Passenger Transport: March 25, 2022

FO EV RT ER NI Y GH T

ISSUE 261 25 MARCH 2022

NEWS, VIEWS AND ANALYSIS FOR A SECTOR ON THE MOVE

‘£5bn fuel duty cut will hit public transport’

The chancellor this week announced the biggest ever reduction in fuel duty to help motorists - but public transport campaigners are not impressed Chancellor Rishi Sunak was accused of having “pulled the rug from underneath public transport” after announcing a 5p a litre cut in fuel duty in this week’s spring statement.

Campaign for Better Transport has warned that the £5bn a year tax break, which will remain in place until March 2023, will not help those most affected by the costof-living crisis and will do nothing to help people switch to more sustainable forms of transport.

“The financial impact of today’s fuel duty cut on people’s pockets will in fact be minimal, whereas the message it sends that driving is preferable to using

public transport - is much more detrimental,” said the charity’s chief executive, Paul Tuohy.

“Whilst drivers are given help with the cost-of-living crisis, people that rely on public transport get no help with rising fares and face ongoing cuts to services.”

Since 2012, rail fares have risen at a higher rate than fuel costs, yet rail passengers faced a 3.8% increase in fares this month (4.8%

“People that rely on public transport get no help” Paul Tuohy, CBT

in London), despite calls for a fares freeze. Bus fares have risen at a far higher rate, 54% in the last decade.

Campaign for Better Transport pointed out that had the cost of fuel for car drivers risen at the same rate as bus fares, it would cost well over 200p a litre by now instead of an average of 167p.

People in the lowest-income households make three times as many bus journeys as people with the highest incomes.

Tuohy added: “The Department for Transport has been busy supporting bus and rail travel, but the chancellor’s announcement today has pulled the rug out from underneath public transport.”

NEWS

Go-Ahead set to retain GTR despite penalty

05

Southeastern failure doesn’t stop contract

ENVIRONMENT

Warrington’s buses will be solar showcase

12

New depot, fleet and clean energy source

COMMENT

‘Bus safety shouldn’t be an afterthought’

16

Jonathan Bray urges joined up approach

COMMENT

‘What can we learn from P&O’s shame?’

18

Alex Warner on why it could happen here

CAREERS

Atwal acts on diversity HONG KONG DEAL Alexander Dennis Limited is to build 10 electric, tri-axle double deck buses for Hong Kong’s KMB (diesel vehicles pictured). The Enviro500EVs will be ADL’s first electric double deckers in the Asia-Pacific region

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30

Wrightbus boss joins business leaders

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CONTENTS

PASSENGER TRANSPORT PO Box 5496, Westbury BA13 9BX 020 3950 8000 editorial@passengertransport.co.uk

Fuel duty cut risks sending the wrong signal With a cost of living crisis knocking at the door, chancellor Rishi Sunak was under pressure to act and he did. But did he make the right decision when he cut fuel duty by 5p a litre in this week’s spring statement? The Conservatives binned the fuel duty Robert Jack escalator in 2010 and fuel duty has been frozen Managing Editor since then. Sunak boasted that this was the biggest cut ever, depriving the Treasury of £5bn over 12 months. It will only partially offset the spike in pump prices that followed the outbreak of war in Ukraine, but it will still save you around £3 on the cost of filling up a Ford Focus (and much more if you drive a gas guzzler, of course).

There’s no denying that cutting fuel duty will help a lot of people who are feeling the pinch and depend on their cars. But it will also help a lot of people who don’t need it, and it won’t do much for 35% of the lowest income households which have no access to a car. People in the lowest-income households make three times as many bus journeys as people with the highest incomes, yet the cost of using public transport has consistently risen faster than the cost of motoring. Perhaps Sunak should have looked at New Zealand’s response to rising fuel prices - a reduction in fuel duty alongside half-price public transport.

Road user pricing could provide a more intelligent and fairer way of taxing motorists. In the meantime, there is a risk that Sunak’s selective generosity will be perceived as an endorsement of travelling by car at a time when we should be encouraging behaviour change.

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IN THIS ISSUE 22

IS IT STILL POSSIBLE TO ‘BUS BACK BETTER’?

20

PASSENGER TRANSPORT AFTER THE PANDEMIC

24

JOURNEY TIMES, SPEED AND AMBITION

27

‘THREE OUT OF TEN; PLEASE SEE ME’

Matt Gamble and Neil Davies of Atkins consider how England can deliver BSIPs, Enhanced Partnerships and ZEBRAs as a result of reports suggesting there will be reduced funding from the government for these schemes.

