Money is so hard to make....

[CSI48]

I have like , 5 routes and they're pretty much only on P.O.I.'s and i'm trickling money. you do IRL many people would ride a bus and not like 4-12 a shift.
What gives ?
10 bus' on 5 routes should be enough to start raking in the funds.

Can someone give me some insight on the mechanics of how this game runs ? because i'm on the 'Build it and they will come' way of thinking.
It seems like if it's not a Point of interest , the riders don't seem to be interested. Now i know for a 100% fact that in my area the places i have bus stops IRL people ride it but in the game i have ZERO traffic.

[Bableplay_]

try to use routes with Rail stations nearby or attractions. Or Connect Towns so people can travel between them. You can also try to figure out where the industry places (so working spots for poeple) are and try to connect them to their homes. So far i got no Problems but maybe its just your Town? i dont know the real mechanics either.

[CSI48]

Originally posted by Bablegum_:

try to use routes with Rail stations nearby or attractions. Or Connect Towns so people can travel between them. You can also try to figure out where the industry places (so working spots for poeple) are and try to connect them to their homes. So far i got no Problems but maybe its just your Town? i dont know the real mechanics either.

My city has no rail and we also don't really have towns near by so-to-speak.
But i'l try your advise thank you.

[teebodk]

It's also worth keeping in mind, that many real life bus routes don't earn a profit, and some need to be heavily subsidized to survive. In this game we get the rewards for reaching certain goals and maybe we can pretend they are subsidies to support the bus operation in the area.

Small rural routes, in particular can be real money pits and difficult to handle. Often they connect several small towns and villages to one larger city and 99% of all passengers want to go between that city and their home, meaning that there's very little "exchange" on the route, so you need buses big enough to hold travelers to/from all these towns and villages although very little actually happens along the route.

[CSI48]

Originally posted by teebodk:

It's also worth keeping in mind, that many real life bus routes don't earn a profit, and some need to be heavily subsidized to survive. In this game we get the rewards for reaching certain goals and maybe we can pretend they are subsidies to support the bus operation in the area.

Small rural routes, in particular can be real money pits and difficult to handle. Often they connect several small towns and villages to one larger city and 99% of all passengers want to go between that city and their home, meaning that there's very little "exchange" on the route, so you need buses big enough to hold travelers to/from all these towns and villages although very little actually happens along the route.

I suppose when you put it that way , it makes way more sense.

[qunow886]

Originally posted by teebodk:

It's also worth keeping in mind, that many real life bus routes don't earn a profit, and some need to be heavily subsidized to survive. In this game we get the rewards for reaching certain goals and maybe we can pretend they are subsidies to support the bus operation in the area.

Small rural routes, in particular can be real money pits and difficult to handle. Often they connect several small towns and villages to one larger city and 99% of all passengers want to go between that city and their home, meaning that there's very little "exchange" on the route, so you need buses big enough to hold travelers to/from all these towns and villages although very little actually happens along the route.

Subsidy is already integrated into the game tho.

[CSI48]

Originally posted by Bablegum_:

try to use routes with Rail stations nearby or attractions. Or Connect Towns so people can travel between them. You can also try to figure out where the industry places (so working spots for poeple) are and try to connect them to their homes. So far i got no Problems but maybe its just your Town? i dont know the real mechanics either.

So i did some experimenting and restarted a new city , a rather dense city and yeah , i guess you were correct. my choice of city has an impact on the money returned. Small towns vs an actual city is night and day difference on profit.
Running 5 routes , 13 bus' and only 6 days (in-Game) in , i am actually making a profit.
So the choice of city does mean something. well , that and Your stops do not need to be on a P.O.I. either to make money.

[Elchi82]

Yes, that's right, play in Betlin and make a profit of 70,000 euros after 10 days with 22 buses and 6 lines per day

[CSI48]

Originally posted by Elchi82:

Yes, that's right, play in Betlin and make a profit of 70,000 euros after 10 days with 22 buses and 6 lines per day

I am playing in my Home city of Manchester , New Hampshire (USA).