Campaigners who helped reinstate night buses after the pandemic are calling for the “crucial” service to be expanded as a new report shows the positive impact it has had on passengers’ safety and the economy.
The N1 night buses between Liverpool and Wirral returned in December 2023.
Craig Pennington, of Future Yard community music venue in Birkenhead, said the late night transport had “removed barriers” for staff – with stories of some sleeping in dressing rooms when they could not get home previously – and customers who had been forced to leave early or not go at all.
He’s among those calling for the service to be extended to support more venues, workers and communities across the city region.
Since launching, the N1 operated by Stagecoach has supported almost 60,000 passenger journeys during the early hours of Friday, Saturday and Sunday mornings with the fares capped at £2.
The Bringing Back Liverpool’s Night Bus report, external by the University of Liverpool’s Institute of Popular Music found the N1 is generating an estimated £4.93 in social and community value for every £1 invested, while “helping passengers save money, feel safer and get to and from late-night work”.
But the findings warn that limited promotion, hourly departures and restricted routes are preventing the service from reaching its full potential.
Prof Mathew Flynn, director of the Institute of Popular Music and a board member of the Liverpool City Region Music Board which helped the campaign to restore the service said it was “crucial”.
He told BBC Radio Merseyside the night buses had “really improved” things for the night time economy, shift workers and students both coming in and out of the city centre.
But he called for more frequent services running every 30 minutes and new routes to serve more communities across the region.
Flynn said: “A more expansive network of night buses would be the next step beyond what we have achieved with the N1.”
The campaign to restore the service began after music venues, promoters and night-time workers told the Liverpool Music Board the decision by private operators to cancel it during the Covid-19 pandemic was affecting staff, audiences and businesses.