Improving West Yorkshire's buses

Franchising is a statutory framework whereby the bus network is controlled, designed and the majority of services in the area are contracted by a Local Transport Authority.  

Under Franchising, bus services are brought within West Yorkshire Combined Authority’s control. That means we would set routes, timetables, fares, and standards.  

Passengers should not expect any immediate changes to their daily commutes following the announcement. Once rolled out, we aim to deliver the following through Franchising: 

• Improved service quality: Consistent customer standards to ensure reliable, frequent, and accessible services for all.
• The ability to set fares, routes, and timetables based on passenger needs, not profit.
• Integrated network: Seamless travel across West Yorkshire’s buses with standardised ticketing and fares and one point of customer contact.
• Greener, improved buses: investing in a modern, zero-emission fleet and infrastructure for a cleaner, greener, more efficient network.

The proposed franchising scheme was published in March 2024, with work underway to start procuring the first contracts in October 2025, with the first franchised buses on the road from March 2027.

In the meantime, the Combined Authority remains committed to improving buses as best it can within the current governing structure and delivering on its ambitions as set out in the Bus Service Improvement Plan by:  

• Keeping fares low with Mayor’s Fares - guaranteeing that nobody pays more than £2 for a single journey across West Yorkshire. 
• More buses, more often – bringing new connections and improved frequencies across selected areas in West Yorkshire. 
• Rolling out colour-coded 'London tube style' maps across West Yorkshire later this year, following the successful launch of the Leeds Core Bus Network in 2021. 
• Upgrading bus stations and shelters - Improving the safety, comfort, connectivity, and accessibility of key transport hubs in Leeds, Heckmondwike and Halifax.
• Improving passenger safety - funding a Safer Travel Team made up of 15 full time PCSOs across the bus network, launching our Bus Safety Feedback Tool which allows passengers to tell us when/where they have felt unsafe, and establishing ‘Safe Zones’ in every manned bus station, with specially trained staff able to support anybody who feels unsafe or at risk of harm.

We appreciate your understanding and patience as we work together to deliver a better bus experience for West Yorkshire.

We understand the desire for a quicker transition to a franchised bus system. However, transitioning from a decades-old system requires careful planning and execution to ensure it delivers on our ambitions.

Our proposed timeline aims for a smooth implementation with franchised buses hitting the road from March 2027.

In the meantime, we're not standing still. Our Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP) is actively improving buses today through initiatives like the £2 capped Mayor’s Fare, more frequent services, and investment in our bus stations and shelters. This is paving the way for a stronger foundation upon which to launch the franchised system.

In West Yorkshire, there will be an initial cost of £20m to set up franchising. While there's an initial investment, the ongoing costs are covered through a mix of fare revenue and the existing Transport Levy. We’re also utilising devolved government funds to invest directly in our buses, ensuring a modern and efficient bus system for West Yorkshire.

With West Yorkshire buses facing service cuts and declining passenger numbers, we simply have no choice but to take action for the good of our communities.

Bringing buses back under local control is a huge step towards reversing decades of decline in our bus network and offering the people of West Yorkshire a future where they are not limited to opportunities for jobs and education.

Buses play a vital role in West Yorkshire, getting people to places, connecting our communities, and shaping our economy.  

Over 1.7 million journeys are taken by bus each week, making it the most used form of public transport. Despite this, there are significant challenges with our region’s buses. 

There has been a long–term decline in bus use and a reduction in the size of our network.  

We believe we need to change the way local buses are run to achieve our ambitions for better buses and to tackle the below challenges: 

• Network – bus routes don’t always go where and when people need them to and some of the network is not financially sustainable for commercial operators without public sector funding.
• Fares and ticketing – there is a need for clear and simple fares as the current offer can be expensive and confusing. Fares are set by bus operators, and they need to deliver better value and flexibility for the bus customers. 
• Customer service and information – there is no single point of contact for customer information, making it difficult to complain and to access information. 
• The customer experience onboard and during journey planning is not consistent.
• Bus priority – there is a lack of priority for buses on our roads leading to poor punctuality and reliability and delays for those using the bus. 
• Greener and better vehicles – the onboard experience is not consistent for bus customers across West Yorkshire and investment in zero emissions buses is needed to improve air quality and reduce carbon emissions.

Our assessment demonstrated that Franchising is the best way to improve West Yorkshire’s buses and the consultation findings reaffirm this conclusion.

Our BSIP sets out our ambitious vision for better buses in West Yorkshire, as required by the Government’s National Bus Strategy. It is a document that has been developed in collaboration with bus operators and takes account of views expressed by West Yorkshire residents and local interest groups on how we can improve our bus services, and the interventions we need to implement to achieve this. 

Through the BSIP we hope to achieve our vision for: an enhanced and more cohesive bus network; clear and simple fares; improved and more inclusive customer service and support; priority for buses on our roads and more green and better vehicles.  

An Enhanced Partnership (EP) is a legally binding agreement between a local transport authority, its local authorities and bus operators to work together to improve bus services. 

In West Yorkshire therefore this is a joint agreement between the West Yorkshire Combined Authority and our five local authorities across Bradford, Calderdale, Kirklees, Leeds and Wakefield and West Yorkshire bus operators. 

The EP provides the framework through which progress towards the region’s vision for buses will be reached.  

The West Yorkshire Bus Alliance is a partnership between the Combined Authority, local authorities and bus operators including First West Yorkshire, Arriva Yorkshire and Transdev. 

The Alliance works together to keep buses moving on a day-to-day basis, as well as deliver improvements to the region’s bus system. 

The Enhanced Partnership is the mechanism and legal structure we use to commit the Alliance to delivering certain schemes and improvements to the bus network.

The Enhanced Partnership will remain until the first bus services in West Yorkshire become franchised, which could be March 2027, at the earliest.