Connect Bude

Yep, which is why we're against EV and fuel pay per mile. It disproportionately taxes rural communities, who have already had their rail and buses taken away.

There's 40k residents and +285k visitors (all via car) a year in our area. You going to tell everyone they have to move from their place of birth because of gov cancelling buses and removing our rail? And ban visitors from coming? Wow..

Do you live in North Cornwall? +285k visitors and +40k residents cannot have a ring and ride to take them 30.2 miles to the train station. We started with a train, then an hourly direct coach, then a stopping double decker, and now a once every 3hrs stopping double decker that misses the train.

First Bus leaves Cornwall & Pay-Per-Mile Tax replaces it - Connect Bude Earlier this month First Bus announced it will end all its operations in Cornwall by 14 February 2026, citing relentless financial pressure: rising operating costs outpacing inflation, steeply falling...

* Regressive taxes with pay per mile taxing on isolated rural communities when they have no other options for travel; while they struggle with closed local services, cancelled bus routes, and no rail.
connectbude.co.uk/2025/11/firs...

First Bus set to cease all Cornwall operations The company said it is no longer financially viable to run in Cornwall

They are getting reduced year on year (we've gone from hourly to a once every 3hr bus to our local train station), or cancelled outright www.cornwalllive.com/news/cornwal...

First Bus leaves Cornwall & Pay-Per-Mile Tax replaces it - Connect Bude Earlier this month First Bus announced it will end all its operations in Cornwall by 14 February 2026, citing relentless financial pressure: rising operating costs outpacing inflation, steeply falling...

Any pay-per-mile tax is an unfair tax on isolated rural communities where services and public transport has been and is continued to be stripped away. Cart before the horse when there's no other method of travel available.
connectbude.co.uk/2025/11/firs...

It penalises those who live far from services, hits poorest hardest as we often have lower incomes and fewer alternatives, and deepens rural isolation. Transport access is a fundamental enabler of opportunity - for work, education, health, social life. This tax marginalises rural communities further

I don't think you've read the link? We're against all pay-per-mile taxes inc. fuel. We don’t ask parents to pay more tax for schools, sick people to use the NHS, so why rural communities to pay more for roads because of the gov’s failure to provide local services and public transport?

First Bus leaves Cornwall & Pay-Per-Mile Tax replaces it - Connect Bude Earlier this month First Bus announced it will end all its operations in Cornwall by 14 February 2026, citing relentless financial pressure: rising operating costs outpacing inflation, steeply falling...

That's a big assumption. You don't have any remote communities in Wales that don't have public transport options or that are limited to cars due to disability? Because a pay-per-mile tax unfairly punishes those of us in isolated rural areas.
connectbude.co.uk/2025/11/firs...

First Bus leaves Cornwall & Pay-Per-Mile Tax replaces it - Connect Bude Earlier this month First Bus announced it will end all its operations in Cornwall by 14 February 2026, citing relentless financial pressure: rising operating costs outpacing inflation, steeply falling...

Any pay-per-mile tax unfairly punishes those of us in isolated rural communities - especially when there is no other public transport option. £742.50+ new tax on a commute to the nearest city. How is that tax making our area more productive or prosperous? connectbude.co.uk/2025/11/firs...

First Bus leaves Cornwall & Pay-Per-Mile Tax replaces it - Connect Bude Earlier this month First Bus announced it will end all its operations in Cornwall by 14 February 2026, citing relentless financial pressure: rising operating costs outpacing inflation, steeply falling...

We would argue that any pay-per-mile tax unfairly punishes those of us in isolated rural communities - especially when there is no other public transport option. A £742.50+ new tax on a commute to the nearest city is not fair. connectbude.co.uk/2025/11/firs...

First Bus leaves Cornwall & Pay-Per-Mile Tax replaces it - Connect Bude Earlier this month First Bus announced it will end all its operations in Cornwall by 14 February 2026, citing relentless financial pressure: rising operating costs outpacing inflation, steeply falling...

We would argue that any pay-per-mile tax unfairly punishes those of us in isolated rural communities - especially when there is no other public transport option. A £742.50+ new tax on a commute to the nearest city is not fair. connectbude.co.uk/2025/11/firs...

Yes! Tolls for specific roads could be a fairer alternative (and easier to implement!). Especially around areas which have great alternatives/park n rides. We ❤️ active travel too, and encourage it throughout our town, but it's unreasonable to expect to do a 57 mile trip each way to Exeter💔

First Bus leaves Cornwall & Pay-Per-Mile Tax replaces it - Connect Bude Earlier this month First Bus announced it will end all its operations in Cornwall by 14 February 2026, citing relentless financial pressure: rising operating costs outpacing inflation, steeply falling...

Not just that, but it's made the cost of living in a rural community MUCH higher. Unfairly taxing those of us that have to travel further for access to jobs and services, and that have no public transport because of cuts. connectbude.co.uk/2025/11/firs...

First Bus leaves Cornwall & Pay-Per-Mile Tax replaces it - Connect Bude Earlier this month First Bus announced it will end all its operations in Cornwall by 14 February 2026, citing relentless financial pressure: rising operating costs outpacing inflation, steeply falling...

Private video. But I hope you mention the £742.50/yr extra tax for the most isolated rural families to commute to the local city, with no other public transport option as buses no longer head there.
connectbude.co.uk/2025/11/firs...

First Bus leaves Cornwall & Pay-Per-Mile Tax replaces it - Connect Bude Earlier this month First Bus announced it will end all its operations in Cornwall by 14 February 2026, citing relentless financial pressure: rising operating costs outpacing inflation, steeply falling...

