Flintshire: Update on bus services provided to councillors

At a full meeting of Flintshire Council, members adopted the authority’s 2023-28 council plan which maps out its priorities for the next five years which include tackling poverty, stimulating economy growth in the county and improving the wellbeing of communities.

While the contents of the plan have been to scrutiny committees and been backed by members, there were questions about elements some thought could have been included.

Cilcain Cllr Andrew Parkhurst (Lib Dem) said he felt overall there was much in the report that was “excellent” but had some questions which included the future of bus services in the county.

“There is no mention of sustaining and improving bus services”, he said.

“I’m thinking of those in rural areas.

“With impending threats to bus services should the council not have a plan for at least maintaining and ideally enhancing services which are so vital to many vulnerable members of our communities?”

Cllr Andrew Parkhurst (Image: Flintshire Council)

Streetscene chief officer Katie Wilby explained that although there is uncertainty about the long-term future of some services and routes with emergency pandemic funding running out next month, a further funding lifeline to the end of March next year has been provided by the Welsh Government.

In the meantime, councillors are being invited to have their say on Flintshire’s public transport network in the autumn.

“At the moment we’re going through such a transitional period with bus services across Wales”, Ms Wilby said.

“The Bus Emergency Scheme which was the emergency funding provided to all the bus operators during the pandemic has come to an end, it finishes at the end of July.

“The Deputy Minister is to provide funding for a Bus Transition Fund which will fund bus services until the end of March 2024.

“This is very much a transitionary period to get us from where we are now in recovery to post-Covid and the pandemic to the new legislative changes that are coming next year and beyond.

“To start including something in the council plan at this current stage with the uncertainty around funding at the moment, it would not be prudent to do that because they are in such a state of flux.”

Although the subject is not included in the local plan, it was confirmed talks are taking place with the Welsh Government, Transport for Wales and bus operators to map out a network of bus services that are financially viable to deliver.

“At the moment regional network teams are set up”, Ms Wilby added.

“We’re working very closely with the 22 authorities, Welsh Government, the WLGA (Welsh Local Government Association), Transport for Wales and the bus operators to actually plan and cost up a network of bus services which we can deliver once the emergency funding ends.

“There is a lot of work going on behind the scenes at the moment.”

An Integrated Transport Strategy review is taking place in Flintshire, with councillors due to attend workshops in October where they can have their say.

Ms Wilby said: “In terms of the current bus network across Flintshire, we do maintain a core bus network and that was following a policy review back in 2017.

“We have reviewed that policy over the years on a regular basis. It is a discretionary budget, there is no mandatory duty on the local authority to provide or fund public transport services, however we have a duty to review the network in consultation with the operators.”