Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the effect of departmental guidance accompanying the Bus Services Act 2017 in increasing (a) the implementation of independent, confidential reporting systems and (b) the release of bus safety incident data.

The Department encourages local authorities to think about how they can use the tools in the Act to improve bus safety in their area. In particular, we would encourage local authorities to consider the benefits of an independent confidential reporting system (ICRS), and release of bus safety incident data, when they are forming a partnership or franchising scheme. It is up to local authorities to determine what measures, if required, to improve bus safety in a particular area.