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Government support for buses revives calls for public ownership of services

Transport Salaried Staffs’ Association welcomes government's promise of an extra £167 million to help keep some bus services going but calls for buses to be permanently nationalised

BUS services should be taken into public ownership to stop private operators slashing them, the Transport Salaried Staffs’ Association (TSSA) said today.

A government promise of an extra £167 million to help keep some bus services going was welcomed by the union, but it said the government should go further and bring buses permanently into the public sector.

Although-passenger numbers had plummeted, it was vital to maintain services for the benefit of key workers during the coronavirus crisis, the union warned.

“Sadly, after 10 years of Tory cuts, our buses were already running just skeleton services to far too many of our communities,” TSSA general secretary Manuel Cortes said.

“It's good that [Transport Secretary Grant Shapps] has at last realised the strategic importance of buses to keep key workers moving.

“What we now need is for the government to be bold and take the logical step to bring our buses into public ownership where they belong. 

“A publicly owned, truly integrated public transport can transform the way we travel and help tackle climate change for a cleaner future for all of us.”

Mick Cash, general secretary of fellow transport union RMT, has written to Mr Shapps proposing that a seven-point “national charter of protection” for bus passengers and workers be linked to the new financial aid.

Among the suggestions are a transition to cashless travel during the emergency where feasible; better cleaning and sanitisation of buses, buildings, mess rooms and other facilities; for toilet and washing facilities and hand sanitisers to be readily available, and the installation of protective screens for all drivers.

The charter also calls for full pay and job protection for staff who are not working because services have been reduced or because they are self-isolating or unwell.

Mr Cash wrote: “Buses are an essential service being run for and by front-line workers. It is therefore crucial bus services are safeguarded whilst the health risks to both the workers that run the buses and the passengers who have to travel are kept to an absolute minimum.”

Labour shadow transport secretary Andy McDonald welcomed the cash boost, but warned that the bailout “should not be without conditions.”

He said local authorities must be given the power to regulate bus routes and timetables to serve key workers efficiently, adding that essential journeys must receive priority.

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