Bus passengers still feeling the pinch after price hike
RESIDENTS have been forced to change jobs and are choosing to travel on foot or call a taxi following a bus fare price hike, a Warrington Guardian investigation can reveal.
More than six months on from Network Warrington increasing monthly passes from between 17 and 65 per cent, passengers are still feeling the pinch with many having to make changes to their lifestyle to be able to afford their commute to work.
Our Facebook page was filled with frustrated commuters after we asked residents how the increase had affected them with some commenting they had learnt to drive instead, others said the train was now cheaper to get into town or they had ‘saved a small fortune’ cycling or walking instead while one woman described the bus as a ‘treat’ due to the cost.
Charlotte Moseley also told us she had to leave her job as it would cost half of her pay to get a bus pass while Clare Kindred said her teenage daughter could no longer afford a bus pass to get to her Saturday job in town and had to look for one closer to home.
Katie Steel, from Padgate, said: “It’s £4.60 for a return for me to get to Padgate now and when the fares went up I looked at lift shares with colleagues.
“Luckily my boyfriend now works in town and starts shortly after I do so I get a lift every morning and work later so I can get a lift back.”
The Warrington Guardian asked the council whether it could do anything to reduce the cost of bus fares for residents and if so, would they ever consider doing it to help commuters?
A spokesman said: “The council encourages the use of public transport and would wish bus fares to be as affordable for as many people as possible.
“However, the council has no powers to control bus fares charged by commercial bus operators and only has a small budget to pay for bus services which become commercially unviable but are deemed socially necessary through our recently adopted Local Bus Strategy.”
A spokesman for Network Warrington was asked if there are any plans to review the price increase and whether there is any possibility of prices changing again but they did not reply to requests for a comment.
@warringtonnews …and the cuts to services, the unreliability, the overcrowded smaller buses on school college runs, traffic congestion
— Mr Mac #IAM93 (@nickmac72) April 21, 2015
