LCC: The impact of cuts to bus subsidies in Hyndburn

 

Lancashire County Council has proposed to withdraw subsidies to buses from the 2nd April 2016 as a direct result of the Government Austerity measure, which will see a further cut in funding of £262 million over the next five years. The table above shows the subsidised services in Hyndburn which will be affected. The number 2 service from Accrington to Dill Hall is also affected.

Based on current spending and forecast demand for services, the County Council will not have sufficient financial resources to meet its statutory obligations by April 2018, even if they no longer continue to deliver any of the non-statutory services. The County Council will need to rely heavily on reserves in order to set a balanced budget for 2016/17 and 2017/18. Along with the proposals for withdrawing all subsidies for bus services, the government's austerity will affect a wide range of service areas and impact on frontline services. Where possible, LCC are continuing to look for more efficient ways of working that save money without affecting customers and communities.

This decision will affect approximately 15% of the current bus network as 85% of bus services are not subsidised. The current cost of subsidising these services is £6.8 million a year with the individual cost ranging from 34p to the highest being £12.31 per passenger.

The County Council will continue to support concessionary travel for the elderly and disabled known as the NOW Card. LCC will not be withdrawing the NOW card agreements.

Rural areas right across the country have suffered more than most when it comes to service provision. A recent national ATCO (Association of Transport Coordinating Officers) survey said that in order to maintain existing levels of support for socially necessary local buses, budgets would have to increase by an average of 4.4% whereas in practice local authority budgets were reduced by 2.2%.

The government rejected this proposal.

An updated consultation on the budget proposals to withdraw the subsidy and terminate all local bus service contracts will take place from 4 January 2016 until 27 March 2016. If you would like to express your views on these proposals, please visit the website http://www.lancashire.gov.uk/haveyoursay. Alternatively, you can pick up a hard copy of the consultation questionnaire at your local library or County Information Centre.