Young people on England side of the border in north Northumberland being 'priced out' of public bus transport claim

Tom Miers also says the situation for them is harder to accept when taking into account that young people on the Scotland side under 22 years old are eligible for free bus travel and it is still free if the journey ends in Berwick or other English towns or villages just over the border.

The Norham resident, who has young people in his own family that are affected by this, believes an agreement to reduce fares would end up benefiting the company because the number of additional young people using its services would be significant.

Borders Buses has said in response that it is seeking to address the concerns as it is in discussions with Northumberland County Council and it is “looking to be involved in a Transport Northeast ticket”.

Mr Miers said: “If you live in Coldstream just over the border you can get the bus to Berwick (route 67) for free. But not vice versa – you have to pay full fare, you don’t even get a discount.

“You don’t even get a discount if the journey is wholly in England (e.g. Berwick to Cornhill). Nor do Borders Buses apply the Government’s £2 cap that applies to bus routes in England.

“If you are a young person living in Cornhill, Norham, Horncliffe, Berwick etc you are effectively priced out of using public transport by bus to go to work or for socialising nearby. The situation is very unfair.

“It is complicated of course by the various government programmes to finance subsidised travel, for example the Scottish Government pays the full price for young Scottish residents using the bus even if the journey ends in Berwick or Carlisle, and I accept that any scheme agreed would not be free for young people on the England side of the border.

“But I think it actually makes economic sense for Borders Buses to approach the North East Combined Authority and/or Northumberland County Council to see if something can be worked out. To me, if the ‘Get round for £1’ scheme – £1 for a single ticket for age 21 and under – was applied here, then a lot more young people would use the relevant Borders Buses services and so it would get more income overall.

“Borders Buses have a great network, but they’re unfair on their Northumberland customers. They should work to provide affordable travel for people on both sides of the border. That would be good for them, good for young people and good for the Borders as a whole.”

A spokesperson for Borders Buses said: “We have applied all Scottish concessionary fares to our services, ensuring they are valid for travel to and from Scotland.

“Regarding other fares, we are in discussions with Northumberland County Council and are looking to be involved in a Transport Northeast ticket.

“This should enable us to hopefully address our customers’ concerns.”