Rural Public Transport is essential for many people in rural areas. Many homes do not have a car, and even if they do, it is often not available to everyone. The situation is set to get worse as the population ages, especially if oil prices rise and incomes do not.

If we are to ensure everyone in rural areas has access to key services, whatever their income, health or status, we need to ensure that where rural services cannot be provided locally it is essential that there is transport to local market towns or other key centres.

In some cases that will mean a regular bus or rail service, but it is not always possible to justify those, especially in the most rural areas, and also they may not be flexible enough to people needs.

Many alternatives exist under the general heading: ‘demand responsive transport’. They include everything from ring and ride to taxis to postbusses.

However, such services are often ad hoc, unjoined up and sometimes not open to everyone.

In 2008 CPRE undertook an analysis of what is happening in the five counties of the West Midlands: Herefordshire, Shropshire, Staffordshire, Warwickshire and Worcestershire and found a mixed bag in terms of effective coordination and service provision. Our report: ‘Cause for Concern’ sets out some of the issues. We also published a leaflet: ‘Room for Improvement’ which sets out some solutions.

We believe much can, and should, be done to improve rural transport services, and that it needs to be taken more seriously by politicians. We also think County Councils and Unitary Authorities should play a key role in coordinating rural transport.

02.04.09