Bus fares to be capped at £2 across Bristol and Bath
Passengers to benefit from new cheaper single and return fares
The West of England Mayor is urging more people to use the bus after announcing fares will drop later this month.
As of this Sunday, all single adult tickets in Bristol and Bath will be reduced to £2 for adults while returns will cost £3.50.
Outside of the two cities there will also be sizeable cost reductions for adults with a 12-mile single journey dropping from £6.50 to £3.70 and a return from £7.50 to £5.
Children will pay a flat £1 rate across the whole of the West of England.
The new fares will start from 25 September on the vast majority of West of England buses before being introduced across all routes, regardless of operator, by the end of next month.
The Metro Mayor says the new fare package delivers on his pledge for simpler and cheaper bus fares, will help a little towards easing the cost-of-living crisis for locals, and will go a long way to addressing the big challenges on the buses at present, with passenger numbers 25% down on pre-pandemic levels.
Metro Mayor Dan Norris said: “It’s time to get on board for new fares. I’m delighted to be able to introduce this package to immediately to offer a small helping hand to people facing a crippling cost-of-living crisis.
"At a time where the challenges on the buses are so huge, this is a real opportunity to create that virtuous cycle of more fare income to reinvest in our bus network which in turn will mean better buses for everyone.
"So my big message to local people is: please take advantage of this and take your children out for just £1. The more journeys you make, the more you will be helping us together to build the local bus system we both need and deserve. It’s also so very vital if we are going to meet our super ambitious local 2030 net-zero targets”.
Cllr Steve Hogg, North Somerset Lead Councillor for Transport said: “I’m so pleased that we are finally able to bring some much needed good news to our bus passengers across the region. An affordable and reliable bus network is the very cornerstone of our future plans for decarbonisation and our net-zero commitments. I’m hopeful and confident that today marks the beginning of what promises to be an exciting road ahead for our public transport services here in the West of England".
The scheme is a joint initiative from the West of England Combined Authority, North Somerset Council and the bus operators, including Firstbus, Stagecoach West and others.