It’s a great boost for the industry with millions pledged for buses by Westminster
The news that within the space of a few days the Scottish Government and the Treasury in Westminster announced pledges of £500m and £200m for buses respectively is a great boost for the industry.
It’s also good for the environment as both governments are clearly recognising the role of bus in meeting net zero greenhouse gas targets.
The funding in Scotland is clearly focused on bus priority projects while the money for England was described as being for the “transformation of bus services, making best use of technology and promoting decarbonisation” hinting at a slightly wider remit.
Boosting up
This is a great boost for the industry, and whatever the chaotic nature of government at the moment caused by the Brexit crisis, it is great to see a level of commitment to the industry in the form of public funding that is looking to address the real issues, notably congestion, greening of the fleets and utilising the technology available to ensure buses remain relevant.
Particularly in England the uncertainty over the tenure of the current government will cause concern that no sooner has the funding been announced than another government will be returned and take the money away. This is why it is so important we in the industry help to create a momentum that keeps this funding on track whatever the future of the government.
For years we have argued through research conducted by organisations like Greener Journeys that investment in bus delivers excellent value for money and now we have the opportunity to work with key stakeholders to really demonstrate this is the case.
We need to work with central and local government organisations to ensure the money is spent in the right places and on the right schemes to create a virtuous circle of continuous funding and emphasis on projects which really make a difference to the customer rather than the endless energy sapping debates about the appropriateness of the regulatory regime.
In an excellent piece of timing the funding announcement underpins the type of measures that CPT announced in its recently launched strategy ‘Moving Forward Together’, which seeks a new deal for bus services based on a series of commitments by operators supported by asks of our key stakeholders.
Still much to do
The challenge now is to find the right schemes so that the money is spent on projects that really do make a difference. Bus priority projects should be comprehensive and radical and genuinely transformative in transferring road space from other road users to bus.
It is essential that the funds prioritise bus and do not masquerade as bus projects when they are nothing more than a standard traffic management scheme with a few bus lay-bys to tick the bus box. And we as bus operators may need to think more about how we can bridge the skills gap in local authorities to push forward the sort of projects we want to see implemented.
The current concern over climate change, air quality and now the funding for bus priority has the potential to create a ‘perfect storm’ of opportunity for our industry. It’s important we don’t miss the chance.
