Sam Tarry: This so-called strategy offers nothing for those who were looking for a bold vision to reverse the millions of miles of bus routes lost

Monday, 15 March 2021 00:01

Sam Tarry MP, Labour’s Shadow Bus Minister, commenting on the publishing of the National Bus Strategy, said: “This so-called strategy offers nothing for those who were looking for a bold vision to reverse the millions of miles of bus routes lost across the country. “People will be wondering when they return to work whether there will be enough affordable and regular buses for their daily commute. “The Tories said deregulation would improve our buses but...Request free trial

Sam Tarry MP, Labour’s Shadow Bus Minister, commenting on the publishing of the National Bus Strategy, said:

“This so-called strategy offers nothing for those who were looking for a bold vision to reverse the millions of miles of bus routes lost across the country.

“People will be wondering when they return to work whether there will be enough affordable and regular buses for their daily commute.

“The Tories said deregulation would improve our buses but they’re running bus services into the ground. Passengers now face a toxic mix of rising fares, cuts to services and reduced access.

“The Government must do more to protect this crucial sector – not least given we’ve already seen more than 1,000 jobs lost in the bus and coach manufacturing industry alone since the pandemic started.

ENDS

Notes to editors

A Labour Government would:

Create freedom for local authorities to form their own bus companies by removing the Government’s ban.
Extend the powers to re-regulate local bus services to all areas that want them – not just to combined authorities with an elected mayor.
Require all new buses to meet the low-emission requirements set out by the Government-sponsored Office for Low Emission Vehicles.

Over the last 11 years the Tories have presided over a broken bus market. Bus fares have already risen by 70 per cent.

Year	England local bus fares index	Cumulative increase between 2010-2021


2010	128.8
2011	135.7	105.36%
2012	144	111.80%
2013	150.8	117.08%
2014	155.5	120.73%
2015	160.6	124.69%
2016	163.4	126.86%
2017	166.1	128.96%
2018	171.1	132.84%
2019	176.7	137.19%
2020	181	140.53%
2021*	220.3	171.02%

2010 to 2020’s figures are taken from DfT, costs, fares and revenue bus statistics, Table BUS0405, 17 June 2020, https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/bus04-costs-fares-and-revenue

2021’s figure is 2020 figure x 1.217%

Using the ONS’ ‘basket of goods’ you can draw out the individual items to show their inflation rises over time.

By using the RPI measure of inflation bus and coach fares are up 21.7%. That’s the highest yearly increase since the figures began in 1988.

ONS, CPI Annual rate Passenger transport by bus and coach, 17 February, 2021https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/inflationandpriceindices/timeseries/czef/mm23

Rising fares come at time of ever-worsening service. Over the first eight years of the last decade, there are figures, 3,347 bus services have been reduced or withdrawn according to the Campaign for Better Transport. This means the average is 418 in a year have been cut. At the current rate, by the end of the next Parliament the Tory Government will have overseen a reduction of more than 5,850 bus routes.

Year	Cumulative cuts to bus routes
2010-2018	3347
extrapolated
2019	3765
2020	4183
2021	4601
2022	5019
2023	5437
2024	5855

Campaign for better transport, Buses in Crisis, p7, 2018, https://bettertransport.org.uk/sites/default/files/research-files/Buses-in-Crisis-2018_0.pdf

Higher fares and cuts to bus routes have seen a decline in the number passengers using local bus services in England outside of London. There has been a reduction of 15 per cent since 2010 and at the current rate, that figure could reach 20 per cent by 2024.

Year	Passenger journeys on local bus services in England outside London in millions	Change since 2010/11 (%)	Average year on year change 2010/11 -2017/18 (Used to project the next five years' increases)
2010/11	2,349
2011/12	2,316	98.6%
2012/13	2,256	96.0%
2013/14	2,288	97.4%
2014/15	2,263	96.3%
2015/16	2,218	94.4%
2016/17	2,200	93.7%
2017/18	2,123	90.4%
2018/19	2,109	89.8%
2019/20	1,979	84.2%	98.13%
extrapolated
2020/21	1,942	84.2%
2021/22	1,906	82.7%
2022/23	1,870	81.1%
2023/24	1,835	79.6%

DfT, local bus passenger journeys, bus statistics, Tables BUS0103, 28 October 2020, https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/bus01-local-bus-passenger-journeys

Higher fares and cuts to bus routes have seen a particular reduction in the number of elderly and disabled passengers using local bus services in England outside of London. There has been a reduction of 17 per cent since 2010 and at the current rate that figure could reach 26 per cent by 2024.

Year	Concessionary passenger journeys on local bus services in England outside London in (millions)	Change since 2010/11 (%)	Average year on year change 2010/11 -2017/18 (Used to project the next five years' increases)
2010/11	841
2011/12	843	100.2%
2012/13	813	96.7%
2013/14	816	97.0%
2014/15	798	94.9%
2015/16	766	91.1%
2016/17	750	89.2%
2017/18	703	83.6%
2018/19	699	83.1%	97.7%
extrapolated
2019/20	683	81.2%
2020/21	668	79.4%
2021/22	653	77.6%
2022/23	638	75.8%
2023/24	623	74.1%

DfT, costs, fares and revenue bus statistics, Tables BUS0105, 17 June 2020, https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/bus01-local-bus-passenger-journeys