Codenames and a ‘tense atmosphere’: inside the big bus buyout

For our mayor, Richard Parker, Tuesday’s announcement that the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) is buying out National Express West Midlands was a huge victory. His number one promise before his election in 2024 was to do an Andy Burnham, and bring the region’s buses back under public control. Now he’s done what no other English mayor has: quasi-nationalised them. Burnham signalled his approval with a dedicated snazzy video on social media, featuring a toy bus. 

But Parker’s statement to the press on Tuesday hinted at drama behind the scenes. “I wasn’t prepared to stand by and watch hundreds of buses disappear from our roads because a private company decided to walk away,” he declared.

It was a huge claim out of nowhere: that unbeknownst to the public, the West Midlands had been on the brink of seeing all of our buses vanish, stranding the 4.5 million passengers they ferry around the region every week. Where did it come from?

The Dispatch can reveal that Parker was referencing 12 months of anxious negotiations between the WMCA and Mobico, the parent company of National Express West Midlands. The firm has publicly plastered on a smile when it came to plans to franchise the region’s bus network from 2027 which will see the WMCA set fares and decide routes, while paying private companies to run daily operations. But behind closed doors it’s been a different story. “I can report a tense atmosphere and a lack of willingness on National Express’ part to co-operate,” one WMCA insider tells The Dispatch.

As early as 12 months ago, Mobico was threatening to sell up and move on, potentially leaving the West Midlands without a bus network. 

Now it’s happened. Since 1995, National Express West Midlands has had a near-monopoly on buses here. By the end of the year, that’s officially over. Although a WMCA spokesperson stresses to us that it’s a “temporary” arrangement, finishing in 2029, this makes the West Midlands the first English combined authority to trial full municipal ownership of the buses. 

How did it all go down? In great secrecy, for a start. The Dispatch understands that the deal is so covert, it was assigned a series of changing codenames to keep it under wraps from employees on both sides, and all the major players are now subject to non-disclosure agreements until its completion in December. We’ve managed to piece together the inside story for you anyway — and what this means for bus users in the West Midlands. 

The secret deal