New £2 Bus Fare Cap Set for England in 2027
Government outlines funding for scheme aimed at easing cost of living, drawing comparisons to historical public transport initiatives.
Image: Eddie Pollard / AI
Sarah Connor
A new road rule in England will introduce a £2 bus fare cap from January 1, 2027.
This substantial investment sees £400 million funded by replacing international climate project grants with loans.
Prime Minister Andy Burnham confirms the fare cap is fully funded, asserting a clear financial pathway for the scheme's implementation.
Heidi Alexander, however, claims the bus fare cap scheme secures its funding through £454 million of reprioritised money, a sum derived from switching spending from international climate projects to loans.
The government's stated cost of over £500 million, with £400 million from reallocated climate project grants, directly contrasts with Alexander's claim of £454 million from reprioritised funds.
This strategic move echoes past efforts to make public transport more accessible.
Ken Livingstone's 'Fares Fair' scheme, for instance, dramatically reduced child fares on buses to 5p, as Jonathan Freedland recounts from his experience at 14.
Further back in history, Liverpool's corporation in the 1950s offered schoolchildren a 'penny return' ticket during holidays, allowing travel across the city's extensive tram network.
Joe Cocker confirms a 'penny return' ticket in 1950s Liverpool enabled travel from the Pier Head by the Mersey on the number 10 tram to Prescot, almost 10 miles inland, and back again, with passengers also able to transfer to a different destination.
The last tram in Liverpool ran in 1957; the city dismantled its tram lines.
In the late 1940s and 50s, a return bus ticket from Thorne to Doncaster cost one shilling and 10 old pence, providing crucial historical pricing context for today's fare discussions.
Robin Hughes claims the South Yorkshire equivalent of Andy Burnham's bus fare cap reduced fares to 10p for adults and 2p for children in the early 1980s.
Maisie claims the new scheme will encourage young people to go outside, make friends, and have fun.
Beyond the bus fare cap, Andy Burnham has implemented a VAT cut to energy bills and introduced a 20% cut in business rates for the hospitality sector.
Burnham further launched 'No 10 North' to accelerate devolution.