Suffolk MP asks Commons to ‘critically examine’ bus services as bill reaches final stages
The Bus Services (No. 2) Bill has reached its final stages since being introduced in December last year, with MPs considering a range of amendments.
A Suffolk MP has asked the House of Commons to ‘critically examine’ bus services as a bill reaches its final stages.
The Bus Services (No. 2) Bill has reached its final stages since being introduced in December last year, with MPs considering a range of amendments.
Dr Peter Prinsley, MP for Bury St Edmunds and Stowmarket, spoke in the Commons on Wednesday to share his support for an amendment calling for a review into the minimum bus service standards in England.
He said: “Out in Suffolk, we certainly do not have a fully integrated bus service – for a start, there are simply not enough buses.
“From 2010, a decade of declining public funding left the interwoven jumble of local bus maps looking decisively threadbare.”
The review would explore the powers and funding necessary for county and unitary councils to implemtent ‘guaranteed minimum bus services’ for communities with more than 300 residents.
Dr Prinsley stressed the need for more bus routes with appropriate timings, giving an example of a lady with a dodgy knew from Honington, between Bury St Edmunds and Stowmarket, who would need to pay £35 for a taxi to attend hospital appointments in the afternoon.
He said: “We all know that for lots of real people in rural areas, inadequate bus services means that transport costs easily spiral out of control.
“That is why we need to critically examine the minimum bus service standards required across communities in England.”
The bill is set to bring ‘London-style bus services’ to every corner of the country while making it difficult for bus companies to axe routes deemed ‘socially necessary’.
It further lifts a ban on councils setting up their own bus companies.
Meanwhile, Government funding of close to £9 million has enabled Suffolk County Council to enhance several routes across the county, including the service operating between Orford and Grundisburgh.
Routes at risk of being axed altogether, such as the one serving the Marham Park estate, also benefitted.