BOURNEMOUTH’S buses covered 266,000 more miles last year – but overall, our national bus mileage has dwindled to its lowest level in more than three decades.

Council chiefs around the UK are blaming rising car use, congestion and cuts to transport funding for the millions of miles lost.

In Poole, buses covered 79,000 fewer miles last year.

However, in Bournemouth, buses clocked up 4.8 million miles in 2018-19, the latest Department for Transport statistics show – up 6 per cent from the year before.

The local authority subsidised only 5 per cent of these journeys last year, with the rest run by private companies for profit.

Cash-strapped council are spending less and ditching discretionary items, such as supported services in rural areas.

In Dorset Council areas, 201,000 fewer miles were covered by buses.

The local authority subsidised only 9 per cent of these journeys last year.

Last January, we reported that a ‘lifeline’ bus service threatened with closure was saved in rural East Dorset.

Council funding for Service 97, which connects residents from a number of villages to their nearest towns, was slashed in 2017.

However, the route was rescued by local councils.

As a result, charity Dorset Community Transport has been able to continue running its distinctive green buses along the stretch.

Dorset transport funding for the route, which connects Fordingbridge to Verwood and Ringwood via Alderholt and Cranborne, was one of the services withdrawn during the summer of 2017.

Nationally, almost half of the country’s bus routes face the chop.

Darren Shirley, chief executive of Campaign for Better Transport, said people in cut-off communities have been left unable to reach basic services.

“With local authorities unable to support the less profitable, but socially necessary routes, these have been the first victims of cutbacks leaving many communities – especially in more rural areas – without a usable bus network,” he added.

“We hear from people every week who can no longer get to work or their GP practice, visit friends or even get out to the shops.”

The trade body representing bus and coach operators, the Confederation of Passenger Transport, said growing car ownership and congestion are the two main issues driving the ongoing decline in the UK’s towns and cities.

CPT policy manager Alison Edwards has now called on councils and the government to work together to “put the bus first” when it comes to the country’s transport planning.

A Department for Transport spokeswoman said: “This government has committed to improving and expanding bus services – and this is exactly what we intend to do.”

“We recently announced a £220 million package to transform services across the country to support Britain’s first all-electric bus town, better information for passengers, and contactless payment on every city bus, on top of the over £2 billion the public sector spends on bus services each year – making journeys greener, easier and more reliable.”