Progress?

Lothian Buses have gone all twenty first century!
You can now buy your ticket at a machine (only at a selected few bus stops for now) and then you hop on, show it to the driver who 'cancels' the ticket and gives you it back, then bob's your uncle you're on your way - allegedly faster than usual.

Today I tried it out -

Got my ticket with no problems at all, very straightforward colour coded machine, so far so good. Now 'phase II'

Onto the bus I hopped...

First I had to work out which bit of the perspex protective shutter on the driver's cabin to pass the ticket through, then the driver had to stop, squint at the ticket and then give me it back (though a different bit of the perspex shutter) without any of the mysterious cancelling business. It was all a bit Krypton Factor & I reckon it took just as long, if not longer than it would for me to hope on, throw a pound in, ask for a single, him (or her) press a button and me take my ticket.

Oh well at least the new tickets have a shiny holographic band along the bottom!