More UK buses to run on Christmas Day than at any time in last five years
Share:
About 100,000 people expected to travel on 25 December, up from 60,000 in 2019. More UK buses and coaches are expected to operate on Christmas Day than at any time since figures were first collected five years ago. The Confederation of Passenger Transport (CPT), an industry body, estimates that the number of people catching a bus on 25 December this year will hit 100,000.
The figure in 2019 was 60,000 and this grew steadily to 87,000 last year. Bus operators are in part reacting to rising demand, which comes amid falling car ownership among young people, the CPT said. Alison Edwards, director of policy and external relations at the CPT, said buses and coaches were the nation’s most popular form of public transport.
“Where they see demand on Christmas Day, commercial operators are stepping up and running services,” she said. “Although many of us may be putting our feet up for the day, there are plenty of people who want to get around – to visit extended family, to get to work, to visit friends in hospital or simply to get a breath of fresh air.”.
Edwards added that we should also remember “that a fifth of UK households have no access to a car”. Long-distance coach operator National Express expects to run 340 journeys connecting 95 destinations on what is this year forecast to be an extremely mild day. FlixBus is scheduled to run services linking 70 destinations.
