Millions of pounds are set to be invested on new bus stops across the west of England, just as several services will be axed next month. Up to £5 million will be spent on upgrading bus stops and shelters over the next few months, in Bristol, South Gloucestershire, and Bath and North East Somerset. The massive investment is aiming to get more people using buses and encourage drivers out of their cars.
But on October 9, many bus services in the West of England will be cancelled, due to a national shortage of bus drivers and rampant inflation putting pressure on budgets, leaving lots of passengers in towns and villages left stranded.
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West of England metro mayor Dan Norris said: “We need great places for people to wait for the bus if we’re going to attract people onto the buses. I know we have challenges with the buses themselves, but that doesn’t mean we forget about how we attract people onto the buses when we get that sorted. And bus stops are a hugely important part of that.”
The £5-million investment was agreed by Mr Norris and the region’s three councils at a meeting of the West of England combined authority. Buses in the region aren’t controlled by Weca, but mostly by First, a private company. Councillor Kevin Guy, leader of Bath and North East Somerset Council, called the situation “crazy”.
He said: “The irony here is that we’re not in control of buses, but we’re in control of bus stops. It just sounds stupid, doesn’t it? It’s crazy. We live in a very broken system when it comes to buses. I’m happy to invest as much money in improving the bus stops as possible, but we need to focus on a long term strategy in fixing our transport policy in general.”
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