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London bus transport reform and public ownership

Updated 3 times since CLSTR started tracking revisions of this situation.

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2026-09-25 11:49 UTC → 2026-09-28 10:20 UTC · added removed

London Mayor Sadiq Khan has voiced support for reforming bus transport across England by adopting the ‘London model’. This proposed approach includes capping ticket prices, expanding free travel rights for people with disabilities, and returning certain bus networks to public control. Khan highlighted London’s existing successes, such as the Hopper fare and the Superloop express network, as well as the city’s large fleet of zero-emission buses. Following these policy goals, Transport for London (TfL) is advancing plans to establish a publicly owned bus company for the capital. TfL intends to hold discussions with current private operators to evaluate the feasibility of bringing franchised services in-house. Under the current system, 16 private firms operate London’s 675 bus routes via seven-year contracts. If the new public company is launched, TfL could transition routes to the new operator as existing contracts expire. This initiative follows a pledge from Khan’s 2024 election manifesto and is supported by the Bus Services Act, which removed previous legal restrictions on local authorities establishing their own bus companies. In September 2026, TfL announced the launch of ‘Buses for London’, a new publicly-owned bus company. This marks the first large-scale move toward public control of the capital’s bus services in 30 years. The company aims to provide TfL with greater control over operations, improve reliability and safety, and reinvest profits into the transport network. The company will initially operate approximately 100 zero-emission buses from the Park Royal Depot. Route 6, running between Willesden and Victoria station, is scheduled to be the first service under the new company in late 2027. Four additional routes are expected to be announced within the coming year, with operations slated to begin in 2028.

Versions

  1. 2026-09-28 10:20 UTC London bus transport reform and public ownership
  2. 2026-09-25 11:49 UTC London bus transport reform and public ownership
  3. 2026-09-15 14:02 UTC London bus transport reform and public ownership
  4. 2026-09-13 06:39 UTC London bus transport reform and public ownership

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