Operators in West Yorkshire continue to fight against bus franchising as the deadline on a consultation on the future of the region’s buses nears.

A public consultation on how the area’s buses are run was launched by West Yorkshire Combined Authority (WYCA) in October and is set to close on Sunday 7 January. The region’s Mayor, Tracy Brabin, has stated franchising as her preference for bus reform.

Operators in the area, including First, Arriva and Transdev Blazefield, are fighting their cause under the banner of The Best for West Yorkshire campaign. Instead of franchising, the operators have suggested an Enhanced Partnership Plus model of bus reform, which they say can start delivering benefits of public control, simpler fares and a greener network of buses from 2024.

The operators quote a poll of 1,000 people from across the region, which suggests 60% want bus reform ‘from 2024 with an Enhanced Partnership Plus model between bus operators and the Combined Authority’.

Research also found that more than half of respondents who had an opinion on bus reform felt that operators, with greater oversight from a public body, were best placed to run services (53%) as opposed to the Mayor and her team at the Combined Authority (38%).

The poll showed 60% want to see improved services from 2024 as opposed to 2026 (30%), which would be the earliest under franchising.

“We agree with the Mayor that bus reform is needed, but strongly believe there is a better alternative to franchising by choosing Enhanced Partnership Plus” – Andrew Cullen, Managing Director of First Bus in North & West Yorkshire

Andrew Cullen, Managing Director of First Bus in North & West Yorkshire, said on behalf of bus operators in the region: “These results deliver an overwhelming message that the public agrees with operators: Enhanced Partnership Plus, whereby we all work more closely with the Combined Authority, is what people want for West Yorkshire.

“We agree with the Mayor that bus reform is needed, but strongly believe there is a better alternative to franchising by choosing Enhanced Partnership Plus, an option which is truly unique to the needs of West Yorkshire.

“This bespoke solution delivers bus reform more quickly, at less cost and with significantly less risk to the public purse, at a time when local authority budgets are increasingly under pressure.”

The majority of people surveyed were not aware of the Combined Authority’s predicted set-up costs associated with franchising, which have been highlighted at upwards of £100m. When asked what spending priorities for this money would be, 28% of respondents said the money should be spent on road repairs, 23% said it should be spent on social care, 13% said it should be spent on bus reform and 12% said it should be spent on schools.

Opposition

The operators are up against competition from a campaign group: Better Buses. Having sent its petition for a regulated bus network into the WYCA, the campaigners publicised their cause with tour of West Yorkshire transport interchanges today (5 January 2023).

The tour started at Bradford Interchange, which saw delay as the site had to be temporarily closed due to weather damage.

The campaigners claim regulating the region’s buses will mean surplus profit from busy routes can be used to subsidise less busy but essential services. According to the group’s website, operators ‘cherry pick’ the most profitable routes and ‘make a killing’. The campaign also claims regulating the buses will make services easy and affordable to use, as well as more reliable and frequent.

• The Mayor is due to make a decision on which option to take in March 2024.