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Since its launch on 1 August 2023, over 19,800 people across the West of England and North Somerset area have signed up to receive their free birthday bus month pass with nearly 42,000 journeys made last month alone.
Residents with upcoming birthdays can apply for free birthday bus month travel from now until 31 July 2024 and travel for free across the entire West of England and North Somerset area on participating buses including WESTlink.
It’s a simple application process. Fill in a form online at www.birthdaybus.co.uk, attach a photo and then wait for your birthday card to arrive ready to use in time for your birthday month.
Annabel Hall, mother of two, has enjoyed using her free birthday bus pass all during August.
Annabel said: “I got my free bus pass for August; it was super quick and easy to apply for and it came really quickly. I took my two children on a bus adventure last Tuesday. We got on the bus from Grandma’s house in Little Stoke and went to the end of the route to Severn Beach. We had lunch and played in the park then got the bus home. We did another bus adventure the following week and went on a different route. My three-year-old loves going on the bus and my one-year-old slept both ways of the journey so winning all round!”
Leader of North Somerset Council, Mike Bell said: “The birthday bus offer is a great initiative where all residents in North Somerset and the West of England area can receive free bus travel during the entire month of their birthday. It’s a great way to explore your local area and beyond, save valuable pennies in these cost of living times and bus travel is also better for the environment than using a car. We received over £105 million from the Department for Transport to improve bus services by 2025 and we’re working hard through our bus service improvement plan to ensure buses are faster, coordinated and the first choice over using the car.”
September also marks Catch the Bus Month across the UK. Get on board to celebrate the social and environmental benefits of our bus network. Share new places you’ve visited using your birthday bus travel card on social media using #BirthdayBus.
Working in partnership, North Somerset Council and the West of England Combined Authority want to encourage everyone to ‘walk or wheel’ where possible, helping reach their carbon neutral goal by 2030. When that’s not possible, they want bus travel to be the first choice over car usage. Helping ease traffic congestion and a greener way to travel.
The birthday bus fare offer is funded by the UK government and supported by the West of England Combined Authority, North Somerset Council, Mayor Dan Norris and Travelwest.
For more information about North Somerset Council’s Bus Service Improvement Plan, visit www.n-somerset.gov.uk/bsip.
