A petition has been launched to save the cheap bus fares in South Yorkshire for young people.
The Zoom Travel Pass allows for any young adults in South Yorkshire aged 18-21 to purchase single tickets for 80p on buses.
However it is under threat as local authorities want to change the prices from 80p to £1.50 starting in November.
Jude Daniel Smith, 18, creator of the Zoom Beyond Travel Card said: “People will lose trust in the transport network, the political system and their voice. People from working class backgrounds in deprived areas will not be able to go and get a job somewhere that they really want too.
“They won’t be able to go and do that part time job while they are studying to keep themselves in university.”
Mr Smith said: “When young people see these amazing initiatives offered to them they think this is a city that cares about me, and when that gets taken away it makes them think I’m going to go to Manchester or Birmingham. I’m going to these places that seem to value people like me more.”
Jude Smith is an undergraduate student at the University of Bristol, however is originally from Sheffield.
At age 16, Jude Smith and the South Yorkshire Youth Combined Authority introduced the Zoom Card to Dan Jarvis, Mayor of South Yorkshire at the time.
The idea behind the card was that younger adults would be able to get to College or University without having to worry about the cost of transport.
Jesse Omara, 20, Aerospace engineering student at the University of Sheffield said: “I rely on my zoom card everyday as I struggle for money at University. I work a lot to be able to afford living here as a student, and the Zoom Card helps me with cheaper transport expenses.”
After the Zoom Card was implemented the response was so positive, with studies showing nearly 35,000 people used Zoom Beyond in the region, that the following year local authorities decided to keep it.
However with a decrease in funding, the card is being threatened.
If you are interested in saving the zoom card you can sign the petition through this link @Save the Zoom Beyond Travel Pass! | Megaphone UK to the website.