Bus routes ‘too popular’

Sep 8 2008 by Paul Loraine, The Journal

CONCERNS were raised yesterday over the funding of a scheme to provide free bus travel to over-60s after incidents of overcrowding on popular North routes.

Bus company Go North East yesterday reported a rise in demand for some services that has left passengers having to wait for the next bus due to a lack of room.

Meanwhile, Arriva said the new scheme had led to overcrowding on the Newcastle to Carlisle route.

The smart card passes enable the over-60s and disabled people to enjoy off-peak bus trips throughout England.

It had previously been the case that pensioners’ passes were valid only within their local authority areas but they were granted leave to travel on local buses nationwide in April.

Martin Harris, commercial director for Go North East, said making the passes valid outside of local authority areas had caused problems.

“The number of pensioners using our services continues to rise and we have had reports from our drivers that buses are filling up on parts of their route with some passengers having to wait for the next bus,” he said.

“The difficulties are being experienced mainly on longer journeys and those which cross boundaries from outside of the region – something free passes have not enabled pensioners to do before.

“The scheme is obviously a popular one but we do share the concern that it is adequately funded.”

Go North East would not give specifics as to which bus services were suffering from overcrowding. In the light of reports elsewhere in the country that less popular services were to be cut in order to finance the popular routes, the firm said there were no plans to shut down any services in the region.

Meanwhile, Francis King, spokesman for Arriva, said: “Earlier in the year, the Newcastle-Carlisle service was very busy and there were concerns of overcrowding. That was no doubt partially to do with the novelty of the scheme when it was extended outside of local authority boundaries in April. We have since seen a big improvement.

“In terms of routes from Newcastle to Alnwick and the Northumberland coast, we have been promoting those heavily for families in the school holidays.

“There have been a reasonable number of elderly people on those services but it is all anecdotal at the moment.”

Secretary of the North East Pensioners’ Association John Berry said while he has not personally suffered from the overcrowding, it is essential the system can cope with the increasing demand.

“The problem is there and it needs to be addressed,” he said. “If something isn’t done about it now it will only get worse over time. If it means that more money has to be put in, then that’s what has to be done.”

A Department for Transport spokesperson said: “Government has provided an extra £212m to help councils extend use of the free bus pass across England during off-peak hours.

“We have made generous assumptions about pass take-up in popular places to visit – like coastal towns and key urban areas – and some areas have seen funding increases of 30% or more. In total we are now spending £1bn a year on concessionary fares, with over 11 million people eligible for this scheme.”

It's just the ticket for commuters

BUS travel is currently enjoying a boom as more people opt for public transport to combat the rising costs of running their cars.

Both Go-Ahead and Arriva have benefited from the trend and have recently reported soaring profits.

Go-Ahead last week beat its own and market analysts’ expectations to announce record annual profits of £131m and said its revenues jumped by 20% with strong demand for both its bus and rail services.

The group, whose financial office is based in Newcastle, said the industry as a whole was attracting more people. Meanwhile, Sunderland-based Arriva has announced a 20% rise in profits to £45.5m for its UK bus division in the first half of its financial year.

Recent research has shown that 40% of people now use public transport on a regular basis.