How do YOU use your bus pass?

Jenrai said:
No my pension age is currently 67, same as the age I can get a bus pass
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I am going to be picky .... the date/age YOU will get your pension is at 67 (same as me), but the current pensionable age is 66 (or lower). There is no one who is drawing a state old age pension now who had to wait to age 67 before they received it.

I thought Bus Pass entitlement was based on a set age, not on pension entitlement, but that is not the case within the UK as a whole on just checking...
www.gov.uk

Apply for an older person's bus pass

Some older people can get free travel on local buses - contact your council to check your eligibility and apply for a bus pass
www.gov.uk www.gov.uk
Wales = 60
Scotland = 60
London = 60 (only for travel within London)
ENGLAND (outside of London) = same as pensionable age.
So anyone who is 66 or younger will be able to get a bus pass currently, but sometime between 2025 and 2028 the entitlement age will change to 67.
(I am quite aware of these dates as my sister is 2 years 3 months older than me, but will get her pension 3 years 3 months before me. At least I have my "older persons" bus pass before her ;) )
 
There are variations to bus pass age David, if you are disabled you could get one sooner in Derbyshire. This may be more widespread I don’t know
 
Mine is the disabled one and it allows my "carer" to accompany me with no charge.

Here's my bus pass. The orange stripe denotes disabled & the +C top right means I can have someone with me.

1701429347541.png
 
There's a lovely site nr Corfe Castle, the bus passes the entrance, wonderful, get on with my pass and go to swanage, Bournemouth Studland, I'm not keen on wasting too much time on a buss though especially as they trot off around every minor village. At old Sodbury in glos I can go to Tetbury one direction and the wonderful city of Bath in the other, whats not to love about a bus pass.
 
BunnyB said:
There's a lovely site nr Corfe Castle, the bus passes the entrance, wonderful, get on with my pass and go to swanage, Bournemouth Studland, I'm not keen on wasting too much time on a buss though especially as they trot off around every minor village. At old Sodbury in glos I can go to Tetbury one direction and the wonderful city of Bath in the other, whats not to love about a bus pass.
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This is what I'd love to do in Scotland and Wales, dunno about NI or ROI.
 
wildebus said:
I am going to be picky .... the date/age YOU will get your pension is at 67 (same as me), but the current pensionable age is 66 (or lower). There is no one who is drawing a state old age pension now who had to wait to age 67 before they received it.

I thought Bus Pass entitlement was based on a set age, not on pension entitlement, but that is not the case within the UK as a whole on just checking...
www.gov.uk

Apply for an older person's bus pass

Some older people can get free travel on local buses - contact your council to check your eligibility and apply for a bus pass
www.gov.uk www.gov.uk
Wales = 60
Scotland = 60
London = 60 (only for travel within London)
ENGLAND (outside of London) = same as pensionable age.
So anyone who is 66 or younger will be able to get a bus pass currently, but sometime between 2025 and 2028 the entitlement age will change to 67.
(I am quite aware of these dates as my sister is 2 years 3 months older than me, but will get her pension 3 years 3 months before me. At least I have my "older persons" bus pass before her ;) )
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We seem to have gone around the houses on the bus. Yes people now can get the pension earlier but I was explicitly talking about myself.

Having checked both, I can start drawing my state pension on my 67th birthday. I am not entitled to claim my free bus pass until my 67th birthday.
 
nabsim said:
There are variations to bus pass age David, if you are disabled you could get one sooner in Derbyshire. This may be more widespread I don’t know
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yup, same as in Scotland, London and the rest. But the discussion has mainly been on the Older Person/Pensioner pass. The other passes are not that kind of pass.
For example in London at 60 you can get a free travel pass, but only good for London - so is not an Pensioner Pass. Once you get to pension age in London, you no longer have the 60+ Pass, but a "Freedom" pass that is Country (England) wide, plus the extra London Resident only features.
And if disabled, age is not a factor used in any way for any passes.
 
wildebus said:
yup, same as in Scotland, London and the rest. But the discussion has mainly been on the Older Person/Pensioner pass. The other passes are not that kind of pass.
For example in London at 60 you can get a free travel pass, but only good for London - so is not an Pensioner Pass. Once you get to pension age in London, you no longer have the 60+ Pass, but a "Freedom" pass that is Country (England) wide, plus the extra London Resident only features.
And if disabled, age is not a factor used in any way for any passes.
Click to expand...
I could get the Derbyshire gold card at 60 being disabled rather than the normal 65. May be because they combined the card with discounts as well as travel that this card was different.

