Legislation – Bus Services Act 2025

“Local transport authority byelaws

144APower of local transport authorities to make bus byelaws

(1)

A local transport authority whose area is in England, or two or more such authorities acting jointly, may make byelaws regulating one or more of the following—

(a)

travel on their local services;

(b)

the maintenance of order—

(i)

on their local services;

(ii)

at bus facilities in their area or combined area;

(c)

the conduct of persons—

(i)

while travelling on their local services;

(ii)

using bus facilities in their area or combined area.

(2)

The byelaws may, in particular, make provision—

(a)

with respect to tickets and other things (whether in physical or electronic form) which authorise a person to enter and travel on local services;

(b)

with respect to the evasion of payment of fares or other charges;

(c)

with respect to interference with, or obstruction of, local services and bus facilities;

(d)

prohibiting vaping by persons on local services;

(e)

prohibiting smoking and vaping by persons at bus facilities;

(f)

with respect to the prevention of nuisance.

(3)

The byelaws may provide that a person contravening them is guilty of an offence and liable, on summary conviction, to a fine not exceeding—

(a)

level 3 on the standard scale, or

(b)

such lower level or lower amount as is specified in the byelaws.

(4)

In this section—

(a)

references to the local services of a local transport authority or authorities are to local services—

(i)

provided under local service contracts entered into by the authority or authorities under a franchising scheme, or

(ii)

to which an enhanced partnership scheme made by the authority or authorities relates;

(b)

“bus facility” means—

(i)

premises used as a bus station by local services, or for the provision of associated facilities in relation to such a bus station;

(ii)

a bus shelter and the land on which it stands;

(c)

“bus station” and “associated facilities” in relation to a bus station have the same meanings as in the Transport Act 1985 (see section 83(5) of that Act);

(d)

“bus shelter” means a shelter or other accommodation provided at a stopping place for the use of persons intending to travel on local services.

144BByelaws: procedure

(1)

Where a local transport authority or authorities propose to make byelaws under section 144A, they must—

(a)

publish a copy of the proposed byelaws on their website or websites, and

(b)

publish on their website or websites and in one or more local newspapers circulating in the authority’s or authorities’ area or combined area a notice of the proposal to make byelaws.

(2)

The notice must—

(a)

state the manner in which a printed copy of the proposed byelaws will be open to public inspection,

(b)

in the case of a notice published in a newspaper, give details of the website or websites where a copy of the proposed byelaws can be found, and

(c)

state that any person affected by the proposed byelaws may make representations about them to the authority or authorities within the period specified in the notice.

(3)

The period specified for the purposes of subsection (2)(c) must be a period of at least 28 days beginning with the day after that on which the notice is published.

(4)

The local transport authority or authorities must not submit the byelaws for confirmation unless they have considered the representations that have been made to them.

(5)

The Secretary of State may—

(a)

confirm (with or without modifications) the byelaws submitted for confirmation, or

(b)

refuse to confirm them.

(6)

The Secretary of State may fix a date for the coming into force of any byelaws confirmed under subsection (5)(a); but if no such date is fixed the byelaws come into force at the end of the period of 28 days beginning with the day after that on which they are confirmed.

(7)

The power to make byelaws under section 144A includes the power to make byelaws amending or revoking byelaws made under that section.

(8)

The Secretary of State may by regulations revoke byelaws made under section 144A.

144CByelaws: copies and evidence

(1)

If the Secretary of State has confirmed byelaws made under section 144A, the local transport authority or authorities which made them must print copies of the byelaws, of which—

(a)

at least one must be kept at the authority’s principal office or at each of the authorities’ principal offices,

(b)

one must be sent to the Secretary of State, and

(c)

one must be supplied to any person who requests it, on payment by the person of such reasonable charge as the authority or authorities may determine.

