Bus fares have just gone up in a double whammy for commuters
Following a second round of inflation-busting fare rises since he took office the West Midlands Mayor’s pledge for Bus Transformation is not going too well,
This month saw a rise of 30% in the price of the cheapest commute to and from work. This contrasts with the previous mayor, Andy Street, who managed to keep fares low for passengers, year after year, by working with the bus companies and government.
Bus fares rose by 6% just one month after the mayor, Richard Parker, took office, with one bus user claiming this is a ‘Rotten deal for the monthly pass’. Others online described the new rates as “disgusting”, “an absolute p*sstake” and cited the cost-of-living crisis as a reason for the updated prices being a bad move.
When Andy Street left office the West Midlands had the lowest bus fares in the country. This seems no longer to be true.
This, coupled with poor performance on our local railways, especially the Snow Hill line, make for an extremely poor service for residents who rely on public transport to get to work.