Catch the Bus Month 2025 launched by Bus Users UK and TfWM

In addition to promoting the mode, celebration will highlight the need for continued investment

Catch the Bus Month 2025 was launched by Bus Users UK and Transport for West Midlands on 2 September at the Coventry Transport Museum.

The event was opened by Mayor of the West Midlands Richard Parker (pictured, centre) and supported by bus operators. Also present were representatives of governments, local transport authorities, campaign bodies, and other groups.

Bus Users UK notes how this year’s Catch the Bus Month, which runs across September, has “scores of partners” on board and that hundreds of activities are underway across England, Scotland and Wales, with many more campaigns, promotions and special offers running online.

While modern battery-electric buses were on hand at the launch event, a backdrop was provided by members of the Coventry Transport Museum fleet of preserved models. Games, activities and refreshments were also on offer alongside the Museum’s interactive galleries and immersive exhibitions.

Bus Users UK Director for England Lydia Horbury notes how Catch the Bus Month in 2025 is again about celebrating the mode’s vital role but will also highlight the need for continued investment to make services more reliable, inclusive, and sustainable.

“Launching this year’s campaign in Coventry, a city with such a rich transport heritage, is the perfect reminder of the bus’s power to shape our communities and our future,” adds Ms Horbury.

Earlier in 2025 Mr Parker decided that bus services in the West Midlands will be franchised. Speaking at the Catch the Bus Month launch, he noted how buses “are the backbone of our public transport network” and enable millions of journeys each year.

He continues: “We are not just encouraging people to get on board, though – we are actively investing in a better bus network. In Coventry for example, we have put a fleet of new electric buses on the road, and we are rolling out new priority routes across the region to improve reliability and journey times.

“I have also started the process of taking control of fares, timetables and routes to build an affordable and accessible network that truly works for everyone in the West Midlands.”

Transport for West Midlands Executive Director Anne Shaw adds that launch of the 2025 Catch the Bus Month being in Coventry is fitting given the transformation of the city’s fleet through its victory in the All-Electric Bus City competition.

“Catch the Bus Month is a great campaign to show people how bus travel is changing and becoming more convenient through easy access to live travel information, tap-and-go contactless ticketing, and bus priority measures to improve journey times,” she says.