Welsh council announces cheaper bus travel this Easter

Anthony Lewis, Local democracy reporter

There will be cheaper bus travel in a south Wales county again this Easter, the council has announced.

RCT Council has confirmed that all single journeys in Rhondda Cynon Taf will cost no more than £1.50 across all operators for two weeks.

The subsidised bus travel will run from Saturday, March 28, to Sunday, April 12 inclusive.

This is the ninth time since the summer of 2023 that the council has offered reduced bus fares, once again using funding from the UK Government’s Shared Prosperity Fund.

The council says that the offer is being targeted at key periods of the year, like school holidays and festive periods, and aims to reduce economic barriers that may prevent people from catching the bus.

The £1.50 scheme over Easter will replicate the arrangements during December, 2025.

All bus journeys that start and end within the Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough boundary will be capped at a cost of £1.50.

This is being adopted by all local bus operators and will apply from the first service to the last of each day – with no time restrictions being put in place.

Concessionary pass holders will need to scan their passes as normal during this period.

All journeys that start or end outside of the Rhondda Cynon Taf boundary will not receive the offer, and will be subject to the normal full fee.

Bus fares for 5 to 21-year-olds are currently being capped at a maximum cost of £1 for a single journey, through a Welsh Government scheme.

All 16-21 year-olds need to show a valid ‘My Travel Pass’ to take advantage, while under-16s just need to buy a single child bus ticket.

This offer for young people will be unaffected by the council’s local initiative over Easter, 2026.

The UK Shared Prosperity Fund, from the UK Government, has been allocated to councils to help introduce initiatives that will reduce the cost-of-living for residents through measures that improve energy efficiency and combat fuel poverty and climate change.

In the current financial year, 2025/2026, RCT has received £1 million in SPF funding after getting £1.2 million in 2024/2025.