Information about English bus services
18Power to require provision of information about English bus services
(1)After section 141 of the Transport Act 2000 insert—
“141APower to require provision of information about English bus services
(1)The Secretary of State may by regulations require—
(a)applicants for the registration of relevant local services, or for the variation or cancellation of any such registration, to provide prescribed information—
(i)in relation to the services, or
(ii)in connection with the application;
(b)operators of registered relevant local services to provide prescribed information in relation to the services;
(c)local transport authorities to provide prescribed information in relation to relevant local services which have one or more stopping places in their areas;
(d)traffic commissioners to provide prescribed information that is held by them in relation to relevant local services.
(2)The information that may be prescribed is such information within subsection (3) as appears to the Secretary of State to be required—
(a)in order to make information about relevant local services available to users or prospective users of those services, or
(b)in order to facilitate the exercise of functions relating to the registration of relevant local services.
(3)The information within this subsection is—
(a)information about routes, stopping places, timetables, fares and tickets,
(b)information about changes or proposed changes to routes, stopping places, timetables, fares and tickets, and
(c)information about the operation of the services.
(4)The information within subsection (3)(c) includes—
(a)live information, that is to say information provided immediately it becomes available about the location of vehicles operating the services and the time at which they stop, or are expected to stop, at stopping places, and
(b)information about the operation of the services in the past.
(5)The regulations may make provision about—
(a)the person to whom the information is to be provided,
(b)the time when it is to be provided, and
(c)the manner and form in which it is to be provided (including, in particular, provision requiring it to be provided electronically).
(6)The provision made under subsection (5)(a) may not require the information to be provided to a person other than—
(a)the Secretary of State;
(b)a local transport authority whose area is in England;
(c)a person prescribed in the regulations, being a person who provides or facilitates the provision of, or is to provide or facilitate the provision of, information about relevant local services to users or prospective users of those services.
(7)The regulations may provide that a reference in the regulations to a standard according to which the information is to be provided is to be construed as a reference to that standard as it has effect from time to time.
(8)The regulations may make provision as to the use and disclosure of the information, including—
(a)provision for the information to be made available free of charge and without restrictions on its use and disclosure, and
(b)provision for information provided in connection with an application for registration, or for the variation or cancellation of a registration, to be provided to a traffic commissioner.
(9)The regulations may make different provision for different areas.
(10)Before making regulations under this section the Secretary of State must consult—
(a)such persons or organisations as appear to the Secretary of State to represent the interests of operators and users of relevant local services,
(b)such persons or organisations as appear to the Secretary of State to represent the interests of local transport authorities whose areas are in England, and
(c)such other persons or organisations as the Secretary of State considers appropriate.
(11)The references to traffic commissioners in subsections (1)(d) and (8)(b) are to be read as including references to any local transport authority carrying out the functions of a traffic commissioner in accordance with section 6G of the Transport Act 1985.
(12)In this section—
(a)“relevant local service” means a local service which has one or more stopping places in the relevant area,
(b)references to registration, in relation to a relevant local service, are to registration under section 6 of the Transport Act 1985,
(c)“prescribed” means prescribed by regulations under this section, and
(d)“relevant area” means England outside Greater London.
(13)Where a local service is or is to be provided both inside and outside the relevant area, any part of the service which is or is to be provided outside the relevant area is to be treated as a separate service for the purposes of subsection (12)(a) if there is any stopping place for that part of the service outside the relevant area.”
(2)In section 155(1)(c) of that Act (sanctions), at the end insert “or with regulations under section 141A of this Act”.
(3)In section 160 of that Act (regulations and orders under Part 2)—
(a)in subsection (2), after “138F(10), 138G(9)” (inserted by Schedule 4 to this Act) insert “or 141A(1) or”;
(b)in subsection (2A) (inserted by Schedule 2 to this Act), after “138F(10), 138G(9)” (inserted by Schedule 4 to this Act) insert “or 141A(1)”.
(4)In section 6 of the Transport Act 1985 (registration), at the end of subsection (9)(e) insert “(or, if the applicant is subject to requirements imposed by regulations made by virtue of section 141A(1)(a) of the Transport Act 2000, complies with those requirements)”.