· The Government have invested a further £80 million to protect essential bus services and allow local authorities to make travel improvements in their communities.
· The funding will support 64 local authorities including West Sussex County Council with more than £1.1 million of funding, building on the £80 million of Bus Services Improvement Plan+ (BSIP+) funding for 2022-23 and the £1 billion investment for bus services in 2022.
· The Government have invested £3.5 billion in bus services since 2020, protecting and improving bus travel and helping people save money on public transport.
Henry Smith MP has welcomed Government investment of £1,102,400 in bus services across West Sussex, supporting passengers across Crawley.
This funding means people across West Sussex have benefitted from a total of £19,606,396 funding from the Government to support bus services since 2022.
Henry said;
“Many people rely on bus services across Crawley to get to work or to see family and friends.
“That’s why the Government have invested £3.5 billion in bus services since 2020, including more than an extra £1.1 million for services across West Sussex.
“This funding will protect essential services and enhance transport connections, supporting people to get where they need to go with public transport they can rely on.”
The investment comes from the £80 million Bus Services Improvement Plan 2024-25 fund, of which there have been three rounds – building on the £80 million invested in 2023-24 and £1 billion invested in 2022.
It comes on top of a further £140 million announced in May from the extension of the Bus Service Operators Grant (BSOG), taking the total to continue supporting and protecting bus services across England to £300 million into 2025.
To help people with the cost of living and save on everyday travel costs, the Government have also invested £200 million to extend the bus fare cap, with single bus tickets capped at £2 outside London until the end of October 2023 and then at £2.50 until 30th November 2024.
The £2 fare cap has cut travel costs, with the average fare dropping by 10.8 per cent in rural and non-metropolitan parts of England.
The measures take total Government support to protect and improve bus services while keeping fares low to £3.5 billion since 2020.
The Minister for Roads & Local Transport, Richard Holden, commented;
“Buses are the most popular form of public transport and millions of people across the country from the Tees Valley to Torbay rely on their local service to get to work, attend medical appointments and see loved ones."
“We are providing a further £80 million to help local authorities improve and protect essential services, delivering for local communities across the country by enhancing transport connections, supporting passengers and growing the economy.”
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