A PLEDGE to give councils new powers to ensure bus operators serve communities properly has been welcomed by Oxfordshire County Council.

Transport secretary Douglas Alexander has promised action to end the current 'free for all' among private bus operators.

The move could signal the reversing of bus deregulation which was introduced by Conservatives under the Transport Act 1985 - apart from in Greater London and Northern Ireland.

David Robertson, the county council's cabinet member for transport, said a total reversal of deregulation would be wrong.

But he added that he would welcome changes which would allow him to "sit in a room and discuss a commercial route with two rival operators".

"At present, the Competitions Act prevents local authorities from doing that, which is not helpful," Mr Robertson said.

"Life is not simply about making profit, it is also about serving communities and what Mr Alexander is promising could mean an even better working relationship between bus operators and ourselves."

Mr Robertson said deregulation caused problems in Oxford when it was first introduced, with "too many buses clogging up Cornmarket" as operators vied for customers.

But he claimed the council's excellent working relationship with Oxford Bus Company, Stagecoach and Thames Travel meant there were no longer major problems.

Bus services in the UK are now provided on a commercial or subsidised basis. Commercial operators can run any service they want but must give notice of changes to it. They can also set their own fares.

Councils plug gaps in the commercial network by paying operators to cover routes that are necessary but financially non-viable.

In some areas, competition has seen improved services and lower fares but elsewhere the lack of local authority control has had the opposite effect.

Mr Alexander, speaking at the Labour Party Conference, said councils and bus operators worked well together in some instances but too many communities suffered from failing bus services.

Mr Alexander said: "In the weeks ahead I will bring forward proposals to change the way buses are run in this country.

"You know and I know that in too many of our communities we have seen a free for all that has left the needs of the public behind.

"So to ensure the private sector delivers the bus services our communities demand I will act to empower local communi- ties."