Hereford's bus system is like many others in the UK - it works according to its own personal laws of physics and time.

The bus service is run by the First Midland Red company of Worcester, meaning that they have to provide buses and timetables for both Hereford and Worcester. Unfortunately, since they are based in Worcester, Hereford has to play second fiddle. This means that the Hereford timetables are little more than mathematical puzzles to frown at while waiting for your bus.

The buses themselves are 30 years old. This, therefore, means (at the time of writing, anyway) that the buses are on their last legs. All the upholstery is torn and has never been changed in its 30-year service. The suspension is something akin to 1970s muscle cars, which means that you have a terrible ride. However, the drivers have come up with an ingenious solution to slow down tyre wear: they hurl the buses round corners so fast that there is rarely more than two tyres on the ground at any one time.

However, none of this is true of Worcester, home of First Midland Red. The oldest bus in the fleet is an 'S'¹ registration bus. Their bus station is located under the Crowngate shopping centre while Hereford's is located at the back of Tesco's supermarket. They have upholstered benches while Hereford has rot-ridden benches borrowed from the park.

Given the choice, most people interviewed would not use the bus, but since Hereford is a rural town, there is no alternative.

There has been talk of new buses, but the newest thus far seen is a 'C'² registration bus from Worcester. Which is the trend in this county; anything that is too old or too dangerous to be used in Worcester is condemned to Hereford.

First Midland Red say that they will replace the buses when they conk out. But since the buses are Mercedes Benz, it looks like we've got a long wait ahead of us...