Free travel for over-60s on park-and-ride services axed

01 April 2009

Park-and-ride services can no longer provide free travel for over-60s, under changes to the national concessionary bus scheme introduced this week.

Transport officers have warned that changes to the scheme will cause confusion, as many services on the local transport network are now exempt.

A spokesman for the Association of Transport Co-ordinating Officers said: ‘ACTO recognises the need to clarify the rules, particularly regarding long-distance and tourism services.

‘But there will be confusion and difficulty in some areas regarding park-and-ride services, which are now outside the national scheme.’

Alan Hill, chairman of ATCO’s bus executive, said there were many other local services which were now exempt because they provided ‘a special amenity element’. He cited a local route in Northumberland which offered tourist value because it ran along Hadrian’s Wall. Confusion would also arise when National Express services linked with local bus routes, he added.

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