Is your local service under threat, or do you want to campaign for better buses? Then read on!

With public transport patronage still below pre-Covid levels in many places, getting passengers back on buses is important to improve their economic viability and to reduce car use. You can find various bus statistics on the government’s website.

Labour’s bus priorities

The Labour government has pledged to continue the £3 bus fare cap until March 2027. Its Bus Services (No.2) Bill aims to expand local authority powers to franchise local bus services and will remove the ban on new local authority-owned bus companies.

Since coming to power Labour has expanded the number of authorities receiving Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP) funding and removed its competitive element. However, local authorities still receive very different amounts and as a result bus services are still poor or non-existent in many areas.

Spiral of decline

Despite the BSIP funding some areas have seen large cuts in supported services over the past decade. These are services which are mostly funded by local authorities, often uneconomic or more marginal, often in the evenings and weekends, and very often rural.

One of the biggest problems facing bus operators is the government’s support for bigger roads and refusal to reverse the cut in fuel duty. Unless road expansion is solely for bus priority measures, it increases traffic and overall congestion.  This has created a vicious circle of fewer passengers, more cars and congestion, slower and more expensive buses and so on.

Consequently, many communities, including some sizeable villages, have found themselves isolated in public transport deserts. Young and old have been left stranded unless they can afford, expensive taxi fares.

Campaigning for change

Depending on your circumstances you may want to engage with some, or all, of the following:

Contact us, or Low Traffic Future for support and advice.

Get involved with the Better Buses Campaign, which is a national network of grassroots bus campaigners and is a good forum to share experiences and get advice.

We Own It have run campaigns on public transport, and have useful information on their website and links to various local campaigns.

If you live in London, Fare Free London are campaigning for free public transport in London, but are keen to network with other areas.

For written advice see Campaign for Better Transport's Save our Buses Campaign Pack.

Finally some older materials that are worth reading include CPRE’s Every village, every hour report, especially if you live in a rural area. Also the WI previously ran a Get on board campaign and while they no longer have a transport campaign they are active on climate change.