Go-Ahead welcomes continuing government support for bus services in England
Go-Ahead today welcomes the announcement from the Department for Transport (DfT) regarding extended funding of bus services in England, to be provided by the UK Government.
In its statement issued on Saturday 8 August, the DfT announced a further eight-week £218.4m funding package, following which weekly funding of up to £27.3m will be available until such a time as funding is no longer required. This announcement reaffirms the Government’s commitment to preserving the bus network for the long term and protects the vital bus services upon which so many people rely.
Alongside the funding announcement, the Government announced plans to publish a National Bus Strategy, to set out how it plans to support a sustainable future for bus services across the country. The Government is also actively working on ways to ensure the bus sector can operate independently and be commercially viable.
Go-Ahead CEO, David Brown, said:
“As communities return to work, services reopen and people begin travelling again, we are seeing customers returning to public transport. However, passenger numbers are still below 50% of pre-COVID levels across our networks. While social distancing is in place and sections of society remain closed, we welcome the Government’s continued support to keeping these critical services running.
“With enhanced cleaning of our buses, mandatory wearing of face coverings, and guidance on social distancing and hygiene, customers can travel safely and with confidence on our services.”