FARES on York's Park & Ride buses are set to rise next month.

The standard return fare will increase by ten pence from February 2, City of York Council and First York have announced.

The upcoming fare change will also apply to return tickets for children and concessions.

It will be reflected in weekly, monthly and annual tickets, and the smart multi-day carnets.

However, the Young Person’s Return is unchanged and it will still be possible for up to three children to travel free of charge with one fare-paying adult.

The Park & Ride fares due to change from Sunday, 2 February include:

• Standard Return will increase from £3.20 to £3.30.

• Young Person’s Return frozen at £3.10.

• Smart 5-day Carnet (also available in bundles of 10 or 20 days) will increase from £14.50 to £14.75.

• Weekly smart tickets will increase from £12.80 to £13.20 (the equivalent of £2.64 for a daily return).

• Monthly smart tickets will increase from £50 to £52.80.

• Annual smart tickets will increase from £500 to £528.

Councillor Andy D’Agorne, City of York Council’s executive member for transport, said: “With buses operating from six sites around the city from early each morning until late into the evening, Park & Ride is the most cost-effective and hassle-free way to travel into York city centre. Up to three children can travel free with one fare paying adult and there are also discounts for regular users with the York By Bus smartcard.

“With 21 brand new electric buses being introduced to the Park & Ride fleet, leaving your car at the Park & Ride site (or at home) is a great way to help reduce congestion, improve air quality and make the most of travel time using free wifi.”

Marc Bichtemann, managing director for First York, added: “The incentives to use Park & Ride for work or leisure are clear to see and we continue to develop fare structures that suit different needs.

“Our range of smart ticket options for weekly and monthly travel provides excellent value; for instance a customer travelling five days a week will pay £2.64 for a return trip.

“We’re enjoying growing interest in our corporate travel club, which works with businesses to encourage employees to switch to bus for commuting by providing discounted tickets.

“We also urge customers who can switch to purchasing digital mTickets using the First Bus App to do so as this enables boarding to be four times faster than paying cash, helping improve journey times and punctuality, the factors we know are vital to customers.

“The app has really handy features, such as journey planning and reliable real time information, so customers can enjoy even smoother, hassle-free bus travel.”

He added: “An on-board upgrade of our existing Park & Ride fleet has seen the introduction of audio-visual announcements and USB ports alongside low emission engine technology. The roll out of these improvements continues this year and will further enhance the journey experience for more and more passengers.”

City of York Council and First York are reminding customers to check that they’re making the most of the range of savings available. For full details of the new fares, as well as all the different ticketing options and discounts, visit www.itravelyork.info