Isle of Man bus fare cap fails to attract more passengers

The £2 cap on bus fares ran until 31 March

A £2 cap on bus fares on the Isle of Man did not boost overall passenger numbers, the infrastructure minister has said.

The trial, which ended at the weekend, was in place for five months.

Chris Thomas said although the cap had been successful and benefitted people struggling with the cost of living, it did not attract more customers.

The estimated revenue reduction was at least £50,000 per month during the trial, he added.

Originally introduced as a three-month trial on 1 November, the scheme was extended by a further two months.

The bus fare cap was one of a series of measures rolled out by the Manx government to help people with soaring living costs.

Lost revenue

Mr Thomas was quizzed in the House of Keys over why the cap had not been extended to the summer months, when there was the potential for families to use the buses more.

He said a second extension had been considered but had been rejected as overall passenger numbers had not increased during the trial.

The cap was designed to help local residents, not holidaymakers, who tend to increase the number of bus users in summer, he said.

He added: "Unfortunately, there wasn't a substantial, or even any really, change to bus use during the five months of the winter.

"The net result is the bus service lost revenue of £250,000 at least during this five month trial."

Mr Thomas said the ongoing bus review would aim for better routes and reliable services, and that may encourage more passengers in the future.