The government has announced that it will extend the £2 bus fare cap for bus services outside London until the end of October, as part of its Help for Households initiative to ease the cost of living pressures.

The cap, which was introduced in January and was due to expire at the end of September, will then increase to £2.50 until November 2024, before fares are reviewed. The government said the cap will make bus travel more accessible and affordable for millions of people, especially those on lower incomes who rely on buses more than others.

The government will also invest £500 million to support bus services until 2025, including £200 million to extend the cap and £300 million to improve fares, services and infrastructure across England. The funding will help local transport authorities and operators to protect essential bus services and encourage more people to use public transport.

Transport secretary Mark Harper said: “Taking the bus is the most popular form of public transport and millions of people rely on these vital services every day. That’s why we’re investing half a billion pounds to help people save money amid cost-of-living pressures and continue to level up transport in all parts of the country, doing our bit to help halve inflation and grow the economy.”

The Department for Transport (DfT) said the cap has already had a positive impact on bus usage, with operators such as Go-Ahead reporting more than 16 million passengers at £2 since the scheme began. The DfT said the cap and the funding are part of the government’s £3.5 billion investment in buses since March 2020.