The Bus Industry: Report and Proceedings of the Committee v. 1 (House of Commons Papers)

by Local Government & the Regions Committee Transport

Description

Buses are the most widely used form of public transport, and provide an essential service for lower income households. However, bus use has been in long-term decline since the 1950's, largely due to increased car ownership, more suburbanisation and complex journey patterns. The Government has set a target for increasing bus use by 10 per cent by 2010, as part of its strategy to tackle social exclusion in urban and rural areas, and to reduce congestion and pollution. The Committee's report show more concentrates on local bus services and school transport provision in England. It welcomes the range of Government initiatives implemented and notes cautious optimism that the 2010 target can be met. However, this target may be achieved by growth in bus use in London alone, concealing stagnating or falling bus use in the rest of the country. The UK currently provides the lowest subsidy for bus use in the whole of the EU, and a more ambitious investment programme is need to improve the quality of bus routes and the frequency, coverage and co-ordination of services. A failure to invest will have significant impacts on expenditure by other Government departments such as Health, Education and Skills and Work and Pensions as a result of poor access, poor reliability and narrow horizons for those dependent on public transport. show less