By Ella Harget-Dash and Tobias Gavelle
Protesters held a rally outside South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority offices last week, calling for buses to be brought back under public control.
Last Tuesday’s rally was the first of many planned by the Better Buses for South Yorkshire campaign, who are urging the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority to take control of South Yorkshire’s buses to improve reliability and frequency.
Matthew Topham, a campaigner for Better Buses for South Yorkshire, said: “One of the biggest issues we hear from passengers around the region is that buses just do not turn up when you need them, or when you want them.”
Around 40 to 50 protesters attended the event, holding signs with slogans such as ‘give us our buses back’, ‘Just let buses turn up on time’ and ‘work for us, not for profit’.
Green Party council candidate for Ecclesall ward, Peter Gilbert, spoke at the event, telling protesters we will never have a leading transport system until we regulate our buses.
Mr Gilbert said: “The big focus of the Better Buses for South Yorkshire campaign is to put pressure on the South Yorkshire Mayor, Oliver Coppard, to carry on with the work he says he’s been doing about getting the buses into public control.”
Mayor Coppard was elected last year and has already capped bus and tram fares in South Yorkshire at £2 per single fare.
Mayor Coppard said: “I completely understand and agree with the protesters that the public transport system in South Yorkshire is fundamentally broken.
“Right now, private sector bus companies that largely run our network can decide where to run buses, when to run buses, and how much they charge for those buses. I don’t think that’s right”
South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority are currently undergoing a franchise assessment process, which is the legal process that must be taken before buses can be taken into public control.
