TORBAY Council is facing a double whammy of bad bus pass news.

Not only is the number of pensioners taking up the free passes going up — which threatens to raise still further the bill for taxpayers which is already verging on £3million — but fewer drivers are using council car parks, leaving a gaping £350,000 hole in their finances.

The good news for the council is that income from on street parking enforcement is higher than budgeted.

The council reported that in the first two months of this year's free bus pass scheme, the numbers of over 60s claiming a pass had increased from 27,500 to 29,000. But by the end of July it had jumped again to nearly 31,000.

It had expected 28,500 passes to be issued, out of a total of 38,000 eligible pensioners in Torbay.

During the same period, the number of journeys taken by bus pass-wielding pensioners getting on in Torbay has shot up by 32 per cent, Stagecoach reported. At the same time the number of ticket-paying passengers has dropped 15 per cent.

The bus company has yet to work out how much the bill for Torbay will be. The council has already had to find £3million to fund the scheme this year, and will receive £1million from the Government towards the total cost of £4million. But it seems the fact that fewer pensioners are using their cars, and parking them in car parks, is one reason the overall car parking income is down £350,000 already this year on an overall budget of £4.1million.

Deputy mayor Kevin Carroll said: "It will give us a real headache when budget time comes because the income from car parks helps support several services as well as improvements to car parks.

"We think it is a combination of the bad weather and the increased take up of free bus passes. And, of course, the Government money will not cover the car park losses."

The parking services budget is split in to on-street parking meters, off-street parking and civil enforcement through contractors NCP.

The £350,000 deficit is across all three accounts as follows:

On-street parking was expected to make £350,000 but is currently £145,000 down because the meters were due to be implemented in April, but this was delayed after protests and the issue was called in by opposition councillors. The first meters are due to be installed shortly.

Off-street parking is currently reporting a £290,000 shortfall. It was expected to make £4.1million which takes into account rental (including phone masts), car park ticket sales and seasonal permits.

But the overall budget for on-street parking enforcement, which takes into account income from penalty charge notices, is currently £85,000 above predicted NCP contract figure of £612,000 which brings the overall deficit back down to £350,000.

Cllr Carroll said: "I am sure that our current situation is not exclusive to Torbay and that many other tourist areas across the country are reporting a drop in their parking income. The main pattern that appears to have emerged is the huge increase in the number of people using their concessionary bus passes around the Bay while the number of people using our car parks has decreased. Other contributing factors are the consistent wet weather over the summer and the hike in petrol prices which seems to have deterred people from using their cars."

He said it was too early to say what services could be hit by the loss of income. The council this year also has to pay for visiting pensioners who get on a bus in the resort, no matter how far they travel. The good news is that if Torbay pensioners travel elsewhere, Bay taxpayers no longer have to foot the bill for their return journey.

But Chris Lewis, Cabinet member for transport, said it means that, for example, people travelling to Torbay Hospital from outside the Bay will be paid for by Torbay when they travel home, as well as holidaymakers.

He said: "The scheme is proving very popular, and the take-up is actually heading for 31,000 users. As people can travel on local bus services anywhere in the country, the scheme is more attractive and some Torbay people who didn't apply to replace their pass last year have done so this year.

"We also have to pay for people who come to Torbay and use local buses under the scheme. This situation affects councils up and down the country.

"We have budgeted nearly £4million to cover the scheme costs for this year, including Government funding. While we welcome the scheme as a great benefit, we will continue to press the Government to implement a funding regime that properly allocates funding to those areas with greatest need, such as Torbay."

Richard Stevens, operations manager at Stagecoach Devon, said that because of the reimbursement figure paid by Torbay Council, the company's income would not be affected by the increase in usage by bus pass holders.

They have, however, for a second year appealed against the figures set by the Devonwide scheme.

The bus company is recompensed by a percentage of the average adult fare, taking into account single, return and day tickets.