South Yorkshire Mayor hails big public response to bus franchising plan

“It’s really good news, really positive,” said Mayor Coppard. “It is the most responded-to bus consultation per capita in the whole of the country.”

He said the next step would be to go through all the responses in detail to analyse the outcome. He will then announce a decision in March as to whether to move ahead with bus franchising.

Mayor Coppard said that it is essential to take the time to sift through the answers and understand what people are really asking for.

He said that a lot of work has been going on behind the scenes to decide exactly how bus franchising – where routes and services would be decided by the mayor rather than bus operators – would work.

Assuming he gives the go-ahead in March, it is likely that franchising will be brought in in three stages, starting in 2027 and reaching completion by 2029.

“I want a world-class public transport system back in our region,” said Mayor Coppard. “I grew up in Sheffield with 2p bus fares and buses as far as the eye could see.

Thriving

“The current system doesn’t support the ambitions of this region. We want a thriving economy, accessing opportunities for young people to stay near and go far.

“Public transport is hugely important to that.”

He said that a good public transport system is also essential to help combat the climate emergency and improve the lives of communities in the region.

Get the latest headlines, straight to your inbox, with The Star’s free emails

Mayor Coppard said the process will inevitably take time. “There is not a silver bullet. I have always said this will take time to fix – we need to see significant change.

“This is another stage on that journey.”

He said that he aims to split the transfer of bus services from different operators into three stages, beginning in two years’ time. After that, services will be run “purely for the public benefit”.

He pointed out that the city of Manchester took seven years to complete its franchise process and South Yorkshire’s will be finished in five years. “We’re doing it much quicker and going at pace.

“For some people it will never be fast enough,” he conceded.

Revenue

Mayor Coppard said the takeover of Sheffield’s tram system is going well – there has been a 90% decrease in fare evasion, revenue has increased by 6% and costs have been cut by almost £1 million.

“We’re on the right path. We will be able to integrate those networks – when you get off the tram, your bus will be waiting and when you get off the bus, your tram will be waiting.

“At the moment we’re largely restricted from being able to do that.”

The mayor said that the recent tram track failures show that more needs to be invested in the system, which has suffered historically from under-investment, to ensure that it will be reliable.

Eventually the system will be extended to other parts of South Yorkshire as well, he pledged.

Mayor Coppard said that he isn’t taking on bus franchising just to be popular but because he believes it is the right thing to do.

He said his aims are to create a sustainable economy for the region and to help people to live longer, healthier lives.

He pointed to £2.2m funding for the Beds for Babies programme. It guarantees a safe place to sleep for all children aged up to five by providing cots and beds for families that need them.