Councillor welcomes more than £4m bus investment in Calderdale and Kirklees

West Yorkshire Combined Authority is to invest more than £4m into enhanced services across the region in a bid to encourage passengers to travel by bus more often.

It is part of the Combined Authority’s plan to create a better-connected West Yorkshire, with cheaper, more reliable and more sustainable bus services.

Working with the Mayor of West Yorkshire, Tracy Brabin, these improvements will be delivered initially with local bus operators, First West Yorkshire and Transdev Blazefield, through the West Yorkshire Bus Enhanced Partnership, at a total cost to the Combined Authority of £4.23 million over three years.

Coun Kaushik, Kirklees Councillor and Deputy Chair of the West Yorkshire Combined Authority Transport Committee, said:

“This is fantastic news for people in Kirklees and Calderdale. This investment will result in more express services between Huddersfield and Halifax, while also providing better links between the district’s hospitals.

“This announcement shows that we are working with operators to put customers at the heart of more reliable, cheaper and sustainable bus services.”

Precise details on how the scheme will work are being finalised with the operator, while it is hoped the scheme will be operational from September 2023 onwards.

The funding comes from the Bus Service Improvement Programme (BSIP). The Combined Authority was awarded nearly £70 million last year to support the delivery of its BSIP.

The Combined Authority will fund the enhanced services for the first three years, with operators agreeing to take commercial risk in years four and five, with the aim of making them financially sustainable in the longer term.

The funding announcements will be discussed at both a meeting of the Combined Authority today (Thursday) and a meeting of the Transport Committee on Friday, May 26.