As of 26th January a group of 88 councillors and prospective candidates in the May local elections have pledged “to use our platforms to call for the extension of free public transport, which addresses social injustice, and can help tackle climate change and air pollution”.
The group recognises that “funding models would have to change, in line with a public service approach”, and commits to “exploring how this can be done, including learning from international models”.

The pledge offers a vision of expanding public services to address the cost-of-living crisis – and strikes a sharp contrast to threats of further cuts. It presents a response to myth-making about “waste” in local government, and supports the protection of the workforce through redeployment to meet the needs of a fare free model.

The statement has been signed by councillors representing the Green party, Labour party, Your Party, Nottingham Socialist Alliance, Green Socialist Alliance, Independent Socialists and independents. It remains open to councillors and prospective candidates, from all parties or none, to sign in the run-up to the elections in May.

Those who have signed the pledge so far will be standing for election in eight local authorities in Yorkshire, 11 London boroughs, and councils in the north-west, north Wales, Cambridgeshire, Kent and Suffolk.

The initiative is supported by the campaign groups Fare Free London, Fare Free Yorkshire, Better Buses for West Yorkshire, West Yorkshire Needs a Tram, Tipping Point UK and the Greener Jobs Alliance.

Good public transport, free at the point of use, opens up localities to all who live in them. Campaigners and transport researchers say that abolishing fares is the best way to make services accessible to the lowest-income households. It is an essential part of integrated transport policies that cut greenhouse gas emissions and tackle air pollution.

Some initial signatories explain why they support the pledge:

Caroline Russell, Green councillor in Islington and member of the London Assembly, said: “For many Londoners, just getting to and from work costs so much it can stop them taking a job, or force them to cut back on essentials like food or heating. Meanwhile people living in parts of outer London say they feel forced to own a car to access work, school or medical care.

In a huge city like London access to reliable, affordable and even free public transport is essential to reduce congestion, clean up the air and support Londoners to build regular walking into daily trips on public transport.”

Alan Gibbons, Your Party group leader on Liverpool City Council , said: “There has to be an alternative to car dependency in our increasingly polluted and congested towns and cities, and to support more isolated rural areas.

The offer of free bus, tram and train journeys, and quality park and ride schemes, can work as part of a comprehensive public transport system to make our communities cleaner, happier and more accessible places. It just needs our political leaders to show courage and imagination.”

Ed Carlisle, Green member of Leeds City Council

We feel this all the more acutely in Leeds: we’re the largest European city without a mass transit system. We cannot settle this at the local level alone: the government needs to think big, instead of deferring everything to the private corporate world.”

Fliss Premru, independent socialist councillor in Hackney in London, said: “If public investment only goes into expanding the road system, it will widen social inequalities and exacerbate our greenhouse gas emission and air pollution problems. Let’s push the other way. Free public transport is the sort of big, bold measure that can address the cost-of-living crisis and help tackle climate change at the same time.”

Zoë Garbett, Green candidate for Mayor of Hackney , said: “Everyone should be able to get around their communities without worrying about the cost. Free, reliable public transport is good for people, good for our economy, and essential for tackling the climate crisis. I want to see free bus travel for everyone under 22 which would give young people freedom to move, access to work, and the ability to stay connected to friends and fun, all while easing the pressures on our roads. This is how we help create a fairer and cleaner London.”

Background:

Calls to widen the provision of free public transport have been growing over the last few years. Buses are already free for pensioners across the UK, and for under-22s in Scotland and Wales; London residents who are 60+ travel free on the tube and trains too.
The House of Commons transport committee called in August last year for free bus travel to be extended to under-22s in England.

Glasgow City Council, acting on a recommendation of the Scottish Just Transition Commission, in 2024 published a report on how free public transport could be implemented in the city, and will run a pilot scheme this year under which 1000 residents between the ages of 22 and 59 will travel free for six weeks.

Outside the UK, free transport schemes are widespread. Public transport is free for residents in European cities including the capitals of Estonia and Serbia; Montpellier and Dunkerque in France; Kriviy Rih in Ukraine; and the whole of Luxemburg. No less than 130 municipalities in Brazil have free public transport, as do Kansas City, Albuquerque and other cities in the US.

Notes

The Free Public Transport study conducted by Glasgow City Council  The council’s announcement of the pilot study is reported here and here.

Councillors and prospective candidates are invited to sign the pledge

Press enquiries

The campaign groups supporting this initiative can be directed to: In London, info[at]farefreelondon.org, or Pearl Ahrens on 07761 932060 and Simon Pirani on 07947 031268.            In Yorkshire, betterbuseswestyorkshire@gmail.com, or Gareth Forest on 07450 334214.

