Students - free public transport?

map200uk

yeslek wrote:

i hated doing a-level/btec as you get no help at all.

now i'm at uni i get loans and i can apply for loads of discounts, in fact i admit i am milking it.

when i was in my second year of doing my btec i had some trouble and dropped out. then when i tried to re-take it so i could go to uni but i had to work a certian amount of hours due to debts and other issues.
there was no financial help for me at that point. i either didnt study and just worked, which i had no choice in, or i get in deeper money troubles and study with a chance of getting out of a mess that would inevitabley get worse first.

i was refused help because i wasnt studying a HND or higher.

i was lucky that i was able to get into uni with the various half grades i had as i can only afford to study with the loans and benifits you get from being a student.

i think there should be more help for those wishing to study, and more for those who try to support themselves as it seems your penalised for working.

scrap the dole and provide smaller loans and discounts for a-level students.

i see your point, but then assuming you are a mature student, you are expec ted to have saved some money to fund yourself a bit i guess? My friend next door is a mature student with a kid back in Wales from his ex-wife, sure he has it harder than some, but then he chose not to go to uni when he was younger, admittedly we all have different circumstances.

Secondly in note to this topic..why should people in scotland get free public transport? Uni students there dont pay any fees as it is, and yet we do?

Mark

Mattjimf

BlondieE wrote:

Does anyone know if you can get free travel to university in Scotland if you have dyslexia or a hidden disability?

It would probably depend on the uni you go to but, given that most scottish cities have F**st (swear word up here, and a bloody monopoly) buses then i would say no, unless there is an agreement between the uni and the bus company.

On the OAP thing, i used to have to get the bus into uni for 10am. If i got the 9:20am bus (buses every 10 mins, student day ticket, half the price!!) i would see all the OAPs standing at the bus stops letting the bus drive past. If i got the 9:30am bus it would be full of OAPs, any guesses why?
Also a lot of them were heading to the bingo!! the ammount of OAPs i see in my work (Mecca bingo) every session of every day is unbeliveable. If they are so hard up, how can they afford to pay over £10 a night and upto £10 during the day, every single day!?!

Not sure if it's applicable anywhere else, but in January if you are a Scottish student you can apply to SAAS for a travel allowance for the year, IIRC typically a third of what you pay overall, even if you don't actually used public transport

In reply to above we don't

everythingblogcast

gizmoleeds wrote:

My goodness!

Just earlier I was reading a thread by a student moaning about how outrageous it is that he has to pay National Insurance on his pay (he is working "30-55 hours" and paying £20 a week).

Why can't students get free public transport? Let's turn that around for a second and ask why should students get free public transport? Who should pay for it?

You're already getting a heavily-subsidised education (possibly free if you come from a poorer household) as well as an inflation-only interest loan for your living expenses. Why should the state give you free transport?

Oh, and I am a student.

I am a student and done get my course paid by the state for me. I pay for or myself and am mad that some peiple get it for free or pay little towards it.

And dont forget that public transport is more heavily-subsidised then some people in education. If the travel companies are getting everyone tax at less it some be less charge for a fare rather then £4.00 + for a return trip on a bus. Am not asking for it to be free but at less 50P to £2 that would be good.

sharewatcher

Secondly in note to this topic..why should people in scotland get free public transport? Uni students there dont pay any fees as it is, and yet we do?

OH dear, all scottish students pay fees, even if from a poorer household they are tagged on at the end of the course (it's called a graduation tax), of course if you think there are no tuition fees in Scotland you could always come and study here