Public Consultation on Bus Control Attracts Thousands of Responses

A public consultation concerning bus services received hundreds of responses within hours of its launch. The 12-week survey, led by South Yorkshire Mayor Oliver Coppard, seeks public input on whether buses should revert to public control. Currently, private bus operators manage service operations; however, if franchising is implemented, the Mayor would assume responsibility for determining routes, fares, and timetables. Since its commencement on October 22, nearly 3,000 individuals have participated, with 735 submissions recorded in the initial 24 hours. Mayor Coppard noted that these figures were “more than some other regions have had in total across their 12-week consultation periods.” Coppard stated, “We want to hear from people who live and work in South Yorkshire, as well as those people who use our transport networks from further afield, and there’s still nine weeks for everyone to tell us what they think about our proposals to take back control of our buses.” He added, “It’s vital that people have their say by filling out either the short or long version of the survey, or by coming along to one of our drop-in events which are happening right across the region.” Matthew Topham, from the We Own It bus campaign group, indicated that he frequently hears complaints from passengers. He quoted, “We have heard from people who had an NHS appointment that they had been waiting months for, the bus didn’t turn up in time, and they ended up missing the first 10 minutes. It’s the stress that causes, ” and continued, “People have told me that their boss has said if they are late to work again they will be fired when it’s no fault of their own, the bus system means that they can’t get to work on time.“People also say the cost of multiple bus fares for a single journey means that it’s actually getting so expensive, even with the £2 fare cap, that they can’t get to college affordably.“It cuts down these opportunities for healthcare, education, work that we need to be building up if we’re going to have a thriving South Yorkshire.” The consultation is scheduled to conclude at midday on January 15, 2025.