Bus funding: Where would it make the most difference?
This article may well raise your ire if you think about what it tells us. In essence rural services have been so hollowed out that our urban counterparts now use more buses per head. Read on…
Official government figures reveal more than half of all England’s bus journeys are now made in London.
Outside the capital, Brighton and Hove had the most journeys per head of population in 2018-19.
The Campaign for Better Transport said the new funding was a “significant step change” and welcome news for communities that had “borne the brunt” of cuts to services and “poor or non-existent local public transport in recent years”.
A 2019 study by the charity found more than 3,000 local bus routes had been lost or reduced over the past decade.
Crispin Truman from countryside charity CPRE said rural communities had been “at the end of the queue” for too long and the funding could be a “lifeline”.
He said: “If properly targeted, this investment could help tackle loneliness and isolation, reduce car dependency and slash our carbon emissions.”