BUS users will be hit in the pocket after ticket prices for travel in the town shot up by a whopping 12.5 per cent.

The hike in the prices of First Red tickets - from £4 to £4.50 for a daily saver - affects passengers using the 144 bus service to Birmingham and Worcester, via Droitwich Spa.

First Red's decision came into effect on July 4 and has been slammed by a town councillor.

Councillor John Cook (Lab-West) said: "I'm absolutely disgusted that it has increased the ticket prices by so much. Quite frankly, it's unbelievable. How on earth can it think this would encourage people to use public transport?"

The rest of Droitwich's bus services are either operated by MHS Travel or are subsidised by the county council.

Ken Radbourne, of Worcestershire County Council's transport department, said: "First Red is a commercial company. It's no more than if somebody put up a price in a shop. The only control local authorities or anyone has over pricing is when we use public funds to support a bus service."

But a spokesman for First Red defended the decision and said: "In 1998 the comparative day ticket cost £4.60 - so in fact it is still cheaper than then. All the ticket prices have been rescheduled so some work out cheaper, but some have been increased."

He added: "We haven't actually increased our prices since January 2003 because the management here prefer to absorb the costs and have more staggered increases."

A single adult ticket now costs £2.20 and a special return costs £4.

The spokesman was unable to say how much those tickets had cost previously.