The new Cardiff Airport shuttle bus cost the Welsh Government more than £11 per passenger last year, according to an official report.
The service was launched last summer while councils were reviewing or cutting bus services where subsidy exceeded £3 or £4 per passenger. Cuts are continuing because councils are under financial pressure and have no legal duty to provide bus services for access to healthcare, employment, training and other facilities.
The report on the airport bus by Professor Stuart Cole, commissioned by the Welsh Government, reveals the total cost of the airport service to the government from August 1 to November 30 was £242,691.