Stagecoach East, Bedford’s largest bus operator, has called for improved communication to tackle the scourge of local traffic congestion, after figures highlighted the role that buses play in shrinking jams, cleaning up our air, tackling climate change, and improving our health and local economy.
Figures published at the start of Better Transport Week, which runs from 17th to 23rd June, highlight key facts about travelling by bus, such as:
• Bus commuters add £64bn to the economy each year.
• One double-decker bus can take up to 75 cars off our roads.
• Buses are integral to our local communities, connecting millions of people, tackling loneliness, cutting traffic and reducing air pollution.
• Buses are the UK's most used form of public transport.
Air pollution currently costs our health services £20bn every year, and buses play a key role in reducing its impact, with modern, sophisticated vehicles and particularly the 32 electric buses run by Stagecoach East.
David Boden, Business Development Director of Stagecoach East, and inaugural Chairman of local bus operators trade body the CP Bus Alliance, said: “Everyone who works on the buses in our region are working very hard to offer a service which offers the convenience, reliability and value that our passengers deserve. The communities that we bring together mean such a lot to all of us – we wake up every morning wanting to prove the value of our service to our customers, and Better Transport Week is an excellent opportunity to do just that.
“Buses are one crucial part of a genuinely Sustainable Transport future for our region, and we are always eager to speak with the other transport operators and local elected officials to understand how we can all work together.
“It is also essential that other road users, like the utilities companies and housing developers, talk to us regularly and really consider their impact on how buses can get our customer where they need to go. We can only tackle the curse of congestion if we work together.”
Throughout Better Transport Week, the Campaign for Better Transport will be releasing further information on Twitter/X under the theme of: #betterbybus. It will bring the transport industry, government, business and NGOs together, along with passengers, pedestrians, cyclists, and anyone who cares about transport.
Paul Tuohy from the Campaign for Better Transport added: “Sustainable transport does amazing things. It shrinks traffic jams, cleans up our air and tackles climate change. It improves our health and boosts our economy. It connects us to the things that matter. We are delighted to have so many groups and organisations coming together during Better Transport Week to help promote sustainable transport and encourage as many people as possible to get on board.”
The news comes after Stagecoach East announced figures showing how far its reliability figures have improved. Each week it monitors the amount of miles its buses travelled compared to the amount they are scheduled to do. At the start of June, across its full range in Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire, it completed over 99.5% of its scheduled miles.
