The Local Transport Minister has told Highways News that he wants to see public transport to improve enough that people no longer need to use their cars all the time.

Simon Lightwood was speaking on the Highways Voices podcast about how we can reduce car use and said: “I think that’s about ensuring that public transport is an attractive alternative that people can trust, that can get them to where they want to be. And that’s about improving those services. So what I don’t want to do is penalising people for using the car. I want to incentivise them by delivering top notch bus services, effective active travel and great train services.”

In the interview was conducted during a Women in Bus and Coach event at the London Transport Museum to celebrate the Capital’s first female bus driver, Jill Viner, where he unveiled a plaque to her (pictured).

Asked what will get more people choosing to take the bus, Mr Lightwood said: “I think it’s trust. It’s trust that’s affordable, trust it’s going to get to where you’re going to go, and it’s trust that’s going to be on time.”

The interview also covered diversity in public transport staff, delivery of public transport services outside London, and the Bus Services Bill, which aims to empower local leaders to improve bus services.

On the subject of local transport delivery, when asked if central government should have more control over local provision and policy, Mr Lightwood said: “Precisely the opposite. It’s about empowering local communities by devolving those powers, devolving that funding to a local area. Local leaders know best when it comes to what their local communities need, they don’t somebody sitting in Westminster or Whitehall – [they] aren’t best placed to make those decisions on the interventions that need to be made in the local area.”

The full podcast interview will be available on Wednesday 7 May.

(Picture – Women in Bus and Coach)