August 25 2021
CPT Cymru is backing a letter that has been sent to Welsh Government calling on them to restore confidence in public transport to avoid a car-based recovery.
The letter, written by Transform Cymru, highlights the benefits of travelling by public transport and the risks associated with more people choosing to travel in private vehicles, and sets out what Welsh Government needs to do to restore people’s confidence.
Public transport has a crucial role to play in the recovery from Covid-19. More people travelling by bus will help to meet decarbonisation targets and climate change obligations, and bus travel caters for the needs of different users. An increase in people choosing to make journeys by car rather than by bus will worsen air pollution, increase congestion and consequently increase bus journey times, and hinder Wales’s economic recovery with fewer people travelling to towns and city centres.
Measures that the letter calls on Welsh Government to use to restore confidence in public transport include a pro-public transport message highlighting the safety of bus travel, ensuring Covid-19 risk assessments do not single out bus, making the National Transport Plan for Wales an early priority for the new administration, and a proactive marketing plan for the industry.
Responding to the letter CPT Cymru Director Joshua Miles said:
“Bus is a sustainable and inclusive travel option that many people rely on to make essential journeys, and we must reassure people that it is safe to get back on board.
“The bus industry stands ready to play its part in the recovery from Covid-19 but we must have measures in place to avoid a car based recovery. Bus, which shares many of the same characteristics as other areas of society, must not be singled out in Covid-19 risk assessments, which would undermine the work operators have done to give people the confidence to travel.
“Now is the time to look to the future and work with Welsh Government on a proactive marketing campaign that will help to rebuild passenger confidence, to prevent our roads being dominated by cars and ensure that everyone has access to a reliable transport network.”
You can read a copy of the letter here.