Somerset Council this week announced revised bus fares for the Taunton Town Zone which are staying low to ensure bus use keeps growing in popularity.

Since the introduction of the Government-funded £1 fare 18 months ago there has been a nearly 30 per cent rise in bus use in Taunton and the Council wants to keep supporting this.

Following a recent Council review into fares and revenue it was clear a slight increase was needed to keep services in Taunton sustainable. From 1 June this will be £1.50 for any adult single fare and 80p for a child. The new fares will be reviewed at the end of this year.

Across the county the cost for any single fare stays at £2 until December 2024, part of the national Government-funded initiative.

The fare for the Park and Ride service in Taunton remains £1 for a single fare.

Somerset Council’s Lead Member for Transport and Digital, Councillor Richard Wilkins said:

The Council has been able to use ring-fenced funding from the Government’s Bus Service Improvement Plan grant to subsidise capped fares but this money only goes so far.

However, despite growing financial demands and the need to support other bus services we are pleased to still be able to offer significantly capped fares for Taunton.

The new fare is still less than half the cost of a single journey five years ago.”

Somerset’s Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP) aims to make bus travel more attractive by working with operators to ensure reliable and affordable bus services.

The Council received nearly £13 million in funding from Government after submitting an ambitious bid through its BSIP in 2021.
As well as capping fares money has helped support vital bus services in the county, funded evening bus services, and could help fund a range of other proposals to improve reliability such as bus lanes.