Changes to concessionary fares

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GMPTE is reminding passengers of impending changes to concessionary fares in Greater Manchester.

The changes come into effect from Sunday (3 April 2011) and will affect young people aged 5 to 16 and students who use a GMPTE pass to travel to and from college, as well as some disabled people and passengers aged over 60 travelling before 9.30am on weekdays.

Fares on Yellow School Buses, dedicated school services subsidised by GMPTE, Ring & Ride buses and Local Link services are also changing, and the boundary of the local concessionary fare scheme is also being simplified.

The changes form part of cost savings of more than £40 million over the next three years, and will see the local concessionary bus fare scheme, currently a flat fare of 80p, change to half the normal adult fare, depending on the journey being made.

From Sunday, young people aged 5 to 16 and students with a GMPTE pass to travel to and from college will pay half the normal adult bus fare for the journey being made.

New fares are also being introduced on Yellow School Buses and GMPTE’s dedicated school services.

These will be £1 for a short, single journey, £1.20 for a journey of medium length and £1.40 for a single, long journey. In some cases, return fares will also be available. (A district-by-district breakdown of these services and fares is provided at www.gmpte.com.)

Half price versions of many operator day and weekly tickets, including the System One multi-operator products, will be available for people who travel regularly.

Disabled travellers who currently pay 80p before 9.30am on weekdays will instead pay half the adult fare, but will continue to travel free on buses, trams and local trains at all other times.

People with a Concession Plus pass will continue to travel for free at all times, as now.

Passengers aged over 60 travelling on buses, local trains or trams before 9.30am on weekdays will pay full fare, but will continue to benefit from free travel at all other times.

The area covered by the local concessionary travel scheme previously included a number of areas immediately next to, but outside of, the Greater Manchester boundary: Poynton, Glossop, Stubbins, Edgworth, Belmont, Edenfield, Bacup and Whitworth.

This historical, local arrangement supported certain cross-boundary bus trips.

The introduction of the National Concessionary Travel scheme significantly reduced the number of journeys benefiting from the extensions, as people aged over 60 and disabled people now benefit from free off-peak travel on any local bus services in England.

The extensions also presented operational difficulties for bus operators and added a level of complexity for passengers, as some portions of cross-boundary journeys were subsidised by GMPTE, while others were not – and differing fares applied as a result.

As a result, it has now been agreed to simplify the scheme so that it operates only within the boundary of the ten Greater Manchester districts. This change will also come into effect from 3 April.

Therefore young people who travel between Greater Manchester and the above areas will continue to benefit from the local concessionary fare scheme, but only for the part of their journey that is inside the Greater Manchester boundary.

GMPTE has distributed information leaflets in GMPTE Travelshops and displayed posters at bus, train and tram stops.

It has worked with commercial bus operators to ensure passengers have access to the information and assistance they need before the changes come into effect.

Letters have also been sent to parents via schools.

An interactive online guide, which provides step-by-step advice and information on how the changes will affect passengers, is available at www.gmpte.com.