Bristol bus fare changes: ‘Day rider’ fare to rise to £6 - but singles and returns reduced

All-day tickets on Bristol buses will rise to £6 from next weekend - an increase of 70p - but passengers will benefit from new cheaper single and return fares, Metro Mayor Dan Norris has confirmed.

All single adult tickets in Bristol will be reduced to £2 for adults while returns will cost £3.50. Children will pay a flat £1 rate across the whole of the West of England.

The 70p increase on the popular Bristol Day tickets is sure to prove controversial with passengers, many of whom have noticed a significant drop in performance from local buses due to the ongoing shortage of drivers.

According to a spokesperson for West of England Combined Authority: “The data shows over 55% of people who use the day tickets make one or two trips, so could save by switching to the 2-Trip ticket, which is decreasing in price.”

The Bristol single fare will go down from £2.20 to £2 and a return drops from £4.30 to £3.50. A child’s fare for 5-15-year-olds will be £1 for a single or £2 for a return, rather than the current 50% of an adult fare.

Other changes include a 50p increase to £2 for a ‘3-stop hop’ and Bristol Week tickets rise from £21.50 to £23.50.

The new fares will start from Sunday, September 25, on the vast majority of West of England buses before being introduced across all routes, regardless of operator, by the end of next month.

The Metro Mayor says the new fare package delivers on his pledge for simpler and cheaper bus fares, will help a little towards easing the cost-of-living crisis for locals, and will go a long way to addressing the big challenges on the buses at present, with passenger numbers 25% down on pre-pandemic levels.

Metro Mayor Dan Norris said: “It’s time to get on board for new fares. I’m delighted to be able to introduce this package to immediately to offer a small helping hand to people facing a crippling cost-of-living crisis.

“At a time where the challenges on the buses are so huge, this is a real opportunity to create that virtuous cycle of more fare income to reinvest in our bus network which in turn will mean better buses for everyone.

“So my big message to local people is: please take advantage of this and take your children out for just £1. The more journeys you make, the more you will be helping us together to build the local bus system we both need and deserve.

“It’s also so very vital if we are going to meet our super ambitious local 2030 net-zero targets”.

The scheme is a joint initiative from the West of England Combined Authority, North Somerset Council and the bus operators, including Firstbus, Stagecoach West and others.

Doug Clarinbold, Managing Director of First West of England said: “With rising living costs, we are delighted that the West of England Authority and North Somerset Council have been able to provide operators in the region with financial support that enables significant reductions to these key West of England fares.

“Passenger numbers on our services are still significantly down on pre-pandemic levels and we are seeing some of our longer distance services that connect our towns and cities or serve more rural areas facing a particularly difficult time.

“Lower single, return and day ticket fares will help these services at a time when most things are going up in price.

“We hope this will encourage more people to use our services so that as we take action to increase driver numbers and improve the reliability of our services, we can accelerate the recovery in bus use across the region.”