ORGANISATION

PAGE

Abellio London Alexander Dennis Alstom CAF Campaign for Better Transport Carmarthenshire County Council CPT (UK) First Bus First Eastern Counties Flexbuss Sverige AB Gatwick Express Go-Ahead Group Govia Govia Thameslink Railway Grand Central Greater Manchester CA Kiepe Electric KMB Konectbus London Underground National Express Group Norfolk County Council Realise Rotala ScotRail Siemens Southeastern South Yorkshire Mayoral CA Stagecoach Group Sustrans Transport for London Transport for Wales TSSA Van Hool Warrington’s Own Buses West Midlands CA West Midlands Metro Yutong

6 1 7 7 1, 9 11 8, 9 11 11 11 5 5, 11 5 5 5 4 7 1 11 6 7 11 11 4 5 6 4 4 4, 7 5 6 10 5 7 9 11 7 11

The Independent Transport Commission recently commissioned a report to explore the impact of Covid-19 on public transport and its implications on future policy.

Matthew Niblett and Sarah Kendall consider the prospects for the sector.

Train services offer generally acceptable journey times but is there scope for further improvements to woo new passengers to the mode?

Nick Richardson believes that pricing also remains a key factor in determining how people travel.

Our Whitehall insider imagines what’s going on inside the minds of the mandarins at Great Minster House, home of the Department for Transport.

A new report by the National Infrastructure Commission makes for gloomy reading in Horseferry Road.

REGULARS NEWS ENVIRONMENT INNOVATION & TECH COMMENT GRUMBLES CAREERS DIVERSIONS

03 12 14 16 27 30 32

25 March 2022 | 03

23/03/2022 18:06

NEWS ROUND-UP

Judge green lights GM franchising plans Stagecoach and Rotala lose their legal challenge to Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham’s plans to franchise the region’s buses REGULATION

A High Court judge has thrown out claims made by Rotala and Stagecoach that the decision

by Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham to franchise the region’s buses was “irrational” and “unlawful”.

The verdict paves the way for the current deregulated market to be replaced by a franchised network.

Burnham described the verdict as “truly fantastic news for everyone outside London who wishes to see a return to a bus service that puts people ahead of profit”.

The case centred on Greater Manchester Combined Authority’s (GMCA) decision to undertake a public consultation in December 2020 and January 2021 after re-evaluating its previously announced franchising plans in light of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Burnham’s integrated Bee network has taken another step forward

In March 2021, after GMCA recommended by a majority that the scheme should proceed, the mayor of Greater Manchester approved the proposal. The operators claimed that the

South Yorks agrees to ‘interim’ partnership Government funding to unlock fares initiatives South Yorkshire mayor Dan Jarvis has agreed to an Enhanced Partnership with local bus operators that could pave the way for capped bus fares and free travel for young people if government funding is forthcoming.

Jarvis said the partnership was a crucial step towards driving the step-change he wanted to see for

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the region’s buses.

“We’ve invested millions to improve our public transport system and set out transformational plans that give us more control over how buses are run and promise passengers a better service,” he said. “That includes capping fares, free travel for young people, quicker journeys, more journey options,

process failed to meet the requirements of the law.

Giving his verdict at the Royal Courts of Justice, Mr Justice Julian Knowles dismissed the claims made by the operators. “In my

and zero emission buses to make travel cleaner and greener towards a net-zero future.

Agreeing this partnership gives us a shot at winning the funding needed to make that vision a reality.”

The South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority says the agreement would remain in place for between three and five years, allowing progress to be made on bus improvements at the same time as the formal assessment of bus franchising is undertaken.

judgement the mayor’s decision and the process by which the Greater Manchester Combined Authority came to recommend the scheme was lawful,” he said.

Burnham claimed there was a strong mandate from the Greater Manchester public to bring buses back under public control.

“It is frustrating that the two companies concerned pursued this action and I am pleased that the court has dismissed all of their arguments,” he said.

“I now ask them to accept the clear ruling and allow us to crack on and give the people of Greater Manchester what they want - an integrated, accessible and affordable ‘London-style’ transport system joining together buses, trams, cycling and walking; the Bee Network.”

Stagecoach said it was disappointed at the verdict.

