Prime Minister boards electric bus in Norwich as £3 fare cap extended

Sir Keir Starmer spoke to a driver and passengers who had been invited onto the parked double-decker at the First Bus site

Sir Keir was joined by Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander today (Thursday 11 December)
Author: David Lynch and Sam Russell, PAPublished 11th Dec 2025
Last updated 11th Dec 2025

The Prime Minister boarded an electric bus during a visit to a depot in Norwich to see how Government transport funding is being rolled out across England.

Sir Keir Starmer spoke to a driver and passengers who had been invited onto the parked double-decker at the First Bus site in Norwich, where he was told how quiet and modern the vehicle is.

Sir Keir, who was joined by Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander, also spoke to staff and apprentices in the building where vehicles are maintained.

The Government is providing £3 billion in bus funding across England, and Sir Keir said £46 million has been allocated in Norfolk.

He said the £3 bus fare cap, which has been extended until 2027 to limit the cost of a single journey, was proving popular.

Speaking to broadcasters during Thursday's visit, the Prime Minister said: "Here they're adding to their electric fleet and so this bus is electric; very, very popular, and also popular is the £3 fare.

"You can see the cap on fares.

"In a rural place in particular it makes such a difference to have a really good bus service, so putting extra money in, long-term funding, £3 cap so that people know where they stand with the fares, and we're investing in buses for the future."

Sir Keir insisted ahead of the visit, to mark a multi-year bus funding settlement recently announced by the Department for Transport (DfT), that "reliable bus travel shouldn't cost the earth".

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