Budget, buses and our final birthday celebration

Hello Supporter

This month saw the culmination of our year-long 50^th anniversary celebrations with a gala dinner at the London Transport Museum. Against a backdrop of transport icons and nestled between the museum’s old London Routemasters, we gathered guests from across the transport industry to mark 50 years of Campaign for Better Transport. 

Whilst we celebrated all the amazing achievements that have been made possible in a large part thanks to supporters like you, we were reminded that there's still more to do. The latest Government figures - released exactly 51 years to the day we were founded - show transport is still responsible for more CO2 emissions than any other sector. That's why we'll keep campaigning for increased investment in public transport to reduce these emissions and create a sustainable transport network. 

Here’s to the next 50 years!  

Budget time, again

With the Spring Budget only a matter of weeks away, we’ve already submitted our transport wish list to the Chancellor. With transport almost entirely absent from the Autumn Statement – despite an apparent focus on lifting people out of poverty – we're hoping the Chancellor will take this opportunity to focus on sustainable transport to help grow the economy and address climate change. We want to see a Budget which shifts the balance of funding away from carbon-intensive road building and tax breaks for the aviation sector, towards more sustainable public transport with an emphasis on the transport people use everyday.

Amongst other things, we're calling for:

• An end to the 5p fuel duty cut
• A long-term fare offer for bus passengers (more on that below!)
• A kerosene tax on polluting domestic flights
• New taxes for private jets
• Bus funding for all local authorities
• A 'pay-per-mile' tax on EVs
• Rail ticketing reforms.

You can find out more on these measures and why we're calling for them in our Spring Budget blog.

Showing why the £2 bus fare matters

The £2 bus fare cap – which we campaigned for – has been a huge success. Bus companies have reported that the cap has helped boost passenger numbers – Go-Ahead has sold more £2 tickets than the entire population of England since the fare cap was introduced – and the latest annual bus statistics show passenger journeys up by almost a fifth. 

The temporary fare cap is due to end in November, but we're campaigning for a long-term replacement to keep bus fares affordable. We'd love to hear from you if you've made use of the £2 bus fare and how it's helped you or your family. Can you help us by filling in a short form to tell us why buses matter to you and how important the £2 bus fare is? Your experiences can help us show the Government just how vital affordable bus fares are. 

Gearing up for Better Transport Week 2024 

An evening with Campaign for Better Transport in Manchester

Your donations make everything we do possible, so, it’s time to celebrate you! If you live near Manchester, please join us for a free evening of drinks and nibbles on Tuesday 19 March so we can say thank you and tell you more about our plans for the future. Tickets are free, but spaces are limited so use the button below to book your spot.

All the best, 
Alice
Campaign for Better Transport

P.S Global engineering consultants Atkins Realis are looking to help improve their understanding of people’s safety perceptions when travelling. If you have a spare ten minutes to complete a short, multiple choice questionnaire you can help shape improvements to the UK’s public spaces to make them safer and more accessible for everyone.