John Swinney has promised a cap on bus fares if the SNP wins the Scottish Election next month.
The First Minister said bus fares are too high.
Launching the SNP election manifesto, Swinney said the SNP would take action to help people with the cost of living and is targeting travel costs and food prices.
Swinney, speaking at the Barras Art and Design (BAaD) venue, he laid out the plan.
He said: “People need to be able to afford to get to their work, to go out and see friends.
“The cost of travelling from Hamilton, for example, to get here today by bus would cost more than £7, from Paisley it would cost £6, from Dumbarton it would cost £9.30
“These costs are too high.
“I can announce today that if re-elected, an SNP Government will cap bus fares at £2 in every part of Scotland, cheaper travel, and more money in your pocket.
“That’s what you get with a government on Scotland’s side. That’s what you get by voting SNP on the 7th of May.”
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The SNP manifesto states: “Our vision for transport is rooted in affordability, accessibility and sustainability.
“We have made real progress towards this with free bus travel for under 22s and over 60s, but we want to go further.
“That’s why by the end of the parliament we will take forward legislation to put in place a £2 bus fare cap across Scotland.”
The Glasgow Times asked for more details about the policy,
We asked: “How far would you be able to travel for two pounds?
“How much will this policy cost the Scottish Government?
“Have you spoken to the bus operators, and does this require public ownership or franchising of buses?”
Swinney replied: “It doesn't require franchising and public ownership, but obviously we are supportive of these concepts and have put in place powers to enable that to be the case.
“There's costings being made available of what we estimate to be the costs.
“And in relation to the fare cap, it would be for a particular journey. So it's in relation to some of the costs that I set out as to what would one individual journey cost in this context, rather than the current context, as to how it would be applied.”
Later, a spokesperson for John Swinney added to the First Minister’s reply.
The spokesperson said: “Each individual journey is capped at £2.
“Let's take a fictional example. If there is a bus that goes direct from Dumfries to John O'Groats, it’s £2. If it takes three buses, that’s three times £2. It's £2 per journey.”
On costs, they said an agreement will be reached with the operators.
The spokesperson added: “You know you're going to get an increase in footfall on the buses, so you reimburse the company, which is fair but not to the point where it costs the taxpayer more than it should.”
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