Criticism
The company has been criticised by passengers and members of the Southend Area Bus Users' Group for withdrawing services which it considered no longer economically viable, for which First said was due to low passenger numbers, even when parts of the route were profitable when Southend Borough Council withdrew bus subsidies as part of budget cuts in 2005. Further criticism came from passengers when First Essex and Arriva Southend decided to withdraw their "Day Rover" ticket, which allowed unlimited journeys on the day of purchase on buses operated by both companies, regardless of which company issued the ticket, so day tickets can now only be used on the buses of the company that issues them. They replaced it with a more expensive "Octopus" ticket which is issued by and can be used on any buses operated by companies running in the general Southend area.
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“The greater the decrease in the social significance of an art form, the sharper the distinction between criticism and enjoyment by the public. The conventional is uncritically enjoyed, and the truly new is criticized with aversion.”
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