When I wrote my last column in mid-August, it looked like the Covid pandemic was coming under control. With a promised return to school and college, bus operators were looking forward to an increase in passengers from the return to school and work. Indeed passenger numbers did increase to around 55% of pre-Covid levels although, as the monthly Ten Percent Club survey shows, there is wide variation, with the better commercial services at around 70%, but more rural tendered services lower at around 45%. The traffic commissioners made a brave and not unreasonable prediction at the time that services would be back to normal at the end of October and the registration system would return to 84 days' notice of a service change. Unfortunately, as we now know, the virus would not play ball.
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