More on KentOnline
More on KentOnline
Getting a bus to and from school faces being more expensive than ever before.
Kent County Council announced earlier this year that it was increasing the cost of a Young Person's Travel Pass by £60.
Parents had been forking out £290 a year for the pass for secondary school children aged 11 to 16. But that charge is now to rise by an inflation busting 21% to £350.
Kent County Council has said the rise will save it £800,000 a year in subsidy. But the increase has led to more than 8,000 parents now signing a petition, which points out that the pass cost £150 just four years ago.
The petition which is addressed to Greg Glark (Tunbridge Wells MP), Tom Tugendhat (Tonbridge and Malling MP) and Kent County Council leader Paul Carter reads: "The last time the increase was made KCC said it was due to bus services increasing their prices.
"However, Arriva said they had not increased their costs to KCC and it was a wholly KCC lead initiative.
"KCC are punishing parents who (by law) have to send their children to school.
"This new fee of £350 would be impossible for some parents to pay, but many have no choice.
"There are other ways that KCC could find £800,000 per year. But they are targeting the most vulnerable citizens in society. Children."
At the time the hike was revealed, KCC cabinet member for transport Cllr Mike Whiting (Con) said: “I am happy that we have managed to continue to give parents this vital assistance by funding half the cost of bus travel for the whole year.
“For about 30,000 youngsters across the county who take advantage of the scheme, it remains the most generous of its kind outside of London.
“The money we put in means we share the fare with you, plus you can travel an unlimited amount on Arriva and Stagecoach buses in the county."
At the beginning of August pupils in Canterbury staged a protest at what they called the 'extortionate' bus fare fees.
With annual passes now seven times more expensive than they were nine years ago, students took their protest to the city's streets having formed a campaign group called Bus4us.
The group was launched by pupils from Simon Langton, Barton Court and The Whitstable School as part of their National Citizen Service (NCS) programme.
Amy Stretch, 16, gets the bus to Simon Langton every day from her home in Upstreet along with younger brother Sam - costing her parents £750 in total.
“It’s £400 for me this year and £350 for my brother - £750 in total for my parents,” she said.
“My older siblings only had to pay £50 for the Freedom Pass when they were younger. For all five of them together, when they were 16, it was less than it is for just my brother alone now.
“I know some people might say, ‘just go to your local school, and walk’. But my closest is Spires, and that’s not the best school for me - Simon Langton is, and I need to get a bus to get here."
Fellow Bus4us founder Melody Bond says the prices are “especially unfair” on families with many children.
Currently, parents must pay for up to two KCC Travel Savers, but any in excess of this are free.
“However this system does not account for children with an age gap,” said Melody. “This scheme is not applicable to households that require both the 11-15 age pass and the 16+ age pass.
“An ideal solution would be to interconnect the two passes and implement further benefits, such as a second child for half price."
Their campaign has received the backing of MP Rosie Duffield, who says bus travel costs are “unreasonably high”.
“It is absurd that parents are having to bear the brunt of costs just to send their children to school,” she said.
Kent County Council said the passes are provided on a discretionary basis and the scheme is “one of the most generous of its kind in the UK”.
A spokesman said: “Although the council remains committed to supporting parents in this way, in recent years, the pressure on local authority budgets has increased, as central government has reduced funding to local authorities by over 40%.
"Kent County Council has had to “significantly reduce” spending as central government has cut funding to local authorities by 40% in recent years.
“Although the council is aware that any increase to cost will be unpopular and represent a challenge to many families, it is vital that we ensure the scheme is established with affordable levels of council subsidy if it is to continue.”
The cost for low income households is £100 per pass, while children in care, care leavers, and young carers are given them for free.
The 16+ Travel Card is different. Bus passengers over the age of 16 attract reimbursement from operators at adult fare rates and as such the costs to the council are greater.
Odessa and Roman catch the same bus to school each morning from their home in Littlebourne.
Odessa, 13, gets out at Simon Langton Girls' Grammar in Canterbury - one stop before her older brother, who hops off at St Anselm's Catholic School.
Yet despite the schools being just a stone's throw away from one another on the Old Dover Road, their mum Natasha Pearl is forced to fork out £350 for a KCC Travel Pass for Odessa, while Roman travels for free.
Making the matter more frustrating for the family, the children's school bus passes by Simon Langton on its way to St Anselm's.
"The schools sit side-by-side, with parts of their grounds touching," said Ms Pearl. "But because of the way the distance is measured, St Anselm's is our 'nearest school'.
