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Explore Wales pass.

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Dai Corner

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adrock1976 said:
Is that bus route a direct replacement for a former railway link similar to Peterborough - Kings Lynn via Wisbech?
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No. There has never been a railway between Blackwood and Ystrad Mynach. Blackwood is one of the largest towns in South Wales without a station (closed 1960) so the bus is probably an effort to link it in to the Valley Lines system.
 
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ashworth

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Rover said:
Further to the acceptance on buses I have been in contact with Barry Doe who has been in contact with TfW and had the following reply:

"We've recently had confirmation from the following bus operators that they wish to continue participating with the Explore Wales product. This info will shortly be added to the information supporting the product.
First Group.
Cardiff Bus.
Arriva Bus Wales.
Stagecoach Bus."

The absence of information was due to the fact that with the change of operators contracts had to be renegotiated with each bus operator.
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That’s mostly good news but I wonder if there is any chance that Explore Wales Passes can be officially be made valid on TrawsCymru services? I never had any problems earlier this year using it on the T2 between Bangor and Porthmadog but without this link between the North Wales Coast and the Cambrian Coast lines the Explore Wales Pass is limited in its use for that area.
 
splashoutradio

splashoutradio

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Rover said:
We've recently had confirmation from the following bus operators that they wish to continue participating with the Explore Wales product. This info will shortly be added to the information supporting the product.
First Group.
Cardiff Bus.
Arriva Bus Wales.
Stagecoach Bus."
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Whilst it's nice to have clarification on the matter, that still leaves some large areas of Wales unable to be explored. As Ashworth points out, not all TrawsCymru services are run by these companies, but are run with government funding and to government specification, so one would think tickets should be valid on these also.
 
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rg177

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Thought this was the most appropriate thread for this.

I've been using this pass on Cardiff Bus and Stagecoach this week, mostly without qualm (albeit mostly with baffled looks).

Had a chat with a driver today on the X24 after he was very baffled by my pass when i boarded in Cwmbran. Was pleasantly surprised when I went to alight in Newport when he asked me more about the ticket so I ended up talking him and an inspector through the ticket and where it was valid and they were rather grateful for the information as neither had any idea what it was!

Thankfully haven't had any flat out "that's not valid" from anyone.
 
_toommm_

_toommm_

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rg177 said:
Thought this was the most appropriate thread for this.

I've been using this pass on Cardiff Bus and Stagecoach this week, mostly without qualm (albeit mostly with baffled looks).

Had a chat with a driver today on the X24 after he was very baffled by my pass when i boarded in Cwmbran. Was pleasantly surprised when I went to alight in Newport when he asked me more about the ticket so I ended up talking him and an inspector through the ticket and where it was valid and they were rather grateful for the information as neither had any idea what it was!

Thankfully haven't had any flat out "that's not valid" from anyone.
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Its always nice when they are genuinely interested in finding out what it is and if its valid, as opposed to, like you said, just flat out refusing to accept it.
 
185143

185143

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_toommm_ said:
Its always nice when they are genuinely interested in finding out what it is and if its valid, as opposed to, like you said, just flat out refusing to accept it.
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Agreed. Standing on the bus at Chester telling the driver where I'd been on the trains that week was nice, he hadn't heard of it and seemed intrigued as it looked good value. Then again, I had the same from Virgin Trains RPIs at Crewe so it isn't just bus drivers! Also had another bus driver who didn't know what it was, neither of us were sure it was valid-but as he couldn't confidently say it wasn't, told me to take a seat.
 
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glenbogle

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I’ve had the passes regularly, it’s trial and error with them. The big firms like Stagecoach, Arriva, First etc it’s never a problem, it's valid on all the Traws Cymru buses too, the smaller firms just try your luck, I’ve only once been refused and that was on The Sherpa.
 
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ashworth

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glenbogle said:
I’ve had the passes regularly, it’s trial and error with them. The big firms like Stagecoach, Arriva, First etc it’s never a problem, it's valid on all the Traws Cymru buses too, the smaller firms just try your luck, I’ve only once been refused and that was on The Sherpa.
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I never had it refused on the Traws Cymru T2 when I was staying in Caernarfon last summer. However, where is the official confirmation in writing that it is valid on all Traws Cymru routes ?
 
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glenbogle

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ashworth said:
I never had it refused on the Traws Cymru T2 when I was staying in Caernarfon last summer. However, where is the official confirmation in writing that it is valid on all Traws Cymru routes ?
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See my post earlier number 64.
 
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ChrisC

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glenbogle said:
See my post earlier number 64.
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I had seen this post. What Traws Cymru said to you in an email following your correspondence with them may well be correct. However, I cannot find any official confirmation of this on their website or on the Transport For Wales Website. The official information states that the Explore Wales Pass is valid on Arriva, First, Stagecoach and Cardiff Buses. There is no mention of Traws Cymru. It may well be valid but if you were to encounter a difficult driver who has no knowledge of this there is nothing that you can produce to confirm this.
 
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