Preparations for Catch the Bus Month – which for 2023 will again be held in September – have begun after organiser Bus Users UK launched a partner pack to accompany the campaign.
The charity is calling upon operators, local authorities, passenger groups and communities across the UK to back Catch the Bus Month. The partner pack includes a range of suggestions for events, giveaways and promotions along with offers of support and the supply of the customary giant foam hands, which for 2023 are red.
Also within the pack are campaign materials including logos, graphics and posters in both English and Welsh. They support the social, economic and environmental benefits of bus travel. Other resources include a template press release, and a factsheet about the bus industry that has been compiled by the Confederation of Passenger Transport.
The social media hashtags #CTBM2023 and #CatchTheBusMonth will be used during the campaign.
Bus Users UK Programmes Manager Victoria Walker has called on the industry to support Catch the Bus Month, which she says will benefit the sector by reminding the public of “the huge benefits of bus travel to themselves and to their communities.”
Adds Ms Walker: “This is a critical time for bus services with staff shortages and funding cuts, and passenger numbers that still have not returned to pre-COVID-19 levels. Yet the need for affordable, sustainable transport has never been greater.”
The 2023 Catch the Bus Month partner pack can be downloaded here. For further information, to share campaign ideas or to source giant red hands, operators and stakeholders should contact Bus Users UK via email or on 0300 111 0001.
Bus Users UK took over Catch the Bus Month in 2022, with Greener Journeys having managed the concept until 2020. During September its teams will be around the UK to help support events.
