The North East has suffered widespread cuts to bus services in 2022, with routes lost and timetables much reduced. All three of the North East's main private bus operators, Arriva, Stagecoach, and Go North East, have shed routes, with over 100 buses a day lost from the roads. Some communities have been cut off or left with skeleton bus services, making it extremely difficult for people to access jobs, hospitals, or shops by bus.

These cuts are despite the three companies being awarded £150m in additional government funding and £4m in council tax funding from Nexus, our local transport operator. We Own It estimate that the North East bus companies have paid out an average of  £30.7m in dividends to shareholders each year for the last decade, despite cutting services and raising fares for passengers. That is £30m that could be reinvested in restoring services and increasing frequencies, giving the people of the North East a bus system they can rely on.

We are calling on the North East's bus operators to put people before profit and support communities across the region by restoring bus services and reversing recent cuts. This is vital for the long-term sustainability of public transport in the North East.