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Remember these old Sheffield bus tickets?


Sheffield History

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Remember when you put your coins into a bus ticket machine and it printed out a photocopied image of the coins you'd put in?

lol

They were called Videmat machines I think

Do you remember them?

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Yes Videmat machines on double door OMO buses. They would have been OK if people could have been trusted. Unfortunately some passengers put all sort of rubbish in them and we had to frequently radio for the Videmat van to come and unjam them. It was amazing how many passengers would jump up and alight at the site of an inspector at a bus stop that the bus was approaching.

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They were great for kids, since the fare was only 2p. But I guess the adults used to drop a smaller amount and go a lot further. Mind you the fares were that cheap it wouldn't hardly make a difference! During busy times, the videmat users would get a seat faster than someone needing change, especially if the passengers didn't know the fare, or wanted to know if the bus went to this or that place. They were only used on double door buses, which tended to be selective routes. I don't think the 95 ever had them on for example, but the 2 and 59 outer circular did. 

I also remember them being broken down a lot.

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I remember kids throwing in plastic money they had stolen from math lessons in those machines. Sometimes washers if you could get hold of them. More money to spend on spice after school. 

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13 hours ago, boginspro said:

Yes Videmat machines on double door OMO buses. They would have been OK if people could have been trusted. Unfortunately some passengers put all sort of rubbish in them and we had to frequently radio for the Videmat van to come and unjam them. It was amazing how many passengers would jump up and alight at the site of an inspector at a bus stop that the bus was approaching.

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The videmat machine on the 20, 33 and 34 from Newfield school photocopied lots of buttons and washers ... allegedly. :)

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It must have cost more to print photocopies of coins on the tickets than the tickets actually cost hehe

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13 minutes ago, Sheffield History said:

 

 

It must have cost more to print photocopies of coins on the tickets than the tickets actually cost hehe

I think our bus fare at the time was 1/2p, but it's a while ago.

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I doubt it.  Between 1975-6 I worked at Middlesbrough Central Library and we charged 2p a sheet single-sided and 3p double for photocopying.  I'd guess the costs of a small bit of cheap paper in a machine with lowish resolution would be significantly less.

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Most of the charge on photocopier large machines was to cover the cost of the paper and maintenance of them. Many maintenance companies put 1p on each copy to the place hiring them. Local Authorities would sometimes purchase them and the paper they could get hold of considerably cheaper than commercial prices.  Since the funding of bus fares was done by the rates, the actual bus fares themselves were a token of the cost. For example going to town from the Manor Top only cost an adult 10p. Whereas if you went on holiday or outside South Yorkshire and travelled the same sort of distance it would cost about 50p or more, depending on the bus companies.  The paper was clearly the stuff many other ticket machines and cash registers used at that time.

I think the use of these machines was simply to speed up boarding of buses in peak times.

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3 hours ago, Oldbloke said:

The videmat machine on the 20, 33 and 34 from Newfield school photocopied lots of buttons and washers ... allegedly. :)

33 Bus to Herries School I remember. I went to Newfield but was told to walk it 🙄

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2 hours ago, Gamal said:

33 Bus to Herries School I remember. I went to Newfield but was told to walk it 🙄

So was I, when I could even be bothered to go to that hole, I did. 

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We had to go to Hunter's Bar School one afternoon a week for Woodwork. On the day we went we were given plastic bus tokens in the morning so we could go on the bus during our lunch time. Does anybody else remember these tokens with their value in pence on one side?

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