Passengers Playing Loud Music on English Buses Could Face £100 Fines
New powers for local authorities target antisocial behaviour, with a separate national campaign launched for rail passengers
By AXY Business Desk ·
Key points
- Passengers playing loud music on buses in England could face fines of up to £100 under new government plans.
- New powers given to local authorities would allow fixed penalties for antisocial behaviour on buses, but the rules still need sign-off from the Transport Secretary.
- Bus drivers will not enforce the rules; authorised officers, including Transport Safety Officers and police, will deal with incidents.
- A national campaign, "share the carriage, not the noise", is being launched for rail passengers.
- Existing rail powers allow a passenger who refuses to stop to be removed from a train or fined up to £1,000.
Passengers who play loud music on buses in England could be fined up to £100 under a government attempt to crack down on antisocial behaviour, according to a report published by the BBC on 19 October 2026. The measures are also aimed at littering, vaping and threatening behaviour, with the stated goal of improving journeys on all forms of public transport. A separate national campaign, asking rail passengers to "share the carriage, not the noise", is being launched at the same time.
The fines would be issued to offenders on buses under new powers given to local authorities. The proposal has been welcomed by campaigners, but some have questioned how it can be enforced. Prime Minister Andy Burnham said that anyone who has travelled by train will know the problem: "We've all been on the train when someone starts blasting music or videos from their phone. It gets on your nerves and can quickly spoil the journey."
What the new bus rules would do
The government said it has issued new guidance to local authorities on powers that were introduced earlier this year. Those powers allow councils to impose new rules on buses, which still need to be signed off by the Transport Secretary. Once those rules are in place, people who commit offences could face fixed penalties of up to £100.
A fixed penalty is a set fine issued on the spot or shortly afterwards, without the case going to court. It is usually paid within a set period, and the amount is fixed by the rules rather than decided by a magistrate. In this case, the maximum figure named by the government is £100 for each offence.
The government has also said that bus drivers will not be responsible for enforcing the new rules. Instead, authorised officers will deal with incidents. The government names two groups among them: Transport Safety Officers and the police. This matters for everyday passengers, because it means a driver who is trying to keep a bus moving is not expected to confront a passenger who is playing music loudly.
Why the government is acting now
Transport in Britain has long faced complaints about passenger behaviour that falls short of serious crime but still makes journeys unpleasant. Loud music played through phone speakers, sometimes called loudcasting or sodcasting, is among the most common complaints. Phrases like these have grown up because the habit is widespread enough to need its own name.
The source material notes that Ofcom, YouGov and Transport for London (TfL) have all published polls in recent years. Each found that most people dislike the habit. Those surveys help explain why the issue has moved up the political agenda. Politicians often find that a problem affecting many people in small ways, such as noise, litter or vaping, is easier to rally support around than a rare but severe crime.
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said small changes in behaviour "can make a massive difference to people's experience on public transport". That framing is significant. The government is presenting the policy as a way to improve the everyday experience of travel, rather than as a response to a single incident or a rise in serious offences.
The existing rail powers
The new bus rules sit alongside powers that already apply on trains. Under those existing powers, a passenger who is asked to stop a behaviour and refuses could be removed from a train or fined up to £1,000. The bus fine of up to £100 is therefore much lower than the maximum penalty on rail, but the government appears to be seeking a way to deal with antisocial conduct across different types of transport.
The contrast between the two regimes raises a practical question. Trains and buses operate under different systems of staffing, ticketing and supervision. A bus typically has one driver and may carry many passengers, while many trains have guards or on-board staff, depending on the service. The source material does not say how the rules on each form of transport will be applied in day-to-day operation, and that gap is one reason why some people have questioned enforcement.
Enforcement questions and reaction
The proposed crackdown has been welcomed by campaigners. Some of them, however, have asked how the rules can be enforced in practice. Their concern is understandable. A fine is only effective if an officer is present to witness the offence, if the passenger can be identified and if the penalty can be issued and collected. On a crowded bus, identifying the person playing music may be difficult, especially if the sound is coming from a phone held in a bag or on a lap.
Analysts who follow public transport policy often point out that rules of this kind depend heavily on local resources. If councils must rely on limited numbers of officers, enforcement may vary from area to area. That would mean a passenger could face a fine in one town for behaviour that goes unpunished in another. The source material does not provide information on how many officers will be available or how the penalties will be applied across different councils, so these points remain open questions rather than established facts.
The campaign for rail passengers takes a different approach. Its slogan, "share the carriage, not the noise", is aimed at encouraging better behaviour rather than at penalties alone. Campaigns of this kind often work by making a social norm clearer, so that passengers feel more confident asking a neighbour to turn down a phone. Whether a message of this type changes habits is something that tends to be measured through later surveys, and the source material does not say what targets or evaluation plans the government has set.
What happens next
Several steps will determine how the policy works in practice. The first is the sign-off required from the Transport Secretary for the new rules that local authorities want to impose on buses. Until that approval is given, the fines described in the report cannot be issued under the new bus rules. The second is the publication and use of the guidance the government has already issued to councils, which sets out how the powers are meant to be used.
The third step is how the authorised officers, including Transport Safety Officers and police, are deployed. The government has said that bus drivers will not enforce the rules themselves, so the presence of those officers will be central to whether the fines are used in practice. Observers will be watching to see whether councils act quickly, and whether the penalties lead to visible changes on routes where the problem is most common.
For passengers, the immediate effect is limited. The new measures are a plan that still needs formal steps before they apply on the ground. Anyone travelling by bus in England may see signage or announcements in the coming months if councils adopt the rules, but the exact timetable is not set out in the source material. Passengers who are unsure of the rules in their area should check with their local council or bus operator once the rules are confirmed.
The wider question is whether a combination of fines, campaigns and better enforcement can reduce a nuisance that many people experience every day. The polls cited in the report suggest there is strong public support for tackling the problem. Whether the policy delivers a noticeable improvement will depend on how it is enforced, how much it is publicised and whether passengers change their habits as a result.
Questions and answers
How much could passengers be fined for loud music on buses in England?
Passengers who play loud music on buses in England could be fined up to £100 under the government's proposed powers. The fines would be issued to offenders under new powers for local authorities.
Who will enforce the new bus rules?
The government says bus drivers will not be responsible for enforcing the new rules. Authorised officers, including Transport Safety Officers and the police, will deal with incidents.
Are the new bus fines already in force?
The new rules still need to be signed off by the Transport Secretary, so they are not yet in place. The government has issued new guidance to local authorities on the powers.
What is the penalty for antisocial behaviour on trains?
Under existing powers, a passenger who is asked to stop and refuses could be removed from a train or fined up to £1,000. A national campaign asking rail passengers to share the carriage, not the noise, is also being launched.
Topics: bus fines England, antisocial behaviour, public transport, Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander, Andy Burnham, rail passengers, local authorities
Sources: BBC Business RSS