Bus Services Act 2017

21 Registration of English local services: fees where functions contracted out

After section 6I of the Transport Act 1985 (inserted by section 14) insert—

“6J Contracting out of registration functions: fees

(1) Regulations may make provision about the charging of fees where an authorised person exercises a function of a traffic commissioner in relation to an application specified in subsection (2).

(2) Those applications are—

(a) an application under section 6 of this Act for the registration of a relevant service,

(b) an application under section 6 of this Act for the variation of the registration of a service that, as varied, would be or continue to be a relevant service, and

(c) an application under section 6 of this Act for the cancellation of the registration of a relevant service.

(3) Regulations under this section may allow or require the authorised person to charge fees in respect of the application to which the function relates.

(4) The regulations may—

(a) specify the fees chargeable, or

(b) make provision about the setting of fees by the authorised person, including provision about determining the amounts of such fees.

(5) The regulations may include provision about—

(a) who must pay the fees and at what times, and

(b) whether the fees are payable in one sum or in instalments.

(6) The regulations may provide that, if a fee or instalment of a fee due under the regulations has not been paid, the authorised person may decline to proceed with an application referred to in subsection (2) to which the fee or instalment relates until the fee or instalment is paid.

(7) The regulations may make provision about how amounts received in respect of fees charged under the regulations are to be applied.

(8) Provision made by virtue of subsection (7) may include—

(a) provision for such amounts not to be payable to the traffic commissioner, and

(b) provision that such amounts are to be paid, or not to be paid, into the Consolidated Fund.

(9) The regulations may provide that fees are not to be charged under section 52 of the 1981 Act (as applied by section 126 of this Act) in respect of the applications referred to in subsection (2).

(10) In this section—

• “authorised person”, in relation to a function of a traffic commissioner, means a person authorised to exercise that function by virtue of an authorisation given in accordance with an order under section 69 of the Deregulation and Contracting Out Act 1994;

• “relevant service” means a service which has stopping places only in England;

• “service” has the meaning given in section 6(1).”