York plugs in to bus success to reduce air pollution

A passenger watchdog has carried out a survey asking people how satisfied they are with the city’s buses and it revealed that services were rated as being the top in England.

York remains one of the region’s worst pollution blackspots, with traffic fumes remaining trapped in the narrow streets which snake across the heart of the ancient city. It is estimated between 94 and 163 people die prematurely in York each year because of poor air quality, prompting senior politicians to dub pollution as the city’s “invisible killer.”

Yesterday Coun David Levene, York Council’s cabinet member for transport, sustainability and economic development said: “Our aim is to encourage even more people to travel by bus and increase passenger numbers. Last year there were 15.6 million individual bus journeys in York, an increase of 300,000 compared to 2013/14.

“We know our ongoing work to improve services is working and we want to continue to deliver real benefits for the city by reducing congestion, improving air quality and health.”

Yesterday it was also revealed the city has been shortlisted by the Government in its bid for a slice of a £35m pot of cash for councils who demonstrate schemes promoting ultra-low emission vehicles. The city was the first in the north to introduce a new fleet of electric buses for its Park and Ride - saving over 7,500 tons of CO2 emissions over its lifespan.

The Government’s vision is that almost every car and van in the UK will be an ultra-low emission vehicle by 2050, with the UK at the forefront of their design, development and manufacture. The local authority is likely to find out if it has secured cash in the autumn.

In York, Passenger Focus, a watchdog, interviewed 762 bus passengers on a range of bus services across the city, with similar surveys undertaken in 23 local authority areas and 15 bus operator areas. Routes surveyed in York were operated by Arriva, First York, Reliance and Transdev.

Overall, 93 per cent of bus passengers in York were either satisfied or very satisfied with the bus service they were travelling on. Passengers’ overall satisfaction with services was higher in York than in any other English authority surveyed.

David Sidebottom, passenger director at Passenger Focus, said: “Passengers in York tell us they are even more satisfied with the bus service – it has achieved a score of 93 per cent, up from 88 per cent last year. We know that passengers want, above anything else, is a punctual and reliable service with value for money fares and good information available to plan journeys.”

For more details about the Passenger Focus surveys visit the website: www.passengerfocus.org.uk