Bristol area bus passengers to get free travel in birthday month

West of England Metro Mayor revealed the plan at the Lawrence Hill bus depot in Bristol

People living in Bristol and the surrounding area are to get free bus travel during the month of their birthday.

The new £8m plan, which will see eligible people given bus passes, starts in July.

The scheme is part of plans to get more people using public transport.

West of England metro mayor Dan Norris said if more people chose bus travel it could help cut congestion, pollution and tackle climate change.

Anybody living in Bristol, Bath, South Gloucestershire and North East Somerset can apply for the Birthday Bus Pass, although they will have to supply proof of living in the area.

The scheme will be rolled out from 1 July and will run until 30 June 2024.

The 12-month scheme could be extended if it is successful

The birthday buses plan, announced by the West of England Combined Authority (WECA) earlier, aims to give people enough time to get in the habit of using buses more often, as well as help commuters struggling with rising fuel costs and inflation.

Mr Norris said: "We've got a cost-of-living crisis which is very tough for lots of people, they're genuinely frightened, so I want to help with that by reducing the cost of travelling by bus.

"Also we've got a climate emergency, and that is clearly critical and getting worse if the latest figures are right, so we need to get people on public transport and out of their cars," he added.

Dan Norris said he hoped the free passes will encourage more people to opt for bus travel

"We've got a load of congestion in our region which costs our regional economy £300 million a year, and we have 300 people every year dying prematurely because of air pollution," Mr Norris continued.

"This initiative is giving residents of the West of England free bus travel for the whole of the month of their birthday. And it's a UK first. There have been other initiatives but not like this one."

Applications for the pass can be made online on the "Birthday Bus" website - which is not yet live - and a pass card will be sent out in the post.

All the biggest bus operators in the area, including First and Stagecoach, have signed up to the scheme.