\u00a0 \u00a0 As the scheme\u2019s end approaches, concerns are increasing about a sudden reversion to previous fares and the potential impact on patronagage on an industry still recovering from the pandemic.<\/p>\n Bill Hiron, chairman and chief executive of Eastern Transport Holdings, the parent company of Stephensons and NIBS Buses, and chair of the ALBUM group of municipal and SME-owned bus operators, described the \u00a32 cap as \u201ca bit of a blunt instrument, undoubtedly introduced for political reasons\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cPassenger growth seems to have been variable,\u201d he told Passenger Transport. \u201cIf it is to continue, we need to ensure reimbursement is matched to increases in industry costs \u2013 or it\u2019ll become like concessionary fares all over again but worse.<\/p>\n \u201cThe \u00a32 cap was introduced without any thought to its exit, but the industry \u2013 both the Confederation of Passenger Transport (CPT) and ALBUM \u2013 have repeatedly highlighted that there needs to be an exit strategy.<\/p>\n I can\u2019t envisage the new government just dropping the scheme at the end of November \u2013 the fallout for such a \u2018relatively\u2019 small sum would be vast<\/p>\n \u201cI can\u2019t envisage the new government just dropping the scheme at the end of November \u2013 the fallout for such a \u2018relatively\u2019 small sum would be vast,\u201d he said. \u201cBut we certainly need to continue engagement over what might follow.\u201d<\/p>\n Earlier this year, CPT released a KPMG report outlining transition options. While recognising the fare cap\u2019s benefits in easing cost-of-living pressures, KPMG highlighted its limited advantages for day or season ticket holders and the disproportionate discount for long-distance travellers. The report warned that a prolonged fare cap would complicate the transition to standard fares.<\/p>\n KPMG stated: \u201cWhen the current \u00a32 fare cap policy ends in 2024, policymakers will have three options: retain or reform the existing single fare cap, gradually transition away from the single fare cap, or fully transition away from the single fare cap instantly\u2026 The gradual transition is likely the only feasible option.\u201d<\/p>\n During a visit to Nottingham City Transport last week, buses minister Simon Lightwood confirmed the fare cap will be reviewed by the government.<\/p>\n He said: \u201cWe\u2019ll be looking at the \u00a32 bus fare\u2026 looking at the data that we\u2019ve received from that to look at what the future of that is \u2013 whether a national scheme is the right way forward or whether a more targeted approach would be necessary.<\/p>\n We\u2019re absolutely certainly not going to have a cliff edge<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re absolutely certainly not going to have a cliff edge. What we will look at, is that the best use of funding to achieve support for bus companies and make it affordable for people? Affordability is really important for us.\u201d<\/p>\n Some in the industry have already begun to speculate about that future support and proposed some form of fare support for young people.<\/p>\n Hiron warned this could be a challenging proposition.<\/p>\n \u201cThere have been several suggestions for its replacement,\u201d he said. \u201cI think all these stem from the idea that we don\u2019t want to lose the monies involved coming into the industry for the benefit of our customers (and hopefully therefore long term ridership).<\/p>\n Discounted travel for young people is one idea.<\/p>\n \u201cDiscounted travel for young people is one idea. Depending how it\u2019s applied that could be very challenging where there are networks of dedicated peak time services aimed mainly at scholars. Inevitably there would be a requirement for extra buses and drivers for duplication \u2013 and even if these could be sourced, the costs for extra peak vehicles would be considerable.\u201d<\/p>\n Hiron added that increasing the cap for everyone would allow the government to \u2018save\u2019 some of the funding allocated to the scheme.<\/p>\n Robert Williams, chief executive of council-owned operator Reading Buses, said if the fare cap\u2019s goal was modal shift, then the adult population needed to be considered too.<\/p>\n \u201cA young persons\u2019 scheme would create a larger increase in fare at exactly the age getting a car becomes an option,\u201d he told Passenger Transport. \u201cThis could actually encourage car use.<\/p>\n \u201cI think I would favour something like a \u00a32.50 cap or other schemes to help make services more affordable to operate, supporting higher frequencies and higher quality services that would undoubtedly generate passenger growth.\u201d <\/p>\n \u00a0 DON\u2019T MISS OUT \u2013 GET YOUR COPY! \u2013\u00a0click here to subscribe!<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n The post Industry speculates on future of \u00a32 fare cap<\/a> first appeared on Passenger Transport<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u200b\u00a0<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" As buses minister Simon Lightwood suggests new government is looking at fare cap\u2019s future, thoughts are turning to how the scheme could evolve \u00a0 England\u2019s \u00a32 fare cap outside London was launched in January 2023 \u00a0 Industry figures are speculating about the future of England\u2019s \u00a32 bus fare cap, which was introduced in January 2023 as a temporary measure to…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":8083,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[60],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8082","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-camcab"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/camcab.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8082"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/camcab.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/camcab.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/camcab.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8082"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/camcab.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8082\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/camcab.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8083"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/camcab.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8082"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/camcab.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8082"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/camcab.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8082"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nEngland\u2019s \u00a32 fare cap outside London was launched in January 2023<\/em><\/p>\n
\nIndustry figures are speculating about the future of England\u2019s \u00a32 bus fare cap, which was introduced in January 2023 as a temporary measure to alleviate the cost of living crisis and encourage bus usage. Initially set to increase to \u00a32.50 in October 2023, the fare cap was extended to November 30, 2024, with the planned increase subsequently cancelled.<\/p>\n
\nThis article appears in the latest issue of\u00a0Passenger Transport<\/em>.<\/strong><\/p>\n