The Local Government Association (LGA) has welcomed the government’s announcement of an additional £130m of funding for bus operators but has called for a longer-term financial solution.
The Department for Transport (DfT) announced the funding package on 19 August to ensure bus services keep running amid cost-of-living pressures. Bus operators and local authority partners will receive the funding over six months from October 2022 to March 2023.
Transport secretary Grant Shapps said: “This funding will ensure millions across the country can continue to use vital bus services, and brings the total we’ve provided to the sector throughout the pandemic to almost £2bn.”
However, despite welcoming the emergency government funding, Cllr David Renard, transport spokesperson for the LGA, criticised the package for not helping councils in the long-term.
Renard called for the government to provide additional funding to councils by delivering on the commitments that were initially made in the DfT’s National Bus Strategy, which was announced in March 2021.
He said: “These include providing the £3bn over three years for Bus Service Improvement Plans which have been produced by every local transport authority and local bus operators. So far, the government has only delivered £1.1bn of this, with more than half of council bids yet to receive funding.
“To avoid recurring funding emergencies and achieve the enormous social, economic, health and environmental benefits of a regular, reliable and affordable bus service in every part of the country, the government should give local authorities the long-term and sufficient funds to deliver on their Bus Service Improvement Plans.”
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