Bus Funding and Minimum Service Levels Called for Over Five Years to Reverse Decrease in UK Transport Committee
The Transport Committee has published a comprehensive report titled 'Buses connecting communities' on 13 August 2025, outlining a series of recommendations to transform England's bus services. The report highlights several key issues, including the need for a dedicated policy and regulatory framework for demand-responsive transport within 18 months, and the extension of the national fare cap to the end of 2025.
One of the most striking findings in the report is that 56% of small towns can be classified as a "transport desert," indicating a significant lack of accessible and reliable public transport options. The report attributes this, among other issues, to years of route and frequency reductions, which have led to lower ridership outside London.
To address these challenges, the report proposes several solutions. These include a pilot of free travel for under-22s, a national minimum bus service for England, and reforming the Bus Service Operators Grant to better incentivize passenger growth. The report also suggests a rural weighting in Bus Service Improvement Plan allocations to account for longer distances and lower densities.
The report further recommends ringfenced support for socially necessary routes, five-year funding settlements for bus services in England, and five-year funding settlements for both capital and revenue in bus services. The government's Spending Review commitment is around £900m a year for buses over the next three years.
The report also advocates for the expansion of the Bus Centre of Excellence with dedicated support for rural and capacity-constrained authorities. However, it notes that a transition to full franchising could cost an authority between £13m and £22m depending on size.
The report calls for clearer guidance and tools for demand-responsive transport (DRT), with ITS UK chief executive Max Sugarman emphasizing the need for such guidance. The report also references Ireland's Connecting Ireland programme as an international comparator, noting route expansion and increased rural patronage since 2019.
The report further notes that millions of people experience transport-related social exclusion, with towns and smaller cities among the hardest hit. Witnesses called for earlier access to operational data to strengthen local business cases. The RMT supports long-term funding, protection of socially necessary routes, and the repeal of the municipal bus company ban.
The Local Government Association supports the extension of the national fare cap to the end of 2025. Ministers are urged to set a coherent fares strategy. The report also mentions upcoming multi-year city-region settlements.
Despite the comprehensive nature of the report, it does not explicitly identify the British government agency that proposed facilitating the introduction of urban bus companies. Nonetheless, the report's recommendations, if implemented, could significantly improve public transport in England, particularly in small towns and rural areas.
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