Jersey operator LibertyBus reached 100% of pre-pandemic usage in 2023, with the over five million users carried last year matching the total in 2019, it has revealed.
Such a return is described as “unprecedented” by the Tower Transit UK subsidiary, with Director Kevin Hart saying that the achievement is built on listening to customer feedback and delivering what he calls a “reliable and efficient bus service to the community.”
Among that work has been a realignment of services to match changing passenger needs. By soliciting feedback and analysing ridership, timetables have been optimised to satisfy demands that sit against a greater proportion of the island’s working population now doing so from home.
A further factor relating to increasing ridership has been the introduction of an annual pass for students under the age of 19. It has driven usage among younger people. “This initiative not only promotes sustainable transport, but it also encourages the next generation to embrace using the bus as a convenient and eco-friendly mode of travel,” the operator says.
Recent survey findings indicate that the demographic makeup of bus users on Jersey has changed “slightly.” Against a reduction in commuting journeys, LibertyBus has seen more prominence for leisure travel.
Services are operated by LibertyBus under contract to the Government of Jersey. Speaking about the passenger numbers, Minister for Infrastructure Constable Andy Jehan says: “It is brilliant news to see that the number of islanders taking the bus has returned to pre-COVID-19 levels, despite more of our population now working from home.
“Introducing the annual pass for students has helped to encourage our younger generations to get on the bus as a more sustainable way of travelling.
“As someone who uses the bus, I have seen for myself the increased numbers, and we continue to work closely with LibertyBus to ensure that public transport is serving our islanders.”
