Buses

DfT statistics on the local bus sector in Great Britain present information on passenger journeys, vehicle miles, levels of revenue, costs and government support, the vehicle fleet, staff employed and other indicators including reliability and punctuality. These statistics are used to inform the development and monitoring of bus policy.

Most of the data are derived from the Department’s main annual Public Service Vehicle (PSV) survey of bus and coach operators of all sizes. However, some figures are derived from smaller surveys of the larger bus operators or other sources. London figures are provided by Transport for London (TfL).

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Bus statistical releases

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Bus statistical tables

Index sheet of all the bus statistical tables (XLS – 46 KB)

Tables within the bus statistics series

Tables containing data on buses and coaches within other DfT series:

Notes and guidance

Full details of the data sources and methods used in the compilation of bus statistics can be found in the notes and definitions (available below).

User and supplier feedback and changes to these statistics

We continuously review the content of these statistics to ensure that they provide the most useful information whilst minimising burdens on data providers. A summary of feedback we have received from users and data suppliers, together with details of planned changes from 2011/12, is available below. We continue to welcome any feedback on these statistics via our user feedback formor by email to bus.statistics@dft.gsi.gov.uk

Bus statistics: User and supplier feedback and changes for 2011/12 (PDF – 88 KB)

Review of bus fares index

The DfT bus fares index, published as part of these statistics, has recently been independently reviewed. A report on this review, including a summary of the Department’s response to the recommendations made, can be found below.

Review of DfT bus fares index – final report (PDF – 114 KB)

Previous and forthcoming revisions

The PSV survey uses imputation techniques to derive key figures for operators who were not selected or did not respond. Published data contain revisions (made in 2010) dating back to 2004-05 after a review of the imputation methods. The latest figures are based on the same methodology.

Alongside the proposed changes to data collected, we are planning to improve the data systems used to produce the statistics. Users should be aware that this may result in further revisions to the data from 2004-05, although trends are unlikely to be affected substantively. These are likely to be published alongside the annual bus statistics later in 2012.

Figures in some of the tables on revenue and support are routinely revised as better data becomes available. For further details refer to the notes and definitions document below.

National Statistics

The majority of these statistics are National Statistics. Exceptions are tables containing data supplied by local authorities and those relating to bus service provision.

These statistics are due to be assessed by the UK Statistics Authority in 2012, to determine their compliance with the Code of Practice for Official Statistics.

Pre-release access list

The post holders given pre-release access for up to 24 hours prior to release.

Technical information

Further technical and background information related to DfT bus statistics including detailed notes and definitions and copies of survey questionnaires.

DfT Bus Statistics – Notes and Definitions (PDF – 117 KB)

PSV Survey Questionnaire (PDF – 88 KB)

Bus Fares Survey Questionnaire (PDF – 24 KB)

Bus Reliability Survey Questionnaire (PDF – 26 KB)

Bus Punctuality Survey Questionnaire (PDF – 13 KB)

Concessionary Travel Survey Questionnaire (PDF – 169 KB)