Greens praise Stagecoach

The Green Party in Exeter has welcomed the announcement by Stagecoach South West that it is to freeze many fares on city services, introduce simpler ticketing and extend some low cost fares. Green Party members have had several meetings with Stagecoach bosses in recent months, including one involving Green Party leader Natalie Bennett. Exeter Green Party members discussed ticketing and fares (http://www.exeterexpressandecho.co.uk/Exeter-Green-Party-Stagecoach-free...) with the bus company as well as the proposed cuts to bus services across the city and the rest of Devon (http://exeter.greenparty.org.uk/news/2015/03/23/bus-action/ )

Greens have particularly welcomed a freezing of the Dayrider ticket at £3.60 and price freezes to weekly, monthly and annual tickets as well as making the £1 child add-on fare available at any time, 7 days a week. They are also pleased to see the simplification of single tickets to just 3 prices: £1, £1.70 and £2.40.

Diana Moore, Green Party parliamentary candidate, said:
“This is welcome news and shows what Greens can achieve through discussion and negotiation. We are pleased Stagecoach South West seem open to ideas and have taken on board many of our requests. What we need now is for the travelling public to get on board. Exeter desperately needs more people to make the switch from car to bus to free up our roads from gridlock and improve the city’s appalling air quality. Good value tickets help enormously in encouraging people to hop on board.”

The Green Party say they pushed for a price freeze and the children’s £1 add-on ticket to be made available all day and hope this will now encourage parents who currently use the car to get their children to school by bus.
Green Party candidate Isaac Price-Sosner, who is hopeful of winning a City Council seat in St James on May 7th, said:
“If Greens can have this level of influence and achievement without any councillors, just think how much more we will be able to do to improve the quality of life for Exeter residents once we have councillors in place.”

Details of Stagecoach South West fare changes: https://www.stagecoachbus.com/Fare%20changes%20from%203rd%20May%202015.aspx