Bus fares will be capped at £2 to help the cash-poor, says Shapps

EVERY bus journey in England is to be capped at £2 for three months as part of a £60 million package to help people cope with the cost of living crisis.

Grant Shapps, the Transport Secretary, has secured the subsidy from the Treasury to save hard-pressed travellers as much as £4 on a single journey. The cap, to run from January to March next year, will be targeted outside London where pay-as-you-go fares are set at a flat rate of £1.65 if made within an hour.

It will particularly benefit people in rural areas where fares can be as much as £6 for a single journey, which would mean a saving of more than £60 a month for four single trips a week.

The average single fare for a threemile journey is estimated to be more than £2.80, meaning the new fare will save passengers almost 30 per cent of the price every time they travel.

Mr Shapps said: “Buses are by far and away the most used form of public transport, so ensuring almost all bus journeys are no more than £2 will assist passengers over the winter months and provide direct help to thousands of households across the country.

“The £60 million boost will mean everyone can affordably get to work, education, shops and doctor’s appointments.

“We have been working hard this summer to provide practical concrete help that will lower daily expenditure.”

The initiative was given impetus by the soaring price of fuel, which meant travel by car was being priced out for more Britons. The plan is understood to have been under consideration by Downing Street before Boris Johnson announced his departure as PM but faced resistance from the Treasury.

The move will mirror other governments across Europe which are slashing the price of public transport. In Ireland, fares have been cut by 20 per cent, while in Germany, a ticket costing €9 (£7.62) gave unlimited travel for a month in June, July or August on local or regional public transport.

Price caps of £2 are also being devised by Labour mayors including Tracy Brabin in West Yorkshire, Andy Burnham in Greater Manchester and Steve Rotheram in Liverpool City Region. They will begin in the autumn and remain for three years.

A flat-rate bus pilot scheme launched in Cornwall in January has led to an indicative 10 per cent increase in passenger numbers.