New bus ticketing regime for region
● PROPOSALS to transform bus travel to enable commuters from Halton to travel anywhere across the rest of the Liverpool City Region for one price will be heard today.
The Merseytravel Committee are due to consider a report for all solo ticket types to be valid for use across the area. The document also includes price changes for all existing and new Solo products, as well as an introduction of a new Solo four weekly young person’s ticket.
If given the green light, the proposals would come into effect from Monday, April 3.
The Bus Alliance is a formal agreement between Merseytravel, Arriva and Stagecoach – which together operate 90% of commercial bus services in the Liverpool City Region – and the plans aim to encourage more people to travel by bus.
Though the current Merseytravel zone network does not include Halton, the rest of the Liverpool City Region is covered.
The proposals would result in the removal of ‘zones’ giving Solo customers greater freedom to travel across Merseyside as many times as they want with one ticket.
The proposed fares would be up to a third cheaper for people who currently buy all area tickets, resulting in significant savings for those customers.
Merseytravel chief executive Frank Rogers said: “These proposals represent a significant step forward in improving the bus offer and giving customers greater freedom, at affordable prices across the network.
“The current zonal system for Merseytravel tickets dates back to the 1970s and doesn’t represent modern travel patterns.
“Simplifying fares would make ticketing buying more straightforward and easy to understand – one way of encouraging people to try the bus.
“Not only do we want to make the experience better for those who already use it, but remove those perceived barriers for those who may otherwise give it a try if routes were simpler, make fares easier to understand, broaden people’s horizons and support better access to work and leisure opportunities.
“Following on from recently introduced services and offers, including being able to load some Arriva and Stagecoach tickets onto Walrus cards plus the new adult One Day Solo ticket that can be used on any bus, any time, we are continuing to work together with operators to improve the customer experience.”