Bus Services – Message from Cllr Helen Fisher, Staffordshire County Council
Dear Residents,
I wanted to take the opportunity to remind you that changes to free travel (the English National Concessionary Travel Scheme) for older people who hold bus passes came into force from Monday, 1st July.
As you are aware, with less money to go around and rising costs of care to meet, we have had to look carefully at which non-statutory areas we can continue to fund, and these changes are in line with the national scheme.
The good news is that passengers will still be able to use their passes to travel for free between 9.30 a.m. and 11.00 p.m. and at any time at the weekend or on Bank Holidays and the vast majority already choose to do this.
If residents do want to travel at peak morning times, we are advising them to check with their local bus operator for the best prices and options for their journeys. Some operators are offering travel for a child’s fare or even for just one pound. However, this does vary so we are asking people to check before they travel.
After acting on feedback from the public, passholders who are disabled and are under retirement age will not be affected by the changes and can continue to travel for free before 9.30 a.m. This is because this smaller number of passholders generally need to travel at this time to get to education or employment.
The changes have been well publicised onboard buses, but I would ask that you share this information with anyone who you think may be affected. You can find out more information about bus passes please visit the Staffordshire County Council website, see link below
https://www.staffordshire.gov.uk/Transport/buses/OlderDisabled/247travel.aspx
Kind Regards
Helen Fisher
Staffordshire County Council
Cabinet Member for Highways and Transport