The Fair Fares campaign goes national
Norfolk’s bus fares fight goes national
by DAN GRIMMER
Saturday, October 22, 2011
4:30 AM
Norfolk’s battle to get £4.5m from the government to cover the cost of concessionary bus travel has gone national, with other councils joining the fight for fair funding.
More than 7,600 people have signed Norfolk County Council’s Fair Fares petition, which calls for the government to properly cover the cost of reimbursing bus companies for ferrying bus pass holders around.
And the campaign is gathering traction, with Devon County Council officially joining the campaign and two other councils, in the north and south east of the country, indicating they are keen to follow suit.
The Campaign for Better Transport has also lent its backing to the aims of the Fair Fares initiative and the Local Government Association transport group has sent strong support.
Council bosses say the support of other councils and transport groups would strengthen the message to government that it is not fair to keep short-changing local authorities.
Graham Plant, cabinet member for planning and transportation at Norfolk County Council, said: “One of our key roles is to speak up on behalf of Norfolk people and I feel having councils up and down the country on our side on Fair Fares can only increase our chances of being heard at Westminster.
“We have made a fantastic start, with 7,500 names already collected, which is a magnificent response from the people of Norfolk. But if our e-petition grows in future, with interest from around the country, that can only be to the good.
“I do hope more councils will come on board in the coming weeks, because the unfairness of the current situation is there for all to see. If, by speaking out for Norfolk, we can prompt a fairer outcome for rural councils up and down the country generally, I will be absolutely delighted.”
Stuart Hughes, Devon County Council cabinet member for highways and transportation, said of his authority’s decision to back Norfolk’s fight: “We’re lending our full backing to this campaign and we’re pleased that MPs are debating this issue.
“Rural authorities like Devon and Norfolk are suffering the most, but councils right across the country are facing the same difficulties in funding this scheme.”
Support has come, too, from David Rowlands, chairman of the Local Government Association public transport consortium special interest group and a member of Buckinghamshire County Council.
He said: “We represent 33 shire and unitary authorities, and the pressures caused by inadequate funding are plain for us to see.
“It is important that government works out quickly, how it can fairly fund the mandatory scheme so no council is left short.”
The Campaign for Better Transport has also backed the call, fearing that further cuts to bus services will happen if councils continue to be short-changed.
The shortfall of £4.5m exists because the county council only receives £7.7m from the government to pay back bus companies for the older and disabled people who use bus passes get free off-peak travel in Norfolk, yet the cost of reimbursing those companies is £11.6m.
There are 180,000 passholders in Norfolk and the shortfall means the county council has already axed an extra discretionary hour which previously saw passholders get free travel from 8.30am, rather than the current 9.30am.
Brandon Lewis, MP for Great Yarmouth, recently secured a debate on the issue in the House of Commons where transport minister Norman Baker acknowledged Norfolk’s problem.
He said: “It is brilliant to see the Fair Fares campaign is being supported by councils all over the country.
“Although Norfolk is particularly badly affected, it is important that we remember that this is a national issue affecting ordinary people across the country. It is important we continue to work hard on this important issue.”
Councillors and officers have been out collecting signatures at a series of consultation events on cuts to rural transport.
More than 160 people signed the petition in King’s Lynn on Tuesday and 130 in Long Stratton on Wednesday.
County councillors will be taking to the streets today to encourage more people to sign up to the campaign.
Ann Steward, cabinet member for economic development and county councillor for Swaffham, will be at Swaffham Market Place from 10am until midday.
Judy Leggett, county councillor for Old Catton, collected more than 70 signatures at Morrison’s supermarket in Old Catton, yesterday (Friday) afternoon and has collected about 160 in total.
The e-petition can be signed via the front page of the county council’s website at www.norfolk.gov.uk, at county council libraries or at Norwich and King’s Lynn bus stations.
dan.grimmer@archant.co.uk
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15 comments
My 6yr old daughter and I went on the bus yesterday from Dilham to Great Yarmouth and I was charged a staggering 9.70 for a return ticket for my daughter and I. The worst thing was we were the fare paying people on the bus. This is not fair at all. I can't afford bus fares like that. Its outragously expensive. I will be learning to drive as it is cheaper for me to drive there than get the bus. So much for getting us out of our cars and on the bus. Forget it.
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Karen Henry
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
as the average return fare is £4 plus i feel OAPS should pay up the full amount.Too many rich OAPS with cars use the bus and rub it in the faces of dumb cash paying passengers.
