Exact day free 24-hour bus passes will be handed out to millions of Brits under new rule change

FREE bus travel will soon become the reality for millions of Brits as the government rolls out a new public transport plan. The 24-hour passes are set to be introduced in less than seven months’ time. Andy Burnham debuted free bus travel across Greater Manchester in March this year while acting as mayor. Credit: Alamy The government has announced plans to lift time restrictions on disabled bus passes, essentially unlocking free travel for millions of eligible passengers in England. The scheme, which will be introduced from April 1, 2027, will allow those holding a disabled bus pass to travel on buses for free, no matter the time of day. Sign up for the Money newsletter Thank you! Currently, free travel is only valid between 9.30am and 11pm during weekdays, unless a local authority chooses otherwise. This was the case for the Greater Manchester Combined Authority, who permanently lifted the time restrictions from March this year. The additional support was brought in to help ease the cost of living crisis, as well as help “open up access to workplaces, education, training” as a lack of affordable transport can act as a major barrier to entering the workplace. Prime Minister Andy Burnham said: “Buses are a lifeline for so many people – making it easier to get to work, education and healthcare. “It’s simply not right that many disabled people cannot travel using their pass during certain times of the day.” This comes as a number of changes have been introduced to bus services in the past month, including re-introducing the £2 price cap, and providing free travel to under-16s throughout August. Most read in Money An estimated 8.9million Brits held an older or disabled concessionary bus pass in 2025, with 624million concessionary bus journeys taking place annually. Eligibility for a bus pass is laid out under the Transport Act 2000, which defines seven statutory categories of disability. This includes those who are unable to walk because of a disability, blind or partially sighted, profoundly or severely deaf, without speech, or may be missing limbs. Comment now