First West of England announces fare changes from 28th July

Adult and child fares across Bristol, Bath and Wells will be frozen*, while ticket prices in Weston-super-Mare will increase but still be the cheapest across the West of England region.

In addition, and to help improve punctuality by reducing the amount of time it takes customers to board, some tickets will also only be available through the First Bus app.

While the price of a single ticket will remain at £2 for adults and £1 for children, for travel anywhere in the region, the following changes will come into effect from 28^th July:

• A discounted 2-trip (return) fare across Bristol, Bath and Weston-super-Mare will only be available for customers using Tap On, Tap Off (TOTO), and in Weston that fare will increase by 40p to £3.80, bringing it in line with other parts of the region. Tickets purchased on-bus and through the First Bus app will cost £2 for each single journey.
• Some other fares in Weston town will rise, including an increase in the day ticket to £5, although this ticket remains £1 cheaper than in Bristol and Bath. Figures show that the majority of day ticket customers only use their ticket for two journeys, so they will find the best value by switching to the £3.80 return ticket.
• To help increase bus punctuality, weekly tickets will no longer be sold on the bus, but instead can be bought on the First Bus app or website, or customers can use TOTO and have the assurance of never paying more than the price of a week ticket for each 7 days of travel, regardless of the number of journeys.
• Weekly capping on TOTO will now be over a rolling week, with the 7-day window starting on any day.
• Local single tickets in Clevedon, Thornbury, Yate, Frome, Portishead and Nailsea will increase for the first time since their introduction in 2019, but the adult and student fares will continue to be the lowest in the region. A child ticket will cost £1 in line with the rest of the region.
• All student and young person (aged 16-21) tickets will receive a 10% discount, compared to up to 20% currently, with these tickets now only available through the First Bus app.

Rob Pymm, Commercial Director for First West of England, said: “We’re freezing the majority of fares while continuing to invest in improving our network, adding more buses and creating new routes, and also investing £50m in 98 new, zero emission electric buses that will be coming to Bristol and Weston-Super-Mare in 2025 as part of our commitment to have a zero emission fleet by 2035.

“Although fares are increasing in Weston-super-Mare, having been low for many years, they will remain the lowest in our region.

“The £2 singe fare for adults and £1 for children continue to be great value for money when fuel costs and the general cost of living remain high."

A full list of the new fares can be found on the First Bus website.