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West Yorkshire to bring bus services under public control (www.theguardian.com)

submitted 8 months ago by Jho to c/yorkshire

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My TL;DR:

Bus services in West Yorkshire will be brought under public control, as it becomes the third major region of the north to reverse four decades of deregulation.

West Yorkshire follows Greater Manchester and Liverpool in deciding to return to a franchised system, where private operators must win contracts to run routes and timetables decided by the local authority, which also sets fares and takes revenues.

Under devolution, metro mayors have had the right to take buses under local control since the 2017 Bus Services Act, although the legal and political processes required remain arduous.

The region’s mayor, Tracy Brabin, who was elected in 2021 on a pledge to bring buses under public control, is also hoping to bring a wider mass transit system to Leeds and Bradford, two of the worst served cities for public transport in Europe, which will also include a tram.

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[–] autotldr@lemmings.world 1 points 8 months ago

This is the best summary I could come up with:

The region’s mayor, Tracy Brabin, said the decision was a “historic moment” that “will impact on generations to come”, adding: “Buses are vital for our communities, and franchising will help us build that better connected network that works for all.”

Campaigners and metro mayors have described the deregulation of buses outside London, enforced by the Thatcher government in the 1980s, as leading to a “wild west” of private operators cherrypicking profitable routes, leaving councils to subsidise essential public services.

Under devolution, metro mayors have had the right to take buses under local control since the 2017 Bus Services Act, although the legal and political processes required remain arduous.

While Greater Manchester’s mayor, Andy Burnham, immediately said he would franchise the city’s bus network, it took until March 2021 for him to be able to officially announce the move in the face of legal challenges from firms.

Matthew Topham, of We Own It and the Better Buses campaign, said: “Like the sewage in our rivers and our spiralling energy bills, introducing profit-hungry shareholders to our bus network has led to daily suffering for people in West Yorkshire.

It was a similar story for Sina Kidane and her friends Nicole King and Michelle Ogunsina, who live in east Leeds and go to college in the north of the city centre.

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