Campaigners called for free bus passes for under-17s as part of their fight for better life chances for children from deprived communities.
Dave Bailey, from Class Divide, told Brighton and Hove City Council that it would benefit everyone in the area – not just the children themselves.
Mr Bailey told councillors yesterday (Thursday 3 February) that free travel would help families where money was tight and give them access to cultural and leisure opportunities.
Class Divide, formed by families in Whitehawk, Manor Farm and the Bristol Estate, wants a commitment to free bus travel for young people by April next year.
The deputation was supported by six people, including Carlie Goldsmith, who has previously urged the council to tackle the “attainment gap” between youngsters from the estates and those from more affluent areas.
Mr Bailey said: “Free bus travel has significant economic, social and environmental benefits. Our own research on this issue shows that free bus travel benefits all children as it promotes independence, improves personal safety, increases self-confidence and makes them more likely to spend time with friends.”
He said that if parents spent less time driving children around, it would also improve local air quality, with fewer cars on the road.
The campaigners asked for a report by council officials to set out the case for free bus travel, investigate funding and bring together bus service providers to find a solution.
Last month, Scotland introduced free bus travel for all children and young people under 19.
And in the recent past, both Labour and the Greens have committed to free bus travel for children and young people in England.
Green councillor Steve Davis, who co-chairs the council’s Environment, Transport and Sustainability Committee, responded.
Councillor Davis said that the council did not set bus fares and would be required to spend £6 million to fund free travel for children.
He said: “The potential benefits are something we recognise which is why our new bus service improvement plan contains an aspiration to make bus travel accessible for young people.
“We are currently waiting to hear what funding we will receive from the government to implement these aspirations.
“The Department for Transport made more than £1 billion available for improving bus services but the scale of ambition from us and other councils greatly exceeds this.”
Does Mr Bailey really believe that ‘free’ travel would actually be free, someone has to pay for it.
Mr Bailey wants a commitment to free bus travel for young people by April next year. Oh does he now.
He said that if parents spent less time driving children around, it would also improve local air quality, with fewer cars on the road.
If bus services were reliable, not been re-routed, withdrawn, re-timed, cancelled, stopped short, not taking even longer getting from A to B with every so called ‘Road Improvement scheme’, a lot more people would use buses, at the last reshuffle of services, before lockdown 1, several popular routes were withdrawn and caused many people having to use two routes and double the fares, oh and they increased those fares too, so paying more for a worse service.
Brighton and Hove Buses plastered buses with the words ‘Improved’, yes four buses an hour instead of three, great, except that was only true from one end of the route, the other end however, went from three to two an hour so not improved and that’s just one example.
That’s part of the reason Parents drive around with their kids.
“The campaigners asked for a report by council officials to set out the case for free bus travel, investigate funding and bring together bus service providers to find a solution”.
As I said in the opening line, someone has to pay, and this would be tax payers. For it’s worth the concept and idea is a good one, but this is perhaps not the right time to make demands for free travel.
With Bills set to rocket, taxes increasing and council and rent increases, there’s little left in the kitty and for many of us, no wage increases in a few years that has already reduce the disposable incomes we have.
Right idea wrong time in my opinion.