LinkUp (UK)

LinkUp is one of the most successful DRT schemes and has the biggest service area of any open access DRT scheme in the UK [...]

LinkUp was initially publicised as ‘the bus you book like a taxi’. [...]

LinkUp can pick up and set down the passengers at the meeting points which are all existing bus stops and pre-defined places such as shopping centres, doctors’ surgeries and leisure facilities. It can pick up and drop off the passengers at any doorsteps with an additional fare of 50 pence, if requested and possible. [...]

It is necessary to call the TDC at least 2 h before travelling. [...]

The subsidy was more than other comparable tendered services (more than £2 per passenger trip), but it could be justified by several reasons: firstly, UCall served low density population (low and dispersed public transport demand) areas where conventional bus services were difficult and expensive to operate at the same level of service quality; secondly, the majority of patronage comprised low income, captive users, elderly and disabled. Next, it was driven by public policy to tackle social exclusion; therefore, the fare was relatively low given the provided service quality. Moreover, it provided cross-sector benefits such as opportunities for enhancing access to employ- ment, health, local shops and facilities.

Nelson/Phonphitakchai (2012): An evaluation of the user characteristics of an open access DRT service, 56