One wonders, if Labour in Bristol hadn't thrown their toys out of the pram and continued to run BCC» , whether these cuts would've happened?
Yes they definitely would. Labour has never supported public transport in Bristol as far as I've noticed (
IIRC▸ it was the Lib Dems that introduced the Severn Beach line subsidy). We had decades of Labour in charge but the buses have always been rubbish and expensive compared to other cities. In fact when they were first privatised, the service actually improved, with a lot of increased frequencies. Then First took over City Line and, with the help of increased congestion, managed to transform the bus service back into what it was before.... only far more expensive.
To be fair to Labour, Bristol was the largest city in the country not to be deemed Metropolitan, which is why we didn't get a Passenger Transport Executive and the opportunity for significant subsidies of public transport. I think that's why fares were always higher here, and a private company could hardly be expected to reduce them in line with other cities.