Government told to ditch plans to withdraw free public transport for under-18s

Temporarily removing free travel from under-18s was a condition of the Government’s £1.6 billion bail-out for Transport for London
AFP via Getty Images

Pressure increased on the Government today to ditch plans to withdraw free bus and Tube travel from London children and teenagers.

A survey by London TravelWatch found concerns among pupils about personal safety, a loss of independence and increased travel costs for their families if the proposals were implemented.

Some said being forced to pay would limit their choice of college at which to take GCSEs and A-levels delayed by the coronavirus pandemic.

Temporarily removing free travel from under-18s – for an unknown period – to prioritise space for key workers was a condition of the Government’s £1.6 billion bail-out for Transport for London. However it has yet to be imposed after a stand-off between Mayor Sadiq Khan and Transport Secretary Grant Shapps.

One student told London TravelWatch: “Free transport is a protection against knife crime or being mugged.”

Another said: “A lot of parents will simply drive and that will be more polluting.”

Emma Gibson, director of London TravelWatch, said: ‘The testimonies from young people paint a powerful picture of the wide ranging impact on young Londoners who rely on free travel to get to school, visit relatives, explore the city and keep safe while they do so.”

An online petition set up by Lewisham schoolboy Joshua Brown-Smith, 14, calling for free bus travel to be safeguarded, has attracted more than 186,000 signatures.

London TravelWatch has written to all London MPs to urge them to ask the Prime Minister to think again about withdrawing free travel for young people.

It came as Labour shadow transport secretary Jim McMahon wrote to Mr Shapps to say: “Suspending free travel for young people, at a time when household finances are stretched more than ever and employment is precarious, hits those on low incomes hardest.”

He called for a public consultation on the proposals, “given that many families and young people will have made education and living choices based on the availability of free travel”.

Siobhan Benita, the Lib-Dem mayoral candidate, who recently met with London representatives from the UK Youth Parliament to hear their concerns, said: “I’ve heard from young people who are dropping career ambitions because they will no longer be able to afford to travel to the college of their choice to study a particular course.

“Grant Shapps needs to do the right thing and reverse this decision. In light of the many pressures that families and councils will be facing due to Covid-19, it is more important than ever that young people in London must be able to travel safely and affordably across the capital.”

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