The UK Government has been urged to bail out national bus operators who say services across Britain could disappear as a result of coronavirus.
The Confederation of Passenger Transport - of which Perth group Stagecoach and Aberdeen-based FirstGroup are members - said the jobs of thousands of drivers are at risk after passenger numbers plummeted by 50% almost overnight.
The industry body said revenues outside London were expected to be down by £50 million a week and that it faced tough choices over which services to cut while NHS and other key staff count on them to get to work.
It wants the Government to guarantee income for bus and coach operators and to support up to 80 per cent of staff costs.
The confederation said it members have plans to use buses as mobile grocery stores for people forced to self-isolate and as mobile testing units for the NHS.
Chief executive Graham Vidler said: “We appreciate that we are living in unprecedented times and more than ever we are ready to play our role in maintaining a vital national network and supporting the fabric of daily life across Britain.
“But bus operators are under extreme pressure and facing impossible choices over which routes they have to cut and how many staff may have to go.
“Buses are crucial to keeping workers moving – and must remain a vital backbone of public transport once this crisis is over.
“We urgently need the Government to help bus workers and their employers now to secure the future of the industry.”
