Brighton & Hove Buses will freeze cash and contactless bus fares in the city and keepĀ price increases as low as possible when new fares go liveĀ onĀ Monday, January 15 next year.
Frozen fares will include: city single, short hop,Ā centrefare, network SAVER and city SAVER adult tickets; family tickets;Ā theĀ youngĀ personsāĀ accompaniedĀ BusIDĀ andĀ BusIDĀ fares for children travelling on the weekends, holidays or school day evenings.Ā
There will be a small increase to cash and contactlessĀ fares forĀ journeys outside theĀ city. Singles will increase byĀ 10pĀ or less andĀ returns will go up byĀ between 10p toĀ 20p.
Returns from Brighton to Lewes, Newhaven and Seaford will be frozen.Ā Ā
The cost of some longer-term tickets –Ā forĀ 28 days,Ā 90Ā daysĀ orĀ annual –Ā will increase byĀ between 10p and 14p per day.Ā For example, the adult 28-day Network SAVER will rise fromĀ Ā£79Ā toĀ Ā£83, an increase ofĀ Ā£1 per week andĀ still considerably cheaper than buying multiple one-dayĀ Ā£5Ā Network SAVERS.Ā The adult 90-day Network SAVERĀ goes up fromĀ Ā£210Ā toĀ Ā£222, an increase ofĀ Ā£1Ā a week.Ā Ā
Some ticket prices have been dropped. Duo tickets, where up to two people can travel, will cost Ā£8 for a city SAVER (down 20p),Ā while the network SAVER goes down by 20p to Ā£8.40. Quattro tickets, where up to four people can travel, fall from Ā£7 to Ā£6.Ā Conventional,Ā one-day tickets become 24-hour tickets, which will help manyĀ peopleĀ save where they tend to buy tickets later in the day.Ā
Brighton & Hove Busesā Managing Director Martin Harris said he had tried to freeze or reduce as many bus fares as possible but increases on some fares could not be avoided.Ā
Mr Harris said: āI do understand that anyĀ sort ofĀ fare increase can beĀ unwelcomeĀ but weāve frozen many fares, reduced some andĀ onlyĀ marginally increased others, from a genuine desire to balance the need for ongoing investment and match the costs of the business with the pressure on people’s budgets.Ā Ā
āGreat news for commuters is that they can now get a 20% discount when buying an annual pass through the East Sussex Credit Union affordable payment plan, previously a 10% discount.Ā
āOur community deals wonāt change, including discounts for carers and compass card holders, family offers and our 4 Work Saver, that provides a free travel start forĀ newĀ employeesĀ of local businesses.Ā
āWeāve responded to demand and introducedĀ some new mobile tickets, including a 4-day student ticket and a 4-day adult ticket. Also, child fares will be available on the mobile app for the first time.āĀ
Martin said the company spent Ā£7.6 million last year on ultra-low emissions buses at a cost of around Ā£200,000 each.Ā The plan is to invest in even higherĀ specificationĀ vehicles toĀ deliverĀ zero emissions in the cityĀ centre,Ā but these buses each cost at least another Ā£100,000.Ā Ā
Worsening urban congestion also meantĀ operating fourĀ extraĀ buses a year, at a cost of around Ā£1 million, just to keep running the same service.
He continued: āWeāre not the only vehicles that have historically generated city centre emissions and, despite progress, and the fact that bus travel improves emissions compared with car travel, we remainĀ committed to doing more to improve the city we live and work in.Ā Ā
āIgnoring emissions and climate change would be irresponsible and weāreĀ facing the issues headĀ on,Ā but itĀ doesnāt come cheap. Weāve estimated we need to spend Ā£172 million on new buses so that our buses are playing their part in an emissions-free city centreĀ by 2030.āĀ
Please see attached table for fares.Ā The fares relate toĀ Brighton & Hove buses only, not Metrobus. Also attached is an infographic showing where every Ā£1 ofĀ bus fare goes.
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