Leeds buses: Residents' joy as bus franchising decision promises 'more reliable' services

In a landmark move made yesterday, the Mayor of West Yorkshire Tracy Brabin decided to take back control of the buses in the biggest shake up to public transport in the region for 40 years.

The Mayor decided to bring buses under local control - through a process known as franchising - as recommended by the Combined Authority at its meeting in Leeds.

Reacting to the news via social media, residents across the city expressed their joy at the region's bus network being run on "need not profit."

Suzanne Hopes said: "Great news………this is how all essential public services should run - need not profit," while Gordon Toulson said: "Anything could have been better than my experience yesterday."

David Garland added: "So tired of waiting for buses that are either late or don’t turn up so I really do hope this is the answer and we see a huge improvement in bus services."

Routes, frequencies, fares and overall standards for buses in the region will now be set by the West Yorkshire Combined Authority – not private operators, who will instead be contracted to run services on WYCA's behalf.

It follows a three month consultation which revealed that nearly three-quarters of the people and organisations which responded supported franchising.

Speaking to the Yorkshire Evening Post, Mayor Brabin said: "We will be investing in new routes, new stations, new bus shelters and the safety of women and girls on the bus network will be a continued priority.

"In the long term, it will be a game changer because the money that would have gone to shareholders will now be reinvested so we will have a better, more connected bus network."

A number of residents expressed their hope that the move will see the introduction of a nightly service connecting Leeds to the five towns.

The decision has been welcomed by both Leeds Civic Trust and Better Buses for West Yorkshire campaigners.

Charlotte, a bus user from Wakefield, told the YEP: "My office is directly opposite the bus station and when you see bus after bus cancelled you think, well I might as well just walk the 40 minutes home.

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"Now I can do that at my age but I regularly leave bags behind and if I was older and not as able then I would be stuck."

A franchised model will allow the Mayor and Combined Authority to better deliver on ambitions for a greener, joined-up and easier to use transport network as part of a better-connected West Yorkshire.