Bus Service Accessibility Kent 2025-03-27
2025-03-27
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Q1
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Context
Conservative-run Kent county council allocated £9 million of a £10 million grant from central government to prop up existing bus services, despite a 14-year decline in access to services. Constituents face lack of weekend bus service into town.
What steps she is taking to improve the accessibility of bus services in Kent? Conservative-run Kent county council recently confirmed that £9 million of the £10 million grant provided by central Government to improve bus services will go solely to propping up existing services. That is despite the decline in access to bus services over the past 14 years in Kent, as key routes have been abolished or restricted. My constituents in Broadmead have no weekend bus service into town, for example. Does the Minister agree that that is a shocking indictment of the services that the Tories have presided over and that change in May at the local elections is how we improve bus services for our constituents?
I could not agree more with my hon. and learned Friend. I am absolutely clear that too often local bus services are not delivering for passengers right across the country. That is why our ambitious reforms to bus services, including through the buses Bill, will give local leaders the powers they desperately need to reform services to best meet the needs of passengers, including in Kent. I am proud that our reform to bus funding allocations has meant additional funds for buses across the country, unlike under the Conservatives, who presided over 4.7 million fewer bus miles in Kent alone between 2010 and 2023.
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Assessment & feedback
The Minister did not provide specific steps or timeline to improve accessibility beyond general reform pledges.
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