Pausing Cardiff Bus tickets in Welsh lockdown

After a further lockdown was declared from Friday 23 October, Cardiff Bus placed a pause on all its active 4 Week To Go, 4 Week To Go Plus and annual tickets to help relieve financial stress for customers.

This will be the second time in 2020 that Passenger has paused tickets for the Cardiff Bus app, which is used by hundreds of thousands of people in Wales.

CPT Cymru Director, John Pockett stated in his recent blog post on Movingforwardtogether.uk “The pandemic seems to be causing a new challenge every week for bus and coach operators in Wales”.

Over the past 7 months, Passenger have responded quickly to Government announcements, releasing updates with the tools needed to help operators and users navigate the changing and uncertain travel landscape.

Gareth Stevens, Commercial Director at Cardiff Bus says, “Following the Welsh Government announcement of a national lockdown until 9 November, people should stay at home and pubs, restaurants, hotels and non-essential shops must shut. We are able to give our mobile app users an instant ticket pause with easy re-activation, either immediately (such as for key workers) or at a later date, so that those with tickets won’t lose out on travel already paid for”.

While it’s difficult to predict what may happen next in terms of the pandemic, Passenger has ensured that operators and users are kept up to date and informed. Cardiff based Teaching Assistant Ceri Hopkins explains why the ticket pause is a relief for Cardiff Bus users.

“This has been a crazy year, not knowing what is going to happen week-to-week with work and my children’s school. There is so much to juggle at the moment and sort out, so this is one less thing to worry about. Knowing that my money is safe and I don’t have to do any complicated refund application is very reassuring”.

As a public transportation provider in the Welsh capital, with operations spreading out as far as the Vale of Glamorgan, Cardiff Bus operates a large and significant network. Carrying thousands of passengers every day on 3,000 journeys, even with reduced passenger numbers through lockdowns and restrictions, they have remained a crucial part of keeping Wales moving in 2020.

Passenger CEO Tom Quay says “Our team remains dedicated to supporting operators across the country. Crucial updates are being delivered in a matter of days as we respond to varied and constantly shifting industry needs and requests”.