Weekly tickets for all buses in Greater Manchester are set to increase in price from January – but by less than they would have thanks to a new cap on fares. The weekly fare, which includes the 7 day AnyBus ticket valid on all services, will be capped at £21 for adults and £10.50 for children in the new year.
This is 40p higher than the current price of the multi-operator weekly ticket. However, the price was expected to rise to around £23, according to mayor Andy Burnham who secured council leaders' support to subsidise the fares.
Bus operators have also agreed to the introduction of the weekly fare cap which the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) will subsidise. It comes after single fares and daily passes were capped in September, cutting ticket costs for adults to £2 and £5 respectively and half the price for children.
READ MORE: Weekly bus fares to be capped at £21 – but that won't actually lower prices
Speaking at a GMCA meeting on Friday (December 16), Mr Burnham said the new fares have been successful so far, leading to an increase in passengers. However, he warned all of the bus fare caps would be reviewed in the summer.
He said: "There are many unknowns ahead of us as we go towards that point."
Bus operators are being reimbursed for any losses they incur from the cap. Capping single fares and daily tickets is estimated to cost £68m which will be covered by the government's Bus Services Improvement Plan (BSIP) grant.
However, this grant cannot cover the weekly cap which will cost £10.5m over a two-year period and may require spending cash reserves held by the GMCA. System One currently sells a 7-day AnyBus adult ticket for £20.60, while a young person under 21 pays £15 and a junior weekly ticket costing £10.30.
But the Greater Manchester mayor said that without the cap, this weekly multi-operator ticket would have increased to around £23 due to inflation. The move comes ahead of the Bee Network launching next year with the first buses to be brought under public control in Bolton and Wigan in September.
The new London-style integrated public transport network would see all buses in the city-region will be under a franchising system by 2025, with operators bidding for contracts, allowing local leaders to select routes and set prices.
Read more of today's top stories here.
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