West Yorkshire nationalises bus services

The renationalisation of bus services continues, with buses in West Yorkshire being brought under public control by the region's mayor. It seems as though, the experiment with privatisation is being reversed because local government might be better placed to determine the extent to which the social benefits of a particular route are higher than the private benefits, meaning that some routes might be under-provided.

Of course, there are questions about whether or not local government is better placed to decide this than the free market, and, some might argue that the reduced reliance on the profit motive to allocate resources will also reduce the incentive to be efficient. However, it will be intriguing to see whether this move, as part of a coherent transport policy, will ultimately increase passenger numbers, standards of service and reduce the negative externalities associated with congestion in city centres.

Please read: West Yorkshire to bring bus services under public control (Guardian)