The council's Cabinet has given its full backing to the creation of an Enhanced Bus Partnership (EBP) for the region – which will help provide improved bus services across the county. 
 

Cabinet agreed a financial contribution of £204,000 to Transport North East towards creating the partnership over the next nine months. 
 

Councillors heard the Covid-19 pandemic and subsequent advice to stay at home and avoid unnecessary travel has had a profound effect on the public bus network over the last 12 months. 
 

Figures show that in 2020/21 there were almost 6.5million fewer passenger journeys in Northumberland compared to the previous year. 

And in common with other regions, the county’s bus network is now being heavily supported by the public purse. 
 

But from July 1, all government funding streams for buses will only be available to local transport authority areas that have committed to entering an EBP with their bus operators. 
 

Each of the seven local authorities that form the North East Joint Transport Committee have been asked to make a one-off financial contribution to support Transport North East in coordinating the work to create an EBP. 
 

It follows the publication earlier this year of the Government’s National Bus Strategy (NBS), which outlines a vision to dramatically improve bus services outside London through greater local leadership.  
 

Local transport authorities must also develop and publish a Bus Services Improvement Plan (BSIP) by the end of October 2021, setting out the outcomes they wish to see delivered through the EBP. 
 

It should show how Local Transport Authorities and local bus operators will work with local highway authorities and local communities to plan and deliver a bus network where buses are more frequent, more reliable, easier to understand and use, better coordinated and cheaper, providing a fully integrated service with simple, fit for purpose ticketing products, more bus priority measures, high-quality information for all passengers in more places, and better turn-up-and-go frequencies that keep running into the evenings and at weekends. 
 

Council Leader Glen Sanderson said: “The regional bus network is a vital component of our transport system and has a key role to play in our recovery from the pandemic, supporting both the decarbonising agenda and helping to rebuild our economy. 
 

“This is a great opportunity to take more local control of our bus services and work more closely with our bus operators and our communities, many of whom live in rural areas and often rely on these services which connect towns and villages throughout the county.”