THE high number of pensioners taking free buses around Worcester has put a huge strain on the city council’s budget which is already strapped for cash.

The council’s latest financial figures show it is set to overrun its current budget by almost half-a-million pounds, with only £400,000 of revenue funds left in the bank, leaving it £100,000 in the red.

The council aims to keep a running balance of about £600,00.

The main cause of this latest financial crisis is the national free bus pass scheme for pensioners, which is hitting Worcester far harder than anyone expected.

Just four months after the Government’s concessionary travel scheme was launched, it is now expected to cost the city council some £470,000 more than predicted this year.

Grahame Lucas, head of financial services, told councillors: “We’re heading for a very significant overspend, which can very largely be put at the door of concessionary travel.

“The take-up of the national scheme and the way it impacts on this council is going beyond that which we planned, envisaged or forecast.”

Government rules say that the council must reimburse bus companies with the full fare each time a pensioner gets on a bus for free in Worcester.

The cost of the scheme is supposed to be covered by a Government grant.

However, the amount rec-eived by Worcester – about £1 million – has proved to be only half of the total cost of the scheme In other parts of the country, other councils say they have been paid more than they need for the scheme and are actually making a profit.

Mr Lucas said: “The bottom line here is the Government has found it very difficult to give grants to those districts most affected. No centrally-set funding criteria can ever fully reflect individual circumstances.”

Mr Lucas said he plans to hold an urgent meeting with Worcestershire’s other councils to discuss whether the county’s funding could be redistributed to make it fairer on Worcester.

If that fails, it will be forced to go cap in hand to the Government.

The city believes it is getting a raw deal because it houses the county’s main bus station.

This means that pensioners from outlying districts come into the city specifically to catch a bus – which Worcester City Council then has to pay for.

The system has also left councils at the mercy of private bus companies’ prices. Everytime First group decides to increase its bus fares Worcester must pay even more for each journey made by a pensioner.