Council stands firm on refusal to hand rural bus network money to Welsh Government

Alec Doyle, local democracy reporter

A local authority has has doubled down on its guarantee that it won’t give money it is investing in the rural bus network to Welsh Government under proposed changes.

On Tuesday Wrexham Council’s Lead Member for Housing and Climate Change Cllr David Bithell assured the council’s Executive Board that it would continue to support the recovery of rural bus routes from historic underfunding and the collapse of two local operators.

The North Wales Regional Transport Plan includes the Welsh Government’s nationwide proposal to centrally manage franchises for local bus services. The plans include some input locally, but would see decision-making on routes ultimately sit with the Senedd.

Central funding

That could see £400,000 of central funding for public transport withdrawn from Wrexham so that Welsh Government can decide how it is spent.

Bronington and Hanmer Councillor Jeremy Newton expressed concern that rural bus routes might suffer as a result.

“Over the last 25 years of Labour-controlled Senedd we’ve only seen a decline in bus services in rural areas,” he said.

“Might we have any assurances that improvements for the rural community services will happen under this plan?”

Robust response

The question brought a robust response from Cllr Bithell. He highlighted additional investment that had been put into rural bus routes by the council to restore services in the wake of the collapse of GHA Coaches and D Jones and Son.

“We’re taking a firm stance with Welsh Government on this,” he said. “We support the franchising plan in principal.

“Two or three years ago we were putting no money into the bus network.

“Now currently we put £400,000 in with an additional £150,000 this financial year. That combined with the funding from Welsh Government which is about £410,000 is not far off £1m going into the local network.

“We need to ensure that local network is working for us as a local authority. We have improved some rural communities, some of which in your ward Cllr Newton and some on the Whitchurch corridor through Overton and Penley etc.

“We’re not simply going to hand over our money to Welsh Government or Transport for Wales to spend wherever their priorities are. We need to make sure we’re at the table and have an input into improving the local bus network.

“That’s the concern that all cabinet members across North Wales have.

“We’re not going to hand over our money so the Welsh Government can do what they like with it. I can assure you that’s not the case, which is why we have recommended raising those concerns in our formal response to the Regional Transport Plan.”

Wrexham’s Executive Board approved the formal response, which will now be submitted as part of the public consultation on the North Wales Regional Transport Plan.