Hey coming to melbourne for a holiday will V/Line have trains running to Ballarat

on the 22nd? I don't wanna coach service, I wanna ride the train As I want my step son to experience the trains.

The current round of RRL works affecting the Ballarat / Bendigo and Metro Sunbury lines ends on 14th July.  Trains should be running in place of road caches on the 22nd

I thought that folding bikes were exempt from this rule?

They are, as far as I'm aware.  I've got a folding bike and I've taken it many times onto trams and buses with no problem.  As long as you have it folded and carry it by its handle there seems to be no issue.

Correct.  Bicycles which can be folded down and contained in a bag may be carried aboard or at the discrection of the driver placed in the luggage hold.  A folding bicycle not bagged may still be declined; it has a potential to soil or damage other items.

Hey coming to melbourne for a holiday will V/Line have trains running to Ballarat

on the 22nd? I don't wanna coach service, I wanna ride the train As I want my step son to experience the trains.

Yes as far as I am aware. The current shutdown ends on the 14th July.

good to know Don't wanna catch a cramped sweaty coach

would much rather train.

Apparently one bus company charges $1000 for the Melbourne-Bendigo run (not sure whether its SAS or express). I'm not sure how much it costs to run a train though.

One bus company charges $1350 plus GST, SCS - BGO
Price doesn't change much if you throw in a few stops, unless you do a full SAS service,  $1670 plus GST

One bus company charges $1350 plus GST, SCS - BGO
Price doesn't change much if you throw in a few stops, unless you do a full SAS service,  $1670 plus GST

What do the codes SCS, BGO, SAS mean?
I think I worked out what GST means.

Southern Cross Station to Bendigo I got.

SAS - Stopping all stations?

Regards
Brian

Ta Bevan, your definitions make sense.
SAS could be the Scandinavian airline, or the special Army unit, but stopping all stations sounds more logical.

It would be easier if people stopped using special codes, as it has to take people like me to ask before we know what the original poster means.

Getting back on topic.. Why do some bus companies charge such astronomical prices, and is $1650 for a return trip or one way?

By the time you do the math. Fuel, the drivers wages, all the other costs associated with running a bus, etc. It sort of makes sense.

I'm sure it would be a return quote; as if V/Line paid the bus company to do one way service, the bus and driver would still need to find it's way home, no different to an express service really.

When quoting on a job, a bus company will figure out approx how many kms the vehicle will do for the trip, including dead running to/from the depot. The take this figure, multiply it by their cost per km for maintenance, fuel etc (they will know this number by heart).

Then they take the number of hours they will pay the driver, mutiply this by the hourly rate including on-costs (super etc).

They add the two figures togther. That's the cost price. If you ask for something specific (seatbelts, aircon, toilet etc, you pay a premium for this- less true now about seatbelts as more vehicles come standard with them; though for school charter work that's not always true).

Then they add on a healthy % for profit. Given it's V/Line they probably bump the % up a bit.

GST comes in on top of this.

It adds up, and quickly.

Getting back on topic.. Why do some bus companies charge such astronomical prices, and is $1650 for a return trip or one way?

Price = Hours x rate + kms x1.1
Most of the time that is a one way rate.  Especially for peak services that don't have as many return services as initial services. Of where a coach takes longer than a train would.  
I.e. a stopping all stations service 7:10  S/cross to Albury may not get there in time for the 12 (something) return.  Dysons/wangarratta will do the return, other coach returns empty.

When quoting on a job, a bus company will figure out approx how many kms the vehicle will do for the trip, including dead running to/from the depot. The take this figure, multiply it by their cost per km for maintenance, fuel etc (they will know this number by heart).

Then they take the number of hours they will pay the driver, mutiply this by the hourly rate including on-costs (super etc).

They add the two figures togther. That's the cost price. If you ask for something specific (seatbelts, aircon, toilet etc, you pay a premium for this- less true now about seatbelts as more vehicles come standard with them; though for school charter work that's not always true).

Then they add on a healthy % for profit. Given it's V/Line they probably bump the % up a bit.

GST comes in on top of this.

It adds up, and quickly.

The rate is generally the same regardless of vehicle type. In an unplanned cancellation (fatality/signal fault) V/Line will take what they can get.  Only toilet equipped coaches are supposed to go beyond Geelong/Kyneton/Seymour/warrragul but that rule often goes out the window.

The rate is generally the same regardless of vehicle type. In an unplanned cancellation (fatality/signal fault) V/Line will take what they can get.  Only toilet equipped coaches are supposed to go beyond Geelong/Kyneton/Seymour/warrragul but that rule often goes out the window.

That rule definetly goes out the window, I should know....................

The rate is generally the same regardless of vehicle type. In an unplanned cancellation (fatality/signal fault) V/Line will take what they can get.  Only toilet equipped coaches are supposed to go beyond Geelong/Kyneton/Seymour/warrragul but that rule often goes out the window.

Yah, maybe true for unplanned cancellations or even for planned replacements.

My experience from working for several bus companies was that if a client specifically requested seatbelts, or a toilet, or both, they paid for that privilege of guaranteeing it. Mostly because we only had a few fitted with both belts and toilets, several with dunnies and no belts, and lots with belts and no dunny. And then the schoolbuses that barely had seats