Lib Dems call for an end to postcode lottery on older people’s bus passes.

​An ongoing disparity in concessionary travel has sparked fresh criticism, with the East Riding Liberal Democrats condemning the continuation of peak-time travel restrictions for older residents as an unfair "postcode lottery."
​While the central government recently announced plans to universally scrap the 9:30 am travel restriction for disabled pass holders across England, this exemption does not automatically extend to the older person's bus pass. Instead, older pass holders remain bound by local council discretion, creating a fractured system across neighboring regions.,

​While national funding subsidises off-peak bus travel, permitting free travel from 9:30 am to 11:00 pm on weekdays, and all day on weekends and bank holidays, a growing number of local authorities have chosen to go further. Authorities such as Hull City Council and North Lincolnshire have removed weekday start-time restrictions entirely, allowing older residents to catch buses earlier.

​However, residents living within the Hull and East Riding Combined Authority face tighter rules depending on their exact location, meaning older passengers can still be barred from morning travel simply because of where they live.

​A Call for Consistency
​Previous discussions regarding the removal of these restrictions took place within the East Riding of Yorkshire Council, but were ultimately shelved due to financial constraints.
​Cllr Denis Healy, the ERYC Lib Dem Group Leader, argued that the current framework penalised vulnerable residents who rely on public transport for essential travel.

​"The facts are simple: you do not suddenly become younger and barriers to transport disappear at peak times," "Old person's bus pass holders still need to get to early morning hospital and GP appointments or return home late at night from socialising in the community. Why, then, are our policies based on arbitrary timeframes?"

​The Liberal Democrats are urging Combined Authority Mayor, Luke Campbell to use devolved transport powers to standardise access across the combined authority, pointing to an increasingly ageing demographic in the East Riding.

​Cllr Healy added: "“Now that we have a mayoral combined authority covering both Hull and East Riding, it doesn’t make any sense at all to have different concessionary travel arrangements in the two local authority areas."
“I’m urging Mayor Campbell to do the right thing, and end the unfair penalisation of East Riding pensioners by equalising the arrangements across the combined mayoral authority.” 

​Having previously raised the issue at a briefing meeting of the HEYCA scrutiny committee, Cllr Healy intends to bring the matter back to the table during the committee's upcoming September meeting.

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