Ticketing and Concessionary Travel on Public Transport - United ...

Transport Committee: Evidence Ev 201
<strong>Travel</strong> to get to early GP <strong>and</strong> hospital appointments (before 9.30 am) do need separate funding <strong>and</strong>
separate finance. Since the health of the nation’s older people would improve with the inclusion that free
travel allows, then the health services must either give later appointments or separately fund the travel.
There are a number of key issues upon which the Act is unclear. For example Bus travel where there is
more than 15 miles between fare stage stops are not local travel. The position on Dial a Ride <strong>and</strong> Taxi Card
is unclear. Wales Scotl<strong>and</strong> <strong>and</strong> Irel<strong>and</strong> are excluded <strong>and</strong> yet enjoy themselves other benefits. So from 1April
2008, three weeks time there will still be some areas of uncertainty.
What is clear however is that the Act states Nationwide (Engl<strong>and</strong>) Bus only <strong>and</strong> after 9.30 am. In essence
that is what the government is funding <strong>and</strong> all the Act guarantees. Another £250 million pounds is being
allocated for this extra pensioner movement outside their home localities. I know of course that we all get
something diVerent, many of us because there is no peak travel have no time restrictions, <strong>and</strong> others get
Train, Tram <strong>and</strong> Underground. Everywhere we look it is diVerent.
What to me is the easiest way to describe the position from April 2008 is to say that what you get in your
home location you are not entitled to when you travel away. Your local Bus pass when you get say to
London or Birmingham or Manchester will still only get you on the buses <strong>and</strong> after 9.30 am. Likewise the
large conurbation pensioner when leaving London etc will only get Bus only <strong>and</strong> after 9.30 am away
from home.
Let’s consider the funding since it is such a contentious issue <strong>and</strong> the background to all the bad press <strong>and</strong>
misunderst<strong>and</strong>ings. Remember the 2000 Act money is still in there somewhere <strong>and</strong> along with the extra built
into the grants for the 2002 “men equality of age eligibility” is also still there somewhere. Add to that the
£212 million for the existing concessions <strong>and</strong> the £250 million extra for this April, some ring fenced but not
entirely <strong>and</strong> you have a right old muddle allowing any politician, however straight <strong>and</strong> fair, to pray in aid
shortages. It is a melange of formulae <strong>and</strong> they do not know in my view where they are. In addition there has
always been some local money for most council’s value to some degree the older people in the community. So
that enables Government to say over a £1 billion is put towards pensioner travel.
By querying <strong>and</strong> questions in an attempt to get clarification we are in danger of being seen as ungrateful.
It is clear to me that there will be many places where older people will be unsure of their entitlements at
home <strong>and</strong> away on 1 April. NPC will issue a clarification document <strong>and</strong> this paper is a first attempt to get
the factors down in one document.
Next the Bus Companies themselves are causing a great deal of the problem. The Act intends that they
should break even <strong>and</strong> it says they should be “No Better No Worse” as a consequence. But by the very way
they calculate their fares, by the diVerent ways they issue their tickets <strong>and</strong> by the way they have been able
to alter routes <strong>and</strong> manipulate the market under the deregulated structure that exists has meant they are
making money, <strong>and</strong> at the same time complaining they are not getting enough. Almost impossible for us to
prove our many examples are valid for scrutiny.
Bus Companies have Public AVairs Managers <strong>and</strong> Press oYcers <strong>and</strong> they can <strong>and</strong> do brief journalists,
who will happily run with scare stories. “Granny get your Coat” etc etc. Our attempts to engage national
press has been not very successful <strong>and</strong> in any case it is mostly the local papers that do the damage. Councils
who mistrust or dislike national government <strong>and</strong> who either do not underst<strong>and</strong> the detail of the finance, or
do not want to, also brief the press against us. So it is a problem.
It is best tackled locally so where it comes to notice in your local area of buses altering services, claiming
for longer journeys than actual travel. Bring it to the notice of your council <strong>and</strong> importantly the press, write
letters, get petitions but be sure of your facts. Where NPC can help we will back you up with quotes.
Let me list a few of the sensation seeking items that the press has used. Public Toilets to shut to fund
pensioner travel. Pensioners joyride means people cannot get to work as the buses are full. Council Tax to go
up, other groups in receipt of concessionary fares will lose their entitlement. Many <strong>and</strong> varied are the stories.
Seaside towns, <strong>and</strong> other tourist centres despite spending millions on advertising their facilities to get
people to visit, have the cheek to say the funding for visitors is insuYcient.
So we are up against it. It’s a dog’s breakfast <strong>and</strong> no other large organisation is fighting. Help the Aged
<strong>and</strong> Age Concern <strong>and</strong> others are all relatively non critical. Some even encourage taking £37 of Tokens rather
than the Pass, which may suit some very restricted people but is of far less value if one travels away from
home. How therefore do we proceed? My stance is not that we have a “Right to Free <strong>Travel</strong>” because we
are old, but that we contribute to society <strong>and</strong> we therefore have a “Case for Free <strong>Travel</strong>” to make.
We need to be able to list those benefits so that our travel cannot be dismissed as a perk. It is easy to see
Pensions, Health, Carers, Carer’s Allowances as rights. But free travel can be less easily justified.
A sample list of advantages to society to make our case are:
— Transport has a major part to play in enabling older people to continue to live in their own homes
<strong>and</strong> participate fully in the life of their local community.
— The presence of pensioners in the town centres is good for local business.
— Older people travelling out of peak times can improve the marginal costs of services <strong>and</strong> thus retain
services to the good of the community as a whole.