Community Transport Volunteer Drivers Needed

Cambridgeshire County Council's Social and Education Transport Team is looking for more willing drivers to help make a real difference to the lives of many people in the county - and they could receive up to £4,500 a year tax free.

The County Council provides a transport service to eligible people who need to attend one of the care centres, day service facilities or education establishments. Community Drivers play a vital role transporting a host of people who would otherwise miss out

Drivers are needed in all areas of Cambridgeshire. Volunteers receive 45p a mile for journeys they undertake as part of the scheme and can earn up to £4,500 annually before the payment becomes liable to tax. Being unemployed and signing on is not a barrier.

County Councillor and local resident Andy Pellew said: "Unfortunately given the public transport cuts in the last Conservative budget a lot of people will be unable to attend these excellent facilities. Hopefully the expansion of this initiative will plug some of the gaps left byy, amongst other things, the withdrawal of bus subsidies."

The County Council is looking to boost the team across the whole of Cambridgeshire, so interest from all areas of the county would be welcomed. Community drivers receive a payment of 45p a mile.

Community drivers must be over 21 with two years driving experience; have their own roadworthy car that has fully comprehensive insurance; and will undergo an enhanced Criminal Records Bureau check paid for by the County Council.

For more information contact 0345 045 5208 or go to Cambridgeshire.gov.uk/communitydrivers

Lib Dems Launch Petition To Reverse Tory Bus Cuts

Stagecoach Bus on Guided Busway

Cambridgeshire Liberal Democrats have launched a petition to reverse the Tories’ 100 per cent cuts to rural bus services.

The petition, called "Stopping the cuts to bus services in Cambridgeshire" reads:

"We the people of Cambridgeshire are opposed to the Conservative County Council's decision to scrap 100% of funding for subsidised buses, which led to an application for Judicial Review.

"Socially necessary bus services are vital to the whole of Cambridgeshire, especially for young people who need to access to centres of employment, those with mobility issues who wish to access the wider community and its resources, and for tackling the root problem of "rural isolation".

"We also believe that the "Cambridgeshire Future Transport" project, to which half of bus funding has been transferred, is fundamentally flawed and not capable of delivering an adequate replacement for the existing public transport network, never mind the improved system that has been promised.

"We call on the Conservative administration to reinstate 100% of the cuts to bus funding and to conduct a systematic view of Cambridgeshire residents' transport needs before making any changes to it."

The petition can be found here: http://epetition.cambridgeshire.public-i.tv/epetition_core/view/Buses

Lib Dems Victory As Tories U-Turn On Bus Cuts – But Fears For Future

Cllr Van de Ven

Cambridgeshire Liberal Democrats are celebrating victory after the Tories staged a dramatic U-turn over their decision to axe 100 per cent of bus subsidies across the county.

Lib Dems, who had fought a sustained campaign against the cuts for a year, have welcomed the move to invest £1.5 million – just over half the bus subsidies cash – into newly organized public transport.

The money will be handed over the next three years to provide new forms of transport through a one-year old project called Cambridgeshire Future Transport

But Lib Dems have expressed their concerns about Cambridgeshire Future Transport which has a poor track record so far.

Cambridgeshire Future Transport project has already suffered its first failure after an expenditure of £120,000 toward a pilot service in Duxford, launched before Christmas, was boycotted by residents in protest at the prospect of losing their subsidised buses.
                                               
Lib Dems have called for a commitment to continue the financial support to existing bus services, if it is needed, to ensure that vulnerable and isolated residents are not left stranded.

Lib Dem County Council Shadow Cabinet Member for Transport, Susan van de Ven said:  "This partial U-turn is a big victory for the Lib Dems and good news for local bus users.  The Tories have finally relented and accepted the principle that you cannot provide socially necessary rural transport for nothing.

“Abating 50 per cent of the cuts is a big improvement on the 100 per cent cut that was planned, which was the worst in the country.

"This will allow some of the bus services the Tories still intend to cut to be replaced with some form of alternative; it is just a shame they didn't listen to the public's concern and reinstate more of the funding.

 “We are extremely concerned that Cambridgeshire Future Transport is not the best way to deliver these services; in one year it has delivered almost nothing.

“Money spent on the failed pilot in Duxford could have paid for three new mini buses for Cambridge Dial-a-Ride or other established community transport providers.  Cambridgeshire cannot afford to play games with lifeline transport and scarce public money.”

A recent consultation by Cambridgeshire County Council on bus subsidies showed that 37 per cent of residents have no other means of transport and only three per cent of residents supported bus service cuts.