UK Transport Secretary sets the wheels in motion on “biggest overhaul to buses in a generation”

The new Buses Bill will put power over England’s bus services back in the hands of local leaders

  • Transport Secretary announces the first stop on journey to Better Buses, with new powers to take control of bus services to be expanded to every community
  • draft guidance published to support local leaders to deliver improved bus networks, faster and cheaper
  • government bus reforms to end today’s postcode lottery, grow passenger numbers and deliver better services for all

A package of measures to empower local leaders to take control of their bus services has been unveiled today (9 September 2024) by Transport Secretary Louise Haigh – the first stop on the journey to better buses. 

Legislation is being laid before Parliament today which gives all local transport authorities across England new powers to run their own bus services – powers previously limited to mayoral combined authorities. The move means that local leaders across England can deliver services in a way that suits the needs of their communities.

The government has also launched a consultation on new draft guidance to provide advice and support for local leaders looking to bring services into public control. This new, simplified guidance will help break down barriers to local control of bus services, speeding up the process and bringing down costs.

The guidance will also put the needs of passengers and bus drivers first – by encouraging local transport authorities to consider driver welfare and passenger safety, including anti-social behaviour and violence against women and girls.

The new Buses Bill, which will follow this first statutory instrument, will bring an end to the current postcode lottery by taking steps to improve bus services no matter where you live.

Buses remain the most used form of public transport across the country, but – after almost 4 decades of failed deregulation – vital services have been slashed and there is little accountability to passengers.

Since 2010, almost 300 million fewer miles have been driven by buses per year. The transformative work the government is doing will turn the tide by giving communities the opportunity to control local bus services and have a real say in building local transport networks that work for them.

Modernising our transport infrastructure and delivering better buses is at the heart of our plan to kickstart economic growth in every part of the country and get the country moving. Our plans will deliver a better service for passengers and give local authorities a choice over the bus system that works best for them without extra burdens on the taxpayer.  

Transport Secretary, Louise Haigh, said: “Buses are the lifeblood of our communities, but for too many people it has become impossible to rely on local services, as routes have been slashed and timetables hollowed out.  

“Today is the first stop on our journey to delivering better buses across the country. After decades of failed deregulation, local leaders will finally have the powers to provide services that deliver for passengers.

“And we are taking steps to support local leaders to deliver improved bus services faster and cheaper than ever before.

“With local communities firmly back in the driving seat, our bus revolution will save vital routes up and down the country and put passengers first.

Jason Prince, Director of the Urban Transport Group, said: “We welcome the pace at which government is moving on its ambitious transport agenda.

“Buses are the cornerstone of our public transport system, so it’s greatly encouraging to see this new package of measures, which will deliver better bus services for more local areas.

“We look forward to working with government to create a smoother journey for all bus passengers.

Councillor Adam Hug, transport spokesperson for the Local Government Association, said: “Buses remain critical to local government’s efforts to ensure that everyone can benefit from inclusive economic growth and job opportunities, and to prevent social isolation by making local services more accessible; they also continue to play a vital role in reducing carbon and other harmful emissions.

“These proposed measures recognise the fundamental role of local leadership in shaping future bus provision, which the LGA has long been calling for.

Nik Johnson, Mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, said: “This is a government that understands what the communities and economies of places like Cambridgeshire and Peterborough need.

“Good quality public transport is a vital part of people’s lives and none more so than local bus services, so it’s a huge boost to see much-needed change coming to life.

“As a combined authority we’re doing everything we can to reform the way buses are managed across the region and having government on our side makes a massive difference.”

It comes as the Transport Secretary took a bus ride to Anglia Ruskin University Campus in Peterborough, where she met with the Mayor and local MP to discuss plans for local control of bus services.

These new powers mean local transport authorities will now be able to emulate the huge success of publicly controlled buses in Greater Manchester and London. Greater Manchester’s successful Bee Network has already seen passenger numbers grow by 5% since public control began to be rolled out just a year ago.

The Buses Bill will also reverse the ban on setting up new publicly owned bus companies, provide greater flexibility over bus funding and will take steps to improve bus services for communities who choose not to pursue public control.

Plans for new supported bus services in west Edinburgh

Proposals for five new supported bus services in the west of Edinburgh are set to be discussed at the Transport and Environment Committee tomorrow (Thursday 23 May).

