Who guessed that we were going to have a summer election? Did Rishi Sunak think he might get more votes with better weather above the voting booths? With it allegedly set to be one of the wettest summers on record, that hope may not materialise…
While many polls indicate victory for Labour, what would that mean for coach and bus? So far, transport has not been a key discussion point for politicians and the media (and voters, perhaps). Sustainable transport is not mentioned in any of the primary commitments on Labour’s website, which focuses on the economy, the NHS, and a national energy company.
Is this a hangover from the last election, where Jeremy Corbyn ran on a nationalisation ticket? Or are there simply greater issues than transport demanding more attention?
With a bit more digging, you can find Labour’s five-point plan for buses. It focuses on giving “local leaders more control and flexibility over bus funding and allowing them to plan ahead.”
The promises major on “removing barriers that currently limit bus franchising powers only to metro mayors” and “accelerating the bus franchising process.” The remaining comments revolve around raising standards “wherever you live” and enabling local authority ownership of bus operators.
This sounds much like “more of the same, please,” a continuation of the Enhanced Partnerships and franchising schemes that have been delivered since inception of the National Bus Strategy for England.
While Labour is being labelled as ‘Conservative lite’ in many policy areas, perhaps bus is one place where the Conservatives have drifted toward the left (and more devolved regional control). Pandemic impacts have been hard to stomach for an industry that has had to fight against car-focused policies and rising congestion.
For many, a continuation of current policy direction may be welcome, albeit subject to “a bit more funding, please.”
When it comes to that financial backing, the general mood in bus circles is that is that there will be a move away from competitive rounds for grant funding in a bid to reduce time and resource spent on applications and consultancy support.
There are some interesting commitments from the Green Party, such as a £1 single fare on local bus services and free travel for those under 22, paid for by a carbon tax and scrapping the £27 billion allocated to roadbuilding. Has that not been spent yet? Perhaps more radical changes to public transport will come once Labour politicians have settled in and assessed the coffers.
Regardless of which party forms the new government, there is plenty of outstanding work relating to decarbonisation that needs clarity before new visions are employed.
That includes an end date for the sale of new non-zero-emission buses, and a national low carbon fuel strategy. There is also the slowly growing noise around road user pricing and how to replace income lost to the Treasury by the move to electric vehicles.
Whichever government we elect will have plenty to get on with – including convincing the public to start ditching their cars in favour of public transport.
