BUS passengers who use Stagecoach services will see their fares increase from next month.

The announcement comes just days after the bus operator said it would be stepping up its presence on the town’s roads by introducing a new route as well as holding a recruitment drive.

The new changes will affect most single, return, day and weekly Megarider Gold fares – the first increase since May 2015 according to Stagecoach. The new prices will come into force on Sunday, March 5.

James O’Neill, commercial manager at Stagecoach, said: “The reason behind the changes is to keep up with the fact that our costs are rising.

“We have put a hold on increasing them for as long as possible and it is the first time we have changed them since May 2015.

"The fare increase is to keep track of what we are doing and to accommodate for the fact that the buses we run now are costing us more than they did two years ago are we are running new and different routes as well as paying our staff more.”

The prices are expected to rise by up to five per cent depending on which ticket passengers use and it is anticipated that single tickets will rise by 10p while day tickets could rise by 50p.

The changes will not only affect Swindon but also services across Gloucestershire, Oxford and other parts of Wiltshire.

There is no planned increase to Travelpass or their four-week, 13-week or 52-week tickets at this time.

Stagecoach only announced last week that they are going to launch a new route between Abbey Meads and the Great Western Hospital travelling via the town centre from April 2.

A new recruitment drive is also just around the corner with 30 new jobs set to be created in Swindon as part of major expansion plans.

The recruitment drive will look to take on drivers, engineers and cleaning staff alongside other depot roles.

But despite the changes, James has reassured the public that even with the increase, they are still remaining competitively priced.

“We are still doing our best to deliver the best service we can for our passengers and we are running more buses than ever before, recruiting more people and we are working to get more people on our buses.”

Full details of the fare increases will be available by the weekend at www.stagecoachbus.com