Under the plans the routes would be The Gyle to Hermiston Park & Ride via Ratho; Queensferry to The Gyle; Cramond to Balerno; Wester Hailes to Chesser and The Gyle to Clermiston. 

There are currently three existing bus services operating in the west of the city that are fully financially supported by the City of Edinburgh Council – services 20, 63 and 68 – operated by McGill’s Bus Services but these are to be withdrawn on 14 July this year. 

Four of the new routes would be run by Lothian with the The Gyle to Clermiston route being operated by Handicabs Lothian. 

Before the revised contracts went out for tender the Council consulted with local communities and operators to help develop route specifications and help balance community requirements within the available budget. 

The new services will improve bus provision in the west of the city with some of the routes amended and a new connection to Cramond being provided by utilising a developer contribution from new housing in the area. 

Cllr Scott Arthur, Transport Convener for the City of Edinburgh Council, said: “This is fantastic news for residents in the west of the city as it’s really important to make sure the areas they live in are connected with the rest of Edinburgh. There are some parts of the city that are just not well-connected which is why these supported bus services are so important.

“I’m pleased that the community and bus operators also fed into the proposed routes allowing us to amend some services, which should improve reliability and connections to the wider public transport network.

“I’m delighted to be proposing that these services will be operated by Lothian Buses and Handicabs. Once these contracts are awarded better connecting Lady Nairne and Dumbiedykes will become our top priority.”

If the proposals are approved next week then the Council will immediately move to award contracts so the new services can be registered with the Traffic Commissioner and be ready to operate as soon as McGill’s services stop. The proposed contract lengths are for two years, with two one year optional extensions.

The Council will also work with the successful operators to update all available passenger information on each route and keep community groups updated on the changes to services in their area.  

Tendering for the new service provision for the Lady Nairne and Dumbiedykes areas will now start to be progressed.

Lothian announces timetable changes due to staff shortages

On Sunday 24 July, we will introduce a short notice timetable change to some of our services on the Lothian network.

With recruitment issues across our industry still causing major resourcing issues for our business, we have taken the decision to introduce these measures to ensure that we can operate our services as advertised for our customers.

This change will see some minor timetable changes and alterations to frequencies on some of our services. There will be bus stop changes to Lothian Country.

There will be no changes to EastCoastbusesAirport or Nightbus services.

Details of the service change and links to timetables can be found below.

If you need any assistance, please reach out on our social media channels – TwitterFacebook and Instagram – or phone bus information on 0131 555 6363. 

Lothian Buses

Lothiancountry

Lothian: Changes to service levels from 6th – 22nd January

Saturday service to operate on Lothian and Lothian Country

Throughout the festive period, like many other organisations, we have continued to feel the impact of the Omicron strain of Covid-19 with self-isolation and rising sickness levels amongst our colleagues placing considerable pressure on our ability to deliver our services to the levels our customers would expect.

To ensure the stability and reliability of our network, we have taken the decision to operate a Saturday service with enhanced school journeys across all Lothian and Lothian Country services from 6 January until 22 January.

During this time, we will the situation under review and where appropriate we will update customers as soon as possible.

East Coast Buses will return to a normal timetable from 5 January.

We will, however, operate the school services which would ordinarily run on weekdays on Services 11, 42, 44, 45 and 400. 

Timetables for Services 42 and 45 can be found here.

We sincerely apologise for any inconvenience this may cause and would like to thank all of our customers for their patience and understanding as we endeavour to cope with circumstances outwith our control.

Once again, we are incredibly grateful to the teams across our business who have continued to work around the clock to deliver for our customers during these uncertain times maintaining vital links across Edinburgh and the Lothians – their patience and understanding is greatly appreciated.

If you are planning a journey on our services, we ask that you continue to help us to keep our colleagues and fellow customers safe by following the latest Scottish Government guidance which can be found on our Safe Travel page

This includes the wearing of a face covering over your nose and mouth for the duration of your journey unless exempt, and leaving windows open to increase ventilation.

Please allow more time for your travel.

If you need further assistance, please connect with us on:

TwitterFacebook and Instagram 

or contact bus information by phoning 0871 200 22 33.

