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ITV1 HD and BBC TWO HD reported a government campaign to address anti-social behaviour on public transport. The measures were described as targeting behaviour including playing music or videos out loud, vaping, littering and threatening behaviour. On buses, coverage referred to fines of up to £100, focused particularly on loud music; on trains, ITV1 HD reported an existing possible fine of up to £1,000 for passengers who refuse to stop being noisy. ITV1 HD reported the campaign message as 'Share the journey, not the noise', while a guest later referred to 'share the carriage, not the noise'. Both channels examined how the rules would be enforced. ITV1 HD reported that bus drivers would not be asked to enforce the measures and that local transport authorities have new powers under the Bus Services Act 2025 to use transport safety officers on buses, with local police also able to be involved. Its guest said enforcement services are stretched and raised more urgent issues, including violence against women and girls. BBC TWO HD panellists and viewers questioned who would enforce and pay for the measures, with one viewer saying a solo bus driver could be abused or assaulted for intervening. BBC TWO HD also discussed whether a central government policy was the right approach, with Daniel Hannan questioning the need for a central policy and suggesting bus and train companies could set their own, and Shami Chakrabarti arguing for a single criminal code and greater reliance on social stigma. The coverage included claims that existing laws on loud music on trains have not been widely enforced, and that smoking and vaping are already illegal on public transport but are rarely seen because social norms changed.

Key Claims by Channel

Wednesday 22 July 2026

Claim
Reported by all 2 channels
Andy Burnham announced a £2 cap on single bus fares across England from January 2027.	Reported by BBC One	Reported by ITV
The new £2 cap reverses the current £3 cap introduced by Keir Starmer.	Reported by BBC One	Reported by ITV
Rural areas face a bigger issue of bus service frequency rather than cost.	Reported by BBC One	Reported by ITV
Only on one channel
The policy is funded by reallocating £454 million from climate finance loans and £54 million from departmental savings.	Reported by BBC One	Not reported by ITV
The previous £2 cap was introduced by the Conservative government in 2023 and later extended.	Reported by BBC One	Not reported by ITV
The Office for National Statistics said the previous cap contributed to reducing inflation and a 5% increase in bus usage out of a 13% rise.	Reported by BBC One	Not reported by ITV
Lower income passengers benefited most from the previous cap, but it did not score highly on value for money.	Reported by BBC One	Not reported by ITV
Burnham made the announcement in Bath, his first visit outside London as Prime Minister.	Not reported by BBC One	Reported by ITV
Burnham expressed commitment to devolution and regular visits to regions.	Not reported by BBC One	Reported by ITV
Social media personality 'Bus Aunty' supported the announcement.	Not reported by BBC One	Reported by ITV
Burnham noted Heidi Alexander as Transport Secretary and Karen Bristol as Minister of State.	Not reported by BBC One	Reported by ITV

Monday 19 October 2026

Claim
Reported by all 2 channels
The government was launching a campaign to tackle anti-social behaviour on public transport.	Reported by BBC Two	Reported by ITV
The campaign included fines of up to £100 for anti-social behaviour on buses, covering loud music, vaping, littering and threatening behaviour.	Reported by BBC Two	Reported by ITV
The measures were not to be enforced by bus drivers.	Reported by BBC Two	Reported by ITV
Concerns were raised that enforcement services were stretched and that it was unclear who would enforce and pay for the measures.	Reported by BBC Two	Reported by ITV
Concerns were raised that transport workers face abuse and may be unwilling to intervene, and that a solo bus driver could be abused if enforcing the rules.	Reported by BBC Two	Reported by ITV
Only on one channel
Existing train rules allowed fines of up to £1,000 for passengers who refused to stop being noisy, with laws against loud music on trains dating from 2005.	Not reported by BBC Two	Reported by ITV
The campaign slogan contrasted sharing the journey with sharing noise, and a guest later used a variant referring to sharing the carriage.	Not reported by BBC Two	Reported by ITV
The Bus Services Act 2025 gave local transport authorities powers to place transport safety officers on buses, with local police also able to be involved.	Not reported by BBC Two	Reported by ITV
A guest argued that violence against women and girls was a more urgent public transport issue.	Not reported by BBC Two	Reported by ITV
BBC panellists disagreed on whether a central government policy was needed, debating whether transport companies should set their own policies or a single criminal code was necessary.	Reported by BBC Two	Not reported by ITV
A BBC panellist said smoking and vaping were already illegal on public transport and were rarely seen because social norms had changed rather than because of fines.	Reported by BBC Two	Not reported by ITV

This is a cross-channel consensus summary, not an objective account. Consensus can be uniformly wrong, or omit what only one channel covered.