The bus joined other council-owned buses from London and Liverpool in front of the famous Liver building on Monday 23 September, as part of the fringe events around the Labour party conference.

The event saw Secretary of State for transport, The Rt Hon Louise Haigh MP, get on board Warrington’s Own Buses’ new electric bus, to learn more about the investment in the new fleet and find out about the ongoing plans to invest in the future of bus travel in the borough.

Joining the Secretary of State were Deputy Leader of Warrington Borough Council, Cllr Jean Flaherty, council chief executive Prof. Steven Broomhead MBE, and officers from the council and Warrington’s Own Buses, who discussed the vision to replace the entire diesel fleet with 105 zero emissions vehicles.

Warrington’s representatives also highlighted how they are using just over £17m in government Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP) funding to drive forward improvements across the board.

Through an ‘Enhanced Partnership’, the council is working with all local bus operators to deliver cheaper fares, increased punctuality, frequency and reliability and high quality, accessible vehicles. Under the banner of ‘Better by Bus, this has included:

•            £1 capped fares for everyone aged under 22 and £2 adult capped fares

•            free concessionary pass travel at any time of the day

•            enhanced timetables and new routes across the network

Also discussed was the government’s new buses bill, which is expected to be put before Parliament in the near future.

It could bring in new powers for publicly owned bus operators like Warrington’s Own Buses, further strengthening the work to deliver a number of further improvements through to 2025 and beyond, including new bus priority measures, continued low fares, multi-operator ticketing and real time passenger information at stops and on devices

Cllr Jean Flaherty said: “It was fantastic to have the opportunity to showcase our new electric bus in Liverpool. Our order of 105 zero emissions vehicles is one of the largest made anywhere in the UK, so we were pleased to welcome the Secretary of State on board to tell her all about our ambitious plans for the future of bus travel in Warrington.

“We also had the chance to discuss the forthcoming bus bill and how it could help drive forward our ongoing work to transform services in Warrington and Cheshire. We’re looking forward to continuing to work with the government and our partners to deliver cleaner, greener, and more affordable bus services for everyone.”