The cost to ride on Diamond Buses in Bromsgrove has risen, with reduced funding said to be one of the factors behind the increase.

Diamond Buses have pledged to invest in modern and more environmentally-friendly vehicles in 2019, however single and return fares will rise by between 10p and 20p from January 2, which the company say is in response to 'increasing operational and employment costs and reducing local authority subsidies'.

The price rises come despite Diamond Buses saying it is "dedicated to providing local bus travel at a lower price", but discounts for the elderly and disabled have been axed on some services all together.

The new cost of an adult day ticket in Bromsgrove is now £3.80 - this is up from £3.70 in 2018.

A children's day ticket remains the same price at £2.50.

However, the cost of an adult weekly ticket has increased by £2 to £15 - this is up from £13 in 2018.

Meanwhile 'Twirlybird' tickets, which offer a concessionary price for senior and disabled travellers before 9.30am, will no longer be available on routes including the 42/43 from Redditch and Bromsgrove to Kidderminster and the 182/183 from Redditch to Bromsgrove.

A statement on the Diamond Bus website reads: "Diamond are dedicated to providing local bus travel at a lower price, however increasing operational and employment costs and reducing local authority subsidies mean that some fare increases are unavoidable.

"As part of our commitment to improve the quality of our service to passengers, we are investing in more new vehicles in 2019.

"New buses will provide a better travel experience on new modern vehicles, improve reliability and the environmental benefits of these vehicles means we also contribute less emissions into the local environment.

"Where possible, we have tried to keep any increases as low as possible and in many cases we are still offering the lowest cost fares on services within the West Midlands network.

"In a 2018 industry survey Diamond bus fares were found to be some of the lowest in the country and despite the new year increases we are still offering many of our day tickets at below the national average."