Call for buses to be run for passengers, not profit
The Scottish Greens have called for Glasgow’s buses to be brought back into public ownership to deliver cheaper fares and a better service for passengers.
Tomorrow (Thursday 26th June), the Scottish Greens will use a Members' Business debate to call on the Scottish Government to support the expansion of publicly owned bus services in Glasgow to deliver high-quality, affordable and reliable services.
Whilst local authorities in Scotland have the power to bring bus services in-house, the Scottish Government has made this process complicated and slow. SPT - Strathclyde Partnership for Transport - has recently consulted the public on their plans to either commission or run bus services in Glasgow, however, campaigners are concerned about ongoing delays and the lack of funding available.
Ahead of a Green debate in Holyrood about bringing buses back into public hands, party co-leader and sponsor of the Members Business Debate Patrick Harvie said:
“Glasgow deserves world-class public transport, but everyone who uses it can see that it’s confusing, expensive and unreliable. Fares have increased, routes have been cut, and passengers have been left stranded.
“But if we had publicly owned bus companies we’d deliver great results for communities.
“You just have to look at Lothian buses in Edinburgh - over the last decade, they’ve paid back a £36 million dividend to the Council that runs them. That’s the norm in many parts of Europe, and cities like Manchester have made great progress in recent years too.
“So why shouldn’t we be running our own buses here in Glasgow?”
Mr Harvie called on the Scottish Government to follow the Scottish Greens’ lead to make public transport cheaper and more accessible for all. He added:
“The Scottish Greens have a track record of making public transport cheaper for people across Scotland. We delivered free bus travel for young people under the age of 22 and were the first to scrap peak rail fares.
“Bus fares should be cheap or free for everyone, all the time. But without reliable, accessible and integrated buses even free travel won’t get you very far.
“Councils desperately need the power to plan the routes they need and cap fares. But that’s only the first step - from there we need to properly support new publicly owned operators.
“If we get this right, Glasgow and the wider region can achieve better buses for everyone. Glasgow deserves nothing less.”
Note: the Scottish Greens' Member's Business was originally scheduled for Wednesday 25th. It has now been delayed until Thursday 26th.