• Huyton Travel and Warrington’s Own Buses selected to operate routes largely serving schools and colleges
• City Region bus network to be under full public control by end of 2027
• New contracts include performance targets for punctuality and reliability

The Liverpool City Region Combined Authority has now made further contract awards under its new franchised bus system.

The awards follow the announcement in January of the operators for the core bus networks in St Helens and the Wirral.

L-R: Kara Wood, Head of Franchising LCRCA; Ben Wakerley, Managing Director of Warrington’s Own Buses; Mary Carruthers, Manager at Huyton Travel; Jamie Ross, Director of Transport LCRCA

The routes covered by these smaller but critical new contracts mostly serve schools and colleges across the region.

Following a competitive tender process, two companies have been appointed to operate the first set of these services:

• Huyton Travel (HTL) will operate 94 routes, largely serving schools and colleges across Knowsley, Liverpool, Sefton, St Helens and Wirral
• Warrington’s Own Buses will operate the 322 service from Warrington Interchange to Ashton-in-Makerfield via Haydock

A further round of procurement for the remainder of these services will be undertaken later this year.

Today’s news follows an announcement in January that Stagecoach will be operating franchised bus services based in St Helens while Go North-West will be operating services based in the Wirral.

Jamie Ross, Director of Transport at Liverpool City Region Combined Authority said: “The Combined Authority has appointed Huyton Travel and Warrington’s Own Buses to operate key bus services across Liverpool City Region, on routes mostly serving schools and colleges. This represents another key step forward in our franchising programme. We will work with these operators to ensure that the services they provide meet the standards for reliability and frequency.”

By the end of 2027 the Combined Authority, rather than private operators, will set routes, fares and timetables across the whole City Region.  This follows the decision in 2023 to bring the network under public control.

Accountability will be at the heart of all new operator contracts, with customer-focused targets for punctuality, reliability and bus cleanliness built in from day one.

Mary Carruthers, Manager at Huyton Travel (HTL): “For over 40 years, Huyton Travel has been proud to serve communities across the LCRCA region, and we are excited to carry that local legacy into the region’s new franchising era. By combining our deep roots in the city with over 30 years of franchising expertise from Tower Transit and the Kelsian Group, we will help deliver a reliable, high-quality service that truly works for local people.”

Ben Wakerley, Managing Director of Warrington’s Own Buses said: “We are extremely proud to be a part of the Liverpool City Region’s transformation of its bus services.  This will bring a host of improvements, and our team will be there to deliver”.