A FORMER Worcestershire highways chief says the £2 bus cap is a step in the right direction – but dropping fares to £1 would actually get people using buses again.
Mike Rouse, who was cabinet member for highways at Worcestershire County Council under the Tory administration, said cheaper fares are needed for public transport to compete with private cars.
Prime Minister Andy Burnham reinstated the £2 bus fare cap in his first week in office, reversing a decision to increase it made by his predecessor Sir Keir Starmer.
LOWER FARES: Mike Rouse says a £1 fare cap would get families ditching the car and using the bus (Image: Submitted)
The £2 cap will be in place from January and will last throughout 2027, undoing the increase to £3 put in place by Sir Keir and his chancellor Rachel Reeves in 2024.
A previous £2 cap had been in place between January 2023 and December 2024 under the Conservatives but the incoming Labour administration argued it was not affordable.
Reinstating the £2 maximum fare will partly be funded by switching grants for international climate projects to repayable loans instead.
Mr Rouse said: “When the Tory government first introduced the £2 cap I wrote to the minister to ask them to go further and drop it to £1.
READ MORE: Monkey abandoned in laundry bag on London bus
“Only then will we see people seriously consider taking the bus. A family of four taking a trip into a town or city centre still pays £16 there and back.
“That’s more than the petrol and parking costs for a family car. Drop it to £1 and the lower £8 cost becomes more directly competitive.
“Ironically the only place that dropped fares to £1 was Manchester. They did it in the late-90s and that period was the only time in the last 50 years that passenger numbers have gone up outside of London. So we already know £1 works.”
Mr Burnham was mayor of Greater Manchester before becoming prime minister.
Worcester taxi fares to rise despite fears hike will ‘force drivers out of business’
Discrimination claim over bus pass rules for people with learning disabilities
Shuttle bus idea to boost ‘nighttime economy by £20m’
He said: “Good, affordable transport links are an essential. No-one should be priced out of those and left behind.
“But for too long, people have said that cheaper transport isn’t an option. I don’t accept that. I’ve done it before and I will do it again now: a £2 cap on bus fares for millions across the country.
“Lower fares will help people get to where they need to – giving them breathing space to help with the cost of living.”
Mr Rouse added: “£2 is a step in the right direction and I don’t condemn Andy Burnham for implementing it. I just want him to bring the Manchester rate to the rest of us.”
