Lincolnshire to receive £2.1 million bus boost

Lincolnshire will receive £2.1 million to support local bus services – with the some of the cash set to be used to cap fares.

The county has been told it can expect a repeat of funding dished out by the Government from last year, which will run until March 2025.

Lincolnshire County Council say it is too early to suggest exactly where the money will be spent.

However, some of the cash from the previous round of funding was put towards supporting travellers by capping fares at £2.

“This money is a very welcome addition to bus provision and promotion in our county,” said Coun Richard Davies, Executive member for Transport.

“A previous award was used to put in place our £2 single journey fare cap scheme, which is active on every Call Connect bus journey in Lincolnshire.

“We will ensure that this latest funding, which takes us to March 2025, will be a key part of our continuing work to encourage bus usage to for many people as possible.”

Lincolnshire’s money comes from an £8.1 million fund the Department for Transport hopes will lower fares, improved reliability and better bus services- but is separate to the promise of extra cash from the redistributed HS2 money.

Authorities can use the new allocations in several ways to improve bus services for all residents in the East Midlands, including using the investment to protect bus services with low passenger numbers, so that residents in the East Midlands who rely on them for essential services can continue to access their local bus.

Roads Minister Richard Holden said: “Buses are the most popular form of public transport, and so many residents in the East Midlands rely on their local service to get to work, attend medical appointments, and see loved ones.

“We are delivering for local communities across nine local authorities by providing a further £8.1 million to improve and protect essential local services, as we continue to boost transport connections in the East Midlands to grow the economy.”