Bus funding provided by government must be used to support our Supertram Link buses
Bus services are an essential part of our local transport network and for many people there are simply no other transport options available to them. So I was extremely disappointed to be advised by Stagecoach Yorkshire that they have put forward a proposal to remove Supertram Link bus services from October 2, at the same time the No.57 service would be run directly between Stocksbridge and Sheffield up to once every half hour. This seems to suggest that the revised No.57 service is expected to make up for the loss of the Supertram Link, under the current proposals it won't.
Many residents have already written to me to share their concern about the possibility that they will lose their bus service link to Sheffield, with a significant number noting that buses have become increasingly infrequent over recent weeks, sometimes not turning up at all. This means passengers are being let down, and may will be part of the reason fewer people are choosing to risk using the service anymore.
I am completely opposed to any proposal to withdraw these essential routes, which provide vital connectivity for residents of the Upper Don Valley.
Over the summer I lobbied ministers and was pleased to be able to persuade them to commit to a third round of COVID bus support funding. The Bus Recovery Grant, which is designed to subsidise bus routes as passenger numbers recover following the pandemic, offers up to £130 million of new money to extend the grants that were going to expire at the start of October. This new funding continues all the way through to March 2023.
Transport Secretary, Grant Shapps, announcing the funding in late August, said:
"This funding will ensure millions across the country can continue to use vital bus services, and brings the total we’ve provided to the sector throughout the pandemic to almost £2 billion."
The SL1 and SL1a are exactly the sort of routes that this money should be used to subsidise. I have therefore written to the Mayor of South Yorkshire, Oliver Coppard, who is responsible for overseeing and funding our local transport network to call on him to use some of this additional government funding to keep the Stocksbridge to Sheffield bus links running. This would allow time for a wider assessment of passenger demand and consideration of a range of service delivery options.
