Polly has hailed the government announcement that Kent will be receiving £78.2 million to fund bus services, and said restoring the Number 9 bus connecting Ramsgate and Broadstairs to Canterbury must by the “first priority” for the new funding.
She said that for too long Thanet had been disproportionately impacted by years of bus cuts, undermining its economy and cutting people off from work, study, and family and friends.
She said constituents constantly raised the cancellation of the Number 9 service as one of their biggest frustrations, which she blamed on an “out of touch county council that didn’t understand how much younger and older people in particular rely on bus services to get about.”
Polly recently launched a petition calling for the restoration of the service.
She also recently launched a constituent bus survey. The MP said she wanted residents to raise their experiences, concerns and suggestions about bus travel in and around East Thanet, so she could continue to campaign for improvements.
Alongside restoring the Number 9 service, ticket prices and service reliability were big issues among those who have already completed the survey. The friendliness and helpfulness of Thanet’s bus drivers was frequently cited by respondents as a major positive of local services.
Polly said:
“Bus services have been decimated across Britain after fourteen years of Tory cuts, with coastal communities like Thanet among the worst impacted. But with Labour giving Kent more than £70 million to improve bus services, Kent County Council now have the opportunity to ensure Thanet is at the front of the queue for that much-needed funding.
“In my residents’ bus survey, constituents have told me loud and clear that restoring the Number 9 to Canterbury is their first priority for this new bus funding.
“Instead of yet more cuts in Thanet, Reform-controlled Kent County Council should restore this vital service and deliver better bus services for local residents.”