The North East Joint Transport Committee (JTC) agreed on Tuesday that these new prices will start from May. The price reductions include under-22s will only have to pay £1 for any bus journey made across Tyne and Wear, Northumberland, and County Durham. Similarly, for young Pop card users on the metro, ticket prices will be cut from May 7.
The under-22s £1 fare was a priority for the JTC as it helps young people to commute to work and school, and follows a report from JTC that the bus fares in the North East are often “higher and more confusing…than other parts of the UK”.
Richard Wearmouth, the deputy leader of Northumberland City Council said, “This is going to help people do several things. Firstly, to get around in an effective manner. Secondly, for people who are just becoming a bit more mobile in their early life this will get them to embrace using the bus and hopefully other public transport as a way of getting around.”
Another North East voice in favour of the price reductions was Gateshead Council leader Martin Gannon, who also chairs the JTC: “The secret to success for public transport is that it has to be clean, reliable, and affordable. This is a major step forward in making it affordable for this generation.”