We need your help to scrap unfair pay-per-mile tax that punishes rural communities for the gov's choice to no longer provide public transport or services locally. £742.50/yr to commute for work and education to our local city now.
connectbude.co.uk/2025/11/firs...

First Bus leaves Cornwall & Pay-Per-Mile Tax replaces it - Connect Bude Earlier this month First Bus announced it will end all its operations in Cornwall by 14 February 2026, citing relentless financial pressure: rising operating costs outpacing inflation, steeply falling...

We would argue that any pay-per-mile tax unfairly punishes those of us in isolated rural communities - especially when there is no other public transport option. A £742.50+ new tax on a commute to the nearest city is not fair.
connectbude.co.uk/2025/11/firs...

When there's continuous chipping away at our ability to travel in our region, while other regions get improved connectivity - we need to stand up to any change that negatively affects our community. But happy to leave it as agree to disagree on this.

We don't all benefit equally from everything. Tax ensures that we pool resources. Deliveries, emergency services, maintenance, cycling and business use of roads - I would say that we all benefit from. Expecting a poorer connected community to have to pay more doesn't feel right for us.

First Bus leaves Cornwall & Pay-Per-Mile Tax replaces it - Connect Bude Earlier this month First Bus announced it will end all its operations in Cornwall by 14 February 2026, citing relentless financial pressure: rising operating costs outpacing inflation, steeply falling...

👎Any per-mile tax is incredibly unfair on isolated rural communities such as North Cornwall, especially with bus services scrapped. There is no alterative. An extra £742.50 in taxes to commute to the nearest city for work or education now.
connectbude.co.uk/2025/11/firs...

Now, if all public transport is magically fixed, so anyone anywhere in the UK can access services with a reasonable time and cost - then that's fair to start to discuss a tax for more "premium options". But if driving is the only option, it's the cart before the horse and only hurts our community.

We don’t ask families to pay more tax to use schools, sick people to pay more to use the NHS, so why should we ask rural communities to pay more for roads they are required to use because of the government’s failure to provide local services and public transport? What about disabled drivers needs?

First Bus leaves Cornwall & Pay-Per-Mile Tax replaces it - Connect Bude Earlier this month First Bus announced it will end all its operations in Cornwall by 14 February 2026, citing relentless financial pressure: rising operating costs outpacing inflation, steeply falling...

It unfairly targets already isolated rural communities. +£742.50/yr is unacceptable to access the local city for jobs and education. It penalises those who live far from services and deepens rural isolation.
connectbude.co.uk/2025/11/firs...

First Bus leaves Cornwall & Pay-Per-Mile Tax replaces it - Connect Bude Earlier this month First Bus announced it will end all its operations in Cornwall by 14 February 2026, citing relentless financial pressure: rising operating costs outpacing inflation, steeply falling...

Taxing isolated rural communities more for living further away from services and jobs, more because of slashed public transport, more because of not providing any alterative other than driving
connectbude.co.uk/2025/11/firs...

First Bus leaves Cornwall & Pay-Per-Mile Tax replaces it - Connect Bude Earlier this month First Bus announced it will end all its operations in Cornwall by 14 February 2026, citing relentless financial pressure: rising operating costs outpacing inflation, steeply falling...

It's worse than that - pay-per-mile tax will devastate the finances of some of the most isolated communities in the area. Bude to Exeter commute? £742.50/yr !
connectbude.co.uk/2025/11/firs...

First Bus leaves Cornwall & Pay-Per-Mile Tax replaces it - Connect Bude Earlier this month First Bus announced it will end all its operations in Cornwall by 14 February 2026, citing relentless financial pressure: rising operating costs outpacing inflation, steeply falling...

In our isolated rural community, £742.50/yr extra in taxes for commuters to our nearest city. It's completely unacceptable that some of the poorest and least served areas will pay the most tax now because of it.
connectbude.co.uk/2025/11/firs...

First Bus leaves Cornwall & Pay-Per-Mile Tax replaces it - Connect Bude Earlier this month First Bus announced it will end all its operations in Cornwall by 14 February 2026, citing relentless financial pressure: rising operating costs outpacing inflation, steeply falling...

You don't mention that for any of these, those who live in isolated rural areas, +£742.50/yr for just commuting to our nearest city, never along going elsewhere.
connectbude.co.uk/2025/11/firs...

First Bus leaves Cornwall & Pay-Per-Mile Tax replaces it - Connect Bude Earlier this month First Bus announced it will end all its operations in Cornwall by 14 February 2026, citing relentless financial pressure: rising operating costs outpacing inflation, steeply falling...

Rural communities in Dorset are likely to get hit hard, like us in North Cornwall, by any pay-per-mile tax
connectbude.co.uk/2025/11/firs...

First Bus leaves Cornwall & Pay-Per-Mile Tax replaces it - Connect Bude Earlier this month First Bus announced it will end all its operations in Cornwall by 14 February 2026, citing relentless financial pressure: rising operating costs outpacing inflation, steeply falling...

✅Isolated rural communities isolated further by unfair increase in taxes to be able to commute to their local city for work, education and services. Bude > Exeter £742.50/yr more, thanks! connectbude.co.uk/2025/11/firs...

First Bus leaves Cornwall & Pay-Per-Mile Tax replaces it - Connect Bude Earlier this month First Bus announced it will end all its operations in Cornwall by 14 February 2026, citing relentless financial pressure: rising operating costs outpacing inflation, steeply falling...

❎ Paying an extra £742.50/yr in taxes for our isolated rural community to access the nearest city. Thank you!
connectbude.co.uk/2025/11/firs...