MP urges Minister to back Dales rural bus services

Julian Smith, the Conservative MP for Ripon and Skipton, has written a letter to Mr Hammond urging him to include a £1.1m bid by the Dales Integrated Transport Alliance (DITA) in the first round of the new Local Sustainable Transport Fund, which is due to be made public by the end of the month.

The Yorkshire Post understands there have been 73 bids from across England for money from the fund, as well as from DITA, which was set up by existing transport providers and community groups earlier this year and is backed by tourism and national park chiefs.

The group plans to create seven local transport hubs across the Yorkshire Dales, monitored by a central IT scheduling system, to offer an integrated and efficient network. And with fears growing many North Yorkshire communities will be left isolated by savage cuts to transport funding, Mr Smith has now pressed for the Government to recognise the importance of the bid.

“Rural bus services are vital connections that provide a lifeline for communities and their residents who otherwise would be isolated and disenfranchised from reaching workplaces, shops and other transport hubs,” he said.

“I receive many items of correspondence from people concerned about the future of bus services and this has been a particular issue in North Yorkshire in recent months.

“Not only do bus services provide vital links for residents, they are often vital for business and tourism.

“A large number of young people I meet say it is having a significant impact on their ability to get to job interviews and have a social life.”

“It is for these reasons that the Dales Integrated Transport Alliance has come together and I have been impressed by the work done on the bid by a group of passionate people who have given their time and effort to put together a plan for the future.”

DITA was set up in January after North Yorkshire County Council announced it was slashing its transport budget by 10 per cent.

Transport hubs would be based in towns including Ripon, Leyburn, Hawes and Reeth.