Isle of Wight West Labour MP, Richard Quigley, has backed the Labour Government’s transformative plans to deliver better bus services across the Island, with the Local Transport Authority – the Isle of Wight Council – due to get £1.8m.
The investment has been designated to enhance popular routes, protect rural services and increase bus use for shopping, socialising and commuting. It will help prevent service reductions on at-risk routes, improve punctuality, and bring an end to the current postcode lottery of unreliable services.
A record level of recent investment
Totalling £955 million across England, the funding represents a record level of recent investment for bus improvements for the majority of areas, alongside once-in-a generation reform to deliver better services to every corner of the country.
Under the Conservatives, bus services in England’s regions outside London collapsed, with thousands of bus services cut, and almost 300 million fewer miles driven by buses per year, since 2010. Across the Island, alone, bus miles declined by 28%. As part of this investment, the way funding is allocated has been reformed.
Funding allocations based on need
The reforms will allocate funding based on need and will end the Conservative’s wasteful system of competitive bidding for funding, which wastes resources and delays decisions.
This funding announcement comes alongside the Government’s plans to deliver the biggest overhaul to the country’s bus services in a generation, and call time on four decades of failed deregulation.
Taking back control
The Labour Government is expanding the power to take back control of local bus services to every community and is speeding up the process of delivering public control of buses by removing barriers to bus franchising and public ownership.
The funding announcement is the latest stop on the Government’s journey to better buses, with a new Buses Bill to be introduced to Parliament in the coming months.
Quigley: This new Government has a plan to deliver better buses across the country,
Commenting on the announcement, Richard Quigley MP said,
“I am delighted that the Transport Secretary has confirmed £1.8 million of new bus funding across the Island.
“People across Isle of Wight West, and the whole Island want reliable, more frequent bus services after a decade of neglect under the Conservatives.
“This new Government has a plan to deliver better buses across the country, and this funding boost is another crucial stop on that journey.”
Haigh: Ending the postcode lottery of bus services
Transport Secretary Louise Haigh said,
“Buses are the lifeblood of communities, but the system is broken. Too often, passengers are left waiting hours for buses that don’t turn up – and some have been cut off altogether.
“That’s why we’re reforming funding to deliver better buses across the country and end the postcode lottery of bus services. And it’s why we’re providing over £1bn of funding to keep fares down, protect local routes and deliver more reliable services.
“This is part of our wider plan to put passengers first and give every community the power to take back control of their bus services through franchising or public ownership.
“By delivering better buses, we’ll ensure people have proper access to jobs and opportunities – powering economic growth in every corner of the country.”
News shared by the Office of Richard Quigley. Ed
