£7 billion package to level up transport outside London

The government’s bus transformation programme is awarding funding to level up local bus services to 31 counties, city regions and unitary authorities.

According to the Department for Transport, including earlier awards, just under two-thirds of England’s population outside London will benefit from new investment to make their buses more frequent, more reliable, easier to understand and use, cheaper, or greener. Improvements will also include integrated ticketing and more bus lanes to speed up journeys.

The successful areas have been chosen because of their ambition to repeat the success achieved in London – which drove up bus usage and made the bus a natural choice for everyone, not just those without cars. As stated in the national bus strategy, areas not showing sufficient ambition, including for improvements to bus priority, have not been funded.

A further £150 million is being provided across England to maintain service levels as patronage continues to recover after the pandemic.

Mayoral combined authorities will also receive money for buses from the £5.7 billion City Region Sustainable Transport Settlements (CRSTS).

Improvements in the pilot area, Cornwall, will start next week, funded by £23.5 million from the government. From 10 April, most bus fares in the county will be slashed, with short hop fares down by 20 per cent, longer journeys costing up to 40 per cent less and some bus passes cut by almost 50 per cent.

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said: “Buses are the most popular way of getting around in this country – but for too long people outside of London have had a raw deal. The investment we’re making today to ramp up the bus revolution will drive down fares at a time when people’s finances are tight and help connect communities across England.”

The announcement follows a pledge of £200 million for almost 1,000 new electric or hydrogen buses, bringing the total funded in England under this government to 2,000. It also arrives on the same day as a warning from the Campaign for Better Transport that more than one in four bus services in England have been lost in the last decade, with the pandemic having a devastating effect.