RMT helpline 0800 376 3706 :: april 2021 :: RMTnews

RMT helpline 0800 376 3706 :: april 2021 :: RMTnews 13 T he government is to a review of the ban on local authorities setting up new municipal bus companies according to a a new Department of Transport report ‘Bus Back Better – National Bus Strategy for England’. The report promises that the fragmented, fully commercialised market, which has operated outside London since 1986, will end. “We want to see operators and local councils enter into statutory ‘enhanced partnerships’ or franchising agreements to receive the new funding and deliver the improvements. “It is expected that many councils will choose enhanced partnerships, where local authorities work closely with bus companies, drawing on their operating knowledge and marketing skills. “Because of the decline in use caused by the pandemic, bus operators have already received significant emergency support from the government. From this summer, only services under these arrangements will be eligible for continued support or any new sources of funding from the £3 billion transformational investment,” the report said. RMT general secretary Mick Cash welcomed the commitment to a review of the ban on local authorities in England setting up new municipal, publicly owned, bus companies but questioned why this was not referenced in the government’s initial announcement. “RMT has long campaigned for the illogical ban on local authorities setting up publicly owned municipal bus companies to be overturned. “It is a victory for this campaigning that the government has finally acknowledged that this ban is ‘ripe for review’. The Bus Strategy acknowledges that ‘bus services have been in decline for a long time’ and RMT believes this is a direct result of the deregulation and privatisation of the sector in the 1980s, which also prohibited the establishment of new municipal bus companies. “However, we need more than just a review, we need radical, meaningful action from government to ensure that local authorities are able to provide affordable and reliable bus services to their community via a publicly owned municipal bus company. “It has been estimated that municipal bus operation in Britain, outside London, could save over £500 million a year and this money would be far better spent on improving and expanding services than lining the private operators’ shareholders pockets. The government cannot delay action on this any longer,” he said. Transport for Quality of Life has estimated that ‘The total gain from municipal operation would be of the order of £506 million per year in Britain excluding London’ - Building a world-class bus system for Britain. Other changes include: • simpler bus fares with daily price caps, so people can use the bus as many times a day as they need without facing mounting costs • more services in the evenings and at the weekends • integrated services and ticketing across all transport modes, so people can easily move from bus to train • all buses to accept contactless payments he g revie authorit municip accordi Departm report ‘ Nationa England The the frag comme has ope since 19 “We d l BUS BACK BETTER