Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced the cap on single bus fares in England would rise from £2 to £3
The number 62 bus run by Warringtons Own Buses, passing through Moore
Bus fare prices will increase on services operating in Warrington in the new year following the removal of the £2 price cap. Day tickets, week tickets, and four-week tickets on Arriva buses will all be hit by the price hike, which comes into effect from Thursday, January 1 2026.
Day tickets for adults will raise from £7.10 to £7.40, and day tickets for children will raise from £4.60 to £4.80. Adult weekly North West tickets will raise from £24.50 to £25.50, and children’s weekly North West tickets will raise from £16.50 to £17.50.
An adult four-week North West ticket will remain the same at £83. But children’s four-week North West tickets will see a significant price hike of £2.50, from £56 to £58.50.
Tickets for individual journeys within the town are also set to increase, from £2 for adults and £1 for children to £2.50 and £1.50 respectively.
The £2 single-journey cap was introduced in 2022 and was originally due to expire at the end of last year. In the Autumn Budget of 2024, Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced the cap on single bus fares in England would rise from £2 to £3 from January 2025 – an increase of 50%. In June’s spending review, she confirmed that the national £3 fare cap would remain in place until March 2027.
The £2 cap remained in effect in Warrington, but this is due to come to an end at the turn of the new year. Both Arriva and Warrington’s Own Buses have announced increases to ticket prices.
Ben Wakerley, Managing Director of Warrington’s Own Buses, said: “Due to the ending of the current capped fare funding, WOB has to change the fares. The company has acted to keep fares as low and as simple as possible, including frozen day, week and four week tickets and a new ‘Young Persons’ Bus Club’ that can be bought using our app.”
In the Liverpool City Region, the £2 cap on single bus fares will remain in place beyond January 1 2026. Metro Mayor Rotheram posted on his X account: “Following agreement at a meeting of the Combined Authority, the fare cap will be extended for a further six months, keeping travel accessible and affordable across the City Region.”
Speaking on a radio phone-in, he revealed maintaining the £2 fare costs the City Region’s Combined Authority around £2 million per month across the six local authority areas.
The £2 cap also remains in place within Greater Manchester, funded by the Bee Network. Here are the changes to bus fare prices you need to know for travelling in the Warrington area.
Arriva
Fares will be revised on Arriva services operating in Warrington from January 1 2026. These include:
Service 7 between Barrows Green (Pendlebury Farm) and WarringtonService 110 between Widnes (Dans Road) and WarringtonService 329 between Derbyshire Hill (Waring Avenue) and WarringtonService 360 between Cop Holt Farm and WarringtonService X30 between Daresbury Science & Technology Park and Warrington
For journeys wholly within the Warrington boundary, the new single fare will be £2.50 for an adult or £1.50 for a child.
For journeys operating cross-boundary from either the Liverpool City Region or Wigan, the single new fare will be £3.00 for an adult or £1.90 for a child. There are no changes to the £2 fare cap for journeys within the Liverpool City Region or Greater Manchester.
Changes will also be made to the North West area multi journey ticket. The new prices from January 1 2026 are:
DayAdult – £7.40Child – £4.80
WeekAdult – £25.50Child – £17.50
4-WeekAdult – £83.00Child – £58.50
AnnualAdult – £830.00
Warrington’s Own Buses
Within Warrington, the new adult (16+) fare will be £2.50 single, or £1.50 single for 5-15 year olds. Under 21 year olds (16-20) can qualify for a reduced £1.50 fare within Warrington by joining the Bus Club, otherwise it is £2.50.
Journeys which travel into Greater Manchester/Liverpool City Region/Cheshire West/Cheshire East will be £3.00 single for adults (16+) with fares no greater than £3.00 for 5-15 year olds. Fares on school buses will be rising by 10p.
All WOB bus services are affected except the 741, 755, N3 and N4 from January 1 2026.
DayAdult – £5.90Senior – 4.90Senior + 1 child – £6.60Senior + 2 children – 7.60Family – £14Under 16 – £3.50
WeekUnder 21 – £18
4-WeekUnder 21 – £60
AnnualUnder 21 – £580
Breezer – £14
Westy Way – £14
