Should we take bus passes away from Perthshire youngsters?

Young people in Perthshire have now been benefiting from free bus travel for nearly three years.

The free bus travel scheme for 5-21 year olds was launched in January 2021.

Since then the Scottish Government estimates that around 170 million journeys have been made by young people using National Entitlement Cards.

But not everybody sees the scheme in a positive light.

Some bus users and local politicians across Scotland have claimed that the scheme is giving rise to an increase in anti-social behaviour.

And there have been suggestions that it should be scrapped.

Councillor Alasdair Bailey represents Scottish Labour in the Carse of Gowrie, which is an area that has faced bus cuts and disruption in recent months.

He believes the scheme should be extended to journeys on Scotland’s railways, with peak rail fares increasing in cost last month.

“A significant shortcoming of the scheme is the fact that it applies to long-distance coach but not train travel,” he says.

“It seems odd to me that when the Scottish Government tells us about financial constraint, it can find the money to subsidise inter-city coach travel.”

Should free bus passes be extended to rail travel?

Councillor Bailey continues: “And as a direct competitor to its own publicly-owned trains on many corridors.

“Giving young people a more meaningful discount on the trains could fill empty seats there that are already heavily subsidised by the taxpayer.”

However, Councillor Bailey acknowledges that the SNP government’s bus passes have had a positive effect.

“The free bus travel for under 22’s has been a fantastic thing for both the young people and the parents in my ward”, he adds.

“Bus timetable woes aside, it means that young people can get about without relying on their parents’ cars.

“It will also hopefully lead to a generation of people who once again see the bus as a normal means of travel.

“And that has to be good for our climate change and congestion reduction goals.”

In January 2023 the manager of the Overgate Shopping Centre in Dundee told The Courier that free bus passes had been partly to blame for a spree of vandalism in the city centre. 

But these issues have become less prominent in recent months.

‘Under 22’s are polite and considerate’

Drew Smart is the chairman of the Glenfarg Community Transport Group and a volunteer bus driver.

The group has reinstated bus travel to the small Perthshire village, connecting it to Perth, Kinross and Tillicoultry.

A recent trip on the regular 55 service shows that it is popular amongst youngsters.

One told me that it had made it much easier for her to visit her friends in Kinross.

“Most of our fares come from concessions and the under 22’s in particular”, he says.

“We find that the under 22’s are very polite and considerate when it comes to using the bus.

“And we have no anti-social behaviour on the buses from young folk.

“It gets a lot of bad press in some areas that young folk get on the bus in big crowds.

“It’s because they realise that they can now get down to Kinross to see their pals and come back on a bus after school because of their bus pass.

“They appreciate being able to use that.

“It would be a huge blow to us if that was ever withdrawn because we get a lot of fares from young people using the bus.”

Transport Scotland: Anti-social behaviour ‘simply not acceptable’

The Scottish Government sees the scheme as a “transformational policy” that supports its aim to prevent child poverty.

A Transport Scotland spokesperson said: “The vast majority of passengers travelling under the National Concessionary Travel Schemes behave appropriately.

“However, there is a minority of people, of all ages, who abuse their entitlement, including to commit offences.

“This can result in serious harm to bus employees and passengers. It is simply not acceptable.

“Transport Scotland is working with operators and stakeholders to develop further sanctions and preventative measures including the temporary suspension of concessionary cards.

“The concessionary travel schemes extends to bus as this is the most widely used form of public transport.

“Students aged 16-25 can benefit from almost a third off most train fares with a National Rail Card. 

“We’re committed to ensuring as many people as possible can benefit from affordable, available and accessible public transport.”