Trains and buses in thebUK
#1
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Trains and buses in thebUK
Someone from Scotlsnd told me recently that both buses and trains are free for senior citizens (over 60 I assume) in Scotlsnd but that in Englanf only the buses are free to them, not the trains. Is this true?
Also where do I buy a pass to get on the buses in England - and Scotland for that matter.
Also where do I buy a pass to get on the buses in England - and Scotland for that matter.
#2
Re: Trains and buses in thebUK
In London the buses and tube trains are free for me and I also get discounts on overhead trains out of London. I would think it all depends on the area you live in.
#3
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Re: Trains and buses in thebUK
https://www.gov.uk/apply-for-elderly-person-bus-pass
My mum lives in N. Ireland and gets free bus & train travel throughout the entire island of Ireland.
My mum lives in N. Ireland and gets free bus & train travel throughout the entire island of Ireland.
#5
Re: Trains and buses in thebUK
Someone from Scotlsnd told me recently that both buses and trains are free for senior citizens (over 60 I assume) in Scotlsnd but that in Englanf only the buses are free to them, not the trains. Is this true?
Also where do I buy a pass to get on the buses in England - and Scotland for that matter.
Also where do I buy a pass to get on the buses in England - and Scotland for that matter.
where in the UK are you moving back to?
Reason for the question is, living in England or Wales buses are free on the same concessionary pass.
Scotland passes are not usable in England or Wales & same the other way round
For local rail travel, generally only within the local municipality region of the area you live within.
#6
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Re: Trains and buses in thebUK
In England, bus passes are issued by (typically County) councils so that is where you apply but only once they have you on their books for the tax.
There is no charge.
They are issued for off-peak travel which means you cannot board until after 9:30 am on weekdays but if you must travel earlier you can pay the fare to the point where the bus is (scheduled to be) at 9:30 am and then go back and say hello to the driver again and he'll issue you the concessionary (NIL) fare ticket or just scan your pass.
I would say that the passes are valid for a number of years and it does not seem to be a proviso that you must at all times be paying that council tax, once you are IN. We have only been paying it during the winter (6 months), up to now, and will be again this winter. as the rest of the time we have been in holiday lets (so the landlord has been paying the tax in some form) or now here in France, with no other accommodation being paid for.
BTW, in England the bus passes are issued once you reach the current state pension age for women no matter which sex you are.
Last edited by Pistolpete2; Jul 9th 2015 at 5:53 am.
#7
Re: Trains and buses in thebUK
Around here you have to pay for rail but if you have a seniors rail card (which you pay for) you do get a discount each trip. Bus pass gives you free bus travel on local services but you need a separate Seniors bus pass for National Express.
#8
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Re: Trains and buses in thebUK
The National Express Senior Coach Card costs just ten pounds a year and you get 1/3rd off the regular fares - available at age 60.
#9
Re: Trains and buses in thebUK
You're firing all of these links off but not addressing the key item which governs your ability to gain a free bus pass which is the payment of council tax. Londoners pay more so they get more in the Freedom Pass. The first link I looked at (Age Uk) didn't even mention this specifically.
In England, bus passes are issued by (typically County) councils so that is where you apply but only once they have you on their books for the tax.
There is no charge.
They are issued for off-peak travel which means you cannot board until after 9:30 am on weekdays but if you must travel earlier you can pay the fare to the point where the bus is (scheduled to be) at 9:30 am and then go back and say hello to the driver again and he'll issue you the concessionary (NIL) fare ticket or just scan your pass.
I would say that the passes are valid for a number of years and it does not seem to be a proviso that you must at all times be paying that council tax, once you are IN. We have only been paying it during the winter (6 months), up to now, and will be again this winter. as the rest of the time we have been in holiday lets (so the landlord has been paying the tax in some form) or now here in France, with no other accommodation being paid for.
BTW, in England the bus passes are issued once you reach the current state pension age for women no matter which sex you are.
In England, bus passes are issued by (typically County) councils so that is where you apply but only once they have you on their books for the tax.
There is no charge.
They are issued for off-peak travel which means you cannot board until after 9:30 am on weekdays but if you must travel earlier you can pay the fare to the point where the bus is (scheduled to be) at 9:30 am and then go back and say hello to the driver again and he'll issue you the concessionary (NIL) fare ticket or just scan your pass.
I would say that the passes are valid for a number of years and it does not seem to be a proviso that you must at all times be paying that council tax, once you are IN. We have only been paying it during the winter (6 months), up to now, and will be again this winter. as the rest of the time we have been in holiday lets (so the landlord has been paying the tax in some form) or now here in France, with no other accommodation being paid for.
BTW, in England the bus passes are issued once you reach the current state pension age for women no matter which sex you are.
Not2Old's links are good. Nothing I can add.
Except that... In England, what determines whether you get a bus pass or not is quite simple -- you have to be over the state retirement age for women (even if you are a man). You apply to your local authority, and the pass you get entitles you to free travel on any local bus service in England. I've just been using my Devon pass in Sussex. London is slightly different: you can apply for the pass at 60, and covers Londoners for all public transport within London.
Last edited by Editha; Jul 9th 2015 at 7:07 am. Reason: Ps
#10
Re: Trains and buses in thebUK
The reason Age UK doesn't mention council tax as a qualifier for a bus pass is because you are wrong and it isn't.
