News: Public sector puts £100m towards depots and buses in South Yorkshire
Private sector operators that run South Yorkshire bus services described by the local mayor as being in a "spiral of decline," look set for a multimillion pound windfall as the public sector acquires depots and vehicles as part of bus franchising.
Last year South Yorkshire’s Mayor, Oliver Coppard, took a once in a generation decision to bring buses back under public control in South Yorkshire in the biggest shake up of the bus network since the 1980s.
Under bus franchising, the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (SYMCA) will take control of the bus network including depots, bus fleets, routes, timetables, service standards, tickets and fares.
The authority announced this month that it had secured the purchase of five depots from private bus operators.
The depots at Olive Grove, Ecclesfield and Holbrook in Sheffield, Rawmarsh in Rotherham, Wakefield Road in Barnsley, along with the already publicly owned Leger Way depot in Doncaster, form the operational backbone of South Yorkshire’s bus network.
Under the agreement, First Bus and Stagecoach will lease the depots back from SYMCA.
No figures were included in the announcement but earlier this month the authority published that a delegated decision had been made: "to grant award of £100m towards Bus Franchising Works for acquisition of depots and purchase of vehicles."
SYMCA had previously appointed commercial property firm, Sanderson Weatherall, to value the depots.
The funding is set to come from government funding pots given to devolved areas such as the City Region Sustainable Transport Settlement and Transport for City Regions.
With £1.5 billion confirmed for South Yorkshire in 2025, £350m will be set aside to reform South Yorkshire’s buses, with franchised buses begining in 2027 with Doncaster and most of Sheffield, followed by Barnsley and Rotherham in 2028 (pushed back from an original target of 2027), with the remaining areas of Sheffield completing the move to public control in 2029.
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South Yorkshire’s Mayor Oliver Coppard said: “This is a significant moment for South Yorkshire. Bringing every depot into public ownership well in advance of bus franchising means we’re putting real foundations in place for a network that is reliable, affordable and works for all of us. It’s exactly what taking back control of our public transport looks like. As we roll out the South Yorkshire People’s Network, we’re creating one clearer, simpler and more connected transport system, and these depots will be right at the heart of making that happen.”
Matt Kitchin, Managing Director of Stagecoach Yorkshire, which operates the Rawmnarsh depot in Rotherham, said: “We are very pleased to be working with Mayor Coppard to complete the transition of depots to public ownership, in a way that best avoids disruption for our loyal customers and colleagues across the region.
“As the operator of the largest zero-emission electric bus fleet in the UK, we are looking forward to contributing our extensive expertise in electrifying depots and introducing new electric fleets to the South Yorkshire bus network.
“Our experience has shown that our customers and colleagues hugely appreciate electric vehicles as they're quieter, smoother and more reliable, helping local people to get to work, access services, and to meet friends and family, and so we are excited to work in partnership to provide the best services for South Yorkshire.”
The mayor has previously described local bus services as a "failed experiment of the privatisation of our bus network that was started in the 1980s." The bus market in South Yorkshire has been experiencing a continuous cycle of decline while its reliance on public funding to sustain bus service levels has been increasing. Over the past decade, bus mileage declined by 42%.
Just last week, SYMCA released details that a "significant number" of commercial bus services have been registered for reduction or withdrawal by operators in May. A £1,278,100 funding package has been signed off to ensure all services indicated are retained for a period until July 25 2026. SYMCA said that the withdrawals and reductions would "have an impact on users and also creates a threat to the ability for SYMCA to transition to a franchised network based on the current level of service."
As part of the deal, the Rawmarsh depot formerly owned by Stagecoach will get a new office building to replace temporary structures. The other bus depot in Rotherham was in public sector ownership but SYMCA decided to sell it in 2022. The Midland Road depot has been demolished and the site is being transformed into a housing estate.
Images: Google Maps
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Last year South Yorkshire’s Mayor, Oliver Coppard, took a once in a generation decision to bring buses back under public control in South Yorkshire in the biggest shake up of the bus network since the 1980s.
Under bus franchising, the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (SYMCA) will take control of the bus network including depots, bus fleets, routes, timetables, service standards, tickets and fares.
The authority announced this month that it had secured the purchase of five depots from private bus operators.
The depots at Olive Grove, Ecclesfield and Holbrook in Sheffield, Rawmarsh in Rotherham, Wakefield Road in Barnsley, along with the already publicly owned Leger Way depot in Doncaster, form the operational backbone of South Yorkshire’s bus network.
Under the agreement, First Bus and Stagecoach will lease the depots back from SYMCA.
No figures were included in the announcement but earlier this month the authority published that a delegated decision had been made: "to grant award of £100m towards Bus Franchising Works for acquisition of depots and purchase of vehicles."
SYMCA had previously appointed commercial property firm, Sanderson Weatherall, to value the depots.
The funding is set to come from government funding pots given to devolved areas such as the City Region Sustainable Transport Settlement and Transport for City Regions.
With £1.5 billion confirmed for South Yorkshire in 2025, £350m will be set aside to reform South Yorkshire’s buses, with franchised buses begining in 2027 with Doncaster and most of Sheffield, followed by Barnsley and Rotherham in 2028 (pushed back from an original target of 2027), with the remaining areas of Sheffield completing the move to public control in 2029.
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South Yorkshire’s Mayor Oliver Coppard said: “This is a significant moment for South Yorkshire. Bringing every depot into public ownership well in advance of bus franchising means we’re putting real foundations in place for a network that is reliable, affordable and works for all of us. It’s exactly what taking back control of our public transport looks like. As we roll out the South Yorkshire People’s Network, we’re creating one clearer, simpler and more connected transport system, and these depots will be right at the heart of making that happen.”
Matt Kitchin, Managing Director of Stagecoach Yorkshire, which operates the Rawmnarsh depot in Rotherham, said: “We are very pleased to be working with Mayor Coppard to complete the transition of depots to public ownership, in a way that best avoids disruption for our loyal customers and colleagues across the region.
“As the operator of the largest zero-emission electric bus fleet in the UK, we are looking forward to contributing our extensive expertise in electrifying depots and introducing new electric fleets to the South Yorkshire bus network.
“Our experience has shown that our customers and colleagues hugely appreciate electric vehicles as they're quieter, smoother and more reliable, helping local people to get to work, access services, and to meet friends and family, and so we are excited to work in partnership to provide the best services for South Yorkshire.”
The mayor has previously described local bus services as a "failed experiment of the privatisation of our bus network that was started in the 1980s." The bus market in South Yorkshire has been experiencing a continuous cycle of decline while its reliance on public funding to sustain bus service levels has been increasing. Over the past decade, bus mileage declined by 42%.
Just last week, SYMCA released details that a "significant number" of commercial bus services have been registered for reduction or withdrawal by operators in May. A £1,278,100 funding package has been signed off to ensure all services indicated are retained for a period until July 25 2026. SYMCA said that the withdrawals and reductions would "have an impact on users and also creates a threat to the ability for SYMCA to transition to a franchised network based on the current level of service."
As part of the deal, the Rawmarsh depot formerly owned by Stagecoach will get a new office building to replace temporary structures. The other bus depot in Rotherham was in public sector ownership but SYMCA decided to sell it in 2022. The Midland Road depot has been demolished and the site is being transformed into a housing estate.
Images: Google Maps
