Residents are being encouraged to sign up for their free month of bus travel through the popular Birthday Buses programme by Mayor Dan Norris, who leads the West of England Mayoral Combined Authority.

This follows an amazing 100,000 free journeys being taken last month, twice as many trips as during the first month of the first year of the Birthday Buses offer.

The New Year is the perfect time for people to get their month of free bus travel!

Almost 43,000 people have already signed up at BirthdayBus.co.uk. People across the West of England really are voting with their feet – and their free Birthday Bus passes – to enjoy many more happy returns and singles.

Local passengers are continuing to benefit from some of the lowest fares in the country thanks to our bus fare cap, set 60p below the national cap per journey. Birthday Buses save people almost £100 each on top of that with a month of free bus travel.

Dan Norris, the Mayor of the West of England

December 2024, the first month of return of the Birthday Buses offer, saw more than 100,000 free journeys by Birthday Bus pass-holders, despite disruption to services caused by Storm Darragh and reduced services over Christmas/New Year. August 2023 (the first month of the first year of the offer) saw around 49,500 free journeys; overall, the first year of the offer saw almost 1.2 million free journeys taken by Birthday Bus pass-holders.

Nearly 43,000 people have now signed up for their free Birthday Bus pass, with over 15,500 children and young people (more than 36%). If you sign up before your 21st birthday, you receive a second month of free Birthday Bus travel – helping to encourage the next generation to travel more sustainably by bus.

Residents with a February birthday should apply on BirthdayBus.co.uk by 23 January to ensure that their free Birthday Bus pass arrives in time for the start of next month.

Original press release by the West of England Mayoral Combined Authority.