Rail And Bus Fares To Increase By 3%

Fares for a number of bus and rail routes across Northern Ireland are set to rise.

Translink have announced that they intend to introduce a fare increase which will mean an average rise of 3% "across the organisation".

The transport provider are blaming the hike in motoring and fuel costs as the reason for the move.

A spokesperson for Translink said:"Having kept fares low despite increased fuel costs over the last two years, changes now have to be made to the cost of a number of Metro, railway and Ulsterbus services."

"This is unfortunately necessary as many of our costs are rising sharply - but we have kept it as low as possible and below inflation," he said.

"We have held all our fares for almost two years despite the rising fuel costs and we know our customers really appreciated this fares freeze in these tough economic times.

"More and more people are already using our great everyday value tickets and offers for bus and train travel particularly as fuel and motoring costs have continued to rise."

Metro City Zone fares are up 10p to £1.80, while Extended Zone prices also rise by 10p to £2.10.

Weekly travel cards go up 3.4% to £15 and monthly travel cards increase by 3.5% to £59.

The three lowest fare bands for Ulsterbus services are each going up by 10p, while the maximum single fare will be increased from £10.50 to £11 - up 4.8%. The maximum day return fare rise by 3.1%, from £16 to £16.50.

Minimum rail fares also go up by 10p, with the maximum single fare increased from £10.50 to £11 and the maximum day return fare up from £16 to £16.50. Weekly rail tickets will rise from a maximum of £55 to £57 and monthly fares from a maximum of £195 to £200.

(LB)