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bookworm
Monday, October 24, 2011
I'm only 33 and have a bus pass due to a sever walking disability, but he main problem is pensioners during the summertime. They jump on the bus nearly everyday to go to the coast everyday. In Dereham between 09:30 and 10:00 during the summer getting on a bus during that time is impossible. They don't think about those who have to go say to Hospital like I do. Like I said on the previous news story about this, it should be means tested. So if they can drive and have a car = no bus pass. It should only be for those who are in need of it, such as the disabled, those who can't drive. If it was means tested I bet only half the bus passes would be issued.
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derehamtown
Sunday, October 23, 2011
There is something very wrong in the way our bus services are run in this country. For a large part of the day virtually empty double decker buses trundle back and forth from the City to our communties wastefully burning diesel in vast quantities which we the tax payer subsidise through the Bus Service Operators Grant. According to the Local Government Association 60% of the Bus industries turnover comes directly from the tax payer in subsidies and grants. I am not a Tory fan by a long chalk but the government is correct to put the squeeze on these 'PRIVATELY' owned bus companies who provide a very poor inefficient, environmentally unfriendly and unsustainable public transport service for our Local Authorities. The concessionary fares system is so unfair, as many of our older pensioners do not benefit from concessionary bus travel because they are unable to get out of their homes to use the buses. What is much more important to them is the winter fuel allowance!
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Matt Stevenson
Sunday, October 23, 2011
There is something very wrong in the way our bus services are run in this country. For a large part of the day virtually empty double decker buses trundle back and forth from the City to our communties wastefully burning diesel in vast quantities which we the tax payer subsidise through the Bus Service Operators Grant. According to the Local Government Association 60% of the Bus industries turnover comes directly from the tax payer in subsidies and grants. I am not a Tory fan by a long chalk but the government is correct to put the squeeze on these 'PRIVATELY' owned bus companies who provide a very poor inefficient, environmentally unfriendly and unsustainable public transport service for our Local Authorities. The concessionary fares system is so unfair, as many of our older pensioners do not benefit from concessionary bus travel because they are unable to get out of their homes to use the buses. What is much more important to them is the winter fuel allowance!
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Matt Stevenson
Sunday, October 23, 2011
Keep the free option for the oldies, but only while standing. If they want a seat halfway through a journey, perhaps they could seat share with another old person, and share the cost.
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popeye
Saturday, October 22, 2011
i still do not understand grasp who this party are blaming ! are the lib dems + tories fighting their own government ? they should spend more time chasing the money they lost in iceland . . .
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Double Bill
Saturday, October 22, 2011
The last time I went on the bus I paid £1. I think the shops in Norwich should help so that people go into the city. Cars and motorcycles are not wanted in Norwich and there is an active campaign to keep them out.
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Peter John Cromarty
Saturday, October 22, 2011
As an exiled Norfolk pensioner now living in Devon I fully support both councils in their fight for some help in this matter. I'm sure that most of us oldies can afford something and I suggest a nominal £1 per journey would be about right and go some way to keeping all services going. But it's up to HMG to decide.
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Dellboy67
Saturday, October 22, 2011
As an exiled Norfolk pensioner now living in Devon I fully support both councils in their fight for some help in this matter. I'm sure that most of us oldies can afford something and I suggest a nominal £1 per journey would be about right and go some way to keeping all services going. But it's up to HMG to decide.
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Dellboy67
Saturday, October 22, 2011
The rights and wrongs of whether pensioners should be entitled to free off-peak bus travel are for Parliament to sort out. At the moment it has not resolved to revoke this benefit. The question here is why Norfolk should be out of pocket because it is enabling what Parliament has decreed. The shortfall in funding is the injustice, not whether only one person on a bus is handing over money. Yes, the other passengers are riding at our expense and that expense should be recompensed by the government [through all forms of taxation] not be levied entirely through the local council tax.
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JCW
Saturday, October 22, 2011
yeah agree, some contribution would be sensible, when first brought in the scheme was not bad but when extended so that holiday makers from other areas could take advantage of freetravel in Norfolk etc it went to far, possibly another example of Gordon Browm just thowing money at a scheme without thinking of the cost or what would happen if finincial times changed as they surely have done
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blister
Saturday, October 22, 2011
Surely it would be fair and sensible to now charge pensioners half price !
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spark
Saturday, October 22, 2011
recently used the coasthopper bus and as usual was the only person paying for a ticket, lots of well off pensioners from North Norfolk and elsewhere going off for a free ride at mine and others expense, they should make all pensioners pay a fee of £1 per trip just to make a contrivbution, we are in a very serious recession and am fed up with hearing about everyone from fat cat public employees moaning about their lavish pensions to pensioners moaning about their lot, my 90 yr old mum and dad manage very well on their basic pension with no other help from socal services
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blister
Saturday, October 22, 2011
fed up hearing about this--freeloaders.we are in a recession and the cash needs sharing out.make everyone pay up then we get a decent service for everyone.
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bookworm
Saturday, October 22, 2011