Continued operation of subsidised bus services could be at risk as councils struggle with increasingly tight budgets and funding pressures, the Local Government Association (LGA) has warned.

 

Almost half of all bus routes in England receive partial or complete subsidies from councils and Government action is needed to protect these services, the LGA says.

 

Failure to do so could leave vulnerable residents isolated and cause increased congestion and poorer air quality in local communities.

 

“Faced with significant funding pressures, many councils across the country are being forced into taking difficult decisions to scale back services and review subsidised routes,” said LGA transport spokesman Martin Tett.

 

This comes against a backdrop of declining passenger numbers – which have been on a downward trend since 2013/14 – while operating costs per passenger journey are on the rise.

 

The LGA is calling for councils to be given control over the Bus Service Operators’ Grant, which is currently paid directly to bus operators, to help them protect routes. It also calls on Government to fully fund the concessionary fares scheme which councils currently spend £200M a year to subsidise.

 

Greener Journeys chief executive Claire Haigh commented: “Massive pressure on local authority budgets has resulted in swathes of cuts to subsidised services across the country, depriving people of vital connections to town centres, places of education and employment, and family and friends.

 

“We urgently need to reverse the decline in bus patronage and to deliver modal shift from car to public transport. The Government must support bus networks with renewed investment, while taking other measures to discourage car use.”

 

The Campaign for Better Transport is due to publish its annual Buses in Crisis report next week, which is expected to highlight that the decline in local authority bus services shows no sign of stopping.

 

The group’s public transport campaigner Steve Chambers said: “The recent Bus Services Act does have the potential to improve local buses, but it’s not enough on its own. The Government must wake up to the crisis hitting local buses before it's too late.

 

“We want to see a proper national strategy for buses backed up by funding like that which already exists for roads and rail.”

 

Meanwhile the Confederation of Passenger Transport described some of the LGA’s claims as ‘distorted’ and ‘misleading’.

 

“Figures produced by the Department for Transport show that 86.6% of bus mileage in England outside London is operated on a purely commercial basis, with only 13.4% of total mileage receiving support from public funds,” said the group’s chief executive Simon Posner.

 

He added: “It is not just cuts to local authority budgets which are having a detrimental effect on local bus services. The number one issue impacting on bus use and the availability of services across the country remains that of congestion.

 

“Through working together, operators and local authorities can make bus travel even more attractive to passengers, thereby helping to reduce congestion and improve local air quality, as well as providing a catalyst to unlocking further investment.” 

 

♦ Wales risks failing to meet its targets for carbon reduction unless long term plans are put in place to tackle the country’s over reliance on the car, a new report from the Institute of Welsh Affairs says.

 

It recommends that the Welsh Government should produce a comprehensive Transport Decarbonisation Plan to ensure greater use of active travel and public transport, including reversing the decline of bus services.