SAVE OUR BUSES

RMT helpline 0800 376 3706 :: october 2011 :: RMTnews 7 Around 50 MPs from all the main parties in parliament from the Tories to Lib Dem and Labour have signed up to Early Day Motion 1986 to condemn the fact that hundreds of local authority supported bus services deemed socially necessary are being withdrawn. The MPs are concerned that the decision to reduce the Bus Service Operators Grant by 20 per cent from 2012 will further damage the bus network and undermine government objectives to tackle unemployment and promote equal opportunities and social mobility, particularly in rural areas. RMT general secretary Bob Crow called on all members to write to their MP about concerns over Con Dem cuts to bus services. “RMT will fight this attack on bus services, and bus staff, with every tool at our disposal,” he said. The union has also opposed Tory-led transport cuts on the Isle of Wight which includes a dangerous pilot scheme to replace paid bus workers with unpaid volunteers. Tory leader David Cameron has repeatedly denied that his Big Society is about dumping paid staff and replacing them with unpaid volunteers and yet that is exactly what is happening on the Isle of Wights buses. “This is that clearest evidence that the so-called ‘Big Society’ scam will be used as a battering ram to replace skilled and experienced staff with ad-hoc volunteers,” said Bob. More than 70 per cent of local authorities have cut back on bus subsidies, with some places losing all weekend and evening services. On top of this a 20 per cent cut to the fuel tax rebate for buses, known as BSOG, will come into force in 2012, and there are also cost cutting changes to the way the free bus-pass scheme is funded. Cameron also promised to protect the bus pass but if the scheme is not properly funded, the buses most used by pass holders will be the first to go. Sophie Allain of the Save Our Buses campaign said that part of the problem was that the people making the decisions were rarely the people who use the bus. “We want to track bus cuts to reveal the real extent of the problem, and to support bus users up and down the country who are standing up to defend their local bus services from the cuts. “Central government cuts to local authority funding have left big holes in public transport budgets, with councils scrambling to make deep and rushed short term savings,” she said. If you know of bus cuts or fare rises happening in your area, please report them on the interactive map (www.bettertransprot.org.uk /campaigns/save-our-buses). Spreading the word in the anti-cuts movement is an important way of raising the public profile of the threat to buses. Localised bus cuts add up to a real danger for our bus network and those who rely on it. “It is time we all stepped up and spoke out for buses,” said Sophie. The national campaign is working with local communities fighting to save buses route by route. Jo Green, a bus user from Cambridgeshire, started legal proceedings against her councils decision to withdraw all funding for buses. As a result the council has been forced to back down and rethink its planned cuts. Save Our Buses has produced a campaign pack, which includes a beginner’s guide to bus campaigning and information about the arguments made in Jo’s legal challenge. If bus cuts have not yet started to bite in your area, the time to take pre-emptive action is now. To get involved and order your free campaign pack email sophie.allain@bettertransport.org.uk SAVE OUR BUSES Union calls on members to write to their MPs to ask them to sign Early Day Motion 1986 to stop cuts to bus services particularly in rural areas