South Yorkshire transport operators planning price hikes up to 10 per cent

Two major South Yorkshire transport operators have planned to increase fares effective from January 2.

TravelMaster will increase tickets by 10 per cent while Sheffield’s Supertram will increase some tickets by eight per cent.

The plan comes as more and more people are relying on public transport this winter due to the cost-of-living crisis which has seen fuel and energy prices rise significantly.

South Yorkshire Mayor Oliver Coppard expressed his disappointment over the plans:

“Across our region this winter, all too many people are worrying about the cost-of-living crisis. At the same time we’re trying to cut congestion and air pollution. That’s why this decision is both short sighted and hugely disappointing. It flies in the face of everything we are collectively trying to achieve; a public transport system that our communities can have faith in.

“I understand every business has to balance its books. But if these companies do want to get people back on public transport we need affordable, simpler fares. Plans to hike bus fares by nearly 10 per cent, at a time when public transport reliability is still so poor, and when bus companies just cut 15 per cent of the network, are simply not good enough.

“This is yet more evidence that our public transport system is broken, and we need to see transformational change here in South Yorkshire. That’s exactly what I intend to deliver.”

In October, the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (SYMCA) created a £12.3m transport rescue package after many providers threatened to cut services due to unstable government transport funding.

In November, the Mayor’s fare cap was introduced, which capped all single journeys at £2.

Cllr Chris Read, Co-Chair of the SYMCA Transport and the Environment Board, added: “For many people across the region, public transport is a lifeline to work, to school, and to other services including hospital and doctors appointments.

“To make our buses sustainable in the long term they must be affordable, with fares that are simple enough for people to understand. That was the plan we agreed with the bus operators and that’s the plan I expect them to stick to.”