Legislation – Bus Services Act 2025

“9BException for publication of information about local bus services

(1)

Nothing in section 9 prevents or penalises the publication by the Secretary of State of information about relevant local services obtained under section 1 of this Act during the qualifying period from—

(a)

a person who, when the information was obtained, held a PSV operator’s licence, or

(b)

another person acting on behalf of such a person.

(2)

For the purposes of this section, information about relevant local services includes (but is not limited to) information about—

(a)

the vehicles used to provide the services, including information about their features and equipment, the distance travelled by them and the number of journeys made by them;

(b)

the number of tickets sold for travel on the services and the number of passengers who travelled on them;

(c)

the revenue earned from and the costs of operating the services;

(d)

the number of staff engaged in the operation of the services.

(3)

In this section—

(a)

“PSV operator’s licence” has the same meaning as in the Public Passenger Vehicles Act 1981 (see section 82(1) of that Act);

(b)

“relevant local service” means a local service which has one or more stopping places in England;

(c)

“the qualifying period” means the period—

(i)

beginning with 1 May 2015, and

(ii)

ending with the day on which section 26 of the came into force;

(d)

“local service” and “stopping place” have the same meanings as in the Transport Act 1985 (see sections 2 and 137(1) of that Act).

9CNotice and effect of publication of information under section 9B

(1)

At least 30 days before publishing any information in reliance on section 9B, the Secretary of State must publish a notice—

(a)

describing in general terms the information to be published, and

(b)

stating that the information is to be published in reliance on that section.

(2)

The notice must be published on a website maintained by or on behalf of the Secretary of State (and may also be published in any other manner that the Secretary of State thinks appropriate).

(3)

On the publication of any information in reliance on section 9B, the following cease to apply in relation to the information—

(a)

section 9, and

(b)

any subordinate legislation (within the meaning of the Interpretation Act 1978) made under that section.”