Lothian announces changes to festive bus services

In light of the Scottish Government announcement regarding large scale events and the cancellation of Edinburgh’s Hogmanay, Lothian, Lothian Country and East Coast Buses will be making some changes to our planned routes and timetables for the 30, 31 December and 1 January.

On Thursday 30 December, we will be operating a Saturday service. All diversions for the Torchlight procession have now been cancelled and bus services will operate normal routes.

On Friday 31 December, we will operate a Saturday service, finishing earlier than normal with last journeys through the city centre at approximately 2130.

On the morning of 1 January 2022, we will no longer be operating our special Hogmanay Night Service. We understand that some customers may be disappointed, however with the cancellation of the Edinburgh’s Hogmanay Street party and the latest advice from the Scottish Government, we do not anticipate sufficient demand for these night services.

As we highlighted this week, we are also continuing to be impacted by the pandemic in regards to team resource which is placing considerable pressure on our operations and therefore it is vital we continue to focus on providing critical links across Edinburgh and the Lothians.

Customers are reminded to allow extra time for their journeys and to plan before they travel through our website or our app. Updated data can be found from the 29 December on the Traveline Scotland website.

Our updated Christmas and New Year timetable is available here. You can also read more about our festive timetables here.

Thanks to all of our customers for their patience and understanding, and a massive thank you to all of our colleagues who continue to react and adapt to this ever-changing fluid situation.

Wishing you all a great Christmas and New Year.

National Express increases services to meet holiday demand

National Express will be running extra coach services on its UK-wide network in the run up to Christmas to ensure people can get home safely during the festive season (18 December 2020 – 4 January 2021).

The UK’s largest coach operator will be increasing the frequency of over 35 routes, introducing 13 new direct services and adding more locations to its timetable – starting from 18 December and running every day, including Christmas Day and Boxing Day. 

Supported by the Department for Transport, they will initially be doubling the mileage of the network, making nearly 250,000 seats available over the festive period*; and will further increase the number in response to demand – all with covid-secure measures in place.

Tickets are on sale now with more availability being released as soon as possible. Customers are being advised to plan their journey and book in advance as demand has been strong.

Chris Hardy, managing director of National Express Coach: “Trains won’t be running on Christmas Day and there are limited services on others, plus the planned engineering works on the railways.

“We’re happy to step up to help the UK public get home safely this Christmas, when it’s more important than ever. 

“This is also good news for the network of local coach companies who operate services on our behalf, at the end of what has been a challenging year.”

Increased frequency routes:
Bristol<>LondonSouth Coast<>HeathrowManchester <>London
Birmingham<>ManchesterEast Mids<>HeathrowSheffield <>London
Cardiff<>LondonBath<>LondonHalifax <>London
Birmingham<>LondonAberystwyth<>LondonLeeds <>London
London<>DoverNorth-West<>LondonThanet<>London
Brighton<>LondonLeicester<>LondonBirmingham<>Heathrow
Southampton<>LondonGloucester<>LondonBirmingham<>Bradford
Bournemouth<>LondonNottingham<>LondonSouth Wales<>Heathrow
Bristol<>BirminghamYorkshire<>LondonLiverpool<>London
Coventry<>LondonNorwich <>LondonBirmingham<>Nottingham
Nottingham<>BradfordPlymouth <>LondonSwansea <>London
Birmingham<>LeicesterPortsmouth<>LondonNorth Devon<>London
Haverford West<>London  
New direct services:
Tyneside<>LondonTeeside<>LondonHull<>London
Edinburgh<>LondonGlasgow<>LondonLondon<>York (via Leeds)
South Wales<>BirminghamCambridge<>LondonBirmingham<>Hull
Cornwall<>LondonLeeds<>ManchesterLeed<>Manchester<>Liverpool
East Mids<>West Yorkshire  
New locations on festive timetable:
HullPeterboroughCambridge
ChesterSunderlandNewquay
PenzanceFalmouthLincoln
SwindonWeston-super-MareTruro

All National Express coaches have significant covid-secure measures in place including enhanced cleaning, reduced capacity, wearing of face coverings, temperature screening and additional air conditioning filters.

Anyone who has tested positive for Covid-19 so is unable to travel, can request a full refund or amend their ticket. Passengers who no longer wish to or are unable to travel as planned will also be eligible for a free ticket amendment*.

