From 17 March to 16 July 2024, the Department for Transport (DfT) ran a public consultation seeking views on allowing motorcycles to use bus lanes by default, as is the case for pedal cycles. Consulting on default access for motorcycles was a commitment in the previous government’s Plan for Drivers, published in October 2023.

Currently local authorities can choose whether to allow other vehicles, including motorcycles, to use bus lanes on their networks, by adding the symbol to the bus lane signs and referencing them in their traffic regulation orders (TROs).

The consultation sought opinions on 2 potential future options:
•    continue with the current position, with local authorities continuing to make decisions on whether to allow motorcycles to use bus lanes on their road networks
•    allow motorcycles to use bus lanes by default, as is the case for pedal cycles

DfT received 14,327 responses to the consultation. Of these, 14,107 were from individual respondents and 46 were from ‘main’ stakeholder organisations. 
The number of responses from local authorities and stakeholder organisations was low and the findings among these groups should therefore be interpreted with caution.

The safety benefits of allowing motorcycles into bus lanes are not clear at this time. Where data is available, the evidence varies. The response rate to this consultation, from local authorities and stakeholder organisations, was low and did not provide a robust evidence base on which to amend the current policy.

Research on the potential safety impacts for cyclists, and the impact on bus services would be needed to form the evidence base for any change in policy.

The cost to local authorities in new traffic signs and Traffic Regulation Orders of mandating such a change for existing bus lanes would be considerable. Without strong evidence of the benefits and a better understanding of the risks, this cannot be justified.

Full report:
https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/motorcycles-in-bus-lanes/outcome/motorcycles-in-bus-lanes-consultation-outcome#what-will-happen-next