Bus franchising is reshaping the UK public transport landscape, giving Local Transport Authorities (LTAs) greater responsibility for network design, passenger outcomes and long-term financial sustainability. But one of the most important decisions in that transition is often treated too late in the process: fare collection.
Littlepay’s whitepaper, Fare Collection in Bus Franchising: Options for Local Transport Authorities, explores how fare collection should be approached as a strategic platform decision, not simply a technology procurement. The whitepaper sets out three practical pathways for LTAs – Off-the-Shelf, Operator-Led and In-House – examining the trade-offs between cost, control, risk, delivery speed and future flexibility. It also looks at lessons from Greater Manchester’s Bee Network, the role of modular and interoperable systems, and the often-overlooked payments and settlement decisions that sit underneath passenger-facing ticketing.
Download the whitepaper to learn:
- Why fare collection is central to franchising outcomes, passenger experience and revenue visibility
- How different delivery models compare across cost, complexity, control and risk
- Why ‘in-house’ does not always mean greater control
- How modular, service-led approaches can help authorities preserve future flexibility
- What LTAs need to consider around Merchant of Record, PSPs, acquirers, settlement and broker models.
Littlepay provides payments infrastructure purpose-built for transit and mobility, supporting contactless payments, fare capping, revenue processing and interoperable passenger experiences. Its open, API-based platform is used by more than 600 transport and mobility providers across 30+ countries and is designed to help agencies avoid single-vendor lock-in. Littlepay has also been selected to deliver the broker platform for Project Coral, a DfT-funded programme supporting contactless fare capping across multiple operators and modes, designed to work alongside existing infrastructure.
This content is being provided to you on behalf of our partner. By clicking ‘agree and continue’, we may make the information you have provided on this form available to our partner.
It is in our and our partners’ legitimate business interests to share this data: it allows us to attract the most appropriate partner for the content and to facilitate business-to-business communication between our partner and you. Our partner may contact you about their services.
If you would prefer not to have your data shared with our partner, please send an email to Christina Glenister and we will request a copy of the content on your behalf. We may still let the partner know which company you are from, but we will not provide your personal details.
For details of how we use the information you provide to us, please see our Privacy Policy
