A worried politician has called on the Scottish Government to reverse "unacceptable" cuts to Renfrewshire's bus services.

We previously reported how reduced and withdrawn bus services since the beginning of May have adversely impacted local people.

West Scotland MSP Neil Bibby, whose remit includes Renfrewshire, believes an "urgent plan" is needed to help those affected.

The Labour man told The Gazette: "These bus cuts are unacceptable to local people. So they should be unacceptable to the Scottish Government too.

"People don't want warm words, they want action. They want a reversal of these cuts, and an urgent plan to save our bus services.

"There should be no more blank cheques for private operators, with stricter conditions on government support."

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Mr Bibby has called for a cap on bus fares to encourage more local people to use buses.

He added: "Labour mayors across England have capped a single fare at £2. 

"People in Renfrewshire are paying some of the highest bus fares in the UK, at £2.85 for a two-mile journey. 

"If it's good enough for Manchester and Liverpool, it’s good enough for Renfrewshire and West Scotland.

"And there should be fundamental reform of Scotland's broken bus market, with local transport authorities provided with the resources, information and guidance needed to bring buses back under public control: run as a public service, not for private profit."

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Transport Minister Kevin Stewart said the Scottish Government was committed, in partnership with operators and local authorities, to ensuring that everyone has accessible public transport regardless of where they live. 

He added: "It is for individual bus operators use their own commercial judgement to decide on service routes, fare structure and frequency. 

"Since June 2022, we have delivered powers to enable local transport authorities to run their own local services, which sits alongside their existing ability to subsidise local bus services.

"The Scottish Government has been engaging with the industry through our Bus Taskforce and have been clear that the support provided to transport operators needs to evolve to ensure it remains fit for purpose and is sustainable in the long term. 

"There is a broad package of long-term investment in bus, including through the Network Support Grant, Community Bus Fund, and for bus priority infrastructure, together with the enhanced suite of options for local transport authorities to improve bus services according to their local needs, including formal partnerships, franchising and running their own bus services."