routeone speaks to new CPT Partnerships Director Aaron Hill about how he intends to help local leaders make the right decisions for bus
The new Bus Services Act is set to have a significant impact on the landscape of bus services throughout England. Powers over bus services are increasingly being devolved by national government to local and combined authorities and, with that, will come many important decisions across the country.
To support those decisions and to more generally better influence both coach and bus strategy across England, Scotland and Wales, the Confederation of Passenger Transport (CPT) has this month announced the appointment of a Partnerships Director.
Aaron Hill, CPT Cymru Director, will direct the body’s strategy at a local and sub-national level and lead the three regional managers, as well as a new Deputy Regional Manager for the North of England, Alistair Timmis.
Aaron, who will retain executive oversight over CPT policy in Wales, is keen to stress that the role is about much more than guiding authorities in regulatory decisions, although that will of course be a crucial part of it.
Ways to influence bus policy
According to Aaron, the creation of his role will improve outcomes for the industry in three ways: “First, by replicating what we already do nationally at a local level – so, relationship-building, influence in developing policy, running campaigns and increasing awareness of the brilliant work that the industry does.”
Secondly, he wants clearer data – and better use of it – to help inform local decision-making.
Finally, Aaron intends to have a “presence in conversations locally”, in regions where CPT thinks it can make the biggest difference – for example where mayors are making big decisions about future regulation, road space and other key areas.
“I will be leading our members, listening to them and working with them to shape [those conversations] and I think that’s slightly different to what we’ve been doing previously,” he says.
Prioritising which areas they are could be the biggest challenge for him in his new role, he admits. That will be done in conjunction with members, he says, but he adds: “I think that’s probably going to be in markets where there isn’t a single dominant operator currently, where there is a conversation and the decision is up for grabs, and we can genuinely have an impact.
Advising on the big decisions
When it comes to those regulatory decisions, CPT does not favour one way or another, but recognises each area is different. In conjunction with CPT’s new “Models for delivery of local bus networks” handbook, Aaron’s task will be to help with those choices between franchising in its many forms, Enhanced Partnerships or a hybrid approach.
“We’ve got our toolkit, which has been developed to help local authorities make evidence-based decisions on what the right model is for their area…” he says.
“It’s a once-in-a-generation decision and it’s really important that we help local authorities get it right. The evidence shows that different models can work in different places, and I think what’s really important is that, when local authorities make those decisions, it’s evidence-based.”
Aaron says local authorities can learn lessons from Greater Manchester, which is the first and so far only mayoral authority to franchise its bus network.
He commends the commitment of Mayor Andy Burnham and the work that Transport for Greater Manchester has done in maintaining a £2 fare cap and on bus priority and street works.
“I think that [Greater] Manchester is beginning to show that, when you invest in those things, you can deliver improvement,” he says, though he adds, also in reference to plans for franchising in Wales: “The gap between what the farebox is generating and what it’s costing government looks to be significant and I think that’s one of the things that all local authorities are going to need to be considerate of.”
However, when it comes to what can be learned from Wales, he notes it has done a better job than Greater Manchester did in trying to ensure SMEs have a role.
Fixing the data gaps
Aaron also wants to address what he says is a lack of data availability and the effective application of it in coach and bus. He wants to work closely on this with the Department for Transport (DfT), as well as seeing what statistics CPT can assemble.
“The challenge is not necessarily about the data sets that we gather, but the timeliness of them,” he says, referring to DfT’s annual bus statistics, for example. The latest edition was published in November 2025 and covered the year up to the previous April.
What can you learn about the market when we’re getting data a year after it’s happened?
“What can you learn about the market when we’re getting data a year after it’s happened, for example?” he says, arguing for the possibility of more real-time data, helped by AI and open-data sharing.
The data, Aaron says, is vital to informing how areas are performing on bus speeds, which is significant given CPT’s push for targets in this area. He adds that we need data to advise on what is causing bus speed issues in each location.
The data will also help inform best practice for bus operators and authorities – whether connected to regulatory decisions or not. That won’t be straightforward, though, says Aaron.
“I don’t think it’s as easy as lifting one success story and applying it to another market because we all know that the factors affecting patronage will vary everywhere because of the economy, the jobs available, where and when people want to travel,” he says.
“So we can’t necessarily say, because it works in Portsmouth, it will work in Kent, for example. But what we can look at is what the data tells us.”
Getting recognition for coach
CPT believes coach will also benefit from Aaron’s new role. He says: “We know that lots of local authorities don’t talk enough about coach… I think that having conversations about bus can open the door to that.”
He adds that the new set-up will free up regional managers’ time to address coach more. Issues around infrastructure and traffic priority are common to both coach and bus, he points out.
The coach sector’s frustration around lack of recognition stretches to the policies of the seven sub-national transport bodies in England, most of which pay little attention to the mode.
“I think the sub-national transport bodies are absolutely critical when it comes to coach because decisions on things like tourism tend to be more regional,” he says, adding: “We’ve been frustrated at a national level about our ability to get coach into the conversation around the national transport strategy.
“That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t be trying to do that at both regional and local level.”
Aaron was speaking just days after the long-awaited Bus Services (Wales) Bill was passed through the Senedd.
It is therefore at a very significant moment for the industry in Wales that he will scale back his involvement in that region. However, he looks forward to supporting the Head of CPT Cymru, a newly created post for which CPT has begun recruiting.
He says: “I’m really proud of the work that we’ve done in Wales over the last few years since I joined CPT. I think we’ve shaped the bus bill, we’ve increased funding and this opportunity came up at the right time.
“Whoever takes on the mantle of leading CPT Cymru will have a new regulatory system, a new set of politicians to work with, and quite an exciting landscape to step into, and I’ll be here to support them.”
