Campaign to reshape bus service

NETWORK UNDER PUBLIC CONTROL

CAMPAIGNERS said West Yorkshire’s buses are stopping people from getting jobs as they call on the new mayor to dramatically reshuffle the region’s service.

Better Buses for West Yorkshire is a campaign asking the future West Yorkshire Mayor, set to be elected on Thursday, to bring buses under public control, replacing the current deregulated system. The campaign is run by the group We Own It, in partnership with the regional TUC and other local groups. The group is looking to the success of Manchester in franchising buses.

Matthew Topham, We Own It campaigner for Better Buses for West Yorkshire, told The Examiner: “We’ve seen a massive reduction in the extent of the service. The network is just constantly shrinking, constantly contracting. People have to give up their jobs, or they struggle to go visit relatives if they’re in hospital because of the network shrinking.”

Bus use outside of London has declined since deregulation in 1986.

In West Yorkshire, bus use dropped by 18 per cent between 1995 and 2015.

From 2013/2014 to 2016/2017, bus journeys in West Yorkshire lost more than five million miles.

This has caused difficulties for communities living in cut-off areas, which particularly affects rural communities.

Residents from places like Warwick Estate in Knottingley say they can’t get jobs because of their limited bus service. Ticket fares have also tripled since 1995, alongside a deregulated ticketing system that is often difficult to get the best deal on.

The campaign says bringing buses under public control would mean services would be able to expand again, in order to better meet community needs. Mr Topham said: “It means the network can be expanded and be planned in a way that works for local people.”

The campaign is calling for West Yorkshire’s new mayor to start the process of investigating bus franchising within the first 100 days of their election. This is because the National Bus Strategy, which includes a £3bn pot of funding for bus services, stipulates that transport authorities must have started the process of franchising or establishing an enhanced bus partnership by July 2021 to continue receiving funding. West Yorkshire Combined Authority declined to comment.

People are having to give up their jobs

because of the shrinking network