Bus use continues to fall

Bus use across England fell 1% in the year to September 2013, according to the latest quarterly statistics from the DfT. There was an estimated 4.61bn passenger journeys made, which is around 45m fewer than the previous year. Patronage in the country reached a 20 year high of 4.67bn in 2008/09 and has since remained relatively stable overall. The third quarter of this year showed a 0.2% increase in bus usage in England compared to the same quarter in 2012. Outside London, bus usage was unchanged compared to Q3 2012. However, in metropolitan areas bus use fell by 1% while in non-metropolitan areas it increased by 0.9%. Bus fares in England increased 4.2% over the year to September 2013, remaining above the rate of inflation.