More UK buses and coaches are anticipated to function on Christmas Day than at any time since figures have been first collected 5 years in the past.
The Confederation of Passenger Transport (CPT), an business physique, estimates that the variety of folks catching a bus on 25 December this 12 months will hit 100,000.
The determine in 2019 was 60,000 and this grew steadily to 87,000 final 12 months.
Bus operators are partially reacting to rising demand, which comes amid falling automobile possession amongst younger folks, the CPT stated.
Alison Edwards, director of coverage and exterior relations on the CPT, stated buses and coaches have been the nation’s hottest type of public transport.
“Where they see demand on Christmas Day, commercial operators are stepping up and running services,” she stated.
“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 must also bear in mind “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 locations on what is that this 12 months forecast to be a particularly delicate day. FlixBus is scheduled to run providers linking 70 locations.
Other operators with Christmas Day providers embody:
Brighton and Hove buses, together with the Coaster route alongside the Downs between Brighton and Eastbourne.
Lothian buses in Edinburgh, which is able to run 11 routes, together with its metropolis sightseeing tour.
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Stagecoach will run free providers on 10 routes in Liverpool on behalf of Merseytravel.
Seven routes will run in Portsmouth and 5 on the Isle of Wight.
The variety of Christmas Day buses is rising however for folks within the overwhelming majority of locations, together with London and Newcastle, there might be no native providers. The UK’s passenger rail community may even be fully shut down.
Department for Transport figures present 22% of households in England in 2023 had no entry to a automobile or van.
Separate statistics reveal that 29% of individuals aged between 17 and 20 held a full driving licence final 12 months. That is down from 37% 5 years earlier.
A survey of individuals in that age vary urged the most typical causes for not studying to drive are the price of classes (38%), insurance coverage (29%) and shopping for a automobile (28%).
