Bus fares increasing from 29 September
24 September 2024

Bus operators in Cornwall have today announced fare increases to take effect from this weekend, Sunday 29 September. Giving passengers 5 days’ notice of the proposed fare increases is slightly better than the 2 days’ notice that they gave when they last increased fares back in May.

Whilst the £2 maximum single fare remains in place until the end of December 2024, the prices of ticket bundles are increasing and some are being discontinued. The much vaunted Bus Fares Pilot was launched in 2022 with £23 million of government money, facilitating the subsidising of fares; for example, the all Cornwall all day pass was just £5. The latest increase will take it to £7.50; the all Cornwall all week pass started at £20 and will be £30 from this Sunday. The 5 day bundle tickets which started at £20 then rose to £25 will no longer be available. Town zone bundles which used to be very good value for money are becoming less attractive. Discounts for child tickets (under 19s) are also becoming less significant. The family all Cornwall all week ticket which was £50, then it was reduced to £30 in a summer promotion, has now been dropped and is no longer available.

Because of the £2 maximum single fare cap, the proportion of passengers purchasing ticket bundles is probably not very large currently, but the latest increases do not augur well for what might happen to single fares after 31 December when the current government funding ceases. All eyes of bus passengers should be on Rachel Reeves’s Budget in October to see what, if anything, she announces about government support for bus fares in 2025 and beyond. If nothing is announced, expect to see further increases in fares in early 2025.

To see how the bus companies announced the increases, see Go Cornwall Bus news item and First Bus news item. There is nothing on the Transport for Cornwall website yet.

Update
1 October 2024

Following the announcement and implementation of the new pricing structure, several complaints have appeared in the media about the price increases, in particular the impact upon school children who catch normal service buses in towns. The removal of month town passes coupled with significant increases in weekly town pass prices for under 19s has meant that the cost of a child travelling to and from school has more than doubled since earlier this year. Cornwall Live featured a mother of two in Truro who explained how she was paying £22.50 for a monthly pass for each child before May 2024, the price increased to £33 in May, and now monthly passes are no longer available and she has to buy 4 weekly tickets costing £48 in a month for each child.

On 1 October, Go Cornwall Bus sent out two emails in quick succession to Geoff Cadwallader, chair of Rame Peninsula Public Transport User Group, with their explanation of the fare increases, although neither email directly addressed the impact on families whose fares for school travel have increased so substantially.
The emails can be downloaded here: from Jason Beverley, Customer experience manager, and from Mark Collins, commercial director.

The Transport for Cornwall website has been updated with the new prices and the brief message of "We’ve looked at which products are most important to you, our customers, and as a result we are simplifying the selection of tickets you can buy.”

Update
4 October 2024

See new story on reintroduction of monthly bus pass.