Not2Old's links are good. Nothing I can add.
Except that... In England, what determines whether you get a bus pass or not is quite simple -- you have to be over the state retirement age for women (even if you are a man). You apply to your local authority, and the pass you get entitles you to free travel on any local bus service in England. I've just been using my Devon pass in Sussex. London is slightly different: you can apply for the pass at 60, and covers Londoners for all public transport within London.
Not2Old's links are good. Nothing I can add.
Except that... In England, what determines whether you get a bus pass or not is quite simple -- you have to be over the state retirement age for women (even if you are a man). You apply to your local authority, and the pass you get entitles you to free travel on any local bus service in England. I've just been using my Devon pass in Sussex. London is slightly different: you can apply for the pass at 60, and covers Londoners for all public transport within London.
<'Off-peak' is between 9.30am and 11pm Monday to Friday and all day at weekends and on public holidays. Local authorities may offer further benefits to their residents, such as free travel outside off-peak times or reduced tram or rail travel. However, these will apply only for travel in the local area, not elsewhere in England.>
From concession cards web site.
#11
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Re: Trains and buses in thebUK
Please note that the bus pass gives free travel from 9:30 am weekdays, but all day Saturdays and Sundays and bank holidays. Some councils do not have the 9:30 cut off and you can use their passes any time, Lincoln certainly did as does East Dorset, so there may well be more. All English bus passes can be used anywhere in England, subject to local rules, so coming from an area that has no restrictions you would need to check with the local transport people to see what the times are.
<'Off-peak' is between 9.30am and 11pm Monday to Friday and all day at weekends and on public holidays. Local authorities may offer further benefits to their residents, such as free travel outside off-peak times or reduced tram or rail travel. However, these will apply only for travel in the local area, not elsewhere in England.>
From concession cards web site.
<'Off-peak' is between 9.30am and 11pm Monday to Friday and all day at weekends and on public holidays. Local authorities may offer further benefits to their residents, such as free travel outside off-peak times or reduced tram or rail travel. However, these will apply only for travel in the local area, not elsewhere in England.>
From concession cards web site.
#12
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Re: Trains and buses in thebUK
In Norfolk, the 9:30am restriction applies in general, but does not apply on specified infrequent rural routes. These are generally routes with only one or two viable round trips a day, presumably where the only way of getting to town and back on the same day is to take a bus from home before 9:30.
#14
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Re: Trains and buses in thebUK
The reason Age UK doesn't mention council tax as a qualifier for a bus pass is because you are wrong and it isn't.
Not2Old's links are good. Nothing I can add.
Except that... In England, what determines whether you get a bus pass or not is quite simple -- you have to be over the state retirement age for women (even if you are a man). You apply to your local authority, and the pass you get entitles you to free travel on any local bus service in England. I've just been using my Devon pass in Sussex. London is slightly different: you can apply for the pass at 60, and covers Londoners for all public transport within London.
Not2Old's links are good. Nothing I can add.
Except that... In England, what determines whether you get a bus pass or not is quite simple -- you have to be over the state retirement age for women (even if you are a man). You apply to your local authority, and the pass you get entitles you to free travel on any local bus service in England. I've just been using my Devon pass in Sussex. London is slightly different: you can apply for the pass at 60, and covers Londoners for all public transport within London.
Our local council came after us under that (sole or main residence) definition - for those interested in living permanently in campervans - in spite of the fact that we were only living in a property on a purely temporary basis and council tax or a business rate was already being paid.
We just gave the address to use for short-term correspondence purposes for a refund on overpayment from a previous. Our explanation of temporary proved to be satisfactory. Any council worth their salt (looks like Dorset is one) would be checking that an application for a bus pass aligns with other documentation to show that they are getting their pound of flesh, where entitled.
All of this in exactly the same way that in general being ordinarily resident in the UK gives rise to Income Tax - if you are at that income level and being ordinarily resident is a key component of being entitled to NHS hospital treatment. Of course it is more straight-forward here in that a pass is issued by the same authority that charges you council tax.
Bottom line - Anybody can say they have a residence in the UK for one reason or another to gain some sort of benefit but ultimately the system is or should be there to check you against the rules, hence my back-handed proviso which puts some onus on the applicant rather than there being an implication that authorities just churn these passes out once you reach a certain age.
Last edited by Pistolpete2; Jul 10th 2015 at 7:23 am.
#15
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Re: Trains and buses in thebUK
In Norfolk, the preferred method of applying for the senior bus pass is online. However, that involved uploading a photo and, with only an iPad available, I was unable to adequately crop and manipulate the photo on the county council application utility.
So I asked them to send me the snail mail application form, and that's the way I applied, supporting the application with photocopy of my passport, photocard driving licence and photo. Interesting to note though that the online application had intricate follow up questions if you'd lived at your current address for less than a year. On the paper application, you simply filled in your address and that was it.
So I asked them to send me the snail mail application form, and that's the way I applied, supporting the application with photocopy of my passport, photocard driving licence and photo. Interesting to note though that the online application had intricate follow up questions if you'd lived at your current address for less than a year. On the paper application, you simply filled in your address and that was it.