Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to evidence given by the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Roads, Buses and Places to the Transport Committee at Question 423 on 29 June 2022, what progress has been made in implementing multi-operator ticketing for buses in England outside London; and what stage his Department’s planned procurement process to develop a technical solution for multi-operator ticketing and automatic revenue apportionment has reached.

My Department is working with representatives from the bus industry, through the Project Coral consortium, as well as Transport for the West Midlands and Midlands Connect, to develop a technical solution for multi-operator ticketing and automatic revenue apportionment for buses in England outside of London. Procurement is planned later this year.

We are also encouraging local authorities in England, through Enhanced Partnerships, to pursue low-cost, interim measures whilst the national system is being developed. For example, through paper-based, multi-operator tickets and mutual acceptance of return tickets, where different operators serve the same corridor.