More than 60s free travel costs taxpayers £ 100 million more than rate Dodgers

Free public transport for older Londoners costs taxpayers around £ 500 million a year – £ 100 million more than Fare Dodgers.

More than 1.5 million people aged 60 and older are currently traveling for free London‘s buses, tubes, trains and trams thanks to two schedules: the 60+ oyster card for those from 60 to 65, and the freedom pass for those 66 and older.

But with the costs that rise quickly and many users still work, critics say that the benefit is ‘difficult’ to justify.

Transport for London (TFL) is based on a stunning £ 135 million on the 60+ oyster card only this year, an increase of £ 60 million in 2016 – and the figure is expected to reach £ 185 million by 2027.

In the meantime, the Freedom Pass costs the London district annually £ 350 million and could reach nearly £ 500 million by the end of the decade, as reported by De Telegraaf.

The hefty price tag has now led to the debate on whether these schemes are still fair – or sustainable.

According to TFL, 60 percent of those who use the 60+ Oysterkaart are still at work and 20 percent use it to commute.

Londoners aged 60 to 64 earn an average of around £ 42,000 a year – almost double the income of employees in their early 1920s.

Free public transport for older Londoners costs taxpayers around £ 500 million a year – almost £ 100 million more than fare dodgers (stock image)

Critics say that this shows that the benefit goes to people who do not necessarily need it.

Reem Ibrahim, from the Institute of Economic Affairs, said: ‘It is difficult to justify a system where the richest age group in the country has taxpayers financed. We urgently need a targeted approach. ‘

Liz Emerson, Chief Executive of the Research Charity International Foundation, called it a ‘perfect example of intergenerational unfairness’, with younger employees who essentially pay the bill for the home -working traffic of their older colleagues.

The Freedom Pass schedule is managed by the London Boroughs, most of which have increased this year with the tax on the council by a maximum of 5 percent.

The body that has warned it on behalf of the districts that the schedule will soon become ‘untenable’.

The 60+ Oyster card was introduced by the then Boris Johnson in 2012 and is financed by means of municipal tax and congestion.

As soon as users celebrate their 66th birthday, they automatically go to the Freedom Pass – unless they have a disability, in which case they are eligible earlier.

During the Pandemie, Mayor Sadiq Khan paused the use of these passes before 9 hours to save money – a movement that generated £ 15 million extra rates.

Transport for London (TFL) is based on spending no less than £ 135 million on the 60+ oyster card only this year

According to TFL, 60 percent of those who use the 60+ Oysterkaart are still working, and 20 percent use it to commute

However, he rejected a proposal to gradually increase the age limit for the 60+ card in line with the state pension age.

A TFL spokesperson told The Telegraph: ‘Both the mayor and TFL are committed to make public transport in London as accessible, conveniently and affordably as possible.

“We regularly judge our series of concessions to ensure that they continue to benefit Londoners, while they also remain affordable for TFL to operate.”

It comes when a report that was released last Wednesday discovered that tariff discharge is ‘normalized’, with Train staff who tell the research that they are struggling to cope with ‘aggressive’ passengers who refuse to buy tickets.

Travelers use ‘a series of techniques for persistent’ to underpay or prevent them from paying and See it as a crime without a victim ‘, according to the Office of Road and Rail (ORR).

It thought that tariff discharge is an increasing problem that now taxpayers cost £ 400 million a year, resulting in higher rates and fewer investment areas to improve services.