Local transport bosses have welcomed a top level inquiry into the provision of bus services across the UK.

The influential House of Commons Transport Committee, with MPs from all main parties, announced it is to conduct an inquiry to find why bus use outside London has continued to decline.

It will look at whether bodies such as Centro-PTA in the West Midlands should be given new powers to regulate bus networks.  The vast majority of services outside London are operated on a commercial basis by just a handful of big companies.

“The MPs say they will be asking whether the structure of the industry has meant bus services are better, more frequent or meeting passenger need?  We think they are not and that passengers in the West Midlands do deserve a lot better,” says Centro-PTA chairman Cllr Gary Clarke.

The MPs investigation will hear evidence from a range of interested parties and look into the respective roles of Government departments, bus companies, local highway authorities and transport authorities like Centro-PTA.

“Where we have been able to bring different agencies together to deliver improvements, as we have done with bus showcase schemes, this has led to significant increases in service quality and patronage,” adds Cllr Clarke.  “The current structure of the bus industry does not make it easy to expand that same level of service quality right across the West Midlands.”