MY WIFE and I regularly use our free passes and would sorely miss them were they to be withdrawn.
At the same time, we are very aware of what the cost of this concession must be, and in these difficult times something surely must be done to ease the strain on public finances (Daily Echo, November 9).
It seems to me that one possible way of helping matters would be to levy a charge of, say £10 per annum for this privilege – this sum could be added to our Council Tax bill.
Most regular users would recoup this charge very quickly.
Another substantial saving could be to cancel the nationwide use of the pass.
The use of the pass should be confined to the council tax area in which the holder lives – for most people this would be quite adequate. It seems unfair to me that local council taxpayers should subsidise the travel of people from outside the area. In towns like Bournemouth there are bound to be more visitors from, say Manchester, than the other way round.
PETER D PRESCOTT, Old Bridge Road, Bournemouth
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