Two campaigns fighting for lower bus fares and a better service in Leeds are set to take to the streets for a day of action.
The Fairer Fares campaign, which features an online petition, is teaming up with the Leeds Student Bus Campaign, which also wants to see improved bus services from transport giants First, for a day of action on December 3.
A statement on the Make First Fair event page on Facebook said students were angry at what they said were recent price fare increases, unreliable and infrequent services:
"Other cities, including Sheffield, have a dedicated student discount on First buses: paying just 50p for a single whilst Leeds students pay nearly four times this price!
"On the 3rd of December we will be teaming up with the Fairer Fares campaign and take our fight to the streets. Throughout the day we aim to hit the busiest bus stops and central bus station, encouraging members of the public to sign our petition and join the campaign against First."
Stuart Long, of Fairer Fares, told Guardian Leeds:
"At the campaign we think it is brilliant news that a large number of people are showing great support for a service that we all need on a day to day basis."We will be asking the people of Leeds on the 3 December to sign the petition and back the cause."
Both campaigns are backing Metro's bid to introduce Quality Bus Contracts, which would mean that Metro would be responsible for deciding where buses run, how often they run, what fares and tickets are available, what quality standards buses run to and what happens if things go wrong.
Leeds North East MP Fabian Hamilton this week became the sixth out of eight Leeds MPs to sign the Fairer Fares petition.
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