Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans his Department has to support rural bus services as covid-related support is reduced.

During the pandemic, the Government has provided unprecedented levels of financial support to the bus sector through its emergency and recovery support packages. Over £1.7bn has been provided to operators and Local Transport Authorities to date since March 2020. This is in addition to £200 million of Bus Services Operator’s Grant (BSOG) paid by the Department directly to operators, and £43 million of BSOG paid directly to LTAs so that they can subsidise socially necessary bus services.

Our National Bus Strategy is explicit about seeking to ensure that the needs of rural transport users are given equal consideration to those in urban environments. The Government recognises that the transport needs of communities in rural areas differ from those in urban environments for a variety of reasons including demographics, lower population density and travel distances. All English Local Transport Authorities (LTAs) have had the opportunity to set out their requirements and needs in Bus Service Improvement Plans.