“This case was never about the principle of mayoral combined authorities being able to decide to introduce bus franchising,” said a spokesperson. “We absolutely respect that democratic right.

However, the Bus Services Act 2017 makes very clear that authorities must meet specified standards on proper evidence and analysis in pursuing this process.

“It was our view that the process followed by the GMCA in assessing the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on its bus franchising plans did not meet those legal requirements.”

Rotala said it had launched legal action in a bid to “protect its business from a decision that is not only detrimental to Rotala’s future prospects, but also potentially detrimental to the citizens of Greater Manchester”.

It added that it remained ready and willing to enter into a statutory partnership as an alternative to the planned franchising scheme. www.passengertransport.co.uk

23/03/2022 16:16

“Where we stand right now, we have got the reassurance that we need”

Go-Ahead set to retain GTR despite penalty National Rail Contract comes despite £23.5m LSER penalty notice CONTRACTS

Govia looks set to continue operating the Govia Thameslink Railway contract despite being stripped of its contract for the Southeastern franchise last year and last week being issued with an associated £23.5m penalty notice by the government.

The Daily Telegraph reported that Whitehall sources had suggested an announcement could come as early as this week, as ministers were told the issues at London & South Eastern Railway Ltd (LSER), the parent company of Southeastern, had not spread to the wider Govia business. “Where we stand right now, we have got the reassurance that we need,” the

source added.

According to a Department for Transport spokesperson, talks have been progressing between Govia and the government over the future of the GTR contract.

“The department has been progressing discussions with GTR on a new National Rail Contract in parallel to its review into LSER’s conduct and the evidence (including the evidence provided by the owning groups) to determine if it is appropriate to enter into this contract,” they added.

Last week the government confirmed the penalty Govia would have to pay for the failings at LSER. It said the size of the fine reflected the seriousness of the misconduct over a substantial period and the action taken sends a clear signal to all rail operators

that breaches of public trust will not be tolerated.

“I took decisive action and did not renew the contract with Southeastern following this appalling breach of trust,” said transport secretary Grant Shapps.

“Our rapid and firm action protected taxpayers and passengers - ensuring much needed services continued to run. LSER’s behaviour was simply unacceptable and this penalty sends a clear message that the government, and taxpayers, will not stand for it.”

In total the DfT is recovering £64m from LSER in relation to the franchise agreement contraventions, other balances identified, adjustments to profit share payments and interest owed.

The £23.5m penalty notice comes on top of this recovery.

UNION CALLS FOR HSTS TO BE AXED Concerns raised over Carmont crash corrosion SAFETY

The TSSA union has written to the Office of Rail and Road demanding ScotRail’s High Speed Train fleet be immediately removed from service.

It follows the Rail Accident Investigation Branch’s report into the derailment at Carmont in August 2020 which found the HST involved in the crash had shown signs of serious corrosion in collision pillars designed to protect passengers.

The corrosion had been picked up during the Wabtec refurbishment of the coaches in 2019, and repairs authorised, but there is no evidence that the work was completed. www.passengertransport.co.uk

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LEST WE FORGET The Victory Arch at London Waterloo Station was rededicated this week, a century after it was first unveiled by Queen Mary to commemorate railway colleagues who fought and died in the First World War.

IN BRIEF GATWICK EXPRESS RETURNS The Gatwick Express will resume a non-stop service between Gatwick Airport and London Victoria from April 3. Services were first suspended in late March 2020 as the pandemic took hold and passenger numbers at the airport tumbled. Since then passenger numbers have been increasing and the airport is in the process of reopening the South Terminal which has been closed since the first lockdown.

The service will launch with two trains per hour due to capacity constraints as a result of the rebuild of Gatwick Airport station.

GRAND CENTRAL INCREASING Open access operator Grand Central is increasing the number of services between Sunderland and London Kings Cross from May. It will see six return weekday services and five return journeys on Sundays. The train operator says it has made the move as a result of increasing passenger demand following the easing of Covid-19 restrictions earlier this year.

RAILWAY STRUCTURE REPRIEVE The Department for Transport has published a report identifying Historical Railways Estate structures, including bridges, tunnels and embankments, which are potentially suitable as active travel routes. Sustrans, which produced the report, concludes that 26 structures are likely to be useful as part of the National Cycle Network or as local cycling and walking routes, 24 others “might be useful” but are not considered in current plans and 25 “are unlikely to be useful”, and could be demolished or infilled to reduce maintenance costs.

