Best Use of Thought Leadership
A multidisciplinary team from KPMG conducted ground-breaking research for the Confederation of Passenger Transport (CPT) to fully quantify, for the first time, the economic impacts and benefits of bus and coach travel.
Buses and coaches are key parts of the UK’s transport infrastructure, delivering direct economic impacts for passengers and operators with significant additional benefits for supply chains and communities. However, there was a lack of robust quantifiable data about these impacts. The most recent comprehensive study of buses was over ten years old, while for coaches an equivalent study had never been done.
The Confederation of Passenger Transport (CPT) commissioned KPMG to conduct new studies on both modes of transport. Starting in May 2024, a multidisciplinary team of KPMG experts from the firm’s Transport Economics Advisory practice applied cutting-edge methodologies to produce credible and actionable outputs.
KPMG adopted methods based on established independent government guidance for economic analysis. However, the team went further, applying true thought leadership to apply an additional lens – using extensive research across multiple sources and datasets to quantify the economic impact of bus/coach passengers interacting with local economies.
This innovative approach meant that, for the first time, a complete and multifaceted picture of the scale of economic impact of bus and coach services could be obtained:
- Bus services: With over 10 million daily journeys, bus service provision supports £11.3 billion in direct, indirect, and induced economic impacts, facilitates passenger spending of £39.1 billion annually, and supports around 105,000 jobs.
- Coach services: Coach service provision delivers £6.4 billion in economic benefits, with coach passengers spending £8.3 billion per annum, of which £5.4 billion is linked to domestic tourism, and supports around 81,000 jobs.
The research also highlighted key qualitative benefits, including:
- Enhanced accessibility for rural and underserved communities, improving social mobility.
- Environmental benefits, such as reduced congestion and emissions, through modal shifts from cars to buses and coaches.
- Enhanced community cohesion and wellbeing, with buses and coaches enabling education, healthcare, and leisure access.
The reports were launched at high-profile events with Ministerial and senior local official attendance, and generated significant media coverage including in the BBC, The Times, Independent, transport news outlets and local/regional media.
The research has also informed policy debate including in the House of Commons and House of Lords. Many transport bodies have used the findings of the reports, as well as third party organisations and think tanks. The reports have been discussed and/or presented at many key industry events and conferences.
There has been considerable industry interest and KPMG has already been commissioned by a Transport Authority to conduct a further in-depth study for its region.
This has truly been relevant, timely and ground-breaking thought leadership in action.
View the KPMG profile in the MCA Members Directory.