EXTRA Government support for community bus links which provide a lifeline for dozens of rural communities has been welcomed by West Somerset MP Ian Liddell-Grainger.

Transport secretary Mark Harper has announced the services will continue to be underwritten until the end of March, 2025, as part of a £250 million support package.

Mr Liddell-Grainger said together with an extension of the £2 fare cap until December next year the measure should lead to a significant uptake in public transport usage.

But, he said steps should be taken by local authorities to ensure State subsidies for vulnerable bus services were being spent sensibly, with the No 28 service between Taunton and Minehead a particular example.

Mr Liddell-Grainger said: “I am losing count of the complaints I am getting about buses failing to turn up at the advertised times or breaking down en route.

“First Bus says it has difficulty providing enough drivers for the service but one really does have to question its timetabling.

“There is a half-hourly service on this route but that is clearly an over-provision.

“It is pointless spending money subsidising buses which are running nearly empty at times of the day when there is barely any demand.

“Serious thought needs to be given to running half-hourly services at peak morning and evening times but cutting back to hourly frequency in the middle of the day.

“We need to get more people out of their cars and onto the buses but at the moment, what with frequent breakdowns affecting the time-expired vehicles used for the route, nobody trusts the 28 to deliver them where they need to be at the time they need to arrive.

“People travelling to catch trains or for hospital appointments in particular simply cannot rely on it.

“Reducing the frequency should ensure there are always enough drivers, so enabling First Bus to provide a more reliable service which runs to timetable and thus increase passenger usage.”