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23/03/2022 16:16

NEWS ROUND-UP

TfL reveals its action plan for capital’s buses Bus Action Plan is based around five key policy areas PERFORMANCE

Transport for London has published its long-term plan for buses in the capital, a move that aims to revitalise the mode after several years of stagnation plus the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Bus Action Plan is set around five broad policy areas (see panel). TfL said it builds on recent improvements made to Route 63 between King’s Cross and Honor Oak in south east London.

Last month Abellio London introduced a new fleet of Alexander Dennis Enviro400EV double deckers to an enhanced specification that includes high-back seating, better travel information and other improvements.

TfL added the route had benefitted from bus priority improvements that included the decision to switch the vast

majority of bus lanes in the capital to operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

On delivering the vision, TfL said it was imperative that each of the five areas was tackled. “In many cases change in one area is needed to unlock the full potential for

improvement in another,” it said.

“For example, better journey times are critical to providing better connections, and better security will improve customer experience.

We will work with stakeholders to deliver comprehensive packages of bus enhancements, rather than

TfL’S PRIORITIES AND AIMS FOR LONDON’S BUSES IN 2030 Priority Inclusive customer experience Safety and security

Journey times Connectivity

Decarbonisation and climate change resilience

Aim for 2030 A modern bus network that is relevant to Londoners and makes it easy for people to travel spontaneously and independently A safe and secure bus network, with no one killed on or by a bus by 2030 and fewer people saying they are put off travelling due to security concerns A faster and more efficient bus network, with journey times improved by 10% over 2015 A bus network that provides better connectivity for longer trips, particularly in outer London, while maintaining network coverage of more than 96% of Londoners living within 400 metres distance of a bus stop A green bus network with a zero-emission fleet, as a result of additional government funding and support from manufacturers and operators

ELIZABETH LINE WILL OPEN SOON

Byford reveals TfL has earmarked an opening date CROSSRAIL

KHAN VISITS SIEMENS London mayor Sadiq Khan this week visited the new Siemens Mobility facility at Goole, where half of the 94 new Piccadilly line tube trains are due to be built. The visit highlighted the impact of investment in Transport for London into jobs and the UK economy as a whole.

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London transport commissioner Andy Byford told London Assembly members this week that the Elizabeth line is entering its final phases of testing and software upgrades ahead of opening.

Following the completion of passenger testing and evacuation trials, full timetable running has commenced through the central core

singular interventions where possible.”

Louise Cheeseman, TfL’s recently appointed director of buses, added the Bus Action Plan was “about creating a bus service reflective of our customers and their evolving needs” while also supporting a sustainable recovery from the pandemic.

“Our red bus network is fundamental to preventing congestion and, more widely, is a catalyst for unlocking homes and employment in London, as well as creating green jobs across the UK,” she said. “Buses are already an efficient, convenient form of public transport and London has the largest green bus fleet in western Europe, but we need to raise the bar. Ultimately, it’s about making the bus the natural choice over the car.”

One of the new buses for Route 63

of the line. The duration of this stage of the testing will be determined by the levels of reliability achieved.

The announcement follows Byford telling assembly members at another meeting the previous week that TfL had earmarked an opening date but he was unwilling to confirm it yet.

“We have a date that we are working towards but until I’m certain… that we can open on that particular date, I’m not going to commit to it or publicly opine on it,” he said. “There are a lot of dates that have come and gone. I am determined to stick to my promises.

It will open by June 30.” www.passengertransport.co.uk

23/03/2022 16:24

NEG woos Stagecoach shareholders over deal Group bid offers ‘superior value creation’ over rival DWS offer MERGERS & ACQUISITIONS

National Express Group has urged Stagecoach shareholders to back its bid for the Perth-based group after an eleventh hour rival £595m cash bid from German asset manager DWS (PT260).

NEG says it believes its all-share takeover bid for Stagecoach “represents a superior value creation opportunity when compared to the DWS offer”.

In a statement the group said its board believes the combination provides a compelling strategic opportunity to “further build scale and relevance in an increasingly bus-friendly UK market”.

It added the bid would also “bring the best of both from the combined capabilities of two high quality operators” and “deliver significant operational efficiencies across the combined UK networks”.

