EEH statement in response to the Buses Bill being laid in Parliament today:
Cllr Liz Leffman, Chair of England’s Economic Heartland, said: “We welcome the importance the new government is placing on improving bus journeys and potentially giving more powers to local authorities. This includes opening up opportunities to franchise, and we’ve already seen exciting proposals put forward for consultation by our partners at Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority.
“In our role supporting members in our region to realise their ambitions for public transport, EEH will work with our local and combined authority partners to ensure cross-boundary opportunities for bus are fully realised.
"In the context of local government funding pressures and a region with relatively small cities, market towns and large rural populations, our local authorities will need to fully understand the implications of franchising, the costs involved and whether there will be access to additional funding to cover these.
"Flexibility of approach will be crucial. Government must learn the lessons of the past, including the uneven BSIP funding, and avoid creating a two-tier system between authorities which franchise and those which opt not to.”