Call on Labour-Plaid government to protect concessionary bus fares in Wales (Eleanor Burnham )

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Eleanor Burnham <info@eburnham.org.uk>

Call on Labour-Plaid government to protect concessionary bus fares in Wales

September 22, 2009 11:04 AM

Eleanor Burnham has called for the Labour- Plaid government to confirm there will be no cuts in the concessionary bus travel scheme in Wales.

Eleanor Burnham said "Since the scheme was introduced, more than half a million bus passes have been issued, meaning that more than half a million elderly and disabled people have benefited from the scheme.

"Transport is one of the most effective ways of helping disadvantaged people - whether they are the elderly, the disabled, or people living in isolated rural communities.

"The concessionary bus fare scheme has led to an increase in passenger numbers, which in turn has led to an increase of revenue for bus companies. This has enabled bus companies to make all kinds of improvements such as making buses more accessible.

"This is not to paint a rosy picture of the world - we know there are still problems accessing public transport, especially for disabled people. In a survey by Leonard Cheshire last year, 21% of disabled people were unable to travel by bus at some point during the year because it was inaccessible to them.

"For many elderly people, access to public transport is essential. As people get older, private forms of transport are often no longer available to them, and the bus is a lifeline. It is vital that free bus passes are maintained in order to allow elderly people to maintain a healthy and productive life.

"I do not believe that concessionary fares should be limited to certain times of the day, or means tested in any way. This sends out exactly the wrong message to elderly people, and sends out exactly the wrong message on public transport.

"In order to encourage as many people as possible to use public transport, the scheme needs to be as wide as possible. If the scheme is limited, people will continue to use their cars rather than the bus and all the hard work that has gone into improving bus travel in the last few years will have been lost.