The Traffic Commissioners for Great Britain published their 2024-25 annual report to the Secretary of State yesterday, detailing performance against strategic objectives and evaluating the current state of the transport industry.

The report highlights three key areas of concern: vehicle maintenance, fair competition, and bridge strikes. It examines current economic and security issues alongside driver shortages and industry innovation, using real cases from public inquiries to illustrate key issues.

During 2024-25, the commissioners processed 12,345 operator licence applications and variations,11,199 local bus registrations, and conducted 1,066 public inquiries. They also held 224 preliminary hearings, 38 Senior Team Leader interviews, and closed 15,613 vocational driver cases.  

The report covers work on local bus services, digital improvements, assistance to enforcement agencies, and support for transport managers operating light goods vehicles.

A Traffic Commissioners spokesperson said: "It is not in the interests of the goods or passenger transport sectors to have poor-quality operations competing with responsible operators. The Traffic Commissioners play an important and strategic role underpinning road safety and are a well-regarded means of ensuring fair play in both sectors." 

The spokesperson added that whilst the licensing and tribunal service has adapted to societal needs and crisis situations, it could go further. The report identifies efforts to make services more efficient and effective whilst highlighting the value of lawful compliance. 

"It further identifies what needs to change to support industry growth and reducing the regulatory burden on applicants and operators," the spokesperson said.

The full report is available to view and download from the Traffic Commissioners for Great Britain website.