Bus journeys on the Isle of Wight could soon be capped at just £2 each way under plans being put together by the Government, which would see Southern Vectis subsidised for 3 months from January to March next year.
Transport Secretary Grant Shapps has announced a £60million subsidy that will help save travellers by capping trips at £2 each way for a period of 3 months.
The move will help passengers with travel costs for work, education, shopping and medical treatments over the winter months while they are facing pressures from the rising cost of living.
It means a journey from Ryde to Newport and back again would cost just £4 instead of £7.20. It’s unclear whether there will be changes to the pricing of rover tickets and other bundles deals.
The Government says 90% of bus operators have shown support for the scheme, although it’s yet to be confirmed if Southern Vectis – run by Go Ahead South – will sign up for the subsidy.
Grant Shapps has said:
“Buses are by far and away the most used form of public transport, so ensuring almost all bus journeys are no more than £2 will assist passengers over the winter months and provide direct help to thousands of households across the country.
“The £60 million boost will mean everyone can affordably get to work, education, shops and doctor’s appointments.
Article continues below this advertisement “We have been working hard this summer to provide practical concrete help that will lower daily expenditure.”
There is no sign of a subsidy for cross-Solent travel, the cost of which is ever-increasing for Islanders and tourists alike.
Should be a bit competitive for taxis
Well if the buses are heated, it’s a good thing, prob meet some of you on top deck with me flask
Should be free or cheaper for school kids have to fork out £50 a month for one of my boys disgusting price !!!
Is anything positive in your life
Yeah there is actually , thanks for asking
Why don’t your kids go to a local school ?
There are many people on the island for whom the local school is not within walking distance but they don’t qualify for any support with transport.
WHY DO/DID YOU CHOOSE TO LIVE THERE THEN ?
Bc not all ppl can afford a car or have a local school or some kids are in secondary school (high school) so before u say (why don’t your kids go to a local school) think bc most high schools are in Newport or local schools can be a long walking distance.
Did not get into local school thats is walking distance !
Hence you are paid £20 per week per child AND over 8,000 a year in tax credits plus cheaper rent and council tax if on low income. And if not why should others fund your choice of having children you can’t fund?
This is total nonsense Bess. Not to say extremely judgemental.
Actually I work, do not get tax credits or cheap rent thank you and if I was on the dole I would get free bus travel for my kids so I would not be moaning !!!
Your career choice to have kids – why should other people subsidise you !!!! If you can’t afford it try contraception it’s been around a long time
And contraception is FREE. But of course users of such then WONT gain free rent and council tax nor thousands in child allowance and tax credits or universal credit
Hence the choice of the selfish poor to not use such , whinge and get other people to fund their additions to the growing masses of poor
no one said bringing up children was cheap but you had them.
Absoltely wonderful and great idea…however if you you live in most of the rural wight it won’t make a lot of difference as you do not have a functioning bus service anyway, if it where not for the volunteers who run the community bus Freshwater and totland people not on the main bus through route would have no transport.
Another WEF scheme to get Motorists off the road.
It’s a good thing maybe less cars on the roads
The plan is to crash the economy.
By doing such things, many businesses like Taxi Companies will go bust.
Well I don’t think so cheap public transport is the only way forward
ryde to tesco is £2.60 – hardly a massive drop.
Hardly far either
So what? it will have no effect on bus usage, if you have an car you would not take a slow, dirty and unreliable bus even if it was free, convenience, time saving and privacy is why we have cars.
I have yet to get on a bus that is dirty and travel on them regularly. Buses regularly get held up by traffic jams and badly parked cars so yes, this will slow them down, but this is hardly their fault. When allowed to travel as per their timetable they are swift, clean and sociable. More important however is that they reduce a person’s carbon footprint considerably compared with a car (unless electric) which most people now would consider essential.
Yes you are right about electric car pollution, nothing has a bigger “carbon footprint” so dirty they will never repay their build to scrap emissions. and a usually empty bus is a far bigger polluter than any car.
be a help 2 adults Ventnor to Newport return is £18.40
That’s awful terrible price
Rubbish. Buy a bus pass. A multi day bundle 30 days (non-consecutive) £117 or £121 (app or key). As many buses as you like in a 24-hour period. £4 a day. That is not £9.20. Doom merchants.
Who the heck can afford £121 upfront? It’s expensive being poor
So, under new scheme, the £121 bundle will actually be slightly more expensive than just buying tickets fir most users. Since we’re probably just about due for another (large) hike in the rover bundle price it could actually end up a lot cheaper.
Get a day rover then and stop moaning or bloody well walk …!!
A subsidy for Islanders on Ferries would be much better than 10% off… or just build a tunnel !!
there is a subsidy, multilink pass is brilliant, I find it a great saver, but I dont use red funnel.
Only just become an islander and agree that the multilink with wightlink is fab. Don’t generally use red funnel …15%discount for Islanders????
Still working on mainland till I retire, so will be much more difficult after that day comes
That’s brilliant news.The last time I caught the bus from Newport to Station Road,Wootton it cost £3.70 one way, it probably would of been cheaper to drive there!
Yet more handouts to privately owned firms so the owners get richer and all of us end up paying for it in higher taxes.
Gotta be a good thing if people can afford it hope they support the scheme
The bus company have had to have government handouts to keep their business afloat, it’s only fair that they now cut their prices to pay back our hard earned taxes, which could have gone to support those in community who really need the support.
Shame southern vet is don’t just bring their fares in line with the real world and they they won’t need gove,ent (tax payers money)
Cost of living crisis or no cost of living crisis a bus jurney on the isle of wight should only be £2 for a return not one way and on all routs all the time as standard southern vectis run a bloody extortion racket their servis is crap especially for what they charge they are always late take far too long and if you drive the rout in a car you use less fuel than a bus ride costs on any rout on the island even with fuel at the rip off prices of fuel now now I’d rather be dying in any muddy ditch than use southern vectis buses a classic examples of rip off britain .
So the people that don’t use busses will be paying all the money our generous (not) government will be paying into this
Just like the people who had no help in lockdown that are paying back what we never got
Many taxis have gone after the first lock down, this will kill the taxi trade…