Fares up, routes cut – it’s not on

PEOPLE have to be able to rely on buses.

The elderly, those who can’t afford a car and those with medical conditions that prevent them driving often have no other option.

To be unable to travel makes folk feel imprisoned. Their world closes in, they can’t visit friends or relatives. The bus is a lifeline.

Travellers think that bus companies don’t see it like that. Travellers will reckon that their buses and routes are counted as profit and loss figures on a tally sheet.

It is terrifying to see millions of pounds made while services around the country suffer and prices rise.

There has to be a human consideration alongside the profits.

But the bus firms shouldn’t be left to shoulder this responsibility alone.

The aim of any government must be to make life better for its people. That means those in rural communities as well as big cities.

Everyone has a stake in this. Councils and government have to make sure need comes before profit.

The people making these decisions would do well to walk a while in a rural villager’s shoes.

Any more than a few footsore miles and they’d be looking round to see if there is a bus coming.

Chances are, there won’t be.