Welcome!

A few exerpts from the Discussion Paper provided by Peter Rayner, NPC Transport Working Party: (Read the entire Discussion Paper here - you will find it very interesting!)

“Ever since the Government introduced the ‘Concessionary Fare Scheme’ in 2000 there has been some negative publicity and in recent weeks the amount of scare stories being circulated by the press has reached a new level which has been of concern to many older people who are unaware of the detail and as a consequence believe the worst.

… “This enhanced press activity has been caused by the publication of a report by Oxera Consulting Ltd on behalf of the Local Government Association (LGA), entitled ‘Securing Best Value and Outcomes for Taxpayer subsidy of Bus Services’. Although the LGA did not accept the report because the report used terms like Means Testing and made other controversial suggestions, it was of value to the media and was ideal material for use in a sensational way.”

… “Many local authorities have argued that the grants they receive are not sufficient to meet the cost of free bus travel … various stories have started appearing in the media that claim services are being cut, or council tax is rising in order for pensioners to get free bus travel.”

Peter Rayner discussed these issues and many others, but the main points were:

There are two types of bus passes, concessionary bus travel, ie free travel on buses after 9.30 a.m. and all times at the weekend and bank holidays. There is also discretionary travel, which is an add-on service provided by the local authority, e.g. travel earlier or later, and use on trains and tram services. Bus pass holders who enjoy the discretionary travel in their area are unable to use the same facilities in other areas!

The NPC will strive to … “get cross border travel throughout the four countries in the UK along with universal reduced rate Rail Fares by an Age Entitlement using the Bus Pass in a dual role.” The NPC would also like to see our bus passes recognised as proof of age when buying discounted travel, thus saving time at the booking office by not having to see other documents.

The NPC would also like to see a “smart card” in use in the future, for all forms of free or reduced rate travel. An attendee remarked that they were risky as details such as banking, medical and journey details could be recorded on these cards.

Local authorities are given big sums of money for “environmental reasons”, and these funds are not ring-fenced ie can be used for any purpose within that context (free swimming sessions, children’s nurseries, etc). We need to make the point that concessionary bus travel is good for society itself, not just for older people, as independence enables us to contribute, gives us more inclusion, we spend while out, and reduces car usage. Councils should not claim that money is being taken away from libraries and nurseries, making pensioners look greedy.

We are the generation that votes, and we need to make politicians aware of our concerns.

There followed a Q&A session:

One of the debates was whether to use “pensionable age” or “over 60” as the criterion for providing concessionary travel, and opinions were split 50-50 by attendees. Various remarks were that the pensionable age is changing over the next few years, until it starts at 65 for all, thus cutting out (and saving the government money) a large group of older people. Is the bus pass there to make it easy to get to work, or for leisure?

One attendee stated he uses his bus pass to travel to computer classes. School children have concessionary travel to attend classes, people don’t complain! Why should we (older people) be treated differently? A good point made.

Another mentioned that bus companies seem to be abusing the scheme, by providing a ticket to the end of the route instead of the required destination – was it a bit of a fiddle?

A shocking story was told about the abuse of bus pass holders in the area covered by West Yorkshire Metro Authority. Over the past 18 months senior citizens have been ordered off buses, threatened with violence, and had the police called, amongst other things, after being advised their bus passes were not valid! Peter Rayner (NPC) advised that authorities have to allow you to travel within the times stated, and it is against the law to refuse you. Stuart and David have let me have the full story - read it here!

An attendee from Thames Valley wanted to know what sums were given to the local authorities for the services. He was advised to enquire at his town hall under the Freedom Of Information Act. There we will also be able to find how they (mis)used these funds, and how the money was spent. The council is required by law to advertise that their accounts are available to view. You can check that our transport money is not being used to provide pot plants outside the town hall! Any unused money from the block grant goes back to the government.

A member from Fulham Road reported that she had to attend the Breast Cancer & Glaucoma clinic by 7 a.m. and previously had to pay £4 per journey, and was now able to travel for free with the Freedom Pass. This is an issue with many out-patients nationwide, who need to get to early appointments.

After a break for lunch, the speaker was introduced - Richard Bruce, who is the Head of Concessionary Fares Commission Division for the Department of Transport.

He said he would like to disperse a few myths. He spoke about the media frenzy after the publication of Oxera’s report, emphasising that bad news sells newspapers. There will be no means testing: “that isn’t going to happen”, he said, “The LGA has to plans to means test for passes.”

The Department for Transport is changing how funding goes to local authorities. The initial costs are now being analysed and the reports will be published shortly.

There are some complexities involved in cross-border travel funding, eg Scotland is smaller than England, but it can be done and we should continue to lobby for it.

An attendee from Bedfordshire asked if the law governing coaches could be changed ie that if 50% of the seats can be reserved it is no longer available for free travel. In his rural area it has meant the death knell for market day services where National Express provides transport.

Richard replied that, as with all “X” prefaced routes (express routes), if the stops are less than 16 miles apart and registered with the Dept of Transport, the chances are it’s a bus! Therefore you can travel using your bus pass.

He concluded by saying that there is much scaremongering about the subsidies, that other services will be cut. Over 60s using free transport means the local carparks are losing revenue, and we are an easy target to manipulate. Operators should be no worse or no better off than before.

The criteria for bus passes will remain the same as those for winter fuel payments and pension eligibility, and there are no immediate plans to change them.

Don’t forget, your bus passes are for “leisure and pleasure” he said!

Finally, an attendee queried what questions we should be asking our Councillors about their election manifesto. Richard replied:

After closing remarks we were invited to visit the Department for Transport website about consultations http://www.dft.gov.uk/consultations/open/specialgrantfunding/, (the Consultation document makes for very interesting reading), as well as to email our views, opinions and enquiries to info@npcuk.org.

We left, most of us to use our bus passes and Freedom Passes to travel home.

Fiona