Discounted bus fares on return trips fail to impress
The new discounts on return bus trips have failed to impress passengers, with some saying they would not wait around after work to take the same route home, preferring to take a train instead.
Passengers said an across-the-board cut made more sense.
Trips of $15 or more attract a 10 per cent discount, credited on the return leg. For fares of between $10 and $15, the discount is 10 cents. On routes cheaper than $10, discounted interchange services are offered.
Citybus, KMB and New World First Bus have adopted the scheme.
Yuen Long resident Philip Lee Ka-lung, who was unaware the scheme had been launched yesterday, said he takes a No968 to his workplace in Causeway Bay and returns home by rail. The bus route costs him $20.70 a day.
'After work, I'm so tired. I won't waste time waiting at the bus station for 30 minutes to save $2.'
Chu Chi-ping, a merchandiser in Ma On Shan, said: 'Normally I don't return home from the office, so it doesn't matter for me whether they want to ... cut return fares.'
Transport minister Sarah Liao Sau-tung, has said a 10 per cent cut in all fares would be 'too harsh'.
