Cambridgeshire deputy mayor says Stagecoach bus fare rises in Peterborough 'beggars belief'

The deputy mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough has said ‘it beggars belief’ that Stagecoach are rising bus fare prices during the cost of living crisis.

This week Stagecoach said prices would be increasing across Cambridgeshire from January 8 2023.

Today, Deputy Mayor of the Combined Authority, Councillor Anna Smith said, “It beggars belief that Stagecoach would choose to not only raise bus fares during one of the worst cost of living crises we’ve seen in recent years, but to also announce this just before Christmas.

"We know how important buses are to our communities, and what a lifeline they are to help people to get to work, school, supermarkets and hospitals.

"A decision like this, by an organisation that posted notice of significant profits this year, is nothing short of appalling.

"At the Combined Authority we will continue to investigate all of the various options available to us to raise vital funds for our bus network, as well as continuing to work closely with our partners, lobbying the Government and calling out callous decisions by commercial operators whenever they happen.”

Darren Roe, Managing Director for Stagecoach East, said: “We have worked hard to absorb as many of these costs as possible to keep fares increases below the level of inflation. In order to facilitate this increase, and keep up with inflation of operational and fuel costs, we have no option but to slightly increase our fares, in order to keep our services in the East running.

"The money from fares goes towards paying for the day-to-day running of services, as well as being re-invested into improvements for our customers, including in new buses, and improved technology to help make travel easier.

“We acknowledge that these are challenging times, but like many businesses and local authorities in the East, we are having to make difficult decisions to keep essential services running.

“Our teams are working incredibly hard to tackle the ongoing driver shortage issue, which is affecting the wider transport and logistics sector, and currently we have 71 new recruits in our training school pipeline. We hope to see these issues ease in the coming weeks, as

more new drivers hit the road in Peterborough."