The Liverpool region has announced plans to bring its buses back under public control. The decision comes after mayor Steve Rotheram introduced franchising that will enable the region to set its own routes and fares. Liverpool is set to become the second area in England to overturn decades of bus deregulation after Greater Manchester did the same with its Bee Network. The move, which Rotheram says marks the start of a new era for public transport in the region, will enable greater control over fares, tickets and routes, ensuring that bus services are run in the best interests of passengers.
The new plans are expected to promote more London-style integrated public transport, which includes contactless ticketing and having capped fares across the city region’s buses and trains. Bus services in the Merseyside region are widely seen as unreliable and expensive. About 15% of the services in the area have been deemed commercially unviable by operators and rely on subsidy from the local authority to run, costing approximately £14m each year.
The change to franchising is expected to be transformational, with the region having control over fares, tickets and routes to ensure that bus services are run more effectively. Rotheram, who is passionate about the change, has stated that his residents have had to endure a sub-standard service that prioritizes profit before passengers, noting that the region has been held back for too long.
The most comprehensive bus service outside of London was privatised and deregulated by the Conservative government back in 1986. However, legislation passed in 2017 gave mayors the power to introduce franchising, although the process has not been easy. Greater Manchester, which brought the first part of its bus network under public control on 24 September, is planning to have all of its bus routes franchised by the beginning of 2025, with fares and timetables integrated into the Metrolink tram services. Meanwhile, the mayor of West Yorkshire, Tracy Brabin, is due to decide in early 2024 whether to franchise buses in her region
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