The Confederation of Passenger Transport (CPT) has delivered a manifesto for change to the Welsh Parliament calling for urgent town planning measures to reduce bus journey times.
Its Driving Wales Forward document is a cross-party call for investment, ahead of May’s Senedd elections, to create the conditions for public transport to prosper.
In its manifesto, CPT Cymru is calling on the government to provide long-term funding clarity to operators and local authorities, use targeted measures to keep fares low, as well as increase bus speeds by 10% over the Senedd term.
On the busiest urban routes, bus journey times have increased by 50% over the last 50 years, partly due to a rise in the number of traffic jams.
Research shows that a 10% increase in bus speeds – to just over 13.6mph on average – could save nearly £18m in operating costs and make buses significantly more attractive to passengers.
Faster buses can be achieved through simple changes to road design to take public transport out of congestion.
Bus lanes, traffic light priority and town planning with buses in mind can all contribute to getting passengers to their destination faster.
Aaron Hill, Director of CPT Cymru, said: “Bus speeds have been declining for nearly five decades. It’s time to put a stop to that and take clear action to speed up buses.”
