Lincolnshire's bus services 'under serious threat' with Covid-19 lockdown to blame for 'dramatic drop' in passenger services

The survival of commercial bus operators in Lincolnshire is “under serious threat” due to a mix of increased costs, reduced income, and lower passenger numbers, council bosses are warning.

A report before Lincolnshire County Council's highways and scrutiny committee next week will say that the county already had a “relatively small failing passenger transport market” but that there was a slow recovery following the “dramatic drop” in numbers during the Covid-19 lockdown.

“Bus services are returning to near pre-Covid levels but, unfortunately, passenger numbers are currently circa 20-30 per cent of former levels because of the government’s previous messages about travelling on public transport as a last resort and the ongoing requirement for social distancing,” said the document.