Concessionary Bus Pass reform

[EDB325]

RE: Concessionary Bus Pass reform
I use my pass quite a lot. As I'm in Greater Manchester (Timperley) I can also use it on Metrolink, and on trains within the county.

Once I go further afield, I use my Senior Railcard to earn a 33% discount. So, for example, I can get to Wigan for free, and then get a return ticket to Lancaster for £9.50

I worked for 53 years (and still have a part time job 17 hours a week), and have paid a great deal of money into the Exchequer in my lifetime. I wouldn't personally object, however, to paying a fairly modest charge to use the buses outside Greater Manchester.

There are many older people on low incomes who have limited mobility, and are totally dependent on public transport. However, short of introducing the rightly hated means testing, these people cannot be separated out of the overall group. I am by no means well off, and my reliance on public transport is likely to increase as I get older (72 in November). To lose this benefit would hurt me in the longer term.