Rail campaigners are celebrating after councillors voted to save discounted rail travel for older and disabled passengers in the Kingdom.
Campaigners had branded plans to scrap the concessionary scheme – which offers off peak travel for only a £1 – “utter madness”.
The scheme allows passengers who are over 60 or disabled to travel at the heavily discounted rate between Fife stations.
But members of Fife Council’s policy and coordination committee voted against a working group’s proposals to axe the policy in favour of more bus travel.
It was argued the rail discounts were mostly used to cut journey costs for Edinburgh day-trippers and was not delivering any benefit for the Fife economy.
Councillors will now have to find an additional £370,000 a year to finance subsidised bus and rail schemes.
Review to consider Levenmouth rail link
“It’s all very positive,” said Eugene Clarke, who chairs the Levenmouth Rail Campaign.
“I’m very, very happy with it.”
Councillors unanimously supported an amendment opposing a recommendation to scrap concessionary rail travel and plough the funding into the Fife Bus scheme instead.
Fife Bus is a door to door service for those unable to use conventional public transport because of mobility and other difficulties.
The council will keep concessionary rail travel, but the policy will be reviewed to ensure it better serves the whole region, including the link from Thornton to Leven, which is expected to be reinstated by 2023.
It will see passenger services return to the route for the first time since 1969.
Campaigners ‘very happy’
Mr Clarke said: “I understand there was a range of options which had been presented, and there hadn’t been a final decision, but welcome the fact the committee has agreed to continue the scheme for subsidised rail fares for the elderly, and also agreed to review the policy now the Levenmouth railway is coming on stream.
“One of the key features of the campaign over the years has been the unanimous political support we have had from councillors and MSPs from all parties. We’re delighted that the decision today has continued that.”
Additional funding now needed
Scrapping rail concessions in favour of Fife Bus was considered “in the knowledge that additional budget for passenger transport was not on the agenda”.
The council must now find additional funding to expand the Fife Bus project, which provides the door to door Ring and Ride service.
In addition to recurring funding of £370,000, the authority plans to use £240,000 of capital funding to add to the fleet of vehicles.
Funding options will be brought to the next policy and coordination committee.
Fife Bus is being extended following a decision last year to roll out Ring and Ride to all areas of Fife and phase out Dial-a-Ride, which operated from fixed destinations at fixed times.
Ring and Ride was said to give clients more choice over where and when they travel.
Fife Bus was previously criticised as a “postcode lottery”.
Unanimous decision
Councillors unanimously backed an amendment raised by Altany Craik, who is standing as a Labour candidate in the Holyrood election.
The amendment, seconded by SNP councillor John Beare, called for a review of the rail scheme so it “delivers more equitably for the residents of Fife”.
Mr Craik said it should take into account the new rail link to Leven and the “need to encourage passengers back onto the railway as part of our recovery from the pandemic”.
Concerns over lack of consultation
There was criticism from Lib Dem councillor Tim Brett that the plans had been revealed without public consultation.
However, this was challenged by senior transportation manager Derek Crowe.
Mr Crowe said : “I would suggest the old method was decide, announce, defend and abandon, and I think many members will recognise that approach.
“This new approach is engage, deliberate and decide. That’s actually the process that we have used here.
“The decision element of it has been decided by the working group but the engagement and the deliberation was through public engagement as well.
“We have a lot of input that’s available, that we can share with Councillor Brett, of public opinion that actually challenges the council spending money on concessionary rail travel.”
Scheme ‘used by Edinburgh day-trippers’
It had been argued that the scheme did little to boost the Fife economy.
Mr Crowe told the meeting that 60% of concessionary rail tickets purchased were Inverkeithing-bound, for forward travel to Edinburgh.
He said that most taking up the scheme were 60 to 69-year-olds travelling to the capital.