Amendment added 30 March 2026

The Mayor advised that an amendment to the motion on Supported Bus Services had been received, circulated to Members and published on the Council’s website, and following discussions with the Member who had proposed the amendment, the proposer and seconder of the original motion had agreed to alter point three of the motion as tabled.

In proposing the motion, Councillor Dolley Wooster explained that the Labour Government had given Kent County Council over £78million in funding for bus services and extended bus fare cap - £78.2million to overhaul the local bus services, to increase the reliability of the service, reduce fares and upgrade vehicles.  She explained that the motion was self‑explanatory and anticipated cross‑party support to address residents’ concerns about maintaining sustainable services in the borough. Councillor Wooster said that Swale Borough Councillors who had attended the bus partnership meetings with KCC officers and bus operators shared residents’ concerns and she was critical that follow up meetings did not occur and there was very little information to report back to Area Committees. She said that investment in bus shelters was welcomed but residents needed regular, reliable bus services including at weekends so that it could support tourism. Councillor Wooster commended the bus operators who had continued bus services without disruption, despite the large increase in fuel bills.

Finally, Councillor Wooster encouraged all groups to support the motion to lobby KCC for action in protecting existing bus services in Swale from further reduction, to work with bus operators to improve reliability, frequency and coverage of services across the borough, prioritisng connections between neighbourhoods, rail connections and communities with no public transport and to request that the Leader of SBC and relevant committee chairs wrote formally to KCC with their concerns and to take part in meaningful and long-term engagement.

In seconding the motion, Councillor Ashley Wise reserved his right to speak.

Members were invited to debate the motion and made points including:

·         Welcomed the motion but said there was no duty on KCC to subsidise buses or provide services, and routes were organised, planned and controlled by private companies;

·         highlighted KCC’s only legal obligations on children’s school bus journeys and the old persons bus pass;

·         there was a national shortage of qualified bus drivers and engineers;

·         running rural bus services was unviable;

·         it was Central Government who could reduce the tax and regulatory burden that had put bus companies out of business or change the law that compelled local authorities to subsise loss-making routes;

·         compared the higher grants per head of population to run public transport in London than Kent;

·         the partnership meetings already gave direct access to lobby Government and suggested KCC Members and the MP should be doing more;

·         suggested inviting the relevant people from KCC and from Government to the next Swale Joint Transportation Board meeting;

·         had raised previously at the bus partnership meetings that several bus routes from Sittingbourne to rural areas ceased at 6pm, which did not encourage the nighttime economy;

·         needed Sunday services and more connectivity;

·         supported the motion;

·         spoke of potential missed hospital appointments due to unreliable bus services;

·         spoke of the impact of unreliable and cancelled services on those trying to move around the borough;

·         young and old people, disabled people and those with long term health conditions felt the impact of poor bus services the most;

·         cheap fares were pointless if the bus did not turn up;

·         the motion was reasonable and asked Members to stand up for their residents who deserved a better bus service;

·         Swale was under-served by buses;

·         when groups and partnerships worked together, they were more effective;

·         described incidents where young people had to give up jobs they had secured as they were unable to get to the jobs using public transport;

·         the motion kept the issue at the forefront;

·         praised the Hopper bus provided by Faversham Town Council which helped residents in Oare, Ospringe and other areas;

·         lack of buses impacted on the quality of residents lives;

·         the issue of poor and lack of bus services has been raised with KCC for over 20 years;

·         KCC had to provide funding to bus operators in the whole of Kent, not just Swale;

·         bus operators were commercial businesses and they chose the routes and timings of buses;

·         historical lobbying for improved bus services had brought little response;

·         suggested going direct to bus operators rather than KCC;

·         many bus routes had ceased due to lack of use by the public;

·         the previous KCC administration removed subsidies from many bus routes making them unviable;

·         for many residents, buses were a lifeline;

·         funding loans alone did not guarantee a bus service that worked for the people that required it;

·         reliable, frequent and affordable bus services were fundamental to Swale’s economic, social and environmental well-being;

·         buses played a crucial role in reducing congestion and cutting emissions;

·         KCC should protect existing services from further cuts and work proactively with operators to improve reliability, frequency and coverage;

·         Government, KCC and bus operators all had responsibility and public had to use bus services to make them viable;

·         drew attention to the lack of bus services to the Memorial Hospital, Sittingbourne that served minor injuries;

·         referred to Section 106 monies for bus services;

·         compared to bus services in Cornwall which were Council-coordinated where there was a similar amount of investment on buses and where a 40% increase in footfall had been achieved using bus services;

·         residents received poor value for money under the current bus operating system;

·         some residents felt isolated because of the lack of a bus service in some areas;

·         this should not be just about bus services but about integrated mass transit system where all forms of public transport formed a coherent network;

·         planning bus routes had to be coordinated with the traffic commissioner to ensure an efficient service;

·         suggested buses would be more economical if they were allowed to use tax-free fuel;

·         spoke of the years of decline in an efficient service; and

·         funding for public health and environmental projects should be directed to help subsidise public transport.

Councillor Wise, the seconder of the motion, thanked Councillor Palmer for the amendment. He referred to the attendance at Area Committees by the bus operators when the significant challenges in providing sustainable bus service for Swale were discussed. Councillor Wise reiterated the benefits already raised by Members and said it was crucial that authorities worked together to ensure the public received an efficient bus services. He acknowledged that the issue had been ongoing for over 20 years but reminded Members of the significant development that had taken place in the area and the increased numbers of residents who did not have basic connectivity to travel around the borough. Councillor Wise said Swale needed to start with a bus service that people wanted to use, preserve the service and expand, and lobbying was the start of that process.

Councillor Wooster, proposer of the motion, welcomed Members’ comments and said there were other ways that Members could become involved by talking to their residents and asking KCC Councillors why they were not attending meetings such as the Swale JTB where the issues were discussed. She urged all Members to support the motion.

Resolved:

That Council notes:

(1)  That Kent County Council (KCC) is the local highway authority and has responsibility for support bus services across Kent.

(2)  The support the government has given to bus travel through £78million in funding to KCC and the extended bus fare cap.

(3)  Ongoing concerns from Swale residents regarding the reliability, frequency and coverage of local bus services, particularly in rural areas and outside peak hours.

(4)  The importance of accessible public transport in supporting employment, education, healthcare access, social inclusion and reducing carbon emissions.

(5)  Councillor Richard Palmer, in his capacity as County Councillor Swale West Division at KCC, had already arranged a cross-party engagement meeting between Swale Borough Council Members and KCC, to be held at Swale House on 10 April 2026 at 10am, at which the KCC Deputy Cabinet Member for Highways, Spencer Dixon, and senior KCC highways and public transport officers will attend to discuss bus service provision and Section 106 funding in Swale; and resolves that the outcome of that meeting, including any commitments by the KCC officers or Members, be reported back to Full Council or the relevant service Committee no later than June 2026.

This Council believes:

(1)  That reliable and affordable bus services are vital to the economic, social and environmental wellbeing of Swale.

(2)  That poor bus provision disproportionally affected young people, older residents, disabled residents, and those without access to a car.

This Council resolves to:

(1)  Lobby KCC to:

(a)  Protect existing bus services in Swale from further reductions and work with bus operators to improve reliability, frequency and coverage of services across the borough.

(b)  Prioritise connections between neighbourhoods, rail connections and communities with limited or no public transport.