Letter: Solving Sheffield's traffic issues

Further to my letter earlier this month; I observed again during my 8am commute this morning down Ecclesall Road zero other commuter cyclists.

Zip. None. In rush hour!

Arguably this should be the second busiest arterial route for commuting by cycle in Sheffield.

I am convinced by observation we need to spend taxpayers money on a greener system everyone can access. More importantly a system everyone wants to access.

The hordes of cyclists going to and from work seen on the news in many major cities are just not present in Sheffield. Same for local buses.

Neither are going to have a come back no matter how much we wish it.

Here’s an idea. Every electoral ward ie; Nether Edge, Handsworth, Stannington, Beighton has a surcharge placed on their rate bill, a small amount; say £20 per household.

This money is used to fund a modern single deck “City Nipper” for the area that only drives between that area and the city centre.

The residents of each ward can travel for free and other travellers a nominal amount of 50 pence.

The bus could run all day and would be subject to a timetable that everyone in that area knows by heart. This would be a true local bus.

The vehicle could be electric or hydrogen depending on how much money was raised by each area and how many hills the bus needed to climb on its route.

The extra money from non-residents would be spent on infrastructure like bus stops and additional improvements to its system.

For £20 they would have a viable alternative to the costs of running a car.

To every area a local bus in addition to the main route double deckers. Just a minute… does this sound familiar?

Oh yes! We had the South Yorkshire bus service previously run on these principles. Brilliant, wasn’t it?

Is the council brave enough to bring it back?