October 30 2024
Reacting to the Chancellor’s statement, Alison Edwards, Director of Policy and External Relations at the Confederation of Passenger Transport, said:
“Buses are the UK’s most popular and affordable form of public transport, carrying over 10 million people a day. We welcome the Government’s ambition of improving buses nationwide and this week’s package of £1 billion in public funding for buses will safeguard vital routes and ensure that fares across England are capped at £3.
“However, our industry is a major employer in towns and cities across the UK, responsible for more than 150,000 jobs. The Chancellor’s increase in national insurance contributions will weigh heavily on bus and coach operators, typically costing £800 for each driver.
“This big tax rise will weaken the ability of bus operators to invest in higher frequencies, new routes and modern, environmentally friendly vehicles. And it will hurt coach operators, many of which are small, family owned businesses.
“Extra money to fix potholes will give our passengers smoother journeys. And the prospect of additional funding for hydrogen transport, and zero emission vehicles, is a positive as long as buses and coaches are included.
“Of every ten pounds spent on Britain’s high streets, a pound is spent by bus passengers – contributing almost £40 billion a year to local economies. Long distance coaches, meanwhile, carry visitors who spend £8.3 billion annually in towns, cities and tourist destination.
“Collectively, the bus and coach sector is vital in achieving the Government’s missions of kickstarting economic growth and breaking down barriers to opportunity. However, contradictory policies which, on the one hand, support public transport and on the other hand impose substantial extra costs, are unhelpful.”