Oxfordshire sets out plan to increase bus use
Oxfordshire County Council is introducing a range of measures to encourage more people to use buses, including cheaper fares for under-19s, new rural services, bus priority improvements and traffic filters to reduce journey times.
The measures are contained in its draft enhanced partnership (EP) document, approved by cabinet and now open to consultation. The draft EP sets out plans by the county council, bus operators and its partners, to help bring passenger levels back to pre-pandemic levels.
Councillor Andrew Gant, Oxfordshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Highways Management, said, “Effective public transport is key to many of our priorities as a council. We want to invest in an inclusive, integrated and sustainable countywide transport network, fit for the 21st century, and significantly reduce reliance on car journeys. Buses are also central to helping address the climate emergency and tackling inequalities in the county.
The EP sets out how the county council intends to spend the £12.7 million it is earmarked to receive from the government following its Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP) bid. Although significantly less than the £56m the council bid for, the money will be prioritised on schemes that maximise the benefit for passengers.
The measures contained in the EP include:
keeping buses at the heart of decision making
making buses faster and more reliable
upgrading bus infrastructure
improving the image of buses
making buses easier to access and understand
Once the draft EP has been consulted upon, the final version will be submitted to the government later this year to secure the £12.7m BSIP funding.
Bus passenger levels are currently running at between 75 and 80 per cent of pre-Covid levels. Without improvements and action, including continued government financial support, services may have to be reviewed later this year, Oxfordshire warns.
Earlier this year, the county council and bus companies Go-Ahead and Stagecoach were successful in their bid to bring 159 electric buses to Oxford and its surrounding areas. The bid received £32.8 million from the government’s Zero Emission Bus Regional Areas scheme meaning that, along with £6m from the council and £43.7m from bus companies, the package for buses and the infrastructure to charge them is worth £82.5m.