Bus services in Watford and across the county could be reshaped after Hertfordshire County Council secured £1.064 million from the Department for Transport. The funding, announced on the council’s website, will pay for a detailed investigation into whether taking control of routes, fares and timetables could deliver a more reliable network.
The money kickstarts a Statutory Franchising Assessment, a formal process that involves crunching passenger data and gathering views from the public. Early analysis points to North and East Hertfordshire, including Stevenage, as the most promising areas to test the model. “We have two rural areas and one urban one and the pilot should give us the data to show if franchising would work,” Cllr Paul Zukowskyi, executive member for environment, transport and growth, said. Under a franchise system, the authority would decide where buses run and how often, then pay operators to deliver the service, shifting the focus from what is profitable to what communities actually need.
The council first explored franchising in 2025 with a £360,000 Government grant and a unanimous vote by its Environment, Transport and Growth panel in April 2026 to push ahead. The latest award comes as the new Liberal Democrat administration puts public transport at the top of its agenda. Watford has already seen improvements through the Connect Herts programme, which doubled the frequency of direct buses on the 725 route and added services to Stevenage, St Albans and Hemel Hempstead.
Mark Doran, the council’s Executive Director for Growth and Environment, called the funding an exciting opportunity. “More regular and reliable bus services could make a real difference to our residents,” he said. The current network includes the HertsLynx on-demand minibus, which operates in rural parts of the county and will be reviewed as part of the assessment. The council aims to have a robust business case ready by the time it applies for further Government support later this year.
If the assessment shows franchising would deliver clear benefits, the first dedicated services could follow later in the decade, shaped by the same principles that govern London’s buses. For now, residents can expect a consultation period during which they will be asked how they use buses and what improvements they most want to see.
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