New constituency boundaries and candidates in Preston, Chorley and South Ribble for the 2024 general electionThe prospect of a rise in school bus fares in Preston appears to have sparked a scathing response at one of the city’s bus stops.
Last year, there was anger amongst families after the firm implemented an inflation-busting hike for its weekly school pass of 40 percent – the second such rise in 12 months, amidst the cost-of-living crisis.Preston Bus said at the time that the increases – on routes to schools including Corpus Christi High School and Fulwood Academy – were necessary to avoid it having to cancel the “heavily loss making” services altogether.
A poster – emblazoned with the Preston Bus logo – has appeared on a bus shelter on Water Lane, which invites pupils to “to take the Preston Innercity School Shuttle…every Monday to Friday during term time.” The company also said it had suggested to Lancashire County Council that the authority might be able subsidise the services using some of the £42m government cash awarded to it and Blackburn with Darwen Council for their Bus Service Improvement Plan – a funding pot reserved for making public transport more attractive and reliable.