Frustration over disjointed public transport services, cross-boundary disputes, and the impact on everyday lives have been voiced by MPs.
With Bristol emerging as a key point of contention, issues around bus route cancellations, the shortcomings of on-demand transport schemes, and calls for greater local control over public services dominated discussions.
Dr Simon Opher, Labour MP for Stroud, opened his remarks by emphasising, the role public transport plays in promoting equality and community. He painted a vivid picture of how bus services in rural areas act as a “lifeline” for local residents, only to see them dismantled after years of government neglect.
“The impact of nearly four decades of deregulation on our public transport system has left many communities stripped of any public transport, or at the very least, of any accessibility or affordable bus services,” Dr Opher said.
Highlighting local challenges, he pointed to the collapse of the 84/85 bus route, which had connected Wotton-under-Edge to Bristol. The service, critical for schoolchildren, workers, and residents in need of medical care, was scrapped due to cross-boundary funding disputes between the Gloucestershire and West of England combined authorities.
“People have written to me saying they have had to turn down job offers,” he said, stressing the human cost of this bureaucratic impasse.
Dr Opher called on the government to ensure that “rural areas without an elected mayor will have equal opportunities to benefit from the shift towards community-controlled bus services.”
Liberal Democrat MP for Thornbury and Yate, Claire Young, spoke of the controversial WESTlink on-demand bus service. Originally billed as a flexible, modern alternative to fixed routes, WESTlink has faced fierce criticism for its unreliability and limited capacity.
“Bad experiences have led to people losing confidence in it, because no one wants to be stranded and to have to pay a fortune for a taxi,” Ms Young stated.
She recounted stories from parents forced to rebook daily services just to get their children to school.
“I know there is a WESTlink available to book every day, but with the WESTlink only able to have a small number of passengers—and it is never on time or takes us somewhere completely different before taking us to school—it’s leaving parents with the fear of being fined,” one frustrated parent wrote to her.
She criticised the West of England Combined Authority for prioritising urban areas, like Bristol, at the expense of rural communities. “As long as the focus is purely on passenger journey numbers, rather than ensuring that everyone has a basic minimum service that enables access to work, education, and health services, our rural areas will miss out,” she warned.
In response to calls for change, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport Simon Lightwood outlined a vision for reformed bus franchising and new funding initiatives. He underscored that the government was taking action to empower local authorities with the ability to franchise services and better control their routes and fares.
“By giving local transport authorities more power to deliver the model that works best for their area, and by giving them flexibility on funding, they can deliver comprehensive bus networks,” Mr Lightwood said.
Referencing Manchester’s successful Bee Network, he pledged that franchising powers would not be limited to metropolitan mayors. “Bus franchising can be for all areas of the country, and it is not reserved for places like Manchester, which has done it so effectively,” he added.
The Minister announced the government’s intention to introduce a bus bill to further simplify franchising processes, echoing the calls of Dr Opher and Claire Young for local control. The government also committed to over £1 billion in new funding for local transport authorities, aimed at bolstering public transport outside London.
A repeated theme throughout the debate was the perception of Bristol as a funding magnet, with surrounding rural areas like Stroud and Yate left to fend for themselves.
MPs were united in their call for more equitable funding. Claire Young argued that the current funding approach, which prioritises increasing passenger numbers, puts Bristol at a distinct advantage over smaller rural communities.
“Funding has been prioritised for urban areas such as Bristol, where increasing the frequency of services boosts the number of passenger journeys more,” she said.
She stressed the need for a “minimum service level” for all areas, regardless of population size, so that rural communities aren’t left without access to basic public services.
Rail services also came under scrutiny, with MPs lamenting a lack of coordination between buses and trains. Claire Young pointed out that there was no joined-up approach to ensure that buses in areas like Hawkesbury Upton arrived at Yate train station in time for scheduled train departures.
She also renewed calls for the reopening of local rail stations at Charfield and Coalpit Heath, as part of a strategy to connect rural areas to growing job markets in places like Severnside. “The lack of an ecosystem holds us back,” she asserted, adding that without joined-up planning, the entire system becomes unreliable.
The cancellation of the 84/85 cross-boundary bus route, which ran from Wotton-under-Edge to Bristol, was seen as a case study in how transport boundaries can cause havoc. Both Dr Simon Opher and Claire Young pointed out that the route was critical for children commuting to schools like Katharine Lady Berkeley’s School, as well as for workers and those travelling for healthcare appointments.
The cancellation occurred due to a failure of local authorities to negotiate funding terms. Young revealed that she had tried repeatedly to engage the West of England Combined Authority on the issue, only to be met with the same response: “There’s no funding.”
“People living on one side of a boundary line are cut off from services on the other,” Opher said, urging the government to establish a system of “cross-boundary co-ordination” to prevent such problems in the future.
The government laid out ambitious plans for reform. Minister Simon Lightwood announced the development of a new “integrated national transport strategy,” which will focus on unifying bus, train, and local authority services. The strategy is aimed at creating a connected public transport system that works for people, not profit.
In a nod to accessibility, Lightwood announced the next phase of the Accessible Information Regulations, requiring all buses and coaches to provide audible and visual route announcements.
He promised that the forthcoming buses bill would strengthen the role of local authorities in franchising and that new multi-year transport funding settlements would allow councils to plan long-term projects.
For Dr Simon Opher, the vision of the future was to return to what worked in the past. Describing his own weekly commute home from Parliament, he said, “I leave this place, take the train to Stroud and then get on to my favourite bus, the 65. I sit on the top, and I ride over Selsley common to my home. It is an utter joy, and a joy that is shared by my two-year-old granddaughter, who absolutely loves buses.”