Purpose

Lancashire County Council is preparing a bid to the Department for Transport's Zero Emission Bus Regional Area fund on behalf of Preston Bus; Stagecoach Cumbria and North Lancashire; and Stagecoach Merseyside and South Lancashire.

If successful, the Department for Transport will pay grant funding to Lancashire County Council for onward payment to the operators. Whilst Lancashire County Council will not be contributing any of its own money beyond the cost of preparing the bid submission and associated legal fees, the Department for Transport require the county council to co-ordinate the bid, design the scheme to ensure consistency with Subsidy Control and value for money principles and to protect the grant funding in distress situations.

The deadline for submission is Friday 15 December 2023.

Decision

The Cabinet approved the recommendation(s) as set out in the report.