Tuesday 14 February 2012

Lib Dems Fight On To Stop Tories Axeing Vital Bus Services


Cambridgeshire Liberal Democrats made another bid to save £2.7 million of county bus subsidies today (Tuesday, January 31) as the Tories met to rubber stamp their plans and press ahead with their flawed replacement transport plan.

They fought to reverse the decision after winning the first round of their battle which led to the Tories backing down and putting £1.5 million back into subsidised transport.

And they spoke out vehemently against the plans again today during a Cambridgeshire County Council Cabinet meeting accusing the Tories of scrapping 100 per cent of bus subsidies without a viable alternative plan.

Lib Dem Shadow Cabinet Member for Transport, Susan van de Ven, has launched a petition to stop the cuts to bus services in Cambridgeshire:

http://epetition.cambridgeshire.public-i.tv/epetition_core/view/Buses

She said: “The Tory administration is not listening to the people they are elected to serve. Their plans threaten to isolate vulnerable people, including the disabled and elderly, and people who have no other way of travelling to work. Yet they are still pressing ahead.

“Their new Cambridgeshire Future Transport project, which is meant to fill in the gaps left by the withdrawal of subsidies, is not working.  A pilot in the Duxford area has attracted one customer in two months because there is no research on transport needs underpinning it. The Tory administration is now prepared to sink £1.5 million into this project as the answer to withdrawing bus subsidies.

"The administration has come to a very late acknowledgement that some public subsidy for lifeline transport is necessary - and then is willing to spend carelessly. Vulnerable residents will pay the ultimate price."

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