First Bus are putting up prices across West Yorkshire this weekend

Bus operator First is putting up the price of most of its tickets across West Yorkshire on Sunday, but prices are dropping or staying the same for young people.
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Most adult single, day and weekly ticket fares will increase 'to reflect continued rising costs of investment, fuel and the impact of congestion', First said.

A typical single fare will rise by 20 pence.

A Leeds day ticket will cost £4.70 on the bus, or £4.60 via the app, while a week ticket will cost £18 on the bus, or £17 on the app.

First Bus West Yorkshire is putting up prices.First Bus West Yorkshire is putting up prices.
First Bus West Yorkshire is putting up prices.
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A West Yorkshire weekend group ticket will be £7, or £6 on the app, while a weekday group ticket will be £9 on the bus or £8.75 on the app.

First is also introducing a new flat fare £2 single for travel anywhere across West Yorkshire, which can only be bought on the app.

Under 19’s will have no increase on their day or week tickets on the bus and a 10p reduction on mobile.

First is pushing its app, rated as the best bus app on the iOS platform of all the major, national bus operators, as it offers better value tickets and speeds up journey times.

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But the proposed changes have not been welcomed by Maureen Kershaw, 71, who travels from Hyde Park to Leeds most days of the week.

"I cannot afford a smartphone and so people like me will be paying over the odds," she said.

"They want people out of cars and onto buses but who is going to want to use them when they are doing this."

Mrs Kershaw, who volunteers at Leeds City Varieties, said the rises 'added insult to injury' as Leeds bus users are already coping with delays due to ongoing works on the Headrow.

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She said that she had seen no warnings on buses about the price rises.

Another frustrated bus user, who did not want to be named, also contacted the Yorkshire Evening Post to say she had not seen the increases advertised.

The new prices are detailed on the First Bus website, but Mrs Kershaw pointed out that many people still do not use the internet.

"Sometimes it feels as if you are being an inconvenience simply stepping foot on a bus if you don't have a smartphone or have the right change," she added.

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It emerged earlier this year that First's parent company is considering selling its UK bus operations.

West Yorkshire Combined Authority, a group of local councils, has expressed an interest in buying First West Yorkshire if it went up for sale as a separate entity.

Martin Hirst, Commercial Director, at First West Yorkshire, said: “As part of this review, we have been keen to ensure we do what we can to support the West Yorkshire Bus Alliance objective of improving affordability for young people and we’re pleased to have frozen or reduced travel cost for this group.

“Where increases have been necessary, we have worked hard to keep them to a minimum, but some changes are necessary to reflect rising costs in the business. We continue to urge customers who can to switch to purchasing tickets via our mTickets app to do so, as this will offer the most competitive price and will help speed up bus journey times."

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