Budget 2024: Bus fare cap row rumbles on as Burnham sticks to £2 cap

Andy Burham has said Greater Manchester will retain its £2 cap on single bus fares for the whole of 2025, despite the government announcing it will increase the cap by 50% next year.

Burnham, the Mayor of Greater Manchester, announced on social media that the city region would implement a “new simpler, flatter fare structure based around the £2 single fare” from January 5.

He said that Greater Manchester is on course to complete the re-regulation of buses on time and on budget early in the new year.

Burnham said: “Because of the decisions we have taken, and the progress we have made, Greater Manchester is in a different position to other areas across England when it comes to bus funding and bus fares.

“We can confirm that we are sticking with the £2 cap for the whole of 2025, but subject to a mid-year review.”

I can confirm that we plan to stick with a £2 cap on single bus fares for the whole of 2025.

More detail here.👇🏻 pic.twitter.com/NXgGoNPRKp

— Andy Burnham (@AndyBurnhamGM) October 29, 2024

Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced yesterday that the government’s price cap on English bus fare routes outside London will be extended by a year but rise 50% from £2 to £3 in a speech ahead of the Budget.

One Labour-affiliated transport union criticised the rise in the cap however, a bus and coach industry body warned its extension must be matched by “sustained investment”.

Keir Starmer said in response to a media question after his speech: “I do know how much this matters, particularly in rural communities where there’s heavy reliance on buses.

“That’s why I’m able to say to you this morning that in the Budget, we will announce there will be a £3 cap to the end of 2025.”

The move sparked criticism from Labour-affiliated union the Transport Salaried Staffs Association (TSSA)’s general secretary Maryam Eslamdoust, however.

She said: “Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves are right to identify the need to stabilize the economy and to rebuild the country with investment and we look forward to hearing their plans for investing in the railways on Wednesday.

“However, it is a mistake to raise the bus fare cap from £2 to £3. Working people, especially those in rural areas, rely on the buses to get to work. This decision will hit hardest on those struggling the most, the very opposite of what Labour stands for. I’m urging the Government to change that decision before it’s too late and keep the £2 bus fare cap.”

Meanwhile, public opinion specialist Luke Tryl of More in Common highlighted how popular the move had been with voters, posting on X:

The temporary cap has been in place since the start of 2023. Official stats show almost two-thirds of ticketed public transport journeys in Britain were on local bus routes in 2022.

The Guardian had recently reported some Labour mayors’ apparent fears over bus and other local transport spending being reined in at the Budget.

Graham Vidler, Chief Executive of the Confederation of Passenger Transport, said: “The move to a £3 fare cap for one year reflects the government’s intent to gradually transition fare policy, but it must be backed by a consistent funding strategy.

“Without this support, we risk seeing essential services, especially in rural and underserved areas, become unsustainable over time.”

Read more of our Budget 2024 coverage:

• Keir Starmer Budget speech: Key points and stream as PM vows tax rises to stop austerity
• Labour’s Budget 2024: What policies could Rachel Reeves announce?
• ‘No fiscal rule is perfect. But this one means welcome investment’
• Fiscal rules: What is Reeves changing – and why does it matter?
• ‘We can avoid taxing workers by hiking capital gains tax’
• ‘A case against cuts, from the winter fuel allowance to the £2 bus fare cap’
• Minister says ‘normal’ for cabinet to seek good deal for departments amid unrest over cuts
• ‘How Labour can fix the worst economic inheritance since 1945′

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