22nd Jul 2026 06:31
(Alliance News) - Single bus fares across England will be capped at GBP2 from January, Prime Minister Andy Burnham has announced.
The nationwide cap is currently set at GBP3 until the end of March 2027 although some areas – including London and Greater Manchester, where Burnham set a GBP2 limit as mayor – have lower top rates for single tickets.
Burnham said: "Good, affordable transport links are an essential. No one should be priced out of those and left behind.
"But for too long people have said that cheaper transport isn't an option. I don't accept that. I've done it before and I will do it again now: a GBP2 cap on bus fares for millions across the country.
"Lower fares will help people get to where they need to – giving them breathing space to help with the cost of living."
The measure is backed by GBP454 million of funding – including money to allow devolved governments to take similar action.
Some GBP400 million of that funding will come from switching investment in international climate finance to loans, with the rest from savings in the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero budget.
The total cost of the scheme is expected to be more than GBP500 million, with the rest coming from Department for Transport funding already allocated to buses.
The GBP2 cap will be in place throughout 2027 and reverses an increase put in place by Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves in 2024.
A GBP2 cap had been in place between January 2023 and December 2024 but the incoming Labour administration argued it was not affordable, although some metro mayors, including Burnham, decided to fund an extension of the lower limit in their areas.
Chancellor John Healey said "millions of people" would benefit from fares being slashed by a third and insisted the measure could be paid for.
"This action to ease the cost of living is funded by savings made elsewhere, so there's no burden to British taxpayers, just pounds going back into their pockets," he said.
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said the move would make "everyday journeys easier and cheaper".
By David Hughes, Press Association Political Editor
Press Association: News
source: PA
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