A new report published by travel booking company GetByBus has named Eden as England’s number one ‘Public Transport Desert’, following an investigation into government data on 276 local authorities across the country.
The report, which analysed the total number of bus and rail stops per square mile, ranks each local authority based on its public transport links, with London boroughs aggregated in order to create an accurate figure for the city.
Topping the list with 0.69 bus & rail stops per square mile is Eden, a district in Cumbria, with locals having access to a total of 549 and 23 bus and rail stops respectively.
Coming in at a close second is Richmondshire, which stands with zero rail stops, sporting a combined bus & rail stop average of 0.80, or 405 bus stops overall.
Rounding out the top three is Ryedale, a district in North Yorkshire, averaging a combined number of 0.89 bus & rail stops per square mile, or 516 bus stops and two rail stops, despite an average of 0.00 per square mile of rail stops overall.
Ante Dagelić, CEO of GetByBus, commented on the study:With workers, students, and others relying on public transport daily, it is vital for links across Great Britain to be strong and reliable.
While bus journeys in Great Britain have fallen from just over 5 billion in 2013 to a little over 3.7 billion in 2023, some areas are still reliant on these services, with one in seven employees taking the bus to work in cities like Nottingham.
Other authorities amongst the top twenty include Hambleton, Torridge, Breckland, Allerdale and Melton.
Of all 276 authorities analysed, the most accessible location is Nottingham, which boasts a combined bus & rail stop average of 60.33 per square mile overall.
The full study list of averages can be found in GetByBus’ data compilation here.
