Leicester Has Shown What Multi-Operator Bus Ticketing Can Look Like — Could Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Be Next?

Leicester deserves credit for what it is doing on bus ticketing.

At a time when the bus industry is constantly talking about passenger growth, affordability, modal shift and making public transport easier to use, Leicester has taken a practical step that many areas should be looking at closely.

Leicester City Council has worked with operators to reduce the cost of Flexi bus tickets, making them a cheaper and simpler option for passengers using buses across the Leicester network. The Flexi tickets can be used on services run by multiple operators including Arriva Leicester, Centrebus, First Leicester, Kinchbus, Stagecoach and Central Connect within the Leicester Flexi zone.

That matters.

Because passengers do not think in operator boundaries.

They think in journeys.

They think about getting to work, school, college, hospital appointments, shops, family, leisure and home again. They do not want to have to work out whether their ticket is valid because one bus is run by one company and the next bus is run by another.

Leicester’s approach recognises something very important: if we want more people to use buses, the system has to be affordable, simple and easy to understand.

The Leicester Flexi ticketing system also includes tap-on/tap-off capping, with Leicester Buses stating that passengers can tap on and tap off and have their fare capped at a maximum of £6.20 for a day or £23 for a week, although the tap-on/tap-off element is currently available on Arriva, Centrebus and First, with Kinchbus and Stagecoach to be added later.

This is exactly the sort of joined-up thinking that should be looked at across Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire.

Nottingham Already Has Robin Hood — But the Boundary Matters

In Nottingham, we already have the Robin Hood ticketing system, and it is a useful product.

The Robin Hood card is valid within the Greater Nottingham area on most services within the boundary, and can also be used across the full tram network.

But that boundary is the issue.

Robin Hood Pay As You Go makes clear that travel beyond the boundary is not permitted on any bus service.

That means it does not solve the wider problem for passengers travelling in and out of towns, villages and communities beyond the Greater Nottingham boundary.

For many passengers, especially outside the city core, the bus network can still feel fragmented.

NCT has its own tickets.

trentbarton has Zigzag.

Other operators have their own products.

Robin Hood works within a defined area.

But passengers do not always live their lives within those ticketing boundaries.

Calverton Shows the Problem Clearly

I see this issue regularly as a bus driver on the Calverton route.

Passengers may use both NCT and trentbarton depending on the time of day, direction of travel, frequency, convenience, where they are going, or which bus comes first.

But the ticketing system does not always reflect how passengers actually travel.

A passenger should not be financially penalised simply because the most suitable bus for their journey is run by a different operator.

If the public policy aim is to increase bus use, reduce car dependency and make public transport a genuine alternative, then passengers need confidence that they can use the network as a network.

Not as separate company-by-company products.

This is particularly important for communities on the edge of urban areas and in wider county locations, where people may rely on more than one operator to make practical journeys.

Affordability Is Not Just About the Fare Cap

There has been a lot of national debate about bus fares, fare caps and government support.

But affordability is not only about the price of a single journey.

It is also about whether people have to pay twice.

It is about whether a passenger can use the next available bus.

It is about whether a family can understand the ticketing system.

It is about whether someone travelling to work has to choose between waiting longer or paying more.

A multi-operator ticket can make the bus network feel simpler, fairer and more usable.

That is why Leicester’s move is important.

It is not just a local fares story. It is an example of how bus networks can be made easier for passengers.

I Am Writing to Mayor Claire Ward

Following Leicester’s announcement, I am writing to Mayor Claire Ward to ask whether the East Midlands Combined County Authority is looking at a similar approach for Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire.

I believe the Mayor and EMCCA should be asked clearly:

Is a Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire-wide multi-operator ticket being explored?

Has the Leicester Flexi model been considered?

Have discussions taken place with operators such as NCT, trentbarton, Stagecoach, CT4N, Kinchbus, Centrebus and others?

Could future Bus Service Improvement Plan funding, transport funding or franchising-related work support a wider integrated ticketing model?

Will passengers, bus workers and trade unions be consulted?

These are reasonable questions.

The East Midlands now has a combined authority. It has a Mayor. It has transport ambitions. It will have to make decisions about buses, integration, funding, passenger growth and the future shape of local public transport.

Ticketing has to be part of that conversation.

Bus Reform Must Be Felt by Passengers

Bus reform cannot just be about strategies, governance structures and long-term plans.

Passengers need to feel the difference.

They need buses that are reliable, affordable, accessible and easy to use.

They need ticketing that makes sense.

They need a system that works across real journeys, not just administrative boundaries or commercial operator lines.

Leicester has shown that progress is possible when councils and operators work together.

Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire should now be asking whether we can do something similar — and whether we can go even further.

If we are serious about growing bus passenger numbers, then multi-operator ticketing is not a side issue.

It is central to making buses work for the public.

Leicester deserves credit for this rollout.

Now the question is whether Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire are prepared to learn from it.

Tags:

Bus Ticketing, Multi Operator Ticketing, Leicester Buses, Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, EMCCA, Claire Ward, Public Transport, Bus Services, Bus Reform, Robin Hood Network, trentbarton, NCT, Calverton, Affordable Transport, Integrated Transport, Better Buses, Bus Passenger Growth, East Midlands Transport, Local Transport Policy