Verification of child’s age for purchase of some tickets
5 July 2026

When the Bus Fares Pilot started in Cornwall in 2022, one feature of it was that passengers under 19 years old were entitled to child’s fares. It was intended that young people would get the benefit of the cheaper fares whilst they were in full time education although some would become adult at 18 whilst still at school or college.

Since the end of the Bus Fares Pilot and the general increase in all bus fares, the situation has become more complicated with different criteria for some types of tickets.

For single tickets, day tickets and 7-day tickets, the threshold for child vs. adult fares is still under 19 years.

For the 4-weeks (28 days subscription) tickets, there is a price for children 5-15 years old, and a higher one for 16-18 years old, then higher again for adults.

In addition, for young persons 19-25 years old, there are day and 7-day tickets at slightly lower prices than the full adult rates.

If tickets are purchased from the driver, the driver has the discretion to ask for proof of age for those asking for the child ticket prices.

If tickets are purchased through the Transport for Cornwall app, for certain of the ticket products, an age verification process has to be followed before the tickets can be activated. This activation only needs to be done once for any one person and will remain valid for future ticket purchases.

For further information, see the TfC website and look within the TfC app. See screenshots below for those products that require age verification. See fares page of this website for listing of the various fares.