As of 27/1/26 more than 80 councillors have signed the pledge including:

Amandine Alexandre (prospective Green candidate, Brent),  Shireen Asaw (Green candidate, Lewisham), Thomas Atkin-Withers (Green candidate, Sheffield), Mohammed Ayub (Labour councillor, Wakefield), Adrian Balcombe (Green candidate, Leeds), Arshan Baskaran (Green candidate, Newham)
Stan Bates (independent councillor, Wakefield), Alistair Binnie-Lubbock (Green councillor, Hackney), Rob Callender (Green candidate, Newham), Ed Carlisle (Green councillor, Leeds), Katrina Tia Charles (Green candidate, Barnsley), Michael Chessum (Green candidate, Lambeth), Nilesh Chohan (prospective Green candidate, Leeds), Ilkay Cinko-Oner (community independent councillor, Islington), Geraldine Coggins (Green councillor, Trafford), Andrew Cooper (Green councillor, Kirklees), Simon Cope (prospective Green candidate, Kirklees), Chris Copeman (Green councillor, Cheshire West and Chester), Ann-Marie Cousins (independent councillor, Greenwich), Ellen D’Arcy (prospective Green candidate, Ilkley and Addingham), Andy Davies (Green candidate, Sheffield), Pete Elliott (Green candidate, Lambeth), Jara Falkenburg (prospective Green candidate, Islington), Ben Ffrench (Green candidate, York), Giulio Ferrini (prospective Green candidate, Islington), Judy Filmore (Green councillor, Westmorland and Furness), Miranda Fyfe (Green candidate, South Cambridgeshire), Zoë Garbett (Green councillor, Hackney, candidate for Mayor of Hackney), Erica Gbajumo (Green councillor, Brent), Alan Gibbons (Your Party councillor, Liverpool), Dario Goodwin (Green candidate, Lambeth), Sam Gorst (Your Party/ Liverpool community independent councillor, Liverpool), Philip Graham (community independent councillor, Islington), George Sheldon Grun (prospective Green candidate, Hackney), Jon Harland (Green councillor, Denbighshire), Chloe Hawryluk (prospective Green candidate, Lambeth), Nate Higgins (Green councillor, Newham), Eden Hills (prospective Green candidate, Leeds), Joe Hudson-Small (Green candidate, Newham), Douglas Johnson (Green councillor, Sheffield), Kirsty L. Jones (Nottingham People’s Alliance councillor, Nottingham city council), Sheridan Kates (prospective Green candidate, Islington)
Danny Keeling (Green councillor, Newham), Anwar Khan (Nottingham People’s Alliance councillor, Nottingham city council)
Zahra Kheyre (Green candidate, Newham), Elizabeth King (prospective Green candidate, Kirklees), Jane Leicester (Green councillor, Trafford), Robert Lindsay (Green councillor, Suffolk), Robin McGhee (Green candidate, Lewisham), Heather Mendick (independent socialist candidate, Hackney)
Mary Mitchell (Green councillor, Brent), Pascale Mitchell (Green candidate, Southwark), Ayan Mohamud (prospective Green candidate, Croydon), George Müller-Waite (Green candidate, Leeds), Martin Murray (prospective Green candidate, Islington), Faith Obiaka-Hayward (prospective community independent candidate, Islington), Anita Paris (prospective Green candidate, Bexley), Ruairidh Paton (Green Socialist Alliance councillor, Haringey)
Diane Pearson (independent councillor, Camden), Hugo Pierre (prospective Trade Unionists & Socialist Coalition/Socialist Party candidate, Tower Hamlets), Fliss Premru (independent socialist councillor, Hackney), Martin Price (Green candidate, Kirklees), Shabd Pyari (prospective Green candidate, Newham), Sonia Quintero (Green candidate, Newham), Victoria Rance (prospective Green candidate, Greenwich), Aaron Regisford (Green candidate, Lewisham), Matt Rogan (Green candidate, Leeds), Caroline Russell (Green councillor, Islington), Lorna Jane Russell (Green councillor, Camden), Tamasin Rhymes (Green councillor, Greenwich), Lakshan Saldin (independent councillor, Greenwich), Becky Sanders (Green candidate, Lewisham)
Ulgen Semerci (Green candidate, Hackney), Jimmy Shannon (Green and Independent Alliance councillor, Cheshire West and Chester)
Liam Shrivastava (Green councillor, Lewisham), Stacy Smith (Green candidate, Greenwich), Penny Stables (Green councillor, Leeds), Hau-Yu Tam (Green councillor, Lewisham), Karin Tearle (Green candidate, Greenwich), Reiner Tegtmeyer (Green candidate, Hackney), Nick Torry (Green candidate, Lewisham), Claudia Turbet-Delof (independent socialist councillor, Hackney), Peter Underwood (Green candidate for Mayor of Croydon), Paul Valentine (Green councillor, Lambeth), Michael Welton (Green councillor, Trafford), Joe Wheatley (independent councillor, Bradford Metropolitan District), Penny Wrout (independent socialist councillor, Hackney), Leon Zadok (Green candidate, Leeds)