Back Our Buses: Sheffield bus users can't pick up prescriptions due to service cuts says MP Louise Haigh

Cuts to bus funding by the Government has left Sheffield residents unable to use their local bus service, the MP claims.

Louise Haigh, MP for Sheffield Heeley and Shadow Transport Secretary, has spoken to a number of residents after concerns were raised over the reliability of TM Travel’s 76a bus service.

For residents in the Chancet Wood area of Sheffield, the 76a bus, which runs to the city centre, is a lifeline for many - providing access to essential services from appointments to meeting friends and family.

But Ms Haigh says South Yorkshire has seen a 48 per cent cut in bus funding from the Government since 2010, which has resulted in residents being unable to use the 76a service due to frequent short notice delays and cancellations.

It comes as The Star has launched the 'Back Our Buses' campaign with South Yorkshire Mayor Oliver Coppard in a fight for fair revenue funding from the Government, in line with surrounding regions.

One resident reportedly told Ms Haigh that they were unable to get a new inhaler for their asthma before Christmas due to the 76a service not running all day.

Another elderly resident using a 76a coach replacement reported that they had to stow their walker in the luggage space under the bus and had to be assisted up five steps to access the coach.

Ms Haigh said: "I’m delighted to be backing The Star’s campaign to drive improvements to our buses in Sheffield.

"We know that buses are a lifeline for so many people across Sheffield - they connect us to friends and family, to work and job opportunities, to the shops and to public services.

"Yet thousands of services across the country have been axed over the last few years under successive Tory governments.

"And for too long, our bus network has been run for the benefit of private operators and not in the interests of passengers."

The 'Back Our Buses' campaign is calling on the Government to award South Yorkshire revenue funding it desperately needs to improve its "infrequent and unreliable" bus services and routes, as described by Mr Coppard. In the Government's Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP) and subsequent funding allocations, per person, South Yorkshire has been given the equivalent of £10 in funding. Across the border, West Yorkshire was given £40.

In a previous statement, the DfT said: “South Yorkshire has been allocated more than half a billion pounds over five years to improve local transport, with almost one and a half billion pounds to follow from 2027, including an extra £543m from reallocated HS2 funding. Reallocated HS2 funding has also already provided an extra £7.8m for South Yorkshire specifically to improve bus services, with more to come as part of a long-term plan to improve bus services across the North and Midlands.

“This comes on top of the Government’s £300m package to protect bus routes into 2025, and nearly £600m spent to single cap bus fares at £2 until the end of 2024."

But in response, South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (SYMCA) responded that all but £7.8m of this amount is capital funding which can only be used for projects such as investments in bus lanes and junction improvements.

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