The BBC local news website is carrying a story saying that bus companies are re-introducing a monthly child bus pass from 6 October. However, it seems that this is just a Cornwall wide pass with a price tag of £65 versus the pre-September price of £50. There is no mention of a town zone monthly pass, the removal of which sparked the story of the family in Truro whose cost of bus fares for their two children to get to school in the city had more than doubled since the start of the year.
It is interesting, but depressing, also to see the quote in the BBC story from the council spokesperson about the trajectory of bus fares after the Bus Fare Pilot ends. They said, "it had always planned to return prices back to their market value when the pilot ended. The funding has allowed us to also try new ticket options and prices, to understand the preference of bus passengers in Cornwall.” (No, I have no idea what that means either.)
The scheme started in April 2022, later than planned because of Covid, but it said that “it will run for the next four years”. This should have taken it to April 2026. However, it seems that the money is running out much sooner than that and it is likely that fares will continue to rise rapidly over the coming year. With the government funded £2 maximum single fare scheduled to cease at the end of this year, the outlook for bus passengers is bleak.
One can only hope that Rachel Reeves pulls a rabbit out of the hat in her budget at the end of October.
Update
7 October 2024
The Go Cornwall Bus website has updated its news page confirming the reintroduction of the monthly child bus pass.