Free Travel for Pensioners

Couple of stories catching my eye tonight:

12:00 - 29 December 2005
Plymouth is to lose its air link to Dublin after Air Wales confirmed it is to scrap the service next week.And the Plymouth-to-Cork service will be suspended from January 2, although it will be reintroduced in March. Air Wales has blamed declining passenger numbers on the Dublin route and says that the service is no longer commercially viable.When it reintroduces the Cork service, on March 27, the route will include a stop at Newquay to pick up more passengers to make the route as profitable as possible.
for a photo of an Air Wales plane at Bristol Airport take a look at this pbase web page.
also

Plymouth City Council is ready to spend almost £4million on offering free bus travel to over-60s and the disabled. Eligible residents will be able to catch buses for free between 9.30am and 11pm on weekdays from April 1 next year.They will also be able to travel anywhere in the city for free at all times on bank holidays and weekends.The council is now negotiating a deal to reimburse bus operators for the extra costs incurred by the scheme.All local authorities in the country are required to offer free travel to over-60s and disabled people next year, as set out in Chancellor Gordon Brown's Budget speech last March.

For the 'small print' of this offer a quick look at the City Councils own site with full details of the concessionary fares from April 2006.

I am just waiting for the full backlash when many pensioners realise they will probably be worse off as they loose cheaper travel throughout Devon in exchange for free travel in Plymouth. Typical Government scheme - ill thought out and will cause problems for operator and councils for many years to come.