Bus fares pegged, but you pay more

THERE will be no change in child bus fares from April after transport bosses pegged their concessionary tickets at 80p.

But all council tax payers will pay 5.6 per cent more to fund public transport schemes across Oldham and the region.

Greater Manchester Integrated Transport Authority (GMITA) has agreed its budget for the next financial year.

Councillor Keith Whitmore, chairman of GMITA, said: “It is vital that we do everything we can to encourage more young people to travel on our buses, trains and trams, as they are tomorrow’s commuters.

“Managing our budget to keep the concessionary fare at the existing level should help parents manage the cost, which will in turn go a long way to making public transport an attractive alternative to the private car and the hassle of the ‘school run’.”

At the same time the authority has announced its levy on local councils like Oldham will increase by 5.6 per cent, from £164.742 million in 2009/10 to £173.883 million in 2010/11.

Three per cent (£4.94 million) of the increase is ring-fenced for the Greater Manchester Transport Fund, a £1.5bn investment programme covering 15 major transport schemes.

The remainder covers the cost of concessionary travel, as well as the costs of subsidising bus and a limited number of rail services in the county.

Councillor Ian Macdonald, vice chairman of GMITA, said: “Our duty to pay for bus services that would otherwise not run, because operators cannot do so commercially, as well as our generous approach to concessionary travel, all comes at a price.

“We are satisfied that the budget we have agreed represents value for money for the people of Greater Manchester.”