Better Transport

If you want to stop a bus being cut or if you want a new or improved bus service for your area, you need to first understand who is in charge of buses and how decisions are made.

• Most bus services are commercial 
• Service changes don't require consultation
• Plans can be found in bus strategies
• Some decisions are less formal 
• Local authorities can improve commercial services

Most bus services are commercial

In England and Wales outside London, the bus industry isn’t regulated by government. Through this deregulated system, bus companies choose which bus services to run. The choice is usually based on existing networks and research by bus companies on populations and travel patterns -- or because groups like local authorities, big employers or bus passenger groups ask for a service. (In London the situation is different.)

On average, about 83% of the bus services outside London are provided by bus companies on a commercial basis. Any bus company that has obtained an Operator’s Licence from the appropriate Government-appointed Traffic Commissioner can provide a local bus service. The companies decide which services to run, how often to run them and how much fares cost. All they need to do is register the service with the Traffic Commissioner. Probably not surprisingly, bus companies are unlikely to run services that lose money – even if there’s a great social need for it.

The remaining 17% of bus services are run by bus companies but paid for by local transport authorities. This percentage varies considerably across the country, ranging from just 5% in some urban areas to almost 100% in some rural areas. If the transport authority thinks a bus service is socially necessary (that it meets a public transport need), and that this service would not be provided without subsidy, it can pay a bus company to run the service. In this case, the transport authority dictates the routes, timetables and often the fares of the services they pay for. Operators are invited to submit tenders for operation against this specification.

Service changes don't require consultation

A bus company which wants to cancel a commercial service or change its timetable or route has to give 56 days notice to the traffic commissioners and provide a copy of this notice to the local transport authority. They can do this whenever and as often as they want, as long as they give the required notice. Some areas have voluntary agreements in place that limit the dates on which service changes can occur. Although it is not obligated to consult with the local transport authority, it will often do so as part of a voluntary agreement. There is no obligation on either the bus company or the local authority to consult with or even notify local people about the change to the bus service.

A local authority can cancel the services it runs or change frequencies, timetables and routes as it sees fit. Local people can explain what is actually needed if the local authority has made the wrong decision, and hope that it will listen.

Plans can be found in bus strategies

Local transport authorities produce Local Transport Plans, which include bus strategies. The local authority must also produce an accessibility study in which they look at the transport needs in their area. Once they’ve identified these needs, they explain in the bus strategy what they plan to do to meet them. Bus strategies outline the general aims of the transport authority on buses, and they may discuss the core bus network the authority thinks should be provided, or may refer to specific bus routes. If your bus service is mentioned in the bus strategy of your local transport authority, you will be able to make a strong case that they should fund this service if it’s not being provided commercially.

Some decisions are less formal

If the bus service you want is not mentioned specifically in the bus strategy, then decisions about whether it meets a transport need, and whether it should be funded by the authority will be taken either as part of a general annual review of bus services, or in response to bus company changes, or demands from local people. Local transport authorities often review all of their tendered local bus services once a year, in response to the annual budget review,

At the same time, decisions about buses are also made on an ad hoc basis, as and when buses are cut by bus companies (or as and when communities ask for new bus services). Local transport authorities generally have criteria they use to decide whether to fund bus services, to ensure that their decisions are fair. These criteria might include the cost of the service, the number of people who use it and whether they have alternative means of travel. The authority will also take into account its available budget.

Decisions about bus services will be taken at local authority meetings. Officers of the local authority will advise the elected councillors about whether to pay for buses that have been cut by bus companies because they don’t make money. Sometimes the issue of whether to fund a certain bus using local authority money will be highly political. Sometimes these decisions are taken quietly, without much fuss from local media, and local people discover that suddenly their bus service has gone.

Local authorities can improve commercial services

Local authorities can also subsidise improvements to commercial services in terms of frequencies, timetables or routes. For example, if a bus runs during the day but people need it in the evening as well, the local authority can invite bus companies to bid to operate the required service. Alternatively, the local authority might pay a bus company which already runs a service for them for the existing service to be diverted, for example into a small hamlet instead of running along the main road, or for a limited number of additional journeys in between existing commercially-provided services.

The players involved with buses

How buses are funded

In London the situation is different. Transport for London (TfL) decides which buses should run, on what routes, and what fares people should pay. It then asks bus companies to bid for the franchise to run each route. TfL will pay bus companies who can offer the services they need at the lowest cost. If you live in London, contact Transport for London. If you’re not happy with its response, contact London TravelWatch.