Metro Mayor Dan Norris has praised local people for sharing their ideas on buses at a packed "Big Choices on Buses" meeting at Bishop Sutton Village Hall.

Around 100 local people attended the meeting organised by Chew Valley Area Forum and attended by Mayor Norris where the major challenges on the buses were discussed.

The meeting heard how in Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham gets £67 per person per year from local councils to fund transport. However, here in the West of England, Bath and NE Somerset Council (and the other two councils across the West of England), contribute just over £20. That means the West of England Metro Mayor has much less money to invest.

But the bigger problem is a driver shortage. Residents heard about the critical shortages of bus drivers, with over 100 vacancies across the region.

Residents young and old worked in groups to discuss possible solutions to challenges, and the trade-offs and compromises locals would be willing to make.

Most attendees favoured reliability over frequency of services. Many suggestions on new routes were made, including linking villages like Winford, Felton and Chew Magna to one another via minibuses and to existing bus routes.

There was also a discussion over the challenges for young people on the buses, and how a lack of buses in the Chew Valley area can mean youngsters can't socialise, get to school or part time jobs. There were also contributions about how ensuring passengers are polite to bus drivers is crucial to ensuring drivers stay in the industry long term.

Metro Mayor Dan Norris said: "A huge thank you to Jackie from the Chew Valley Action Group for organising this meeting. There are very real challenges on the buses right now - not enough drivers, fewer fare paying passengers and inflation letting rip at over 40%. The truth is currently we can't get the service local people need and deserve and we need to be honest about the trade-offs required; some big choices need to be made. Luckily local people have some great suggestions. Thank you for the super ideas on different routes and addressing the big, big problem of too few drivers to staff our region's vital bus services. I was really encouraged by how people came with an open mind, and for the hard work everyone put in".

In April 2023 new money will become available for buses after the Mayor secured the second highest funding award for buses nationwide.

Community groups are being encouraged to hold their own "big choices on buses" meetings by downloading a pack at https://www.westofengland-ca.gov.uk/what-we-do/transport/bus/big-choices-on-buses/