As well as the schools reforms being decided tonight at the Full Council Meeting, there is also the tricky subject of budgets and more pertinantly, the subsidies for the school rider.
As reported in last weeks County Press, student rider fares are set to double to £1, at a time when, as the CP states, the “50p Student Rider transport ticket is being held up as a national model”.
For a family with several kids, the difference between 50p fares and £1 can be make or break. We’ve heard stories of children from single parent families being able to rekindle relationships with absent parents who live on the opposite side of the Island, because of the student rider.
Is it really the case that students (and parents) will now have to pay the price for the shenanigans that the council and Southern Vectis went through over the OAP free bus pass?
We were saddened to read that PC Nick Massey apportion blame to the 50p rider fare when addressing Ryde Town Management Committee earlier in the month on the subject of underage drinking.
“MSN and Facebook are being used so people can meet and my personal opinion is that the 50p bus pass makes it easy to get together.”
Come on Nick, the 50p bus fare makes it easy for kids to get around the Island whatever they do – be that athletics club, horseriding, theatre groups, visit exhibitions and plenty of other positive things. To blame the underage drinking parties on the 50p fare is in our view, a pretty low blow.
All eyes will be on the council tonight as they make their decision.
We hope for everyone’s sake, that the council do the right thing and retain the student rider bus fare at 50p and find the shortfall from elsewhere.
