To be so excited that.....

Oh hilda I wonder why that is? That seems very unfair. We couldn't use ours when we went on holiday to Wales but have used it in Devon, Dorset, The Lakes etc.

Congratulations - I live in London and was lucky enough to receive a travel pass when I was 60 - it was the best birthday present I could ever have received and I make great use of it - more to the point, however, if I didn't have it, my ability to travel at today's (and London) prices would be severely curtailed and my mental health would suffer by not being able to get about. Glad you have this freedom.

Congratulations! I'm so looking forward to getting my bus pass (assuming they haven't got rid of them by then). And as an aside grannyactivist I love it that you call your DH The Wonderful Man

It’s another postcode lottery and hard on those who live in the wrong areas. Also very shortsighted of the authorities who don’t issue passes to over 60s affected by the state pension age changes. Studies have shown that free travel for the over 60s has health benefits to the pass holders and also boosts the local economy. The one advantage for me of not having a pass is that I walk more!

Wonderful news Grannyactivist. Cannot tell you how much I value my bus pass both for convenience and economical reasons. Wouldn't afford the voluntary stuff I enjoy without it. Also meeting up with friends with the same travelling advantage is a terrific bonus. I hope you enjoy for many years to come (and that the oft maligned bus pass survives the angst of the non believers!)&

Bus passes are one of the few joys of old age - apart from DGC of course. I give mine a real thrashing. Bus pass, that is, not grandchildren!

London pensioners get free train travel too. Just over the border in Surrey we don't. I read the day I cannot drive as I loathe public transport.

Maggiemaybe
I agree absolutely that it's grossly unfair for most over 60s to be deprived of free public transport.
We consider ourselves very lucky to have our Merseytravel area passes, but would far prefer that all over 60s had the same advantage.
It annoys me hugely that women who are having to work past the age of sixty due to pension age changes also have to pay to get to their place of work!!!
How the government can possibly justify depriving us of benefits which were freely available to women born just a few years before us is beyond me

I love my Merseytravel pass and use it to go on the train to Liverpool and Chester.

I’ve got to wait till I’m 66 for mine, but I will definitely make the most of it. Living 30 mins from London I will be going on many an adventure to things I haven’t seen before in our capital.Enjoy!

I love my Freedom pass! It's only when we have visitors who must pay for public transport in London do I really appreciate what a huge benefit it is. I also like that, when travelling out of London by train (on most routes) the Freedom pass means that the fare is calculated from the furthest point in London on the route. I really can't understand why so many people seem to feel it's their right (never mind the congestion, pollution and danger to walkers and cyclists) to travel everywhere, even in London, by car.

Go for it, I love my pass, my h drives but we often go on the bus, especially if it’s a place where parking is a pain.

hildajenniJ re National Trust - you can use English NT in Scotland as well as vice versa. Shame it's not true of bus pass!

My birthday is 8th September so I have to wait until 6th March before I can get my bus pass! Cant wait for the day to come though.

Love my bus pass if only we had buses I could love it more.

They will probably have been abolished by the time I reach 'of age' (another 8 years - 66!)

I think it highly unfair that if I were in Wales, NI or Scotland I could have one at age 60. ?

I retired at 68, I couldn't afford to before then.
I too have a bus pass that is useless to me as we have no buses to travel on. The pass is totally useless as far as I can see, as it can't be used on the rail network either. Our council would be better off saving on the administrative charges and giving us a better deal on something else.

I have a friend who gets really angry that bus passes are used for frivoloties like shopping and days out. She is o ver 70 but doesn't have one out of choice and is always going on a about how much it costs the council.
I have one bUt we have few buses where we live so only useful if i visit said friend who lives at the seaside, so we have had some lovely days out on the bus riding along the coast. Much to her irritation!

I was desperately hoping to get my bus pass when I hit 60 as despite being a driver, I LOVE buses. However, I have to reach the government pension age so I was so very disappointed. I hope that by the time get there, I will still be able to get up the stairs of a Double Decker to clinch the coveted front seats

silverlining you could perhaps refer your friend to the website below. Research shows that each £1 spent on the costs of a bus pass generates at least £2.87 in benefits to individuals and communities.
greenerjourneys.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/Concessionary-travel-costs-and-benefits-September-2014.pdf

Thank you Ken Livingstone. But for him we wouldn't have bus passes.

Yay...its a great feeling isn't it. Like you transport where I live is quite expensive and so is the parking as it is a tourist area. So I was so excited when I received my bus pass in my hot little hands!! I go back home to London a lot and I can use my North Yorkshire bus pass on the buses there too! I love going all over London on the buses without having to pay a penny!! Hoorah!

Congrats, activistgranny I love my bus pass, we have a car but I like to use the bus when I can.I don't drive and it makes me more independent, if I want to go into the nearby town to shop my husband doesn't have to get the car out.

I got my bus pass three years ago when I was sixty and have used it only once. I shall have to be more organised and stop just jumping in the car! Was unaware that people have to wait till well into their sixties to get one - very unfair.

Enjoy your bus pass.
I feel the bus pass is the best medicine for thousands of older people as it gets them out and about with our worrying about the cost.
Yes they can walk, as we often do, but there is the safety of knowing one can get a bus home. Especially good if one feels a bit unwell, or buys more than is easily carried.

I think it saves the NHS money. Long live the bus pass.