Dundee City Council have announced cuts to subsidies for routes 204, 206, and 236, which will mean these vital routes are set to be scrapped by bus operators. This will prove devastating for the communities that rely on these services for connection to important services and the city centre. We’re calling on Dundee City Council to begin the process of bringing Dundee buses under public control so they are run for the benefit of our communities and not to make a profit for private companies.
Removing these important bus services will further isolate our communities, especially our older population, in the midst of a loneliness epidemic. Age Scotland has found that almost 60% of people over 50 feel lonely all of the time or most of the time; disconnecting these communities will further exasperate this loneliness and will impact many local businesses from the custom that would otherwise come from those travelling on these services.
We must stop treating public transport as an afterthought and provide the funding to provide transport that works for the benefit of the people of Dundee, not the private companies. If we are to meet our climate and modal shift targets, Dundee City Council must look to bring our buses into public ownership to ensure we have a service that works for us.