A new Oxfordshire bus ticket, which offers unlimited travel on nearly all local services, has come into operation.

The MyBus Oxfordshire ticket offers passengers daily or weekly travel around the county, covering most routes and operators, for a fixed price.

It means that one ticket, costing £6.50 a day and £25 a week for adults or £3.50 a day or £14.50 a week for under-19s, gives you unlimited access to more than 150 bus services run by 12 operators in Oxfordshire.

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Councillor Andrew Gant, Oxfordshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Transport Management, said: “Whether you want to explore the county or make your journey to work easier, the MyBus ticket presents a simple, joined-up and good value bus travel solution for Oxfordshire’s residents and visitors.”

This is the first time that such a ticket has been offered for the whole of the county, and across multiple operators.

Both the county’s main bus providers, Oxford Bus Company and Stagecoach, offer day tickets for unlimited travel on their own services across Oxfordshire.

There are also day tickets available within the SmartZone, which covers the area in and around Oxford city, that are valid on both operators’ services.

Luke Marion, Managing Director of Oxford Bus Company, Thames Travel, Carousel Buses and Pulhams, said: “We have a lot of experience in delivering multi-operator ticketing via the Oxford SmartZone scheme, and it’s great to be able to expand this principle across all bus services countywide.

"We’re pleased to support the council in this exciting initiative on a trial basis to help encourage more people in the county to give bus travel a try.”

Chris Hanson, Managing Director for Stagecoach West, said: “We are excited to be part of the first countywide multi operator ticketing scheme for Oxfordshire. 

“MyBus tickets will make travelling across our county, using the network of services, seamless.”

Robert Williams, Chief Executive Officer at Reading Buses and representative of the smaller bus companies in the region, said: “We are pleased to see this scheme that will reduce the cost of bus travel for customers and improve connectivity between routes regardless of who is running the service.”

All tickets can be purchased on participating bus operator websites and mobile apps. Day tickets are also available to purchase when boarding the bus.

Full details of the scheme, including which routes and operators are included, are available online at www.mybusoxfordshire.org.uk, Oxfordshire’s new bus partnership website.

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The offer has been developed by the Oxfordshire Bus Enhanced Partnership, a collaboration between Oxfordshire County Council and the county’s bus companies to promote the use of bus services through Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP) funding provided by the government.

BSIP funding, which has totalled £14.6 million for Oxfordshire to date, is for measures that will increase long-term bus patronage, help maintain service levels, ensure essential social and economic connectivity for local communities and promote innovation in the industry.

The money has also been used to fund a £1 Sunday fare cap in December 2023 and 2024, and support and improve bus services in both rural and urban areas.

Last month, Oxfordshire County Council’s cabinet approved the adoption of an updated BSIP for Oxfordshire for 2024-25.

Publication of this document was a condition for release of the final instalment of the existing funding allocation for Oxfordshire for this year.