Plymouth Citybus is making job losses as it battles rising costs and falling income. The transport company is consulting with about 16 office staff but has stressed passengers will not be affected by the cuts.
The company is battling a number of economic factors which means it has to make savings. Managing director Richard Stevens said the transport sector has been hit with a 14% rise in costs this year, which comes on top of the end of Government Covid Support and the implications of the £2 ticket price cap, now extended until the end of October.
“We knew we had a date with destiny when the Covid support ended,” he said. “There is some help with increased funding on 2019 levels, but nothing like what we were receiving for Covid recovery.
“On top of that, transport inflation is running at 14% year-on-year and prices are effectively capped with the Government’s £2 fare scheme.We are getting some reimbursement, but it’s a pot for the industry that is divided up amongst bus companies.”
However, Mr Stevens stressed the company’s future was still “solid” and Citybus has been in talks with Plymouth City Council about the future of transport. He said passenger numbers have grown by an astonishing 10.5% year-on-year and added: “That’s fantastic. So it is not all bad news, but at the moment we have to be able to pay our bills and stabilise, to grow from where we are.”
Its never good news when people find their jobs under threat so I hope that the staff affected manage to get new employment quickly. Many operators are struggling at the moment as barely a week seems to go by without at least one operator falling by the wayside, even some quite big ones. The issue with the capped fares isnt going to go away anytime soon as as the cap will rise to £2.50 in November but them seemingly be fixed for twelve months. I do wonder if many operators will end up excluding themselves from this scheme.
Plymouth Citybus makes job cuts as it battles inflation and £2 fare cap https://t.co/WzjSynLlZB
— Plymouth Live (@Plymouth_Live) September 5, 2023
