To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what support his Department is providing to bus companies to modernise their fleets.

The Government has introduced a variety of measures to help operators in England modernise their fleets.

As part of a £3.5 billion commitment for air quality and cleaner transport, we awarded over £40 million in 2016 and 2017 to support the purchase of cleaner and less polluting buses under the Low Emission Bus Scheme. We will be launching a further round of this scheme later this year worth an additional £49 million. We have also committed £40 million for retrofitting older buses with pollution-reducing technology under the Clean Bus Technology Fund.

In terms of improvements on-board buses, the Bus Services Act (2017) includes provisions through the Accessible Information Regulations requiring all bus operators of local services across Great Britain to provide audible and visible route and next stop announcements on-board buses.

Whilst the regulations are intended to be technology neutral, the outcome should be a more modern, more accessible and overall better experience for bus passengers across England, Scotland and Wales.