Community rail partnerships and station groups are encouraged to get involved and join in with this year’s Catch the Bus Month, highlighting the social, economic and environmental benefits of these lifeline services.

Run by passenger champion Bus Users UK, Catch the Bus Month runs throughout September and aims to get more people on board by showcasing the huge benefits of bus travel with campaigns, promotions, giveaways, and events being run across England, Scotland and Wales.

As well as improving physical health, buses reduce loneliness and isolation. Pre-pandemic, they contributed £64 billion annually to the UK economy and switching just one journey a month to bus would mean 1 billion fewer car journeys, lowering pollution and freeing up town and city centres.

The campaign website has all the latest news and details of local events, along with a free-to-download Partner Pack full of ideas, resources and signposts for support.

Your community rail partnership or station group could consider:

• Highlighting rail and bus connections along your lines / through your station – you could use social media, or even have a presence at your station(s)
• Promoting some of the great tourism and leisure attractions along your line / near your station that can be accessed by bus and rail
• Working with local bus companies to get the word out about the benefits of sustainable, integrated travel
• Hosting events at stations, bus depots or transport hubs to bring the community together

Anyone wanting to take part, run joint events or order some of the famous giant #CTBM red hands, can contact the team at Bus Users UK via catchthebus@bususers.org.

Share your plans with our comms team so we can help support and amplify your messages too.