Designing and setting up a bus grant payment scheme
Statutory guidance for local transport authorities in England on how to set up grants for operators of local bus services.
Applies to England
Documents
Details
Section 154A of the Transport Act 2000, as amended by the Bus Services Act 2025, gives local transport authorities (LTAs) in England powers to pay grants to operators of local bus services within their area.
LTAs can choose to:
- administer Department for Transport (DfT) national bus grants
- create and administer their own bus grants
They can also choose to do both - administer DfT grants and create their own grants.
This statutory guidance sets out the outcomes that LTAs should aim to deliver when designing and setting up their own grants to be paid to operators of local bus services.
It also outlines a set of practical considerations LTAs should have regard to before deciding to exercise the powers in section 154A, including when designing grant schemes.