Huge public transport change as £2 price cap on long-haul bus tickets comes in this year – how much will you save?
A HUGE public transport shake-up will hit England later this year, putting a £2 price cap on long-haul bus tickets - here's how much you could save.
Bus fares across the country are set to plummet in October when a £2 price cap on local and regional journeys is introduced.
Long-haul trips of up to 80 miles and lasting more than three hours will stay at the fixed price of two pounds, reports .
The scheme, which will last six months throughout the winter, comes as the soaring cost of living and huge fuel prices pressure many more Brits into taking public transport.
The price cut aims to level bus fares around the country, after services around England were slammed for their high prices.
Buses outside the capital have been more expensive and less frequent than London buses for a long time.
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Transport for London journeys have a pay-as-you-go flat rate of £1.65 if made within an hour.
So this brand new £2 cap will work with the same idea as TfL's bus fares and will hopefully save Brits hundreds while it lasts.
So far, Labour mayors in West Yorkshire, Greater Manchester and Liverpool City are plotting to introduce the capped bus fares city-wide.
The move means lengthy journeys could be cut from as high as £19 down to £2, saving commuters well-earned pennies in the process.
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A source familiar with the scheme told The Sunday Times: "The value of an eye-catching initiative like a £2 flat fare is that the government can really get behind it and say, ‘We are helping you over the winter’.”
The scheme aims to cut the cost of trips from rural villages to city-centres and help day trippers save funds.
As it stands, it costs £12 for a day ticket from Peterborough to Norwich with First Excel and £19 from Leeds to the coastal town of Whitby.
Under the scheme, those journeys will both cost just £2.
It will not apply to coaches and won't cover or Wales.
One driving factor behind the transport change-up is the record-breaking cost of fuel.
Motorists now face forking out £100 to fill up their tanks, an eye-watering price tag for the average family car.
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The Sun has advised readers how to find the cheapest fuel near them as wholesale prices skyrocket.
The Department for Transport did not comment directly on the plans but said in a statement: “We’ve already committed to investing £3 billion in bus services by 2025, to improve fares, services and infrastructure, and given nearly £2 billion since March 2020 to bus operators and local authorities to mitigate the impacts of the pandemic.”