COUNTY bosses have vowed to try and plug the gaps left by bus companies axing routes across the town and revealed a decision to bring services back under public control will come within six months.
Following public meetings at St Edward’s Church in Kingstone and protests at Barnsley Interchange, a new South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority-paid service - the 33 - replaced the former Stagecoach-operated 43 and 44 which served the Broadway area.
Service 33 will now run a new circular route with additional weekday journeys and a new Saturday daytime service, improving links to Barnsley Hospital following its initial success.
There will be Saturday journeys on service 26 between Penistone, Cubley and Stocksbridge, as well as additional evening trips on service 57a providing an hourly service between Sheffield, Oughtibridge and Stocksbridge when combined with service 57.
The changes have been made following feedback from passengers, including at the public events held last year, by South Yorkshire Mayor Oliver Coppard.
He said: Following the withdrawal of commercial services by Stagecoach, SYMCA moved to reinstate services as best it could within limited budget.
“I’ve been committed to radically improving our public transport network since day one because ultimately, if we want people to stay near and go far in South Yorkshire, we need a better public transport system.
“While these changes will not solve all the public transport challenges we face, they are a step towards us getting better buses and getting back the world class bus system we once had.
“I know first-hand how bus cuts can impact communities such as those in Broadway in Barnsley, so I’m delighted we’ve been able to use the limited budgets we have to improve that particular service and others where communities have been let down in the past.
“But I want to go so much further - the process to reform our buses in South Yorkshire is progressing at pace and I have committed to taking a decision on bringing our buses back under public control by March 2025.
“I want us to have nothing less than a world-class, fully integrated public transport system connecting up our buses, trams, trains and active travel routes and to put the public back into public transport.”
Public meetings were followed by demonstrations at Barnsley Interchange and outside Stagecoach’s town centre offices on Eldon Arcade.
A petition - which accrued 1,000 signatures in just four days - was also handed to the SYMCA, with campaigners pleading for county bosses to seize control from the under-fire operator.
A franchising system would effectively see operators bidding for SYMCA-run bus contracts in a bid to drive up standards.
Better Buses for South Yorkshire campaigner Matthew Topham added: “Buses should work for the communities they serve, not shareholders living overseas.
“No other European country has handed control of its transport network over to fat cats as we have.
“It would allow smoother journeys, better value tickets, and a new passengers over profits approach on the region’s buses.
“It can’t come soon enough.
“It’s music to South Yorkshire ears when the mayor calls out bus privatisation and commits to public control.
“But that strength of feeling means our communities are all the hungrier for a clear indication of when we can expect a formal decision on this crucial policy.
“With the impact of private bus company cuts on our local communities hitting the national headlines, we need to focus on delivering this change more than ever.”
