Second price hike in four months sees prices 'more than double'
Hundreds of bus passengers will be hit hard when fares go up dramatically for the second time in four months. Go Cornwall Bus, under the umbrella of Transport for Cornwall, which is led by Cornwall Council, has announced that from the end of September, most of its the services will go up in price - both for adults and children.
In a recent announcement on its website, Go Cornwall has blamed "rises in operating costs" for what it described as a "small change in the price of some of our fares". However the firm said the price hikes had been imposed on them by the local authority as part of the Transport for Cornwall scheme.
A Truro mum of two who alerted CornwallLive to the changes, said the price hike is "not small at all" and will have a big impact on many families, especially those whose children must take the bus to school. According to Cornwall Council, children only qualify for free buses if they live beyond the statutory three-mile walking distance to their qualifying school as determined by the local authority, or if their walking route is deemed too dangerous or unsuitable, or if they have special educational needs that prevent them or their carers from walking.
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The mum, who lives in the centre of the city and has two children at Richard Lander school who use the bus to school and back on a daily basis, worries the decision will come as a shock to many parents and many general bus users too.
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She said: "Richard Lander only has to provide transport for children three miles or more away from their nearest school, so a lot of parents will need to rely on public buses. For us walking is 2.4 miles each way, or a one hour journey.
"Very soon this will be in the dark and wintery weather. Some children cycle that sort of distance to be fair, but I don't think it's safe to expect my children, one of whom is 11, to cycle along the A390 at rush hour.
"We both work, so driving isn't an option either. The traffic is already awful at that time and making buses out of reach is just going to add to the number of cars on the road."
The mum added: "I'm concerned that this is going to affect a lot of people badly. I'm mainly just angry at what I feel is an incredibly unfair percentage increase. For some people, financially, I am concerned that this will require huge sacrifices in other areas, for what has effectively more than doubled to £2.40 per day now to send one child to school, and that's before other costs such as lunch money, uniform, clubs etc.
Here's how bus prices will change from September 29:
It is the second time since May that bus fares have gone up. Before May, a 'town' monthly pass for a child cost £22.50. On May 12, it increased to £33. On September 24, Go Cornwall announced they were getting rid of monthly passes altogether - again as part of the Transport for Cornwall scheme run by Cornwall Council, which means parents will now have to buy four one-week passes for children at £12 each, a total of £48 per month from September 29, which is more than double what it was in May.
The Truro mum, added: "To go from £22.50 to £48 per month in the space of less than four months per child, particularly given the current climate, is shocking and I know will be unmanageable for many people."
On its website, Go Cornwall Bus added: "We’ve also looked at which products are most important to you, our customers, and as a result we are simplifying the selection of tickets you can buy.
"Bus operators continue to work with Cornwall Council and the Department for Transport to cap all single bus tickets at £2 until December 31, 2024 with funding from HM Government Help for Households, while under 5s can still travel for free."
To see if you are eligible for free school bus, check out Cornwall Council's site here.
A spokesperson for Cornwall Council said: "Through the Government funded bus fares pilot we have been able to offer significant discounts on bus services throughout Cornwall since April 2022. This includes tickets for unlimited daily and weekly travel, as well as tickets covering town zones that are accepted by any bus operator, as part of our Transport for Cornwall ‘One Ticket, Any Bus’ initiative.
"Government funding for the pilot runs until 2026 and so we are gradually reducing the subsidy to passengers. As a result the cost of some of these products will increase from September 29 and we will be removing other ticket deals from sale that have had minimal use. All single bus journeys continue to remain capped at £2 until December 31.
"School bus services will not be affected by the price increase. Free home to school travel assistance is provided for students that meet our eligibility criteria, in line with our published policy. This policy remains unchanged. "
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