The Bus Services Act 2025 (Commencement No. 2 and Transitional Provisions) Regulations 2026

Published: Mon 20th Jul 26

These Regulations bring into force several sections of the Bus Services Act 2025 on 5 August 2026, primarily affecting local transport authorities, bus operators, and their employees.

The provisions grant new powers to vehicle inspectors, authorize the creation of local and London-based bus byelaws, and introduce mandatory staff training regarding disability, crime, and anti-social behaviour.

The instrument also establishes practical deadlines for staff to complete this training, with specific transitional windows extending to late 2028 and 2029 depending on when an individual was employed.

Arguments For

The Regulations state that the measures are being brought into force under the powers conferred by the Bus Services Act 2025.
Proponents within the Department for Transport indicate through the Explanatory Note that these provisions aim to establish consistent requirements for bus industry staff training regarding crime, anti-social behaviour, and disability awareness.
The document specifies transitional periods for training to allow existing and new personnel sufficient time to meet the new statutory standards by 2028 or 2029.
The legal basis for these changes is cited as sections 27 through 36 of the Bus Services Act 2025, which address vehicle inspection, byelaws, and passenger safety.

Arguments Against

Legal analysts may note that the different deadlines for existing staff (2029) and new staff (2028) could create temporary administrative complexity for bus operators managing split compliance schedules.
Transport providers might raise concerns regarding the costs associated with implementing the mandated disability and anti-social behaviour training across their workforce.
The actual legal effect of the safety and accessibility provisions for stopping places depends on future guidance to be issued by the Secretary of State, which some local authorities might find lacks immediate specificity.

—(1) These Regulations may be cited as the Bus Services Act 2025 (Commencement No. 2 and Transitional Provisions) Regulations 2026.

(2) In these Regulations-

'the 2000 Act' means the Transport Act 2000;

'the 2025 Act' means the Bus Services Act 2025;

'Regulation 181/2011' means Regulation (EU) No 181/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 February 2011 concerning the rights of passengers in bus and coach transport and amending Regulation (EC) No 2006/2004, as amended by section 35 of the 2025 Act;

'relevant training' means any of the training described in section 144F(2) of the 2000 Act, as inserted by section 34(2) of the 2025 Act, and in Article 16 and Annex II of Regulation 181/2011.

This section provides the official title for the regulations and defines the key legislative terms used throughout the document.

It links the new requirements to existing UK and retained EU laws, specifically identifying what qualifies as 'relevant training' for bus industry personnel.

These definitions ensure that subsequent rules regarding byelaws and staff duties are interpreted according to the specific sections of the Transport Act 2000 and the Bus Services Act 2025.

The following provisions of the 2025 Act come into force on 5th August 2026-

(a) section 27 (powers of inspectors), so far as it is not already in force;

(b) section 28 (local transport authority byelaws);

(d) section 30 (safety and accessibility of stopping places);

(e) section 32 (duty to provide information to Secretary of State), so far as it is not already in force;

(f) section 34 (training about crime and anti-social behaviour), so far as it is not already in force;

(g) section 35 (training about disability);

(h) section 36 (training about disability: further provisions), so far as it is not already in force.

This section sets 5 August 2026 as the commencement date for various substantive parts of the Bus Services Act 2025.

These include new legal authorities for bus inspectors and the power for local authorities and Transport for London to create and enforce byelaws.

It also activates requirements for the Secretary of State to issue safety guidance for bus stops and mandates that transport staff undergo specific training on disability access and crime prevention.

—(1) This regulation applies in relation to any person who is required to complete relevant training as a result of a role that they were employed into before 5th August 2026.

(2) During the period beginning on 5th August 2026 and ending on 31st December 2029, section 144F(2) of the 2000 Act and paragraph 1A of Article 16 of Regulation 181/2011 are to be read as if for 'within the past five years' there were substituted 'by 31st December 2029'.

Personnel who were already employed in their roles before August 2026 are granted a transitional period to meet the new training standards.

Instead of the standard requirement to have completed training within the previous five years, these employees are permitted to satisfy the legal requirement at any point up until 31 December 2029.

This effectively provides existing staff with over three years to comply with the new crime and disability training mandates.

—(1) This regulation applies in relation to any person who is required to complete relevant training as a result of being employed into a role on or after 5th August 2026.

(2) During the period beginning on 5th August 2026 and ending on 31st December 2028, section 144F(2) of the 2000 Act and paragraph 1A of Article 16 of Regulation 181/2011 are to be read as if for 'within the past five years' there were substituted 'by 31st December 2028'.

This section establishes a shorter transitional window for individuals who begin their employment on or after 5 August 2026.

These new employees must complete the mandatory crime and disability awareness training by 31 December 2028.

By adjusting the statutory five-year lookback period, the regulations ensure that all new hires within this timeframe reach a uniform compliance date by the end of 2028.

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