Bus travel was massively impacted by the pandemic, and it’s only been the last few years that the numbers are getting close to what they once were pre-2020. Wales, though is falling short of the rest of the UK in terms of growth of bus users, with the UK bringing back 90% of passengers, with Wales still below 80%. With recent news of a huge overhaul of buses in Wales, is that what will spark the change for bus travel?
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00:00It was only earlier on this month that we heard that a massive overhaul of the bus network in
00:06Wales was due over the next few years. It has an emphasis on combining current services and
00:11protecting lesser-used rural routes for people in more isolated areas. The large-scale changes
00:16might be a welcome sign since a recently published Senate report says the bus services in Wales have
00:22seen the smallest growth in the UK since before the pandemic, with elsewhere in the country
00:26recovering at a much quicker rate. Across the United Kingdom roughly 90% of bus users have returned,
00:33while in Wales it sits at less than 80%, something that has concerned some Senate members who want
00:38those in charge to get to the bottom of it. Transport Secretary Ken Skates has recently
00:44said that Wales' recovery rate has been slower due to a higher number of bus pass users in Wales
00:49compared to the rest of the country, while paid tickets have largely recovered at a similar rate
00:53to elsewhere in the UK. It has been said that services moving online has meant older people
01:00have seen less need to use buses to get into town, so buses are being used less and less by parts of
01:05the population. While the numbers have concerned some, the recent announcement of buses coming into
01:10public control has been a welcome sight for many who fear for the future of bus travel in Wales,
01:15with the belief that a more succinct bus network, the idea of one overarching across the country will
01:20encourage people to use buses more regularly. The pandemic had huge implications on many parts
01:25of our lives, and transport was of course a very big one. Figures show that bus users have returned to
01:30an extent on buses, but there is still a massive chunk left to fill. So with so much change promised
01:35for buses over the next few years, those in charge will hope it's exactly the answer that they need.
01:40James Beach Watkins, reporting for Local TV.