I rise to present this petition to the House of Commons about access to bus services for my constituents across North Shropshire. Shropshire has some of the poorest services in the country. The petition was signed by 1,611 of my constituents who are frustrated by the lack of available transport. Many people struggle to get to medical appointments and high streets, while some businesses are dealing with significant shortages in recruitment for the simple reason that staff cannot get work without public transport connections. This petition declares that rural communities should be provided with improved access to bus and public transport services to better connect towns and villages, particularly to public services.

The petition states:

The petition of residents of North Shropshire,

Declares that residents are concerned by the poor bus services in North Shropshire;
express their frustration at struggling to use public transport to travel to key amenities like hospitals and schools;
convey their difficulties in securing work opportunities due to lack of transport connections;
and note that currently only one bus service operates on Sundays throughout the Constituency.

The petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urge the Government to take their concerns into account and act to ensure that bus connections are available to the residents of North Shropshire seven days per week, connecting local villages and towns.

And the petitioners remain, etc.

[P002837]