Stagecoach fares are going up from next Saturday, 6th April with between 10p and 20p added to single and return fares.
However, many passengers will be either unaffected or suffer lower-than-inflation rises. The popular Bay Day Rider, which effectively caps return fares in the core urban area, remains unchanged at £5, so whilst a single ticket between Lancaster and Morecambe increases by 10p to £3.80 the return remains at £5.
Day Rider Plus, which covers a wider area as far as Ingleton, Kirkby Lonsdale, Burton-in-Kendal and Forton also increases by 10p to £7.20 - a 1.4% rise.
Shorter urban journeys from Lancaster city centre to Marsh, Vale, Ridge and Torrisholme are up by between 5 and 6.25% although a greater discount is given for returns, which are up by 3.6%. Strangely, although the single fare to Vale rises by 10p to £2.10 the return is unchanged at £3.60.
Passengers who complain that the University services are given preferential treatment may wish to note that the single fare to the University rises by 20p which is a 10% increase and by far the largest increase applied throughout the network.
BUG's researchers have uncovered a number of apparent anomalies whereby fares on service 1 for the same journey seem to vary according to the time of bus - some by as much as 50p - and we have asked Stagecoach for clarification. And spare a thought for passengers travelling between Lily Grove and the Bus Station along Greaves Road
According to this screengrab, from the 6th April the fare on service 40 will be £2.20. On service 42 a mere £1.60, whilst passengers on the much more frequent service 1 will be advised to ask the driver!
Full details of the changes are available on Stagecoach's website via this link
Full details of the changes are available on Stagecoach's website via this link