What government needs to do

We call on the government to:

• Work with industry to develop a National Bus Strategy that places bus travel at the heart of local and national government planning.
• Commit to future rounds of infrastructure funding for urban transport, ensuring that bus travel is core to the schemes it funds and that project objectives are delivered.
• Incentivise Local Transport Authorities (LTAs) to collaborate in setting targets to speed up bus journey times and reduce their variability, and to use existing enforcement powers so we can better use road space.
• Avoid making sudden, radical changes to the Bus Service Operator Grant (BSOG), and ensure that any future reform is phased, recognising the devastating impact that a sudden loss of funding could have on the bus market.
• Establish a working group of key stakeholders to identify and trial alternative bus solutions for rural communities, drawing on the diverse capabilities of the commercial, voluntary and public sectors.
• Endorse bus operators as the preferred delivery partners of government for the rollout of smart ticketing based on our proven track record of successful project implementation, and ensure that bus operators have access to the same data as other providers of integrated transport solutions to enable them to build better digital solutions for customers.
• Work with industry to agree a joint roadmap to zero emissions transport under the Road to Zero Strategy. As part of this: continue support for the extra purchase cost of ultra-low and zero emissions vehicles until prices progressively align with diesel comparators; assist with the delivery of supporting fuel infrastructure; and support the UK’s manufacturing and supply chain in improving and developing important technologies on the road to zero emissions.