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keywords: nightbus, sustainability, Liverpool, live music sector
City-wide live music sectors and nighttime economies require effective transport systems to function optimally. To improve the choice, affordability, and sustainability of its nighttime transport offer, since December 2023, the Liverpool City Region (UK) has been operating a weekend night bus service. Running between midnight and 6am, the service is a 12-month pilot project devised to assess the demand for a wider network of night bus services across the region. Prior to the pandemic, night buses ran 7-days a week in Liverpool, but post-pandemic these services were not automatically reinstated. With a mandate from the region’s live music sector through Liverpool City Region Music Board, 2800 supportive public survey responses, a compelling business case, and even support from local taxi licensing authorities, I led the 18-month campaign for Liverpool’s Regional Authority to reinstate the night bus. This paper presents interim results of the five methods devised to evaluate the effectiveness of the pilot: passenger number data; customer survey data; stakeholder interviews; police crime statistics, and changes in air quality data along the route. It outlines the challenges of promoting the service, collecting and collating the data, and working within and between the various agendas of public and private stakeholders. The current analysis indicates that business and public enthusiasm for the night bus service is not reflected in the volume of its use. These findings call into question the sustainability of the service and wider agendas around sustainable transport provision. The paper concludes with an evaluation of the potential for increased services.
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Dr Mathew Flynn is a Senior Lecturer in Music Industry, Assistant Director of the Institute of Popular Music, and Member of the Liverpool City Region Music Board. His current research interests include decision-making in the music industries, mapping music sectors, and copyright.