Last year, Metro Mayor Steve Rotherham announced that single bus journeys would be capped at £2 across Liverpool City Region.
This was done to save residents money in a cost of living crisis - as well as forming part of the Mayor's aim for a London-style interconnected public transport system.
With the new fares in place, I wanted to see how well these cheaper tickets could be used to have a full day out in Liverpool. A MyTicket, allowing under-19s unlimited travel throughout the day has also been frozen at £2.20, but this ECHO reporter is sadly not eligible.
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Starting at the ECHO's office in St Paul's Square in the city centre, I set myself a £20 budget and headed down to Liverpool ONE bus station. I decided to go to Nomad on Smithdown Road, desperate to try out the food there after reading our review.
I hopped on to the 75, still pinching myself that my ticket cost just £2. Thankfully, it was a clear day, allowing me to take in the sights of town and the beautiful Princes Road.
Getting off the bus at Smithdown, I headed to Nomad, where among the busy crowd of students I managed to grab a table. I decided to order the Club Nomad sandwich and a hot chocolate with cream and marshmallows for a total of £12.50. Sadly, Nomad had run out of chicken, so I ordered their full English breakfast, which brought the price down by £1.
It was a picturesque setting as the sun starting shining brightly through the large windows at the front. Thankfully, the food matched the occasion. I felt at ease as I tucked in to my crispy harsh brown and warmed up with my hot chocolate.
After this heavy dinner, I decided to attempt to walk it off and make use of the last hours of daylight. I headed to Sefton Park, relishing the warmer temperature compared to the bitterness of the last week or so. Cutting past the water fountain, there were lots of people about enjoying the fresh air.
I did have to dodge several flocks of pigeons, but that is par for the course in any park. After a good wander, I exited in the direction of Lark Lane, remembering I needed to pick something up for a friend's birthday.
Lark Lane Gallery was on hand with a smorgasbord of gifts. However, knowing I only had £4.50 to spend when factoring in my bus ticket back, I had to spend wisely. I settled on card with Beatles album Revolver on the front for £2.95, resolving to buy an actual gift in the next few days.
From there, I crossed Aigburth Road and hopped on to the 82 by Tesco Express for my £2 journey back to town.
In total, my spending for this day out came to £18.75. Given I'd had a hearty meal, a refreshing walk and picked up a gift, I was quite satisfied with that. A more expensive bus fare, which could well be in place due to rising inflation, would definitely have taken me over £20.
It's journeys like this which Steve Rotheram will be hoping that more residents make use of. As climate change continues to dominate our world and public transport is prioritised in city planning over personal cars, the capped bus fares are a huge part of his agenda.
In a time when rent, shopping and energy bills are rising, it's refreshing to know that cheap bus travel is here for the time being.
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