Bus fares in Perth and Kinross will be hiked up by Stagecoach from next month despite a recent saga of regular service cancellations.
All tickets will increase by an average of 15 per cent across all Stagecoach East Scotland services from April 2.
The Perth-based bus operator says the move will help pay for the day-to-day running of services, continued investment in new buses, and other customer improvements.
The latest ticket price hikes include single, return, day travel, fully flexible bundles, and weekly and longer-term options in the Perth and Kinross, Angus, Dundee and Fife areas.
The rise is three times more than the previous increase announced in April 2022 - an average of 4.8 per cent.
Stagecoach East Scotland bosses say the business has encountered several challenges including the Covid-19 pandemic, industry-wide recruitment shortages and rising costs for wages, fuel, and engineering parts.
They added that bus passenger numbers have still not to returned to the pre-pandemic level, with the move aiming to “future-proof” the viability of its services.
Stagecoach’s priorities will remain on “securing and rebuilding networks where possible” and taking “positive steps” toward achieving its vision for decarbonisation.
Emergency funding provided by the Scottish Government to ensure a level of bus service for people to access local amenities, which would not otherwise have been commercially sustainable, has been reduced over the past 12 months and from March 31 will be withdrawn altogether.
Douglas Robertson, managing director of Stagecoach East Scotland, said: “With operating costs continuing to rise, we will be making changes to our fares from April 2 to prioritise investment in our people, our fleet, and our customers.
“We understand the cost-of-living pressures our customers face, and we realise that fare increases are not welcome.
“However, we strongly believe our fares still represent good value for money.”
The announcement comes after a series of bus service cancellations in the region over the past few months, especially at the tail end of 2022, due to a driver shortage crisis.
October 17 saw a staggering 143 scheduled bus departures pulled by Stagecoach in one day.
Stagecoach undertook a recruitment drive to stem the tide of cancellations with 21 extra drivers being sought in December to operate its Perth services.
Daily alerts from Stagecoach East Scotland continue to flag up service cancellations, although the volume has gradually decreased.
In August Stagecoach also announced that it will be introducing the UK’s first all-electric city bus networks as part of its drive to deliver a net zero UK bus fleet by 2035.
