The £105.5m coming to the West of England Combined Authority and North Somerset Council is the second highest funding award in the whole of the country. Liverpool have won £12m, while neighbouring Somerset County Council will receive £11.9 million.

Metro Mayor Dan Norris who is responsible for regional transport said: “The money will build on the half a billion we have already secured since last May. It sounds like a lot of money – and it is. Sadly this isn’t cash I am allowed to spend to save individual bus routes. What we can do is make sure buses don’t get stuck in so many traffic jams with measures to speed them through congestion, improve the quality of buses, and make it easier to buy a ticket.”