Local authorities throughout England will be given tough new powers to determine routes, timetables, fares and other aspects of bus services, the Transport Minister Sadiq Khan has announced.

New legislation, which will come into force in January, gives local authorities greater freedom to put in place Quality Contracts Schemes (QCS). The new powers will put passengers first by allowing local authorities to decide which bus services are required locally before entering into contracts with operators to run those services.

QCS, which are the London-style model of bus franchising, could include performance targets for operators and make sanctions against contract operators who fail to meet those targets. Those sanctions might include financial penalties or, in extreme situations, termination of the contract.

Transport Minister Sadiq Khan said:

“Buses are, and will remain, the most important public transport option for most local journeys.

“Although there are many examples of high-quality bus provision throughout the country, there are still too many places where services are falling short of the standards that passengers have a right to expect.

“Today’s announcement sends out a clear message to the bus industry – it is absolutely imperative that decisions about services in the local community have passengers’ interests firmly at the core.”

Currently QCS in England are only allowed under very restrictive conditions and with the approval of the Secretary of State. Thanks to provisions in the Local Transport Act 2008, English local authorities will now have the freedom to decide whether QCS are right for their area.

DfT also announced that it has started recruiting a QCS Board panel.

QCS boards will provide an impartial opinion as to whether QCS proposals meet the statutory public interest criteria and that due process has been followed.

Source: Department for Transport

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