New £165million fund for South Yorkshire's essential bus services to keep them running during lockdown

Sheffield City mayor Dan Jarvis welcomed the announcement but said the central government funding ‘must go further’ and guarantee cash for Supertram in Sheffield and Rotherham.

Bus services across the region have been massively affected by the coronavirus lockdown but many key workers such as NHS staff still rely on services to get to work.

Routes and services have been scaled back as a result of a huge fall in passengers.

A new £167 million fund will ensure bus companies can cover their costs on essential services so that key workers can still get to work.

Mayor Jarvis has already introduced an extension for concessionary payments.

Responding to the Government announcement about funding for bus services during the coronavirus pandemic, Mayor Jarvis, said:“I am working around the clock with Ministers, the South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive (SYPTE) and transport operators to ensure South Yorkshire has the resources needed to keep essential public transport services running during the Covid-19 pandemic.

“In South Yorkshire, I have already taken action to maintain and extend concessionary payments and agreed a substantial package of support for operators. This means essential services will keep running for our NHS staff, key workers and members of the public for the next four months.

“It will also provide certainty to our transport system so normal services can resume when travel restrictions are lifted. The investment from Government will help ease the strain the crisis is placing on already-stretched funding for buses in the region.

“However, we need to look at transport issues in the round and the Government must now go further to ensure all of South Yorkshire’s public transport network keeps functioning. This means guaranteeing funding for Supertram, which has a crucial role to play in keeping key workers moving during this critical time, particularly to Sheffield’s hospitals.”

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