristol LH in orange livery used from 1972 until the 1980s
An Optare MetroRider in the Clipper livery used from 1987
A Dennis Dart in the EasyRider livery used from 1987 to 1999
A Dennis Dart in green and cream livery used from 1999 until 2007
An Alexander Dennis Enviro200 in green and orange livery used from 2007 until 2021
A Mercedes-Benz Citaro in orange and red livery from 2021 to present-day.
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