News & Views

In April 2022, Cornwall Council and its operators launched the country’s first county-wide Bus Fares Pilot. This government-funded scheme aims to understand the impact of lowering bus fares on patronage, and ITP has been privileged to partner with the council since the very start - supporting them with the modelling, costing and development of the pilot, as well as its implementation, administration, monitoring, and more recently, marketing and communications.

So, what’s been done?

At the heart of the pilot is the reduction of fares across the county. To make the scheme as effective as possible it was recognised that fares need to be understandable, accessible, simple to use and appropriate for different user (and non-user) needs. Before the pilot was launched, operators entered into an interoperable agreement, allowing passengers to use their return or period tickets across all local buses; local ‘town-zone’ fares were reimagined and new products introduced, and the child discount age was aligned across the county for anyone up to the age of 19.

The pilot itself further simplified the fare offer and reduced public fares, with an average discount of over 36%. Headline fares such £5 Adult Cornwall Day, and £20 Adult Cornwall Week were at the forefront of marketing campaigns, each allowing unlimited travel across the entire county. In the summer of 2022 Tap and Cap was introduced for all operators in Cornwall, and over that period joint information, marketing and journey planning was rolled out under the Transport for Cornwall brand. In January 2023, operators joined the national fare cap initiative providing even greater discount for passengers.

So, what impact has the pilot had?

Since its introduction, over 6.6 million discounted tickets have been sold, with over 12 million journeys made – saving bus users over £14 million . Over 1 million interoperable journeys have been made, and the volume of customers choosing to tap and cap has grown consistently over the first year. Critically, coupled with investment in newer vehicles from operators and network expansion, Cornwall’s total bus patronage was 12% higher in 2023 than in 2019, with fare-paying customers making up a more significant proportion of those travelling by bus than they have before.

Looking forward

There is no doubt the pilot is having a positive impact on bus patronage in Cornwall. However, the pilot is finite, and, as we look towards January 2025 and the end of the single fare cap, we’re moving into unprecedented territory nationally. So, are there any lessons we can learn from what has happened in the pilot to help influence what is to come?

• Keep it simple - keep people educated: People value straightforward fares. Outside of a single fare cap, tap and cap is about as straightforward as it gets – but it’s daunting the first time you come to use it. It takes time for people to understand it, trust the system and have confidence that they are getting best value. The single fare cap means many people will only be tapping on – so in the future there will be benefit in re-educating, supporting and encouraging passengers back to tap and cap to achieve best value.
• People are responsive to best value (for their needs): Straightforward fares doesn’t mean oversimplifying fares. People have different needs and requirements at different times and there is no one size fits all solution. Cornwall has seen users shift between fare products and offers throughout the life of the Pilot, with factors such as seasonality, the product range on offer and the value for money provided. Going forward there is a balance to be struck between accessible and simple fares and options to meet changing user needs.
• Remembering the wider value of the bus: In a low fares pilot, for many price will be at the forefront of their mind when choosing bus; as prices rise we need to reinforce the wider benefits that people have felt using the bus (especially compared to the car) - improvements for health and well-being, greater social value both personally and as part of the wider community and environmental benefits to name but a few.
• It’s not all about the fares: Fares have an important part to play in encouraging bus use, but we have to get the basics right so we can build on the solid foundations of service frequency, reliability and punctuality.
• Partnership at the heart: It takes a village to raise a family, it takes a partnership to deliver a successful bus network. Like any good relationships you need a shared goal, shared ownership, clear roles and accountability, respect, time and resource… and plenty of understanding.

If you want to know more about our work in Cornwall contact Tim Edwards.