CITIES like Nottingham should get the power to regulate bus services and fares, a think-tank has suggested.
A national report into public transport has said passengers have been let down by deregulation of bus services and that the system needed to change.
The Institute for Public Policy Research argues that Transport for London, which has stronger powers over the bus network in the capital, is the key to its success and the model should be repeated in other parts of the country.
And Nottingham City Council has said the idea could be beneficial.
The authority's director for Planning and Transport Sue Flack said: "Nottingham is one of the few places seeing an increase in bus passengers, which is down to having two of the city's main operators, acknowledged as among the best in the country, working very effectively alongside the city council to invest in and improve bus services in and around the city."
The bus service was deregulated 30 years ago under Margaret Thatcher, with only London avoiding the change.
People waiting for buses at Angel Row in the city centre yesterday wedsaid they didn't feel the bus service let them down, but there was room for improvement.
Masters student Manuel Stephan, 27, of Lilac Grove, Beeston, said: "The buses here are really good I think between Beeston and the city centre but there are some parts which are harder to get to.
"And I have visited London a few times and see that it works really well there.
"I think more coordination would be better – the Oyster card works well in London but there isn't anything similar here yet which isn't good for passengers if they need to use two bus services."
And Clare Wilson, 68, of Conway Road, Long Eaton, said: "Do I think the system has let me down? Not really, but I have friends who live in the sticks and the buses there can be a bit unreliable. But if you're living in a big town then they are just fine."
The IPPR points to falling numbers of passengers as evidence for giving councils more power, adding that passenger journeys have been falling steadily in the East Midlands since 2008/09.
But figures from the Department for Transport from the same period have shown passenger miles in Nottingham are up from 47.3 million in 2008/09 to 48.2 million in 2012/13.
Will Straw, associate director of the IPPR, said: "London has the best buses in Britain and that's no accident.
"Transport for London has been a great success, while the deregulation of buses outside London has largely failed.
"Examples of successful bus markets outside London are all too rare, so local transport bodies should be given greater powers to hold uncompetitive providers to account."
