People of London aged 60 and above will be eligible for the free travel on the transport system. Earlier the eligibility age was fixed to 61 but Boris Johnson, the Mayor promised to lower the eligibility age to 60.
The new 60+ Oyster Photocard will be issued by the Transport for London (TfL) from November 1st. Eligible persons can travel free on some of the national rail services and in all TfL services 24/7 from the day of the user’s 60th birthday. Users are also allowed to travel free in the capital on other national rail services except during morning peak hours.
60+ Oyster Photocard applications will be issued from October 17th with a fee of £10. Although over 100,000 applications are expected in the beginning, another 10,000 Londoners will be added each month. The Freedom Pass will be funded by London boroughs and for the year 2012-2013, a sum of £317m will be paid by the local authorities. However, a fund of £20m will be contributed from TfL’s budget for the first year.
Fresh application has to be filed if a person qualifies to receive a Freedom pass. The cost of setting up this scheme is expected to rise depending on the rise in the number of applicants. People of England will be eligible for the free off-peak bus pass once they reach the eligible age, while people of Greater London will get Freedom Pass allowing them to travel free on the TfL network. People of England can also use the Freedom Pass but only during off-peak hours outside London. The 60+ Oyster Photocard can be applied online or through the TfL’s Customer Contact Centre.
