Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing free off-peak bus travel for people over 60 in England.

Funding the concessionary bus pass costs around £1 billion annually and any changes would have an impact on the scheme’s financial sustainability.

In England, the age of eligibility for the concessionary bus pass is linked to the state pension age. This addresses the anomalous position of non-disabled, working age citizens receiving free bus buses, which in turn supports the financial sustainability of the scheme. There are no current plans to change the concessionary bus travel age of eligibility in England.

However, concessionary travel legislation gives local authorities the flexibility to offer local travel concessions, such as reducing the eligible age for a bus pass to 60.The additional concessions above the statutory minimum are not funded by central Government but by their own local resources.