Passenger numbers on buses across the West Midlands have fallen significantly, with transport bosses pointing to the recent hike in the national fare cap as a primary cause.
Fare Cap Blamed for Passenger Decline
Official figures presented to the West Midlands Combined Authority’s Transport Overview and Scrutiny Committee reveal a clear downturn. Between July and September 2025, there were 57,768,872 bus boardings in the region.
This marks a 2.21 per cent decrease compared to the same period in 2024, when 59,071,487 journeys were made.
Claire Williams, Director of Network Resilience at Transport for West Midlands, stated that the increase in the national bus fare cap to £3 in January 2025 is believed to be a key driver behind the drop.
"Bus patronage has declined between these periods and we think this is due to the change in national bus fare cap," she explained.
Congestion and Network Cuts Add to Woes
However, the fare rise is not the only factor pressuring bus services. Ms. Williams highlighted a reduction in the commercial bus network, as operators grapple with rising costs and falling revenue.
Furthermore, increasing journey times due to worsening congestion across the region are making bus travel less attractive and reliable for many commuters.
One silver lining noted was an increase in passengers using the concessionary travel scheme, as these users are "less price sensitive" to the fare changes.
Rail and Metro See Contrasting Growth
The decline in bus use stands in stark contrast to growth on other public transport modes in the West Midlands during the same quarter.
Rail travel saw a 3.26 per cent increase, with 67,124,932 boardings between July and September 2025, up from 65,003,174 in 2024.
Even more strikingly, usage of the West Midlands Metro grew by 7.83 per cent, carrying 2,239,690 passengers compared to 2,077,021 the previous year.
Despite the rail growth, it remains below the national average increase of seven per cent for the period.
Action Plan to Halt the Slide
In response to the worrying trend, Transport for West Midlands has outlined several measures. The authority is providing grants to prevent significant and detrimental bus service cuts during the transition to a franchised bus network.
Terms of these grants include a commitment from operators to prevent above-inflation fare increases.
"We are also in the process of delivering bus corridor capital schemes to improve journey times and other measures to improve customer satisfaction," Claire Williams added. "We will look to use bus reform to tackle this decline in usage."
The data underscores the challenges facing bus services in the region as authorities work to balance financial sustainability with affordable, reliable public transport.
