If you’ve not yet participated in the ‘bus reform consultation’ being run by the WMCA (West Midlands Combined Authority), time is running out for you to ‘have your say’ as the consultation closes next Sunday, 30th March.
At the time of writing this post, there have been 2026 responses so far – 1741 on the ‘short’ survey, and 285 on the ‘long’ survey.
The short survey, consisting of 9 questions, is intended for bus users and the general public, while the long survey, consisting of 43 questions is intended for statutory consultees, such as bus operators or local authorities.
Considering the population size of the West Midlands Combined Authority region, estimated at 2.9 million based on 2021 census figures, 2026 responses is pretty disappointing I think.
Compare this to the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (SYMCA), population estimated at 1.4 million. It recently completed a similar consultation exercise on adopting a franchise system for buses, which received “over 7800 responses”.
The South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (SYMCA) has confirmed that bus services across the region will move to a franchised model following one of the largest public consultations on bus reform in the UK to date.
Mayor Oliver Coppard announced the decision today (18 March) after receiving majority public backing. More than 7,800 people responded to the 12-week consultation, with 87% “either strongly supporting or partially supporting” plans to bring buses back under public control.
Under the plans, SYMCA will assume control of depots, fleets, service standards, fares and ticketing across Barnsley, Doncaster, Rotherham and Sheffield.
The first tranche of publicly controlled services is expected to enter operation from September 2027, with a full rollout by July 2029.
The franchising scheme will be delivered through large ‘anchor’ contracts built around existing major operator depots, complemented by smaller contracts aimed at SMEs. SYMCA has indicated it may lower barriers to entry for smaller operators through a more relaxed pre-qualification regime, and the possibility of joint bidding.
The financial foundation for the move to franchising has been confirmed in the consultation response, with £350 million earmarked from the next City Region Sustainable Transport Settlement (2027-32) for capital investment in fleet renewal and depot acquisition.
In addition, £5 million of transitional funding has been allocated for the 2025/26 financial year to support early implementation steps.
At the same time, SYMCA has appointed Katharine Hammond as Chief Executive, with a fixed salary of £220,000 per year.
“South Yorkshire confirms move to bus franchising” – RouteOne News, 18th March 2025
Having read through many responses to the WMCA’s consultation, while I sympathise and agree with many of the themes that become reoccurring, it is clear to me that many respondents haven’t actually read through and understand what is being proposed, and it also seems that many people don’t understand how the current ‘commercial’ model presently operates.
Many people here would like buses to:
- be affordable
- be reliable / run on time
- be safe to travel on
- operate to where people want to go
While franchising of bus services will give the local authority “control” over ticket prices, routes and timetabling, the consultation documents do at times admit that buses will still become delayed, and there is no mention about improving passenger safety, and while there is a desire to keep bus fares “cheap and affordable” there are no estimated figures provided as to what they’ll be.
I do agree that the current commercial operating model is “broken” – but I understand and appreciate that this is due to rising operational costs for bus operators, coupled with reduced passengers and revenue from tickets not increasing in line with inflation.
Our mayor baulks at the prospect of providing millions of pounds in subsidy to private companies in order to stop the commercial bus network from collapsing, yet has no qualms about spending even more money on buying depots and vehicles from these same operators, just so they can be leased back to them under a franchising agreement, at a contracted price that ensures the operator makes a profit even if the buses run around without a single revenue-earning passenger on board.
The documents admit that the ‘commercial risk’ moves from the private companies to the local authority – in this case the WMCA, which has a vague hope that by collecting all ticket revenues, that they can be reinvested into the bus network so it “pays for itself”.
If the current incumbent bus operators are struggling to keep their commercially-operated bus services financially viable, on the fare revenues they currently receive, I can’t see a future franchised bus network being any “better value” for the taxpayer, as any shortfall will have to come from somewhere, and that will likely be an increased council tax bill.
With all ticket revenues being collected by the WMCA, and private companies operating services under contract, any incentive to ‘innovate’ disappears immediately. Admittedly the current economic climate means that it is near impossible for private companies to ‘innovate’ and register public bus routes that involve commercial risk, but that was the intention of deregulation – a franchised model puts an end to that.
So it becomes a case of “be careful what you wish for” – many respondents have expressed a desire for an end to the “greedy profiteering” of National Express, being a privately owned company, despite not knowing the losses they have been making in the last couple of years.
You could end up with a situation where you have Go-Ahead, First, Arriva and Stagecoach running your bus services; they’re all making money, while your bus services end up worse or no better than what you had before.
At the end of the day, bus services cost money to run, but who you do think should pay for them?
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