Disability Rights UK has long been pressing the government and operators to provide bus services which will enable disabled people to access day to day activities more easily. The launch of the new government bus strategy has important implications for disabled people which at last recognises that buses are a lifeline to employment, education, medical appointments and leisure, as well as being essential to the economy. The strategy highlights key issues that buses will be more frequent, cheaper, greener, and easier to use as government continues its levelling up agenda, and councils and operators will work in partnership for the benefit of passengers. It says that passengers across England will benefit from more frequent, more reliable, easier to use and understand, better co-ordinated and cheaper integrated services and ticketing across all transport modes, so people can easily move from bus to train.
The Department for Transport is also announcing the government’s ‘Rural mobility fund’, which enables on-demand services – such as minibuses booked via an app – to be trialled in areas where a traditional bus service isn’t appropriate.
Disability Rights UK’s Stephen Brookes said: “The proposals are a welcome step in the right direction in delivering improvements for passengers. However delivering the scale of change needed to get people out of their cars and on to fast, frequent, clean, affordable and accessible public transport will require a long-term, sustainable funding model to drive investment in the years to come.”