Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will estimate the number of passengers in South Suffolk constituency for whom the £2 bus fare cap has been applied.

The £2 fare cap was launched by the Department for Transport (DfT) on 1 January 2023.

The DfT published an interim report in September 2023 setting out emerging trends in key outcomes from the first two months of the scheme. The report is available on GOV.UK at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/evaluation-of-the-2-bus-fare-cap/2-bus-fare-cap-evaluation-interim-report-february-2023.

Patronage in Suffolk appears to be continuing to recover following the COVID-19 pandemic. DfT does not collect patronage data lower than local transport authority level and is unable to make an assessment of bus usage for South Suffolk.