The next few months are crucial to the future of bus travel. The biggest national factor will be the extent to which the UK government backs it
As I feel like I’ve said several times over the last couple of years, the next few months are crucial to the future of bus travel. With the dust settling on the announcement of the successful local authorities in what I hope is just the first round of funding for the National Bus Strategy, attention is now rightly turning towards ensuring that the networks we have in place are sustainable for the long term.
Thanks to the hard won COVID-19 support that is in place until September, the industry has some time to make these important decisions. But we all know that the difficult decisions over where and when to run buses should be made alongside extensive engagement with local authorities and others.
The sustainability reviews with local authorities, required as part of the ongoing COVID-19 support, should provide the vehicle for these conversations, and I know operators are already engaging in earnest with local partners across the country.
Judging the scale and scope of future networks will be a difficult balancing act between current passenger demand and passenger growth, though. While local factors (including whether an area has received funding for its Bus Service Improvement Plan, the level at which a local authority is paying concessionary fares, and local marketing activities) will be the major concerns, national trends will be in play too.
For example, analysis undertaken for the Confederation of Passenger Transport (CPT) suggests that commuter and shopping travel are unlikely to return to pre-pandemic levels before March 2023, but that leisure travel has already bounced back strongly. As a result, we are going to need buses running at different frequencies and at different times of day than we had before the pandemic.
Unquestionably, though, the biggest national factor will be the extent to which the UK government loudly backs bus travel. We will all have seen the recent fanfare around half price rail tickets to promote a return to the railways. Good, we need more people back on the railways; but now is also the time for a scheme with the same ambitions for the bus and scheduled coach network. CPT is actively engaged, as we have been for several months, in discussions about what action the government can take to promote the bus. I will keep you updated on progress, but we have made it abundantly clear that the time for action is now.
CPT is also working on a range of visit options for ministers from the Department for Transport and across government to showcase the value of bus. If you have a visit idea that you think would demonstrate the value of bus to your local community, please do let us know and we would be happy to ensure it reaches the relevant minister for consideration.
I’m told in meetings each week how important getting more people onto buses is to delivering so much of what Boris Johnson’s government wants to see happen.
It’s time the government told people to get on board.
