Residents asked to share their views on bus services and how to spend £3.5m funding

BUS passengers are being encouraged to make their voices heard.

Cheshire East Council has launched a consultation, asking residents to share their thoughts on local bus services.

It is the first review of the services in seven years and will look to shape the council’s public transport strategy going forward.

Cllr Mark Goldsmith, chair of Cheshire East Council’s highways and transport committee, said: “An incredible amount has changed since we last had a full review of our borough’s bus services.

“With a mix of urban and rural communities, ensuring we have the right offer for our residents is extremely important to us.

“There is no proposal to reduce the council’s supported bus budget, but given the financial constraints on the council, it is more important than ever to ensure we maximise the value from our spending on local bus services.

“To provide an efficient and well-run service, we need to hear what residents have to say.”

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Councillor Mark Goldsmith, chair of Cheshire East Council’s highways and transport committee (Image: Cheshire East Council)

Currently, the bus network in Cheshire East consists of 37 services, of which 21 are subsidised by the council.

The last review of the services was carried out in 2017 but there has been a great change in people’s travel habits since then.

Through this review, the council will aim to 'maximise opportunities in areas of greatest need' and look at 'modernising flexible on-demand transport options'.

They will also look to develop stronger partnerships with commercial operators and complement commercial services, not compete with them.

Cllr Lata Anderson, the council’s public transport member champion, said: “We consider it vital that we keep residents living in Cheshire East connected – especially people in rural communities – for getting to work and amenities such as hospitals, but these are certainly not our only considerations.

“With the government committing to a nationwide £2 adult fare cap until at least the end of the year, this is a great time to be encouraging people to get out and use our local transport services.”

The consultation puts forward three main proposals.

These concern rural services in Nantwich (70, 72 and 73), the 391/392 service operating from Macclesfield to Stockport, and flexible transport services.

It also asks how people would like to see the £3.455 million awarded to the council by the Government for 2024/25 spent.

Options include increasing the frequency of services, altering or extending existing services, and adding new weekend and evening services.

The consultation runs for eight weeks until Wednesday (July 3).

To share your thoughts visit surveys.cheshireeast.gov.uk/s/BusServiceReview2024/ or pick up a hard copy of the consultation at a library or customer contact point.