Liberal Democrat politicians in London are calling on Mayor of London Boris Johnson to introduce a new one hour bus ticket that would allow passengers to change buses without paying a new fare.
London Assembly Member Caroline Pidgeon and Tom Brake, MP for Carshalton and Wallington and Liberal Democrat Shadow Minister for London, launched their campaign at Vauxhall Bus Station earlier this morning.
Pidgeon, who is expected to become chair of the London Assembly Transport Committee in May, said it was “really is unfair that people who use Oyster pay as you go have to pay a new fare every time they change buses.”
The Liberal Democrats say their proposal would allow Oyster Pay As You Go users to make additional bus journeys within 60 minutes without any further deductions being made from their card.
Figures provided by the Liberal Democrats suggest the measure could cost up to £50m in lost revenues to Transport for London, excluding any administration and systems costs, although the party says it believes some of this could be offset by increased bus usage.
A spokesperson for the Mayor of London said: “A one hour bus pass has been suggested several times previously but the Mayor does not plan to introduce it in London. This is because it would be an extremely complex and expensive exercise, that would only benefit a small number of passengers as the majority of bus users in London pay for journeys using pre-paid season tickets or concessionary passes. And approximately thirty three per cent of journeys are made free of charge using Freedom, income support, zip or veterans passes. To introduce a time limited pass would also mean TfL having to cover the expense of doing so by either increasing fares or seeking additional funding from elsewhere.”
