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Still more work to do to
drive down costs of transport for young people
FOLLOWING this week's official
announcement that bus firms Stagecoach and Arriva are reducing children's ticket
prices and are raising the age limit to anyone 18 and under, Merseytravel Chair
Cllr Liam Robinson says:- "Bus operators are listening to young people and
making transport more affordable, which is something that we too have been
fighting for, for a long time. Their reduction in fares is a result of many
discussions and meetings with us over many months, which has also resulted in
MyTicket the first ticket of its kind outside of London, which was launched in
partnership with commercial bus operators over a year ago on a trial basis for 5
to 15 year olds following our pledge to make transport more affordable for young
people.
It has proved to be such a big hit that it is not only a permanent product but
last month our elected Members agreed to extend the age eligibility for the £2
MyTicket;which allows for unlimited all-day travel across the Merseyside bus
network; to 18s. This will be starting from 19th July. Effectively from this
Sunday, over 90% of buses in Merseyside will be providing cheaper child fares
for all young people up to 19. It will make Merseyside the first area outside of
London to introduce this, which is a massive win for young people in our area
and has directly come by continued pressure from ourselves at Merseytravel.
For many young people, the cost of public transport is frequently at the top of
their list of concerns. They rely upon public transport, and the bus in
particular, not only to get to education and employment, but also for leisure
and social opportunities. We've been working hard with partners such as
education, training providers, employers, bus and rail operators to provide a
range of innovative solutions to transport issues to improve young people's
lives. MyTicket was just the start of this journey. And we are the first public
transport body to trailblaze a product of this kind for this older age group
regardless of whether they are in education or not. This reflects our commitment
to listening to our young customers and trying to bring down the cost of travel
for them. Plus, it is also now a requirement for young people up to the age of
18 to be in education or work-based training and we want to make sure that they
can access these opportunities.
We're not stopping at MyTicket, but looking at young people's fares across the
board.
For example, we recognise that 18 to 21 year olds face similar challenges in terms
of the cost of travel and will be looking at this in more detail to see what can
be done. We are continually seeking the views of young people on transport,
which has led to the Transport Asks Charter where we have committed to look at
any issues they raise. As part of this work, on Friday 17th July, we have
invited a number of young people to meet us to discuss the latest developments
on MyTicket, bus operators new fares and to find out what their other 'asks'
are. Young people are the most regular users of buses but their needs are too
often overlooked by operators – yet they are the users of the future. In my
view, there needs to be a complete re-think of the business model with value for
money the secret of its success. It needs to become a travel mode of choice
rather than a mode for those who may have no choice. We are currently working on
developing a bus strategy to reverse the decline in passenger numbers and will
be developing a customer-focused way of working with operators. Young people's
needs will certainly play a big part in this work to ensure we can encourage
operators to consider their asks relating to improved affordability, frequency,
punctuality and reliability. While it's great to see that bus firms
Stagecoach and Arriva are taking our advice and reducing children's ticket
prices and are raising the age limit to anyone 18 and under; something that
ultimately makes good business sense; this must not be the end of the journey." |
