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# Bus deregulation has failed local passengers, election candidate says
- URL: https://lichfieldlive.co.uk/bus-deregulation-has-failed-local-passengers-election-candidate-says/
- Published: 2025-04-21T06:08:00.000Z
- Updated: 2025-04-20T19:53:44.000Z
- Description: Forty years of bus deregulation has failed passengers, a Labour election candidate has claimed.
- Author: Lichfield Live
- Tags: Politics, Transport, #wp, #wp-post, #Import 2026-07-22 18:49, News

FORTY years of bus deregulation has failed passengers, a Labour election candidate has claimed.

Ben Watkins, who is hoping to win the Staffordshire County Council Lichfield Rural North seat in the vote on 1st May, said the night-time economy had also been hit by depleted public transport options in the local area.

The Labour candidate said it was not right that passengers wanting to catch the last bus from Lichfield to Cannock or Burntwood on a Saturday needed to be on board by 8.10pm while those heading for Shenstone or Sutton Coldfield face an even earlier last service at 7.15pm.

Mr Watkins said:

> “Staffordshire County Council is responsible for funding bus services that aren’t profitable but fulfil an important social need. When the last bus from Lichfield to Burntwood is at 8.10 pm, you simply can’t say that the county council – run by the Conservatives since 2009 – is getting it right.  
>  
> “With the last buses in Lichfield and Burntwood finishing by mid-evening, it means that it’s impossible to go for an evening meal and a drink in Lichfield by public transport.”

Mr Watkins said that a full reconsideration of bus deregulation was now needed to help reconnect communities.

> “We have a patchwork of services and we have no sense that buses are there as a public amenity.  
>  
> “I’ve met so many people who rely on public transport or who want to leave the car at home. But the county council doesn’t get its priorities right.  
>  
> “There are pink minibuses \[Lichfield District Council’s Link Up service\] in Lichfield bus station to try to fill the gaps, but what people want is just ordinary buses that run at the times they need.  
>  
> “Just look what Andy Burnham has done in Manchester with their Bee Network – cheaper fares and better services. A Labour county council working closely with the Government could transform travel in Staffordshire.”

*Full list of candidates standing in Lichfield Rural North:*

- *Ben Watkins (Labour)*
- *Richard Holland (Conservatives)*
- *Morag Maclean (Lib Dem)*
- *John Madden (Reform)*