User group did not reply to fare hike consultation

A bus user group says it did not respond to a public consultation on bus fare price hikes in Guernsey.

It comes as Guernsey States said a consultation into plans to raise single fares from £1.50 to £1.60 and from £1 to £1.15 for Puffin Card users had no response.

Guernsey's Bus Users Group (BUG) co-ordinator Fergus Dunlop said the group did not formally respond to the consultation because it was focused on discussions on Stagecoach's takeover of the service later in 2025.

Mr Dunlop said the public consultation had no other replies because people were mostly satisfied with the service which had some of the cheapest fares in the British Isles.

He said: "For most people buses just need to be there like a water supply or any other utility and if it's working they will not give their precious time to the topic.

"BUG is not just about fares we are most interested in a reliable service, that is punctual and a timetable that people can actually use."

Responding to the consultation Adrian Gabriel, Vice President of the Environment and Infrastructure Committee, said the lack of public response and formal comment from BUG left him "pretty confident" the bus fare hike was an "uncontentious rise".

He added the cost of operating the bus service had risen "year-on-year" post pandemic, with fares helping to "offset some of that cost".

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