- Government funding helps Liverpool City Region bring its bus services under public control
- millions of passengers in Liverpool City Region to benefit from better, more reliable services and affordable fares, boosting the local economy
- latest step forward in Prime Minister’s mission to shift power out of Westminster and back local leaders through No.10 North
Millions of passengers across the Liverpool City Region are set to benefit from better, more reliable bus services as the city becomes the first to bring its network under public control under this government.
In a huge boost for local growth, the government will provide £86.3 million of funding until 2029 to deliver better services for passengers, as well as a share of a new one-off £3 million pot to help mayors take control of their services.
This funding will give the combined authority the power to plan bus networks to run services where they are needed most. Like in London and Greater Manchester where bus services are franchised, this also means local leaders in Liverpool will have more say over routes, branding and fares, which could mean cheaper journeys across the city.
It will also mean people in Liverpool will enjoy more frequent journeys, better route connections and a state-of-the-art, brand new Metro Fleet.
Today’s agreement is the latest example of the work being driven through No.10 North to put power back into the hands of communities, following the recent partnership with leaders in the West Midlands to take control of local bus services.
Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, said:
After 4 decades of deregulation, Mayor Steve Rotheram is getting back control of the Liverpool City Region’s buses, and we are backing him with the funding and powers needed to make it happen.
This is what putting power in the hands of communities looks like and why I have established No.10 North. We are giving local leaders the levers they need to take back control of local services, shape their own future and bring back hope.
Today, Local Transport Minister Simon Lightwood and Mayor of the Liverpool City Region Steve Rotheram attended the launch of new, locally controlled services, which will bring better access to jobs, education and healthcare.
Buses are being franchised in St Helens at first, before being rolled out to the Wirral later this year and the rest of the city region in 2027.
Local Transport Minister, Simon Lightwood, said:
We’re giving those who best know Liverpool’s buses even more power to deliver better, more affordable and reliable services.
This is a huge testament to Mayor Steve Rotheram’s determination to put buses back at the heart of the community – and to our No.10 North mission to put power back where it belongs: in local hands.
From the national £2 bus fare cap to free bus travel for disabled people, we’re backing better buses and reversing decades of decline.
Steve Rotheram, Mayor of the Liverpool City Region, said:
For nearly 40 years, bus deregulation has failed communities like ours. Routes have been chopped and changed, fares have risen and local leaders have been left without the power to shape a service that millions of people rely on every year.
From this weekend, that change will be impossible to miss. Almost overnight, people will start seeing our new yellow British-built buses appearing on the roads – a very visible sign that our buses are coming back under public control and that a new era for public transport in our region has begun.
For me, public transport is a public service. It should be run in the interests of the people who use it, connecting communities with jobs, education and opportunity – not simply dictated by what makes the most commercial sense.
That’s why we’re taking back control. It means we can decide where buses go, how often they run and what passengers pay and reinvest in a network that is more reliable, more affordable and better joined-up.
Bus travel is the most popular form of transport in England, with over 93 million bus passenger journeys taken in the Liverpool City Region last year.
Liverpool City Region is one of 6 mayoral authorities this government is supporting to set up bus franchising, allowing local leaders to take control to deliver better services fit for their communities.
It builds on the £2 bus fare cap coming into effect from January, saving millions of people a third on bus travel, giving people breathing room with the cost of living. Concessionary bus passes are also being extended to give free bus travel to disabled people all day, every day from April, unlocking opportunities and access to jobs, education and more.
