Devon & Cornwall

Fare Review, Devon and Cornwall

First Devon and Cornwall is revising some bus fares across Devon and Cornwall effective as of Sunday 25 October.

As a result some single fares across the network will rise by five pence while return fares will be increased by ten pence. In addition the price of some season tickets such as the FirstDay, FirstWeek and FirstMonth will also change.

Single and return bus fares on the Plymouth UGOBUS routes, and all season ticket products in the city are unaffected by the changes (with the exception of the FirstDay Plymouth Child ticket which will increase by 20 pence to £2.40). Similarly, FirstDay and FirstWeek tickets in North Devon are unchanged.

The decision to review fares was not taken lightly. Marc Reddy, Managing Director of First Devon and Cornwall, says: "We know that nobody likes it when prices go up and we offer our sympathy to those customers who are struggling in the face of the recession, but unfortunately we have no option but to review our fares at this time. Like other businesses in the UK, the tightening economy has forced us to look closely at our operating costs. We have made a number of efficiency savings across our operations, but in order to ensure the long term sustainability of our services we must increase fares on our commercial routes. We have kept increases as small as possible.

"We still believe that our season tickets offer customers excellent value for money, allowing significant savings on standard walk on fares and unlimited bus travel for as little as £1.44 per day in Plymouth, £1.28 per day in North Devon or £2.90 across the whole of Devon and Cornwall.

"In the past year we have invested £4.3 million in new vehicles for Devon and Cornwall, including £2.2 million in Plymouth alone, and in the coming years we need to replace a further 68 vehicles at a cost of more than £7 million to ensure that we are compliant with the Disability Discrimination Act (which demands all buses must be low floor, easily accessible by 2015)*.'

Note: From 25 October bus users in North Devon will see their fares on Service 1/2 (Westward Ho! " Barnstaple via Via Northam, Bideford, Instow, Fremington and Bickington) cut as First Devon and Cornwall introduces a special More for Less ticket. The company has cut fares to as little as 50 pence for some journeys, and has also developed a special buy one get one free offer on a cup of coffee for customers too " perfect to help people keep warm while they wait for their bus! Customers should see local publicity or ask their driver for more information about the More for Less deal in North Devon.


*Investment in buses: the replacement of vehicles in the Devon and Cornwall fleet will be done on gradual basis over a number of years.