Cambridgeshire Sustainable Travel Alliance is calling on Combined Authority mayor Paul Bristow to take urgent action to increase funding for buses.The organisation is also calling for buses to be given more priority, which they argue is a proven way to “substantially reduce” operational costs.Mayor Paul Bristow. Picture: Keith HeppellBus franchising is proposed by Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority to reduce congestion and boost public transport.However, an independent report for the Conservative mayor has warned that it will require more funding, major new depots and could lead to network reductions.It found that freezing the mayoral precept – part of the council tax bill – combined with revised demand assumptions and the mayor’s pledge to avoid significant borrowing, has created a funding gap that “could be closed by reducing the size of the network”.The Combined Authority will decide whether to accept the recommendations of the review at its board meeting today (Wednesday, 15 July). Sarah Hughes, campaign officer for Cambridgeshire Sustainable Travel Alliance, said: “A glaring contradiction exists between the mayor’s ambition for extensive, inclusive growth across our region, and the lack of a credible plan to maintain, let alone increase the size of our public transport network.“Mayor Bristow should invest more in bus services and wholeheartedly support the rollout of extensive bus priority schemes in the Cambridge area, including a wider network of bus gates.”
Cambridgeshire Sustainable Travel Alliance calls for more bus funding
