In this research briefing Daniel Johnson, Professor Chris Nash and Professor Andrew Smith, Leeds University Institute for Transport Studies, review academic and other literature on international approaches to bus franchising.
It has been commissioned by Senedd Research through the Senedd’s Knowledge Exchange Programme to inform scrutiny of the Welsh Government’s plans to introduce franchising in Wales.
It considers the British experience and approaches to governance of the bus sector, how competitive tendering/franchising has been implemented across the world, and available evidence on the performance of different contracting regimes.
It concludes that there is a strong case for the involvement of government in planning bus services under contract, and highlights key trade-offs and other factors to be considered in implementing franchised approaches.
Guest research briefing by Daniel Johnson, Professor Chris Nash and Professor Andrew Smith, Leeds University Institute for Transport Studies
