It was recently announced by the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, that free transport for under-18s will be halted as part of his bailout scheme with the government, resulting in all minors to having to pay for travel on the TFL.
This came to many as a surprise, as before we could remember the simple act of taking the bus to a friends house or more importantly school was stress free with no hassle, however with the Mayor’s plan this will all end before September, when schools return.
Many teachers and pupils have voiced their opinions stating that these changes will affect children returning to school disproportionally, with children from disadvantaged households not being able to afford the costs of travel back and forth from school, with many children taking 2 to 3 buses to reach their destination. This has resulted in the threat of many children not being able to return to school as September approaches.
In this wake of COVID-19 this news is especially worrying, with many working class parents losing their jobs for months due to the virus, leading to no source of income to provide for their families and now with the cost of travel this could put unimaginable strain on the providers of these households.