Bus Fare Cuts
The most popular bus fares in the west are being reduced in price for a two week trial
Five season ticket products sold by First Bristol, Somerset and Avon are to be reduced as part of a special two week trial promotion, running from 10 April - 23 April.
At the same time the company is also introducing three new tickets on a trial basis. The FirstDay Bristol zone 1, 2 & 3 ticket, the FirstWeek South West ticket and the FirstMonth South West ticket will all be available to buy between 10-23 April and will offer users significant savings on bus travel, allowing people to enjoy unlimited travel for, in some cases, less than the price of some current standard return fares.
Talking about the decision to run the promotion, Tony McNiff, Managing Director of First in Bristol, Somerset and Avon, says: "In recent months we've seen the price of fuel on the forecourts steadily increase and at the same time the first GBBN route to be completed has been officially launched. With this in mind there has never been a better time to try and encourage people to use public transport in our area, and so we are running these promotions to see what impact they have.
"We are taking some commercial risk in cutting these fares and introducing these new ones, but we want to try this to see what impact it will have. If these measures prove popular they may herald the way for further promotions, or permanent changes. We sincerely hope that people will see this as an opportunity to give the bus a go, finding out what it has to offer them. What many people find when they switch to the bus, from commuting by car for instance, is that it can be significantly less stressful than driving yourself as it offers the chance to read the paper or a book, catch up on sleep, or make important phone calls, while someone else takes care of the driving. In addition, for those wanting to save on petrol or parking costs using the bus is a real alternative.
"The introduction of the new FirstDay 1, 2 and 3 ticket, and the reduction in price of the existing FirstDay South West ticket also means that even those people who only use the bus occasionally will benefit. These tickets, along with our other day products, are ideal for those people who just want to use the bus every now and then; they allow users to hop on and off any First services in the relevant areas, offering real freedom and endless possibilities for travel within a zone."
The specifics of the promotion: Five existing tickets have been reduced for the trial period, while three new tickets have been introduced. The affected tickets are:
***NEW*** FirstDay Zones 1, 2 and 3: This is a new ticket which allows unlimited travel within the whole of the Bristol area (from Thornbury in the North to Portishead, Backwell and Pensford in the South). Costing £6 per day (adults) the ticket offers customers excellent value for money. It is cheaper than the standard return fare between, for instance, Coalpit Heath and Bristol City Centre or Portishead and Bristol City Centre, and enables the customer to use as many other First buses in the same zones as they like for no additional cost. It will be offered on a trial basis between 10 - 23 April.
***NEW*** FirstWeek South West: This ticket offers unlimited travel across the whole Bristol, Somerset and Avon network for one week (covering South Gloucestershire, Bristol, Bath, North Somerset and Somerset). Costing £24 (adults) the ticket allows bus users to enjoy unlimited bus travel between all the region's towns and cities for the equivalent of just £3.43 a day. This offers a significant saving on the standard walk on return fares between, for instance, Bristol and Bath, Bristol and Weston-super-Mare or Minehead and Taunton. It will be offered on a trial basis between 10 - 23 April.
***NEW***FirstMonth South West: The FirstMonth South West ticket offers unlimited travel across the whole Bristol, Somerset and Avon network for four consecutive weeks. Costing £96 (adults) the ticket allows users to travel as much, and as often as they like across the entire region, for the equivalent of just £3.20 a day. It will be offered on a trial basis between 10 - 23 April.
***REDUCED*** FirstDay South West:This ticket, which already exists, offers unlimited daily travel across the entire Bristol, Somerset and Avon network. The price has been cut from £8 peak and £7 off peak to just £6 anytime (adults). It will be offered at this price on a trial basis between 10 - 23 April.
***REDUCED***FirstWeek Bristol Zone 1 & 2: This ticket, which is one of the most popular sold by First Bristol, Somerset and Avon, offers unlimited travel in Bristol zones 1&2. It is ideal for regular commuters, who will, no doubt, be pleased to see their travel costs reduced by £3.50, to just £16 a week. During the promotional period customers can buy as many reduced price FirstWeek tickets as they wish, activating them as necessary even after the promotion has ended. It will be offered at the reduced price on a trial basis between 10 - 23 April.
***REDUCED***FirstMonth Bristol Zone 1&2:Like the FirstWeek Bristol zone 1&2 ticket, the FirstMonth Zone 1&2 ticket is a very popular product. During the promotional period the cost of this ticket is being reduced to £64, equivalent to £2.13 per day. Customers will be able to purchase as many FirstMonth tickets as they wish to during the promotional period, activating them as necessary even after the promotion has ended. It will be offered at the reduced price on a trial basis between 10 - 23 April.
***REDUCED***FirstWeek Bristol Zones 1, 2 and 3: The price of the FirstWeek Bristol Zones 1, 2 and 3 is being cut to just £20 (adults) a reduction of £7. This offers unlimited weekly travel within the entire Bristol area for the equivalent of just £2.86 a day. It will be offered at the reduced price on a trial basis between 10 - 23 April.
***REDUCED***FirstMonth Bristol Zones 1, 2 and 3: The price of the FirstMonth Bristol Zones 1, 2 and 3, is being slashed by £30 for the promotional period to just £80 (adults). This reduces the cost of daily travel to just £2.67 a day. It will be offered at the reduced price on a trial basis between 10 - 23 April.