Bus Services: Franchises

(asked on 21st June 2018) - View Source

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 15 June 2018 to Question 151195 on Bus Services: Franchises, how many interested (a) local authorities and (b) Mayoral Combined Authorities his Department is assisting to determine which of the powers provided in the Bus Services Act 2017 are best able to support bus networks in those areas.


Answered by
Nusrat Ghani Portrait
Nusrat Ghani
Minister of State (Minister for Europe)
This question was answered on 29th June 2018

The Bus Services Act 2017 gave Mayoral Combined Authorities the powers to franchise buses and all local authorities the powers to introduce Enhanced Partnerships or Advance Quality Partnerships, without further intervention from the Department for Transport. Officials from the Department meet regularly with a range of local authorities to provide advice and support on issues related to buses, but we cannot provide an exhaustive list of local authorities which are considering using these powers.

The Bus Services Act 2017 also enabled the Department for Transport to grant franchising powers to local authorities who seek these powers. To date, no local authorities have sought these powers.

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