Edit: just checked though and it looks like it has changed since I got mine ten years ago. Now says disabled any age
 
nabsim said:
I could get the Derbyshire gold card at 60 being disabled rather than the normal 65. May be because they combined the card with discounts as well as travel that this card was different.
Click to expand...

nabsim said:
Edit: just checked though and it looks like it has changed since I got mine ten years ago. Now says disabled any age
Click to expand...
It is not something I have looked into myself, but I wouldn't be surprised if changed due to discrimination laws/policies.
 
Pudsey Bear said:
If you have one of course.

I finally got around to getting mine, it arrived yesterday, no booklet or any info other than data protection stuff.

I went for the disabled one as Liz doesn't need one then.

I went onto the Metro website to get more info but not a lot on there other than basic how toos & not toos

Disabled + Companion Bus Pass

Free off-peak travel on local bus services* in West Yorkshire from 0930 to midnight, Monday to Friday and all day at weekends and on public holidays.

Free travel on local bus services throughout England between 0930 and 2300, Monday to Friday, and all day at weekends and on public holidays.

Half-fare, off-peak train travel within West Yorkshire. Off peak train travel is Monday to Friday after 0930 until 1600, then from 1830, and all day on weekends and public holidays. If you are travelling by train during the weekday evening peak - 1601 to 1829 - you will need to buy an Anytime Day Single or Anytime Day Return ticket.

Companion Passes
If you have a Companion Disabled or Blind Person’s Travel Pass, your companion is entitled to the same concessions when travelling with you on buses and trains within West Yorkshire. This includes local bus services when you travel within West Yorkshire, and for journeys which start in West Yorkshire. You can also use your companion pass to travel on return cross-boundary bus journeys to York, North Yorkshire, South Yorkshire the East Riding of Yorkshire, and Hull. For return bus travel to areas not listed, the companion will be required to pay the fare to return to West Yorkshire. For example, your companion can travel free between Leeds and Manchester, but will be required to pay for the return bus journey from Manchester to West Yorkshire.

Companions are not entitled to free bus travel for journeys made wholly outside West Yorkshire. This means, for example, your companion can travel free between Leeds and York, but not on local bus journeys within York.

Your companion does not need to be the same person for every journey, but your companion cannot use the pass when travelling without you. Your companion is not issued with a separate pass. A companion pass has an orange stripe down the right hand side of the pass with a blue +C symbol at the top right hand corner which tells the driver that you require a companion. Your companion CANNOT use your pass without you.
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My wife and I have had bus passes for many years now and use them frequently especially when away in the van to tour around the area we happen to be in, used them yesterday to go from home into Southampton where we live crap city by the way compared to other cities we have visited basically Southampton is just one huge shop, if you like shops come here if not do not bother we currently have a large Xmas market mainly German sheds selling expensive food and beershardly any relevance to xmmas at all, bus from hear takes us to Winchester super city great river and history, also a peoper Xmas market, then there is Salisbury, we drive there from home to the park and ride , one of which has overnight facilities for motorhomes, we take the O n R bus into the City free with bus pass and spend time there great river walks , history and the Cathedral, rip off to go in as they all are? Not religious at all so not interested in that but a beautiful building none the less also a proper Xmas market there too so long live the Bus Pass,
 
I use my bus pass very occasionally to get home when I take my van or car to the garage and have to leave it there for work to be done, although most times one of "the lads" will run me home. Then when it's ready, they either come and fetch me or drop it off - because whilst buses to town and back in the mornings are once an hour, in the afternoons they are pretty much non-existant.
Can't use it it locally as much as I might because it isn't valid in Wales and I live near the border.
I've used it a few times to visit nearby places whilst camping - Salisbury, Old Sodbury, Cambridge, Knaresborough, Devizes. (That's all I can recall in the 5 years I've had it).
Drew a blank on the local buses around Uttoxeter because they don't allow dogs on.
Whitby wasn't free on the PnR but I got a discount.

It's handy to have but I wouldn't miss it much.
 
Not on a bus pass though.

Sally Traffic an old facts member did it and made a blog.
 
As an long distance GB hiker - I have done all the National Trails and many others. The Bus pass is very useful and used. I have Citroen Berlingo micro camper and stealth camp not far from a bus stop, or at least know where one is. I then catch a bus in the morning and travel away so I have something like fifteen or so miles to walk back. I sometimes use the train similarly. It is easier to travel away and walk back than the other way round and have the anxiety about getting to a bus stop in time for a return trip. One day on the South West Coast Path my system didn't work so I got a Taxi back to my vehicle. I must have looked my age and tired as he didn't charge me what was on the meter.; pleased for the fare I guess. I have used taxis elsewhere to fit in with poor weather and pub meal times.
 
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