What’s Inside the Latest Issue 31 July 2026 | News, Views and Analysis for a Sector on the Move LEAD STORY ‘No one should be priced out’ Prime minister Andy Burnham announces the restoration of England’s £2 bus fare cap from January Prime minister Andy Burnham has announced...
Prime minister Andy Burnham announces restoration of England’s £2 bus fare cap from January Prime minister Andy Burnham during a visit to First Bus’s Bath Depot Andy Burnham has placed the affordability of public transport at the heart of his domestic agenda. Just two days after becoming prime...
Stakeholders in the bus sector welcomed the new prime minister’s decision to restore England’s £2 bus fare cap but they want a long-term funding plan The £2 bus fare cap returns on January 1, 2027 The announcement by incoming prime minister Andy Burnham that he would restore England’s...
Caroline Wilson, MD and founder at The Recruitment Story, meets Colette Casey, customer experience director at LNER Colette Casey Explain your role in 100 words or less I’m responsible for everything that shapes a customer’s journey, from contact centres and service standards to problem solving, passenger assistance,...
The best transport networks do more than move people from A to B. They connect communities and unlock opportunities SEStransit recognises that regional transport must adapt to shifting patterns of living, working and travelling BY Rachael Murphy, SEStran I grew up in London proper, not in one of...
I spoke to Transport Benevolent Fund CEO John Sheehy about changes in the industry, and why care for employees is a priority Last time round, I spoke about Great British Railways (GBR) and its evolving brand strategy and how it might create the values and culture – something,...
Bus group says there are ‘serious questions’ to answer and launches multi-million pound claim against Scottish Government and Transport Scotland Left to right Sandy Easdale, Ralph Roberts, James Easdale McGill’s Buses, the UK’s largest independent bus operator, has launched a multi-million pound legal action against the Scottish Government and Transport Scotland. The appeal...
Rail minister Lord Hendy praised the winners and finalists at the inaugural Leadership in Passenger Transport Awards, which took place this week The first ever Leadership in Passenger Transport Awards presentation ceremony was held this week Go Ahead Group staff achieved victories in eight of the 14 categories at the first ever presentation...
Ordinary people are doing superhuman things in the Ukrainian city of Lviv, and war is reorientating planning and transport policy You can see trams in Lviv that started their working life in long gone East Germany Everything looks normal in Lviv. In the daytime people are going about their daily business and...
Great British Railways risks sacrificing local identity, customer affinity and commercial instinct in pursuit of brand uniformity Ever since I set eyes on a South Western Railway Class 450 model at an exhibition in March, I’ve been ruminating about purchasing one. It was instant attraction, but I am extremely frugal when it comes...
The challenge for the next phase of bus reform isn’t only about successful local systems. It is ensuring that systems work together Franchising is not simply a transport change programme. It is an organisational transformation programme BY Anne Marie Purcell A year ago, I wrote about the scale of bus reform gathering momentum across...
Andy Gibbons and Paul Walker explain how Leicester and Portsmouth are moving to ‘EP Max’ Portsmouth is looking to develop an EP Max BY Paul Walker, Portsmouth City Council The cities of Leicester and Portsmouth have both built strong reputations, over the last five years for delivering effective Enhanced Partnerships (EPs) with their bus...
Policy leaders and industry professionals recently debated how politics can both derail, and help, to build better transport systems The panel discussion A panel at the Better Transport Conference last month tackled one of the sector’s more persistent questions: should we take the politics out of transport? The conversation that followed suggested the industry’s...
Public transport must evolve alongside Heathrow’s third runway proposals – and transport professionals can still shape the plans Last summer Heathrow Airport Limited (HAL) submitted ambitious plans for a third runway The building of a third runway at Heathrow Airport has been in and out of the news for much of the...
Andy Burnham promises ‘the biggest rebalancing of power our country has seen’, with better transport seen as key to delivering nationwide growth Andy Burnham believes other parts of the country can learn from Greater Manchester’s Bee Network As he draws closer to becoming the UK’s next prime minister, Andy Burnham has pledged a...
The first ever Welsh National Travel Survey has shown lower than planned modal shift while revealing the public’s priorities. Rhodri Clark reports Better information would encourage more people to use Welsh buses. This bus stop pole, with no timetable case, is in the centre of Hawarden, Flintshire The first ever Welsh National Travel...
Caroline Wilson, MD and founder at The Recruitment Story, meets Martin Dean, MD of Go-Ahead’s regional bus division Martin on holiday in Bosnia Explain your role in 100 words or less. I’m the Managing Director of Go‑Ahead’s regional bus division, everything outside London but within England. That means around 4,000 vehicles, 9,500...
Franchising is one of the three main types of bus operation in Germany, accounting for 40% of all bus kilometres nationwide A franchised bus in Kiel, Germany (Pic: Anshel Cohen) BY Anshel Cohen, KCW With several British authorities considering whether to franchise their bus services, Germany can provide a useful point of comparison....
Wartime Lviv keeps the wheels turning