The Transport Act 1985 (c. 67) was an act of Parliament in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. It introduced privatised and deregulated bus services throughout

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...

and came into effect in October 1986. The act was created as a response to growing concern about the environmental effect the private transportation was having and the public's objection to an increase in

road construction A road is a thoroughfare used primarily for movement of traffic. Roads differ from streets, whose primary use is local access. They also differ from stroads, which combine the features of streets and roads. Most modern roads are paved. The ...

. The Act was introduced by Nicholas Ridley and it committed to reduce the amount the public paid for commercial objects. This was achieved by reducing the control governments had of bus systems and reducing the subsidies to bus companies. The Conservative government also believed the removal of

subsidies A subsidy, subvention or government incentive is a type of government expenditure for individuals and households, as well as businesses with the aim of stabilizing the economy. It ensures that individuals and households are viable by having acce ...

and local government control would lead to an increase in competition between companies. The deregulation of buses applied throughout Great Britain, excluding bus services in Greater

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, and was led by the

Conservative government Conservative or Tory government may refer to: Canada In Canadian politics, a Conservative government may refer to the following governments administered by the Conservative Party of Canada or one of its historical predecessors: * 1st Canadian Min ...

. Public transport remains under direct public control in Northern Ireland.

Deregulation and elimination of barriers

Proposal

In 1984 a proposal to deregulate local bus services was published in the white paper ''Buses'' and in more detailed consultation papers. Part I of the Act brought these proposals into effect. Deregulation, elimination of barriers, and the transfer to the private sector were some of the major changes the Act established. Privatisation and bus deregulation came into effect on 26 October 1986. Local authorities were required to transfer their municipally-owned bus services to separate companies. Although most of these companies have since been

privatised Privatization (rendered privatisation in British English) can mean several different things, most commonly referring to moving something from the public sector into the private sector. It is also sometimes used as a synonym for deregulation wh ...

, with the exception of Lothian Buses in Edinburgh; a few other municipal bus companies remain today. The Act also mandated that

local government Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of governance or public administration within a particular sovereign state. Local governments typically constitute a subdivision of a higher-level political or administrative unit, such a ...

s publish statements of their own policies for bus services deemed socially vital that were not operated by commercial companies.

London

London faced a different type of deregulation. The standard deregulation that applied to other cities in the United Kingdom was not applied to bus services in Greater London; instead, the Act brought about a system of franchised routes operated by private companies but managed by

London Buses London Buses is the subsidiary of Transport for London (TfL) that manages most bus services in London, England. It was formed following the Greater London Authority Act 1999 that transferred control of London Regional Transport (LRT) bus s ...

Ltd. This meant that, although the bus companies in London were

, London's government still retained the ability to regulate the companies. At the time the Act was put into place, the London bus companies were governed by the London Regional Transport Act 1984.

Transport Act 1985: Deregulation (Part I)

Part I of the Act removed, excluding London, the need for the required road service licence throughout the

. Part I replaced service licensing with a system of registration. This caused licensing authorities losing many of their powers and made it possible for operators to register new routes. For an operator to register a new route the licensed operator had to supply the traffic commissioner with information of the proposed route, the timeline for the trip, stopping arrangements, the

vehicle A vehicle () is a machine designed for self-propulsion, usually to transport people, cargo, or both. The term "vehicle" typically refers to land vehicles such as human-powered land vehicle, human-powered vehicles (e.g. bicycles, tricycles, velo ...

s to be used, and the terminal points. In accordance with the Act the traffic commissioner had to receive the registration at least 42 days prior to when the route is to be run. It was mandatory for the notice to go through the traffic commissioner for a licensed bus operator to operate. After approval, the operator was required to run the route according to the specifications provided in the registration. Deregulation also led to firms being able to charge any fares they wish, run routes, and freely enter and leave the market. This was accomplished by reducing the amount of subsidies local governments could provide for services.

Transport Act 1985: Privatisation (Part II)

Privatisation proposals were put forth to change the structure of the bus industry. The bus industry was managed mainly by

public sector The public sector, also called the state sector, is the part of the economy composed of both public services and public enterprises. Public sectors include the public goods and governmental services such as the military, law enforcement, pu ...

companies in the years prior to 1985.

Privatisation Privatization (rendered privatisation in British English) can mean several different things, most commonly referring to moving something from the public sector into the private sector. It is also sometimes used as a synonym for deregulation w ...

was introduced by the

as a way to achieve better access to private capital and more committed management. In order to achieve this goal, the Conservative government made it so local governments could only provide subsidies for services and prohibited subsidies that would promote low fares.

Other provisions

School

minibus A minibus, microbus, or minicoach is a passenger-carrying motor vehicle that is designed to carry more people than a multi-purpose vehicle or minivan, but fewer people than a full-size bus. In the United Kingdom, the word "minibus" is us ...

es which are used to transport people are covered by a Section 19 permit scheme. The reference to "Section 19" relates to the Transport Act 1985.

Aftermath

The Act changed how bus services were run in the

. The Act introduced the largest change in the framework of bus services in over five decades and it replaced the prior publicly owned and highly regulated bus service with a largely competitive commercial system. Additionally, the removal of

made it so different firms had to bid on the right to operate with subsidized services.

References

{{UK legislation United Kingdom Acts of Parliament 1985 1985 in transport Bus transport in the United Kingdom Transport policy in the United Kingdom Economic liberalization History of transport in the United Kingdom Transport legislation Privatisation in the United Kingdom