Last week (13 July) Knowsley Chamber hosted a Zoom discussion around the proposed changes to the bus routes, particularly around the Knowsley Business/Industrial Park in Kirkby.
The event was supported by the Liverpool City Region Bus Alliance including, Merseytravel, Arriva, Stagecoach and the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority.
With pressures facing bus services including reduced passenger numbers on some bus routes and rising levels of inflation continue to be felt in the Liverpool City Region. Funding from central government, which has been supporting bus services, is due to end in the autumn of this year. As a consequence of this, it is proposed that changes to bus services in the Knowsley, Liverpool, Sefton, St Helens and Wirral are introduced on 4th September 2022.
This online discussion gave local business and community groups an opportunity to hear about the proposed changes and share comments and concerns before the changes are confirmed and published.
The event was well supported with a number of employers, including large employees such as Amazon and Matalan who employ around 2,000 employees, were in attendance. In addition we were joined by representatives from the local colleges, Knowsley Council and KDC who represented residents, particularly those with access or additional needs requirements.
The event resulted in a number of actions including a promise to look at the start times of the extended number 17 service which could support the shift patterns of local businesses and consideration for a new drop-off location in the industrial park. The members of the Bus Alliance also agreed to speak to KDC about how they can engage more and better with the community and consider different forms of engagement to reach people who are not connected.
To read about the proposed service changes please view this link: Knowsley Proposed Service Changes September 2022
If you missed the event but have comments on the proposed service changes you can contact support line on: 0151 330 1000.