Mayor urges Burnham to keep bus fare cap

The Mayor for Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, Paul Bristow, has urged Andy Burnham to keep the national bus fare cap, if he becomes the next Prime Minister.

He says that without the cap, currently set at £3 per journey, they will be unlikely to continue with the county's Tiger Pass, which allows under-25s to travel for £1 per journey.

Speaking to Chris Mann on BBC Radio Cambridgeshire, Bristow said he also hoped Burnham would devolve more powers to mayors.

He added that the former Mayor of Greater Manchester "seems to be a fan of the bus fare cap so let's hope he keeps it if he becomes prime minister".

The Tiger Pass was introduced in 2024 by the former Labour Mayor, Nik Johnson.

Bristow, who won the mayoralty for the Conservatives last year, pledged to keep it but said there was no long term funding for it.

He said the retention of the national bus fare cap was essential to the future of the Tiger Pass.

The combined authority subsidises the difference between the £1 fare paid by the passenger and the national bus fare cap, currently £3.

"As the numbers of people using our buses has soared that £2 subsidy has become increasingly expensive," Bristow said.

"We will struggle to offer the Tiger Pass at £1 if the government removes the national bus fare cap.

"As long as the government keeps the bus fare cap we will keep the Tiger Pass."

Whilst mayor of Greater Manchester, Burnham kept the bus fare cap at £2 per journey when the national cap rose to £3.

Bristow and Burnham have worked closely together this year as part of the Cambridge x Manchester Innovation Partnership.

Bristow has also visited Manchester to see how different forms of mass transport could work.

He is exploring the option of light rail around Cambridge and has previously said Greater Manchester have been "sharing knowledge" of their Metrolink service.

During the hour-long interview on BBC Radio Cambridgeshire, Bristow said he hoped Burnham would devolve more powers to mayors, something he says they have both been calling for.

"We've been aligned on pushing this devolution agenda ever since I became mayor and I think it would be quite wrong for him to row back on that," he added.

"I fully expect him to lean into this devolution agenda to give more powers to mayors."

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