(2)

The authority or authorities must publish on their website or websites—

(a)

a copy of the byelaws, and

(b)

a notice stating—

(i)

that the byelaws have been confirmed and when they come into force,

(ii)

where printed copies of the byelaws can be inspected, and

(iii)

how printed copies of the byelaws can be obtained.

(3)

The production of a printed copy of byelaws which is indorsed with a certificate—

(a)

stating one or more matters specified in subsection (4), and

(b)

purporting to be signed by an officer of a local transport authority by whom the byelaws purport to have been made,

is evidence of what is stated in the certificate.

(4)

Those matters are—

(a)

that the byelaws were made by the local transport authority or authorities,

(b)

that the copy is a true copy of the byelaws,

(c)

that the byelaws were confirmed by the Secretary of State on the date specified in the certificate, and

(d)

the date of the coming into force of the byelaws.

144DPowers of authorised persons in relation to byelaws

(1)

An authorised person may—

(a)

issue a fixed penalty notice (see section 144E) to anyone who that person has reason to believe has committed an offence under—

(i)

byelaws under section 144A, or

(ii)

this section;

(b)

require a person whom the authorised person reasonably suspects of committing or attempting to commit an offence under byelaws under section 144A to do one or both of the following—

(i)

to give their name and address;

(ii)

to leave any vehicle or premises in relation to which the byelaws apply.

(2)

An authorised person may use reasonable force to remove a person who has failed to comply with a requirement under subsection (1)(b)(ii).

(3)

A person who fails to comply with a requirement under subsection (1)(b) commits an offence and is liable, on summary conviction, to a fine not exceeding level 3 on the standard scale.

(4)

The Secretary of State may issue guidance about the exercise of functions under this section and section 144E, and local transport authorities whose areas are in England and authorised persons must have regard to the guidance when exercising those functions.

(5)

The Secretary of State may at any time vary or revoke guidance issued under subsection (4).

(6)

The Secretary of State must publish—

(a)

guidance issued under subsection (4), and

(b)

any variation or revocation of the guidance.

(7)

In this section “authorised person” means a person authorised for the purposes of this section by the local transport authority or authorities which made the byelaws.

144EFixed penalty notices

(1)

A fixed penalty notice issued under section 144D is a notice offering the person to whom it is issued the opportunity of discharging any liability to conviction for the offence by payment of a fixed penalty to the person specified in the notice.

(2)

Where a person is issued with a fixed penalty notice in respect of an offence—

(a)

no proceedings may be taken for the offence before the end of the period of 14 days following the date of the notice;

(b)

the person may not be convicted of the offence if the person pays the fixed penalty before the end of that period.

(3)

A fixed penalty notice must—

(a)

give reasonably detailed particulars of the circumstances alleged to constitute the offence;

(b)

state the period during which (because of subsection (2)(a)) proceedings will not be taken for the offence;

(c)

specify the amount of the fixed penalty;

(d)

state the name and address of the person to whom the fixed penalty may be paid;

(e)

specify permissible methods of payment.

(4)

An amount specified under subsection (3)(c) must not be more than £100.

(5)

A fixed penalty notice may specify two amounts under subsection (3)(c) and specify that, if the lower of those amounts is paid within a specified period (of less than 14 days), that is the amount of the fixed penalty.

(6)

Whatever other method may be specified under subsection (3)(e), payment of a fixed penalty may be made by pre-paying and posting to the person whose name and address is stated under subsection (3)(d), at the stated address, a letter containing the amount of the penalty (in cash or otherwise).

(7)

Where a letter is sent as mentioned in subsection (6), payment is regarded as having been made at the time at which that letter would be delivered in the ordinary course of post.

(8)

In any proceedings, a certificate that—

(a)

purports to be signed by or on behalf of the chief finance officer of the local transport authority concerned, and

(b)

states that payment of a fixed penalty was, or was not, received by the date specified in the certificate,

is evidence of the facts stated.

(9)

In this section “chief finance officer”, in relation to a local transport authority, means the person with responsibility for the authority’s financial affairs.”