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05
Oct
Explained: How would bus franchising work in North Yorkshire?
Six months ago, the Mayor of York and North Yorkshire pledged to improve the region’s bus network as part of his political agenda.
Labour’s David Skaith confirmed in June that the York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority was looking at going down the franchising route to improve what he described as a network which was “not good enough”.
The move means that Harrogate and the wider region could see changes to the network in areas such as timetables, fares and routes.
But what exactly would it mean and why is Mr Skaith going down this route in the first place?
What does Mr Skaith want to do?
Following the spending review in June, the combined authority became one of the first regions to pilot a “rural bus franchising model”.
The move means combined authority officials have been tasked with coming up with a model to operate buses in an area which is both urban and rural.
Bus on Harrogate's Station Parade.
This could see Mr Skaith take the combined authority down a franchising route, but this is not the only option available to him.
Speaking with the Stray Ferret, Mr Skaith said the model could be the “blueprint” for other rural mayoral combined authorities which decide to go down the bus franchising route.
He said:
It’s really about us working closely with government to develop a bus franchising model that would work well for an area that is not just urban, like Harrogate is, but in the rural and coastal areas as well.
What does franchising mean?
Bus franchising is when a local authority or public transport authority awards exclusive contracts to a private operator to operate bus services in a specific area or on specific routes.
It means that a local transport authority, such as a combined authority, takes control over timetables, setting of fares and routes.
David Skaith, Mayor of York and North Yorkshire.
The powers have been used by some Labour mayors, such as Andy Burnham in Greater Manchester, to reverse Conservative Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher's move to deregulate the network in 1986.
Greater Manchester launched a fully franchised bus network in January this year after Mr Burnham pledged to take buses back into public control.
Meanwhile, Tracy Brabin, Mayor of West Yorkshire, has also committed to introducing a similar model in West Yorkshire.
However, while franchising may prove popular in some quarters. it is costly.
For example, Greater Manchester Combined Authority estimated it has cost £135 million, which included between £15 million and £22 million in annual start-up costs, such as purchasing depots and fleet.
In West Yorkshire, the combined authority estimates a £15.1 million transition cost to the system over four years and £85 million on purchasing depots.
Mr Skaith may choose to go down this route — but it is not the only option available to him.
What is an enhanced bus partnership?
Mr Skaith could also choose to agree an enhanced bus partnership with bus operators.
This is a statutory agreement between a local transport authority and bus operators to improve the network under a shared vision.
Under such an agreement, the combined authority could agree to fund certain improvements to the network such as bus lanes and parking restrictions.
In return, the operators could agree to increase the frequency of services and improved vehicle standards.
The enhanced partnerships were first introduced under the Bus Services Act 2017 — however hardly any local authorities had taken up the powers by 2020.
As a result, under its national bus strategy, the Conservative government in 2021 ordered local authorities to choose between a franchising system or an enhanced partnership. If they choose neither, they risked losing future discretionary bus funding from the Department for Transport.
What happens now?
Mr Skaith will have to decide what is the best bus network model for York and North Yorkshire.
Speaking with the Stray Ferret, he said “everything was on the table” when it came to deciding how best to devise a model for the region’s bus services.
He said:
Literally, everything is on the table. Which is why we have been given this pilot to work out and study what would be the best option around the region.
Part of Mr Skaith’s challenge will be how to balance the best model for urban areas, such as Harrogate and York, with that of rural areas such as the Dales.
It is not as simple as a city area like Manchester, where the fully franchised Bee Network now operates the entire area.
Mr Skaith may arrive at a classic British fudge, where some places operate on a franchise model but others have an agreement with private bus companies over how best to operate a service.
But, it takes time. It took Ms Brabin two terms to get franchising off the ground in West Yorkshire. Meanwhile, Mr Burnham took four years in Greater Manchester to introduce the model.
Given the scale of this undertaking, this may take Mr Skaith his entire term in office or more to implement.
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