Derbyshire’s bus network is often ranked in the UK Top 10 for passenger satisfaction, but the the lingering impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on bus patronage and the varied availability of bus services across such a large rural county has meant that improvements were needed to level-up service provision, improve the customer experience and increase patronage.
Alongside these physical barriers, were ingrained misconceptions of the bus amongst non-bus passengers. They viewed it as unreliable (in comparison to driving), felt it wouldn’t get them where they needed to be and was expensive.
To address these real and perceived barriers to using the bus, the Government awarded Derbyshire County Council and local bus operators £47 million to improve bus services.
Much of the funding was invested directly into providing new and improved services, particularly in the evening and weekend. It also supported new real time information screens, ticket discounts for young people, families and commuters and upgrading bus stop infrastructure and bus stations to improve service operations. Importantly, supporting all of this infrastructure investment was marketing and engagement activity to raise awareness of local bus services in the community and encourage people to give them a go.
Experts team Changing behaviour