Update on Council's bus service improvement plan
Cheshire West and Chester Council is progressing initiatives to improve bus services in the borough through its Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP).
The National Bus Strategy for England published in 2021 formalised an expectation that local councils and bus operators should work in partnership to deliver better bus services in their area. An Enhanced Partnership agreement was set up in the borough to achieve this in April 2022.
Councillor Karen Shore, Cabinet Member for Environment, Highways and Strategic Transport, said: “Bus services, as well as active travel options in general, play a critical role in tackling the climate emergency and supporting our poverty declarations in the borough.
“Since our co-produced Bus Service Improvement Plan was submitted to the Department for Transport in October 2021, we have continued to work in collaboration with local bus operators to further develop plans through our Enhanced Partnership agreement.
“Unfortunately, though we were not one of the few authorities to receive funding, we still feel our BSIP was both robust and ambitious. We listened to feedback from the Department of Transport, so we’ve realigned our targets and prioritised initiatives to refresh our plan.”
Initiatives put into place by the Cheshire West Enhanced Partnership so far have included:
- Bus operators supporting Afghan and Ukraine guests by providing two months free travel.
- Allowing concessionary travellers to make bus journeys before 9.30am during school summer holiday this year, so those still nervous of travelling do so at different times to rebuild their confidence.
- Substantial promotion of the P&R service to ease congestion in the city centre, following the opening of Chester’s very popular new market and in the build up to Christmas.
Future schemes will include:
- Supporting the Government’s £2 fare initiative in the new year, encouraging all operators to take part to make bus travel a mode of choice for the many in the borough and not the few; for employment, education and leisure.
- The launch of a demand responsive rural mobility bus service in the early part of 2023. More details to follow soon.
- Taking part in the Transport Focus bus passenger satisfaction survey “Your Bus Journey”. The survey will be launched in January 2023 and will further shape our BSIP to help drive bus service improvements across the borough.
Councillor Shore added: “We are also looking for a pool of people to become part of our bus users group, representative of our communities across the borough. If you would like to be part of this journey and become a valued member of our planned bus group please contact: Ep@cheshirewestandchester.gov.uk to register your interest. We’re looking forward to hearing from as many people as possible. Please get in touch.”
More information on the Council’s plans for bus services can be found on its website.
