Less than a week after the launch a debate on the future of the bus service in the Liverpool City Region more than 1000 people have already completed a digital survey sharing their views.

The government is in the process of devolving new powers over how the city region’s buses operate and this conversation will help inform how those powers are used to drive through major improvements to the network and give greater control back to the public sector and passengers.

The types of improvements identified could include:

• Smarter, simpler, more affordable, and easier to use ticketing
• Quicker and more reliable bus journeys
• Greener buses that help improve air quality
• Improving buses so that more car users choose to make the switch
• Making it easier to switch between different modes of transport

The first phase of the conversation is an online survey aimed at finding out what perceptions both bus users and non-users have about the bus system and what changes they would like to see. The survey is available here.

In the New Year, the next phase of the debate will see face-to-face on-street interviews, conducted across the city region, to be followed up by qualitative research in the form of focus groups.

All of this research will inform potential changes to be made to the bus system, which will be submitted to government in early 2020.