British Youth Council presses government for action on bus travel costs
Gabriella Jozwiak
Monday, June 17, 2013
The British Youth Council is calling on the government to take action to help young people with the cost of bus travel and protect transport budgets from further cuts.
The youth organisation’s call comes ahead of next week’s government spending review and follows a report by the Intergenerational Foundation and Campaign for Better Transport that said cuts to buses were hitting young people more than any other age group.
The report found that bus fares have risen 33 per cent in the past seven years, leaving many young people unable to afford transport and to travel to job interviews.
It also found that cuts to bus routes had reduced young people’s ability to find work outside their immediate locality and recommended free travel passes for young people and no more cuts to transport budgets.
The BYC backed the suggestions, but Prime Minister David Cameron rejected the free pass idea after the organisation wrote to him calling for its introduction.
“The government has no plans to enforce an age limit for charging an adult fare or legislate to create a national concessionary travel scheme in England,” replied Cameron.
“However, I would encourage you to continue to explore how the growing social investment market may be able to help you to achieve your aims and have asked the Office for Civil Society to follow up.”
BYC’s vice chair Dara Farrell said: “While we’re disappointed by the lack of progress, there are some signs of encouragement in the Prime Minister’s letter to us, so we will continue to campaign on this issue as long as young people identify it as a need.”
“We call on both the government and opposition parties and indeed devolved administrations to explore solutions for what is clearly a big issue for young people – and also an issue for those parents who bear the brunt of the cost of transport.”
Campaign for Better Transport’s chief executive Stephen Joseph said the government should “use the upcoming spending review to ensure young people aren’t priced off public transport”.
“Our research found it is now more difficult for young people to access jobs and education that it was 15 years ago,” said Joseph. “This is in no one’s interests, least of all young people themselves."
Chancellor George Osborne will deliver the government’s spending review on 26 June.
