Bus Users has broadly welcomed a new report from Campaign for Better Transport on the future of bus funding.
The report reveals that:
- funding for buses in England is almost £400 million a year lower than it was ten years ago. That includes a reduction in national Government support of £234 million, and in local authority funding of £163 million – a reduction of over 40 percent
- more than half of local authorities have cut their financial support for buses by 50 per cent or more since 2009
- over 3,000 local authority supported bus services have been lost or reduced in a decade – including 243 in the past year alone.
Campaign for Better Transport is proposing a new funding framework for bus services with ring-fenced revenue support to boost patronage, support socially necessary services, and fund concessionary fares.
Responding to the report, Claire Walters, Chief Executive of Bus Users said: “These findings make a vital contribution to the debate on what a National Bus Strategy for England should contain.
“Buses Users, Campaign for Better Transport, and all those with an interest in bus services, need to work together to ensure the Bus Strategy is fully fit-for-purpose.”