Public ownership suggested as an option for ‘failing’ bus service
TAKING BUS services in South Yorkshire back under public control should be seriously considered in the long term, a comprehensive review has suggested.
The South Yorkshire Bus Review, chaired by Sheffield South East MP Clive Betts, found a raft of failings throughout the county’s public transport network, including weak leadership, poor accountability and “woefully inadequate” funding.
It recommends that Sheffield City Region bosses should procure the necessary expertise to “financially and legally investigate” the process of franchising, with a decision on whether to pursue that option taken no later than June 2023. Creating a municipal bus company – owned and run by the city region – should also be considered five years from now, the report says.
Mr Betts said: “Buses should be the backbone of a public transport system, yet in South Yorkshire, due to a number of factors, buses have been allowed to decline and passengers have been the ones to suffer. This cannot continue.
“We have made a number of recommendations to the mayor, that we feel not only will help bus services improve for passengers, but also sustain it for the future.”
According to the review, published today, Sheffield Council was the most in favour of taking services back into public ownership or bringing in a franchise model. Barnsley Council was said to be the most against it, with Rotherham and Doncaster sitting somewhere in between.
The review panel said there had been a “lack of leadership” from the bus operators, South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive (SYPTE), councils and the city region.
Mr Betts concluded there were “too many layers of leadership” without the “leverage and power” to bring about real change.
The painful delay in getting a devolution deal over the line was said to be a reason why city region mayor Dan Jarvis “couldn’t take more of a lead” before now.
Meanwhile, SYPTE had prevented councils making decisions about bus services and, in turn, local authority leaders “shied away from responsibility”.
A series of recommendations for immediate implementation – as well as for one, three and five years from now – are set out in
We can’t afford to just ‘tinker around the edges’
Clive Betts, who chaired the South Yorkshire Bus Review. the report. They include changes to concessionary offers, a pause on all service reductions until December 2021, reform of the tendering of socially necessary services, and the appointment of a regional leader to promote bus services and their importance within the political agenda.
Mr Betts said: “I know that the recommendations we have made will not be popular with everyone, but we can’t afford to just ‘tinker around the edges’ of our bus services any longer.”
Acknowledging the issue of climate change and the impact of lockdown and social distancing, he added: “This is an opportunity to make necessary improvement to the bus system in South
Yorkshire, so that when life does return to the ‘new normal’ our bus system is better, stronger and more financially resilient. If we don’t make fundamental changes now, then we may not have a bus service in the future.”
Welcoming the report, Mr Jarvis said: “I want to be clear that rapid change will not come overnight, and I will be working with local leaders and partners to urge Government to put in place the necessary funding needed to help us make improvements.
“We have a big job to do but if we all play our part, we can have a world class bus service in South Yorkshire – one that properly works for its passengers and that we can be proud of.”