Four of South Yorkshire mayoral candidates pledge to bring buses under public control

Caandidates Oliver Coppard (Labour Party), Bex Whyman (Green Party), Joe Otten (Liberal Democrat Party) and Simon Biltcliffe (Yorkshire Party) heard six desperate pleas from passengers that the next mayor take serious action to fix the buses.

The discussion, which was organised by passengers from the Better Buses for South Yorkshire campaign, heard about the negative effects of a poor bus system, such as having to move because of bad service.

One passenger, Cathie McCartan, who relies on the bus to get to her Highfield business because of a visual impairment, is having to move house because of infrequent services.

She said: “I take the bus to get home from work but there isn’t a bus at the busy time. There’s a 4.45pm and then a two-hour gap and then 6.45pm so it’s not there for the busy times.

“I haven’t got the option to drive and I’m having to relocate my home, my family home, to get on the bus. And I only live two miles from a major city centre!

A woman told the story of her partner, who commutes into Doncaster every day, who has been 'reprimanded' for arriving two hours late to work because of the region’s unreliable public transport.

George, a retired primary school teacher, shared his experience of Barnsley’s buses when he was left stranded with an elderly woman and her carers on a bitter winter morning for over an hour due to cancelled buses.

Sue, who relies on her retiree bus pass to get around, highlighted the anxiety the daily uncertainty around buses causes her. She summed up the situation for many passengers in the region, saying: "Buses control my life."

All of the speakers ended their appeals by asking the candidates to make a Better Buses Pledge, which includes a series of actions to reassure the public that there wouldn’t be any more delays to public control, from appointing a project manager for the public to hold accountable to releasing monthly updates on their progress.

It also asked the candidates to make a final decision on bringing buses into public control in their first two years in office.

Labour candidate: “I don’t want to overpromise and underdeliver.”

While all the candidates pledged to deliver the core actions, Labour candidate Mr Coppard refused to commit to the time table saying: “In terms of the pledge itself, I’m really happy to commit to being accountable, prompt, and transparent.

“What I have a slight problem with is saying we will finish that assessment in two years. I don’t want to overpromise and underdeliver.”

The other candidates present all made the pledge in full.

The activists argue that by making the pledge, candidates will give residents peace of mind that the region will not be left behind, after mayors in Manchester, Liverpool, and West Yorkshire have moved much faster toward a publicly controlled network.

In South Yorkshire, unaccountable bus company shareholders hold the final say on decisions to axe routes, increase fares, or cut corners on reliability, according to campaigners.

They believe that a system of public control, as used by the Mayor of London, would mean fares, timetables, and routes are set to benefit local people and businesses.

The event was attended by over 90 people, including the editor of the Sheffield Star, Nancy Fielder, who used the paper to track the changes in the buses over time: from the 9p it cost to get a family into town in the 1980s to the latest round of bus cuts and fare hikes.

Matthew Topham, from Better Buses for South Yorkshire, said: “At the meeting, we heard the urgency of this crisis for people’s day to day lives, compounding the climate emergency and the cost of living crisis.

“Right now, unreliable buses are forcing voters to move house, arrive early, exhausted and distracted at school, or face unfair retribution from their employer.

“Franchising our buses would unlock new powers to increase the reliability, frequency, and affordability of our buses.

“That is why we’re delighted that all the candidates pledged to take the actions outlined in the pledge. We hope they will all write these into their manifestos because bus passengers can’t afford another four years of delay.”

All candidates were invited to attend the event. The Conservative candidate, Clive Watkinson, declined to join, while the SDP candidate, David Bettney, did not respond.

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