AS we now live longer than ever before and the number of over-65s grows, it becomes important that pensioners are able to travel comfortably.

For many, just keeping a car on the road is an enormous financial struggle on a small fixed income.

Others feel they have to keep on driving even though they might not honestly consider themselves healthy enough to stay safe because there is no other practical way to make essential journeys.

A scheme to give pensioners free bus travel across East Lancashire would be a great step towards solving both of these problems, help to boost our public transport infrastructure and give our retired people the same benefit as many thousands already enjoy in other parts of the country like London.

And since everyday lives do not begin and end within the borders of East Lancashire's individual boroughs, it is essential that councillors forget rivalries between districts and work together to give pensioners the right to travel free throughout the area.

It would be absurd to be saddled with a scheme which stops at some borough boundaries and does not give all the region's pensioners the same benefits