BUS giant Stagecoach has been condemned for scrapping a popular travel deal for pensioners.

The company abolished the Explorer tickets, covering one, three and five day travel in Lancaster and the South Lakes, from April 1.

Lancaster woman Edna Wesley discovered the change when she went to book a ticket for her and a group of friends last week.

Mrs Wesley said: "I used these tickets two or three times a year when I visited company in the Lakes.

"Four or five of us used to make a day of it, going up to Bowness for the morning and maybe having some lunch somewhere.

"I won't be doing that in future, I will just be buying what I need by mail order out of the brochure.

"I thought they were supposed to be encouraging people to use the buses? We have a lot of pensioners in this area and a lot of tourists, but we have the worst bus service in Lancashire.

"I visited my son who lives in Manchester recently. Down there you can buy their equivalent of an explorer ticket and go anywhere in Manchester for £2. Pensioners can get it for £1.20. You can travel all week for £5."

Stagecoach's operations director for Cumbria, David Ashworth, says district councils in Cumbria are now offering similar tickets at a discount.

He said: "We introduced the explorer tickets as a commercial initiative, but that has now been superseded by Government legislation. If this lady would like to buy a ticket, she can buy our adult explorer ticket which, at £6, still represents phenomenal value."