Better bus deals for all

At a round table meeting arranged by Caroline, she and the students met with Bus chief Martin Harris to negotiate an array of improvements to services across the city.

It will see complimentary tickets issued for students in need of welfare assistance; a review of ‘season tickets’ to better fit with term dates; training for drivers to assist students who do not have English as a first language;discounted day tickets and other special offers and a review of routing options and additional services.

Caroline said: “This is good news. It’s fantastic that the company has listened to the students and shown flexibility to fit their needs. 

As a regular bus user I hope this will be an ongoing conversation and lead to further improvements to the city’s bus services.”

Sophie van der Ham, Welfare Officer at the University of Sussex Student Union, said: “I’m really glad that Caroline’s been so proactive as MP on this and in helping to get the bus company to listen to us. I hope they’ll stick to their promises and we’ll see better services as a result. There’s a real crisis of affordability for students in the city and many say bus fares are still too high. It’s been a really positive response so far but there’s still a lot to do.”

Student Union worker Rianna Gargiolo, said: “I’m really happy with the concessions that have been made so far, and we’re dedicated to making sure services continue to improve.”

Managing Director of the Brighton Bus and Coach Company, Martin Harris said: “We have been listening to feedback provided by students and are delighted to have worked with them to produce a number of improvements to services which ensure that they are as affordable and user friendly as possible.”

Early Day Motion

Today, in order to try to ensure lower fares and better services across the country, Caroline will table an Early Day Motion (EDM) in Parliament calling on the Government to look at options for regulating bus services outside of London, or placing them into public ownership.

The move would protect users from unregulated fare hikes and provide reliable, frequent services.

Bus passengers in England outside of London have been hit with a 39.6% real terms fare rise since 1995, with average bus fares more than doubling in cash terms.

Caroline is calling on the Government to reverse its ‘devastating’ spending cuts on bus services and commission an independent review of the industry.

She said: “Deregulation of bus services has been a disaster for passengers, the taxpayer and bus workers. While we pour public funds into profit-making private bus companies, they continue to benefit while we’re hit with ever-higher charges.  We need to look at regulation as a matter of priority.” 

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