SUMMARY/PURPOSE
1.
To approve arrangements for concessionary public
transport fares schemes in 2006-07
RULE 15
– ACCESS TO INFORMATION RULES
2.
This report arises from the decision of the Full
Council on 22 February 2006, in setting its budget. The changes detailed in the
report must be implemented from 1 April to satisfy the Government’s deadline,
therefore this decision did not appear on the Council’s Forward Plan.
BACKGROUND
3.
The Government has announced the introduction of a
mandatory free fares scheme on local buses within local authority areas in
England for people aged over 60 or with disability. The start date for this new
mandatory scheme is 1 April 2006. The Council currently provides the mandatory
half fares scheme for these eligible people, and also currently funds
discretionary benefits over and above the statutory minimum. This paper details
arrangements that have been set in place for the mandatory free fares scheme
and also for a number of discretionary benefits above the statutory minimum.
4.
The current concessionary fares schemes provided by
the Council are the Islander Card and the Youth Mover. Islander Card provides
half price single tickets or Rover tickets for people who are either aged over
60, or have a disability or are in the 14-15 age group, on Island buses and on
the Island Line rail service. The concessions are without time limits for
people with disability, but are subject to 9am start on Mondays to Fridays for
other beneficiaries. Youth Mover is a scheme for full time students at High
School or College age. The principal benefit provided by Youth Mover is free
fares after 5pm – but it provides no relief from the cost of travelling at
school start and finish times. It is valid on local bus and rail services.
5.
All of the concessions outlined above are
discretionary except the provision of free fares after 9.30am for over 60’s and
people with disability on buses only.
6.
The Council now has the option, subject to available
budget, to provide concessionary fares schemes from 2006/07 that relax time
limits, include young people and are available for use on Island Line.
7.
It is proposed that Islander Card free fares be made
available at any time on any day on any registered Isle of Wight bus route or
on Island Line to people aged over 60 or with a disability. It is also proposed
that all Island resident students in
8.
The Government is seeking, via its Ten Year Integrated
Transport Plan, published in 2000, to increase the mode share of buses by 10%
across England and Wales. Island Futures, the Community Strategy, specifically
considers access and travel as key issues and the delivery of solutions that
will encourage people to use their car less are at the heart of the Council’s
Local Transport Plan.
9.
The Council has set targets in its Local Transport
Plan to increase use of buses on the Isle of Wight by 12.1% by 2010/11 in
comparison with 2003/04 levels.
10.
The contribution that affordable fares can make to
modal shift and therefore to increased public transport patronage are very
significant. The delivery of the statutory minimum free fares scheme, in
itself, will contribute considerably towards the Council achieving its bus
patronage target, but there is a key opportunity available now to provide
encouragement for even greater use of local public transport through extending
eligibility for concessionary fares to young people, or by the relaxation of
the hours of availability of concessions, or by extension of concessionary
fares availability to Island Line rail services.
CONSULTATION
11.
Consultation has been undertaken with local public
transport operators – Southern Vectis, Wightbus and Island Line - in respect of
scheme design and potential costs. The views of the local Bus Users Group, the
Isle of Wight Youth Council, the Quality Transport Partnership and the
Community Rail Partnership have also been considered in drafting scheme
proposals.
12.
The views of the consultees have been that the Council should
consider providing a series of discretionary extensions to the statutory
minimum free fare scheme, which extensions, and their cost implications, form
the key area for decision in this report.
FINANCIAL/BUDGET
IMPLICATIONS
13.
The Government has provided additional funding to
every English Council that has responsibility for delivering the mandatory free
fares scheme from 2006/07. This new funding has not been ring-fenced in our
settlement, and therefore the level of this additional funding is not
transparent. Our best estimate is that the additional amount allocated to the
Isle of Wight may be in the region of £850000. This new funding is to meet the
additional cost of reimbursing operators the difference between half fares and
free fares. The remainder of funding for concessionary fares is determined
locally. The Council has set budgets for concessionary fares schemes in total
for 2006-07 at £2,306,000.
14.
This budget envisages provision of and payment to
operators for concessionary fares schemes exceeding the statutory minimum in
line with the proposal set out in paragraph 7of this report. The level of
budget required to provide the free fare concessions is based on an assumed
growth in generated travel by over 60’s and people with disability of 35% over
current trips, whilst the level of budget required to pump prime the new 50
pence “Student Rider” scheme is fixed by prior agreement with participating operators.
LEGAL
IMPLICATIONS
15.
The Transport Act 1985 has required the Council to
provide a half-fares scheme for eligible people and has also empowered the
Council to provide additional discretionary benefits.
16. The Transport Act 2000, as amended, now
requires that the Council must, from 1 April 2006, provide a free fares scheme
for eligible people in accordance with the statutory minimum. The Council remains empowered in respect of
discretionary benefits.
OPTIONS
17.
Option 1 is to provide only the statutory minimum
scheme from 1 April 2006 as required by the legislation.
18.
Option 2 is to provide scheme enhancements to young
people and to older people within the available budget that will serve to
maximise the potential use of public transport by a wider group of eligible
people including students. For 2006/07
the scheme will include a flat-rate fare for young people set at 50 pence and
free travel for qualifying older people.
EVALUATION/RISK MANAGEMENT
19.
In terms of delivering one of the Council’s key aims,
that of increasing the use of public transport, then Option 2 will inevitably
deliver significantly increased ridership on bus and rail modes. Option 1 will
also deliver this but at a significantly lesser level.
20.
There are two principal risks involved in the
establishment of the concessionary fares schemes outlined above. The first is
that of failure to deliver even the statutory minimum scheme. Failure to do so
would likely both embarrass the Council and serve to make it liable to
financial penalty. This risk is not likely to occur since agreement has been
established with operators over reimbursement mechanisms and values and
administrative processes are already in place to deliver the schemes to
applicants. The second risk is that the budget may be insufficient if the
increased ridership is in excess of 35% based upon current levels by eligible
people. As this is the first year of a new scheme there is an inherent risk
both that the budget may be too much or too little. Accurate monthly data
collection by the Council from operators will enable the actual risk to be
assessed at a very early stage. Arrangements are in place to collect this data
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RECOMMENDATIONS
21. That
a specific delegation is given to the Head of Engineering Services to enter
into contractual agreements to deliver, within available budgets, a
concessionary fares scheme providing a flat-rate fare of 50 pence for young
people and free travel for qualifying older people.
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BACKGROUND
PAPERS
22.
Transport Act 2000 as modified to provide free bus
fares from 1 April 2006
APPENDICES
23.
None
Contact
Point : Andy Morris, Transport Manager.
Telephone 823780 e-mail [email protected]
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MR
STEPHEN MATTHEWS
Head
of Engineering Services
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COUNCILLOR
IAN WARD
Cabinet
Member for Environment, Transport and Planning
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