The Swindon Bus Company has this week informed the Labour group’s councillors that bus services are to be reduced in the borough. For Abbey Meads and Blunsdon, the current service is to be withdrawn altogether and there is as yet no agreement on what is to replace it.
Labour group councillor Jane Milner-Barry had this to say:
“The Labour group could not be more disappointed in this decision. What is the point of a £25 million Bus Boulevard if there aren’t the buses to get people where they want to go and when they want to go there? Without an expanded bus service, the Bus Boulevard will be just another white elephant.
Swindon Council submitted a 63-page “Bus Service Improvement Plan” to the Government last year but was awarded no funding at all. Now the Conservative government is withdrawing the Bus Recovery Grant, despite the fact that bus passenger numbers are still way below their pre-covid level. Swindon will be particularly hard hit by this loss of funding, as our bus services had already been pared to the bone.
Road transport is one of the biggest sources of greenhouse gases in the UK and we need a shift from private cars to public transport if we are to get emissions down. While the Conservative Government starves the bus industry of funds there is no way this is going to happen. In other European countries, Governments are encouraging public transport use by supporting services and slashing fares. When will the Conservative Government start living in the real world and taking climate change seriously?”
For now, Labour group councillors will be seeking an urgent meeting on this with the council and Swindon Bus Company. When able we will update residents.”
