Welcome to the latest newsletter from the Rural Vulnerability Service - brought to you by the Rural Services Network and the Rural England CIC in association with Calor.

The vulnerability service aims to disseminate information about three key rural issues: fuel poverty, broadband and rural transport.

Latest updates:

The decline of the bus – and what can be done about it

Why have many Britons fallen out of love with the bus? The answer is far more complex than simply higher fares and budgets cuts.
(iNews)

Researchers to help with green rural transport

A consortium of partners from across Europe has been awarded funding to take forward a project on green transport in rural areas.
(Robert Gordon University)

Rural elderly endure 'painful' hospital journeys

Elderly people are having to endure painful journeys to and from hospital because transport is not up to scratch, it is claimed.
(Times & Star)

Proposed cuts to rural bus routes rejected

West Norfolk councillors voted to stop budget cuts to bus subsidies and gritting routes after they were told communities could be ‘set back decades’.
(Lynn news)

Villages speed towards new rural travel hubs

Three South Cambridgeshire villages have been proposed as possible areas for new “rural travel hubs”
(Cambridge Network)

£700k pothole fund to tackle poor state of roads

THE six-figure amount of money destined to fix the pothole-ridden roads of South Lakeland and Copeland has been revealed.
(North-West Mail)

Villagers greet new bus route to restore lost links

LUNE Valley campaigners say they are delighted a new bus service will restore lost rural transport links to villagers this spring.
(Westmorland Gazette)

Mum calls for fairer transport policy for sixth-formers

The mother of two teenagers is campaigning for free transport to their catchment area school for pupils up to the age of 18.
(Newark Advertiser)

Bus service axe is blow to residents

The cancellation of a "well-used" bus service has left residents unable to travel to work, it has been claimed. (Braintree & Witham Times)

Funding formula unfit for rural areas

Education leaders say it is imperative the Government recognises the additional expense in educating children in sparsely populated areas. (The Northern Echo)

Funding provides two new minibuses for community

ST DAVIDS has a new community minibus, thanks to the Welsh Government, Pembrokeshire County Council and a local charity shop.
(County Echo)

Riders feel like ‘poor relations’ on roads, report finds

Riders feel like the “poor relations” on roads and are not treated with the same respect as drivers, a new study has shown.
(Horse & Hound)

Community transport scheme gets £200 boost

Droitwich Community Transport, which takes residents on social trips to encourage social inclusion, has received funding from the town’s Rotary Club.
(Droitwich Standard)

Translink 'needs £13m' to fund unprofitable local buses

People living in rural communities could be left without local bus services because they are not profitable.
(BBC Online)