Park and Ride Bus Services in The United Kingdom

Park and ride bus services in the United Kingdom are bus services designed to provide intermodal passenger journeys between a private mode of transport and a shared mode bus. The common model of bus based park and ride model is transfer from a private car to a public transport bus, although schemes may also be used by pedestrians and cyclists. "Park and ride" commonly refers to permanent schemes operated as part of the public transport system, for onward transport from a permanent car park to an urban centre. ‘Park and ride bus’ can also be used to describe temporary and seasonal schemes, services operated for private or specialised users, and services that do not necessarily serve an urban centre. Bus services can be permanent, seasonal, or only operate on specific days of the week, or for specific events.

Permanent public transport based park and ride sites are predominantly constructed, administered and financially supported by one or more of the local public authorities, although partial private funding also occurs, usually in partnership. Since bus deregulation in 1986, the actual bus service for particular schemes is currently operated by one or more private bus operators, or stand-alone companies, with the contract to operate the bus service being put out to commercial tender. An exception is Northern Ireland, where the state concern Translink promotes and operates all public transport park and ride schemes.

Schemes are often specially marketed with a specific brand separately from other standard local bus services. This is sometimes not necessarily using the name park and ride. Public transport schemes mostly operate at a net loss, with the budgetary cost justified by the reduction in traffic congestion and reduced need for central parking spaces. Generally, the car parking is free, with revenue for the scheme being achieved through fares or travel passes taken by the bus operator. Initially heavily lobbied for by the environmentalists, increasingly the net benefits of park and ride schemes to the environment have been questioned in studies examining the effect of schemes on overall vehicle mileages and passenger travelling behaviour.

Implementation of public transport park and ride bus services in the UK accelerated through the 1980s and 1990s, although some schemes have failed or been scaled back due to lack of use. Permanent schemes range in size from an allocated area with provision of less than 10 cars, to multiple dedicated sites catering in total for nearly 5,000 cars. Schemes predominantly serve a single town or smaller city, while rail based mode, where it exists, is the predominant implementation for the larger metropolitan areas. Larger regional bus schemes exist, such as at Ferrytoll in Fife, Scotland and in Northern Ireland.