Let’s get this straight: We encourage people to use public transport as often as they can. The thing is, it’s got to reliable, accessible and affordable for people to want to use it. Credit where credit’s due, a lot has been done to ensure that’s possible in the West Midlands too, but bus fares will rise at the end of June.
Fares for day and season bus tickets are set to rise by an average of 6% – agreed by all bus operators in the Transport for West Midlands (TfWM) area. The decision was made to meet the “ongoing challenges of rising costs,” but won’t impact single fare prices that are still capped at £2 until at least the end of this year.
Just so you know how much extra money a 6% rise will take out of your purse: a nbus day ticket will rise by 30p to £4.80 and the four-week fare goes from £60 to £64. West Midlands Combined Authority is quick to point out that these prices still remain lower than equivalent fares in Liverpool City Region and Greater Manchester.
But how long can that last? TfWM is already pumping around £50 million a year into the bus network to support essential services and avoid more substantial fare increases or service reductions. Meanwhile, passenger numbers remain at 90% of pre-Covid levels and steep cost rises in fuel, maintenance and labour will only worsen worry.
Currently, an ongoing review, launched by TfWM last year, is looking at the long-term sustainability of bus services – this bus fare rise only ensures that the region’s bus network remains operating at current levels until we learn more. So could we see huge changes coming soon? The review will be reported next month, so we won’t have to wait long.
“Despite many challenges we have worked with bus operators since the pandemic to keep fare rises to an absolute minimum,” said Pete Bond, director of integrated transport services with TfWM. “And even though they are rising, fares remain great value for the many people who rely on buses day in and day out. At the same time we are working on plans to secure the long-term future of our bus network and will announce the results of the review in the coming weeks.”
232 million bus journeys are made a year in the West Midlands, while tens of thousands rely on the bus for their daily commute to work, school and college, and as for regular trips to the shops or medical appointments. For more details head to the TfWM website here.