All change for local public transport

As the old saying goes, you wait ages for a bus and then two come along at once.

Although in this case, it’s two landmark moments for public transport policy – buses and trains - which have arrived at roughly the same time.

Starting with buses, the Bus Services Act 2025 has now received Royal Assent, affording the same powers already available to London for generations, and more recently to England’s mayoral combined authorities, to other Local Transport Authorities (LTAs) across the country.

It means that local control of bus services is now a possibility for people across England, enabling services to be run to best suit the needs of local residents rather than the shareholders of a private company.

It’s been a success so far in Greater Manchester, where the Bee Network is attracting more passengers (up 14% year-on-year), improved punctuality (above 80%), and high customer satisfaction (85%), and is also being rolled out in other regions, including through Liverpool City Region Combined Authority.

Consultation is a legal requirement for LTAs considering taking local control of their buses through franchising arrangements with bus operators, and that’s something SEC Newgate’s local advocacy team is ready to support.

Hot on the wheels of bus reform is the Rail Bill, which received its first introductory reading in parliament last week and is set to radically change the way that train services are owned and operated.

To date, there’s been a quiet revolution on the rails, with the government gradually taking control of an increasing number of rail services.

This will now accelerate through the establishment of Great British Railways (GBR), a single organisation managing tracks, most stations, bridges and tunnels, and all of the trains. Alongside this, GBR will make decisions about which other operators can run services on its infrastructure, as well as selling tickets for its services.

As with buses, a key suggested benefit of this new model of railway operation will be that GBR will be more responsive to the objectives of democratic leaders and the communities it serves.

GBR will be structured to focus on delivering for its customers locally. Its structure will be based on geographic business units, each bringing together infrastructure management and passenger operations into a single local team, providing a locally focused ‘face of the railway’.

This is about much more than trains. Enabling regions to have more control over local transport services increases their ability to specify infrastructure and routes that serve growth locations – places where new homes and enterprise opportunities can be built.

Again, SEC Newgate’s network of regional offices, with London headquarters, means that we’re ready to represent the interests of anyone seeking communications and engagement support for rail infrastructure and services.

There’s a link here to more information about our transport communications and public engagement services and experience if you’d like to know more: Transport