£10 annual bus fee call by pensioners

Senior citizens in Shropshire who claim the cost of buses is too expensive have called for elderly people to be allowed to pay a one-off £10 payment each year to cover all their fares.

Members of the Whitchurch, Wem and District Senior Citizens Forum want to see bus fares lowered after claiming the rise in travel costs is hitting people hard in their pockets.

They are planning to write to Shropshire Council asking for elderly people to be allowed to make a one-off payment of £10 a year to allow them to use buses throughout the day alongside their normal bus pass, including before 9.30am.

They claim a similar scheme in North Yorkshire has proved very successful and are urging the unitary authority to take the proposal seriously. If successful they hope the scheme will be rolled out across the county.

The proposal was made at a meeting of the forum last week in Whitchurch Senior Club. Forum chairman Bet-ty Bateman said it "was well supported at the forum and will be officially proposed to Shropshire Council."

Jonathan Hayes, principal transport officer for Shropshire Council, said the suggestions would be considered.

Other issues at the meeting included the closure of the 16-bed Beech Ward at Whitchurch Hospital. The last of its kind in the county, the Beech Ward caters for elderly mentally ill patients.