| Three year settlement for Local Transport Authorities for buses Posted by grahame at 07:38, 6th December 2025 |     |
From The BBC
Hundreds of millions of pounds of government funding is to be spent on supporting bus services in the South and West of England.
The Department for Transport (DfT) said the money, to be rolled out between 2026 and 2029, would help local travel become more reliable.
Councils across the two regions will get a combined £139m in funding to help improve both the bus services themselves, as well as network infrastructure.
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said a total of £3bn of funding being spent across the UK would "give local authorities the long-term funding they need to deliver lower fares, more frequent services, and the reliable transport that communities depend on".
The three-year funding commitment is designed to give councils the certainty to create longer-term plans around bus travel, rather than running on a year-by-year basis.
The Department for Transport (DfT) said the money, to be rolled out between 2026 and 2029, would help local travel become more reliable.
Councils across the two regions will get a combined £139m in funding to help improve both the bus services themselves, as well as network infrastructure.
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said a total of £3bn of funding being spent across the UK would "give local authorities the long-term funding they need to deliver lower fares, more frequent services, and the reliable transport that communities depend on".
The three-year funding commitment is designed to give councils the certainty to create longer-term plans around bus travel, rather than running on a year-by-year basis.
Original data at
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/local-authority-bus-grant-allocations/labg-revenue-allocations-2026-to-2029
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/local-authority-bus-grant-allocations/labg-capital-allocations-2026-to-2030
Comment from Route One
Local transport authorities (LTAs) in England will collectively receive almost £700 million in capital and revenue funding for bus services each year to FY2028/29 under a continuation of the multi-year Local Authority Bus Grant mechanism.
That continues the approach adopted in FY2025/26 and brings Bus Service Improvement Plan and local authority BSOG money into a single grant. The allocations can be spent by LTAs “however they want,” DfT says. That may include on lower fares, introducing new routes and zero-emission buses, or improving passenger infrastructure.
DfT notes how authorities have long been held back from making long-term investments in buses, “but multi-year settlements will finally give the much-needed certainty to develop and drive forward plans that cater to the needs of their communities.”
Announcement of the further allocations follows the Bus Services Act passing into law in October. That legislation gives LTAs “the power to run local services how they see fit and provides greater protection to socially necessary routes,” DfT notes.
Secretary of State for Transport Heidi Alexander says that the money forms part of wider government plans to make public transport cheaper across England and sits alongside a freeze to regulated rail fares.
From FY2026/27 to FY2028/29, revenue funding allocated to LTAs is £1.44 billion, which sits alongside £820 million of capital money. FY2025/26 has already seen £467 million and £245 million for those streams, respectively, to give a total bus allocation from FY2025/26 to FY2028/29 of almost £3 billion. Individual location authority allocations can be found here.
Consolidation of all LTA bus funding in England into one pot will give greater control to local leaders to decide how buses are run, continuing what the government says is a commitment to ensuring that happens “for people, not profit.”
The Local Authority Bus Grant money is in addition to that provided via either the City Region Sustainable Transport Settlement (CRSTS) and its successor the Transport for City Regions (TCR) fund, or the Local Transport Grant.
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That continues the approach adopted in FY2025/26 and brings Bus Service Improvement Plan and local authority BSOG money into a single grant. The allocations can be spent by LTAs “however they want,” DfT says. That may include on lower fares, introducing new routes and zero-emission buses, or improving passenger infrastructure.
DfT notes how authorities have long been held back from making long-term investments in buses, “but multi-year settlements will finally give the much-needed certainty to develop and drive forward plans that cater to the needs of their communities.”
Announcement of the further allocations follows the Bus Services Act passing into law in October. That legislation gives LTAs “the power to run local services how they see fit and provides greater protection to socially necessary routes,” DfT notes.
Secretary of State for Transport Heidi Alexander says that the money forms part of wider government plans to make public transport cheaper across England and sits alongside a freeze to regulated rail fares.
From FY2026/27 to FY2028/29, revenue funding allocated to LTAs is £1.44 billion, which sits alongside £820 million of capital money. FY2025/26 has already seen £467 million and £245 million for those streams, respectively, to give a total bus allocation from FY2025/26 to FY2028/29 of almost £3 billion. Individual location authority allocations can be found here.
Consolidation of all LTA bus funding in England into one pot will give greater control to local leaders to decide how buses are run, continuing what the government says is a commitment to ensuring that happens “for people, not profit.”
The Local Authority Bus Grant money is in addition to that provided via either the City Region Sustainable Transport Settlement (CRSTS) and its successor the Transport for City Regions (TCR) fund, or the Local Transport Grant.
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