£8.7m for Warwickshire to support and boost bus services
WARWICKSHIRE is to get £8.7 million as a part of a government drive to boost bus services across the country.
Labour has announced a total investment of £1 billion which it says is to support buses and keep fares low.
And, it added, that the money has been designated to enhance popular routes, protect rural services and increase bus use for shopping, socialising and commuting.
It means £100m investment for the West Midlands, with Warwickshire County Council (WCC) seeing £8,762,351.
The money will support buses into 2026, the government said, and allow a “once-in-a-generation reform to deliver London-style bus services to every corner of the country”.
Transport secretary Louise Haigh said: “The value of regular and reliable bus services cannot be understated.
“For far too long, the West Midlands has been suffering from unreliable services with buses hugely delayed, or not even turning up at all.
“This funding kick-starts the bus revolution to bring an end to the postcode lottery of bus services, drive economic growth and make sure people have proper access to jobs and opportunities.
“We’ve already committed over £150m to extend the bus fare cap and keep fares low and this nearly £1bn of further funding will mean local routes are protected, reliability is improved and the passenger is put first.”
The bus fares cap will run until 31st December 2025.
WCC said it was waiting for the money to be confirmed in writing by the Department of Transport and would then begin talks with the Warwickshire Bus Enhanced Partnership and the council’s cabinet to set out proposals.
A spokesperson said WCC received similar bus service improvement funding for 2023-24 and 2024-25, and used some of the money to maintain and improve bus services in the wider Stratford district area, including continuing an evening X18 service following a trial funded by the RSC.
There were also new evening services on Fridays and Saturdays from Stratford railway station to the town centre and Lower Quinton, with one journey finishing in Shipston, and improved services around Gaydon and the JLR site.
As reported last week by the Herald, Stratford will soon be getting a route which uses electric buses – the X18. Could more be on the way?
The spokesperson added: “It is not envisaged that the new funding will be directed towards provision of further all-electric buses in acknowledgement that, like the funding arrangements in place for the Coventry All Electric Bus City Scheme and separate Warwickshire Zero Emission Bus Regional Areas scheme, any further provision of all-electric buses on routes in Warwickshire would need to be led and funded by bus operators on a commercial basis, potentially supplemented by a funding contribution from the Department for Transport or an alternative third party outside of the county council.”
So how about franchising, with WCC taking control of buses?
County council officers are looking at what the implications are for Warwickshire as the West Midlands Combined Authority moves forward with franchising.
“It is possible that a small proportion of the new funding stream could help resource this work, if deemed eligible by the Department for Transport,” the spokesperson said.