Changes to Lothian bus services from Sunday

Lothian Buses will introduce an update to its critical services network from Sunday 21 June to help keep key workers across Edinburgh and the Lothians moving during this time.

Tram construction works in Leith will also start on 20th June, meaning that our services will be unable to serve Leith Walk northbound. Services 7, 14, 16, 22, 25, 49 will be diverted via London Road and Easter Road, heading north only and Service 11 will be diverted via Annandale Street, Bellevue Road, Mcdonald Road and Broughton Road on journeys to Ocean Terminal.

Since the introduction of the Critical Services Network on Sunday 29 March, teams across Lothian have continued to analyse customer travel patterns and customer feedback to ensure the business is meeting the needs of as many key workers and essential travellers as possible.

Customers can view updated timetables and plan journeys on Lothian’s website or through the Lothian app which offers journey planning tools and real-time service updates, all integrated with Google Maps.

It can be downloaded from tfeapp.com.

Network changes include:

Services with minor timetable changes: 1, 34, 106, 124, X27

Services with revised timetables: 3, 4, 5, 8, 11, 14, 16, 19, 21, 22, 24, 25, 26, 27, 29, 30, 31, 33, 35, 37, 38, 47, 48, 49, Airlink 100, 113, 43, X18

Services with revised route and timetables: 2, 7, 41, 49, 140, X28, 400

Service 2

Route extended to operate between Hermiston Gait and The Jewel.

Service 7

Route extended to Western Harbour on Monday to Saturday daytime, evening and Sunday journeys will continue to terminate at Newhaven.

Journeys towards Western Harbour will divert via Easter Road due to Tram construction works.

Service 41

Revised timetable with the route extended to operate between Cramond and Kings’ Buildings.

Service 49

Route extended to Fort Kinnaird.  On journeys to and from The Fort, buses will no longer access the car park at Asda The Jewel and will continue along Milton Link instead.

Journeys towards Fort Kinnaird will divert via Easter Road due to Tram construction works.

EastCoastbuses 140

Route extended to operate between Musselburgh and Penicuik Town Centre on Monday to Saturdays.

Lothiancountry X28

Monday-Saturday daytime frequency increased to every 30 minutes between Bathgate and Livingston.  Short-working buses will terminate at Livingston Morrisons.

East Calder, Mid Calder and Edinburgh will continue to be served hourly.

Skylink 400

Route extended to operate from Fort Kinnaird to Gyle Centre.

The following services are not altered: 20, 44, 63, 139

The following services do not operate: 6, 10, 12, 23, 36, 42, 45, 61, 67, 200, 300, X12, X15, X25, X26, X29, X31, X33, X37, X44, X47, N3, N7, N11, N16, N22, N25, N26, N30, N31, N34, N37, N44, 104, 125, 126, 127, X5, X7, N106, N113, N124, X17, X38, X43, EX2, 275, 280, 287, N28, N43

Timetables can be downloaded below:

Lothian Buses Network – 21 June 2020

East Coast Buses Network – 21 June 2020

Lothian Country Network – 21 June 2020

Lothian to cut back bus services

Lothian has announced its intention to introduce a reduction in services across Edinburgh and the Lothians, subject to approval from the Traffic Commissioner, due to the ongoing Covid-19 situation. 

These service reductions would take effect from Monday 23rd March.  Lothian will continue to operate vital links and will keep customers up to date with the latest information as it becomes available, with a detailed update on service levels for next week issued later today. 

Nigel Serafini, Commercial Director at Lothian, said: “These are extraordinary circumstances we are operating in and teams from across our business are working tirelessly to put plans in place as to how best to deal with this fast-changing situation.

“While the priority of maintaining services is of paramount importance, as the situation develops, we now need to factor in the impact on staffing levels being experienced.

“By introducing a reduced service from Monday, we are aiming to ensure we can continue to provide vital links across the city for those who rely on our services. We would encourage customers to plan their journeys in advance using our mobile app or website and follow our social media channels for updates.”

“The Lothian app offers journey planning tools and real-time service updates, all integrated with Google Maps. Following a recent upgrade, it is also now available in 11 languages.”

It can be downloaded from tfeapp.com.