Waveney's over 60s railcards may yet be saved

Monday, 04 January 2010

Last October, over 60s in Waveney faced disappointment when Waveney Council members voted to stop their subsidised railcards.

Waveney District Council had been a member of a concessionary district travel scheme, which had been run by Breckland District Council for several years. It was for this reason that more than a thousand over 60s in Waveney had been offered the reduced fare rail cards.

Now, five councillors have voted that the Council's overview and scrutiny committee call in the decision. They have named labour councillor Nick Dack as lead signatory, according to becclesandbunjayjournal.co.uk.

The councillors decided to call-in on the grounds that "the decision was not taken in accordance with the principle of good decision-making."

The following reasons were given by the five councillors : “Not all options were considered and research was not thorough enough. Options that could reduce administrative costs but provide a better and more environmental service to residents over 60 were not considered. This is in contravention of the council's stated aims of 'Better Services for Less Money' and our pledge to reduce the community's environmental impact.”

Hopefully, the decision will be reversed tomorrow (Wednesday 5th January 2010) and that all over 60s in Waveney will be able to benefit from affordable rail travel.

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