8.3 Increasing Bus Use

We will implement a Bus Strategy to increase the number of journeys by bus.

By offering an attractive alternative to the car, buses have the ability to help reduce peak time road congestion. Increasing local bus use is a supply side management measure, which also through careful planning also addresses many local and national objectives. Overcoming barriers to accessibility will help to make the bus a realistic alternative on many journeys for existing car users. Following consultation, our Bus Strategy has been drawn up to show our plans for the next five years. It sets out new criteria for service support to reflect the needs of accessibility.

From recent interviews we have undertaken with non-bus users, the following factors emerged in their decision not to travel by bus;

• Inconvenient stops and inadequate shelters
• Difficulty in boarding buses
• Infrequent, indirect and unreliable services
• Lack of information on services and fares
• High cost of fares
• Long journey times, and
• Fear of crime, particularly at night.

These illustrate the problems and perceptions that must be changed if the bus is to attract more passengers. We will improve the quality of bus services for existing and prospective passengers and make the bus an attractive alternative to the private car. Buses will be able to fulfil their potential to reduce road congestion and road accidents and improve accessibility and air quality.

8.3.1 Travel Cost and Ticketing

The cost of travel and the difficulties in paying for it discourage the use of buses, especially where trips involve more than one operator. We will improve ticketing to make travel simpler and boarding faster through advance sales of single and multi-trip tickets, through ticketing and smartcards for cashless sales.

8.3.2 Better Information

We will make information about bus services, including timetables and boarding points, readily available to tell people whether a journey is possible and how it can be made. Real time information will offer further help before a journey begins and during its course.

8.3.3 Greater Safety

Many people are concerned for their personal safety, and particularly at night, when they are waiting at a stop or travelling on the bus. We will improve security at stops, on routes to stops and on buses, using the experience of the Safer Travel Unit.

8.3.4 Improved Quality of Services

To attract people from their cars, buses must offer high standards of comfort and convenience. A high quality of service must be provided on the journey, both on the bus and whilst waiting for it.

8.3.5 Improved Journey Times and Reliability

To attract new passengers, bus services need to be reliable with competitive journey times. Road congestion delays buses as well as cars, extending journey times and making services unreliable. The Network Management Duty guidance from the Government requires Local Transport Authorities to work with the Traffic Commissioners and bus operators to improve bus punctuality.

We will implement a range of active and passive measures including bus lanes, priority at traffic signals, traffic management schemes and enforcement of parking and loading restrictions through ParkWise.

8.3.6 Greater Accessibility

Accessibility of services by all members of the community is an important element of bus service provision. This includes the extent of the network and the times when services operate. It also includes access to buses and boarding points. Working with bus operators and partners, we will provide low floor buses, raised kerbs at stops and bus boarders. New bus stations and shelters at stops, as well as improved pedestrian access, will give passengers a more attractive and secure environment.

8.3.7 Better Integration

To make services attractive to car users, bus services need to be fully integrated with other transport modes. We will actively work with bus operators to bring about improvements. We will build new bus stations and interchanges and improve interchange at bus and railway stations. Integration of bus service timetables will be improved at key interchange points to minimise waiting times. This will include better integration with rail timetables at bus/rail interchanges too. People need to attend appointments for healthcare and other services. We will work with service providers to make appointments accessible by public transport and will help them develop booking systems that integrate appointments with transport timetables.

We will encourage cycling as an access mode to bus and train. An audit of stations and cycle routes will show how cycle-friendly they are and will identify the improvements needed to access and secure storage. We will raise awareness of cycle hire and encourage train operators to make it easier to take bicycles by train. A programme of bus-based Park and Ride schemes will reduce congestion on the busiest corridors.

Further information on Lancashire's policies and proposals for bus services can be found in the Bus Strategy which is published separately.

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