People behind the friendly voices which help thousands of callers from all over Cambridgeshire and Peterborough to get the bus passes they need were visited by Mayor Dr Nik Johnson as part of his work for better and more inclusive bus travel.
Under rules set by the Department for Transport but managed locally, passes permitting free bus travel are available for a range of people who may qualify because of age, reduced mobility or disability, hearing, learning or vision issues, and injury sustained during military service.
Under the Combined Authority, the partnership with Cambridgeshire County Council’s St Ives Contact Centre has been central to bringing together and streamlining what were different services for Peterborough and Cambridgeshire, now even providing a face-to-face service in public libraries.
Improving bus travel for everybody in Cambridgeshire is a priority for the Mayor and Combined Authority. Plans include doubling the number of passenger journeys by 2030. This involves a range of improvements that will attract travellers, from more electric buses, to significant change in how services operate from the current deregulated system, perhaps by ‘enhanced partnerships’ or actual franchising that would give the Combined Authority – and its directly elected and accountable Mayor – much greater control over how buses operate.