“In addition, the National Express board believes the combination creates an exciting partnership with Stagecoach with a balanced Board and management team... an intention to continue using the National Express and Stagecoach brands; and an expectation that the combination will not result in any job losses in front-line operational roles or depot closures,” the group added. “In a period that has seen a surge of private equity firms acquiring British companies, the combination represents a rare example of two UK-listed companies combining to form a global leader in their industry.”

NEG highlighted its bid would create at least £1.5bn of revenue growth from 2022 to 2027; at least

“The combination creates an exciting partnership with Stagecoach”

£200m of EBIT growth from 2022 to 2027; and a strong balance sheet, enhanced cash flow and capacity for an attractive and growing dividend.

“The combination provides Stagecoach shareholders with the opportunity to participate fully in this global opportunity,” NEG concluded.

Meanwhile, NEG has also reported it returned to profit in the year ending December 31, 2021 as travel restrictions eased.

Revenues were up 11% to £2.17bn as patronage grew.

EBITDA was up 60.8% to £300m, while underlying profit before tax was £39.7m, against a £106.1m loss in 2020.

“I am immensely proud of how the group has responded to the continuing challenges of the pandemic and the improving performance that has resulted,” said chief executive Ignacio Garat.

“I am also grateful for the ongoing support from governments and customers.”

MORE CRACK ISSUES FOR TRAM FLEET Further disruptions to West Midlands Metro SAFETY

Services on the West Midlands Metro tram network were suspended once again last weekend after further cracks were found in some older members of the tram fleet. It follows disruption to services early last summer and between November and February when the entire fleet was withdrawn in similar circumstances.

In a statement, operator Midland Metro Ltd said: “These precautionary inspections will greatly reduce the number of trams available for operation which is why we have had to take the decision to suspend the service.”

West Midlands mayor Andy Street said the cracks affected the first batch of the CAF Urbos 3 fleet which were built between 2012 and 2015.

CAF is in the process of delivering new trams to Midland Metro Ltd and Street added these would be brought into use quickly to help minimise disruption.

EXTENSION TO OPEN IN JUNE

West Midlands Metro to Edgbaston to open soon LIGHT RAIL

ELECTRIC TRAMBUSES FOR ÎLE-DE-FRANCE A consortium of Van Hool, Kiepe Electric and Alstom has won a framework contract to supply a minimum of 56 24-metre long, bi-articulated Van Hool electric buses for the new T Zen 4 and T Zen 5 bus rapid transit routes in the south of Paris. The vehicles will be powered by Kiepe Electric’s highpower fast-charging batteries which will be charged by Alstom’s conductive ground-based static charging system. www.passengertransport.co.uk

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Despite disruption as a result of more cracks being discovered in the West Midlands Metro tram fleet, the West Midlands Combined Authority says the network’s extension to Edgbaston is due to open in June.

Testing and commissioning work is expected to commence in May leading to passenger services getting underway shortly after. When the route opens, three new tram stops will connect passengers with the Broad Street ‘Golden Mile’.

25 March 2022 | 07

23/03/2022 16:24

NEWS ROUND-UP

Majority of public back bus priority measures New research undertaken for CPT shows local authorities that they can be bold with plans to improve bus services, while toolkit offers helpful advice BUS PRIORITY

Most people support measures which give buses greater priority on roads, according to new research released by the Confederation of Passenger Transport this week.

CPT’s research was undertaken

by Opinium and included 3,500 responses from the general public in Great Britain excluding London and 590 from business owners/senior decision makers.

A clear majority (54%) of the general public support bus priority schemes while only 15% oppose them. All regions of England as well as Scotland and Wales enjoy more support than

SUPPORT FOR BUS PRIORITY MEASURES IN GREAT BRITAIN (EXCLUDING LONDON) Source: Opinium survey for CPT of 3,500 members of the general public and 590 business representatives General public

16

15 25

Businesses

54

19

62

Support Neither support nor oppose Oppose Don’t know

opposition. Support rises to 62% among businesses.

Despite high levels of support for bus priority local authorities can find it challenging to introduce such measures as they face opposition from a vocal minority. To help councils CPT has produced toolkits that include recommendations based on the research with both the general public and business owners on how to best communicate the benefits of bus priority.

Key findings include: It is important to highlight the role bus travel can play in delivering local environmental goals and improving liveability.

Put accessibility and improved life chances at the heart of messaging.

Being transparent about potential disruption during construction and ensuring early and meaningful local engagement with local communities is vital.

Commenting on the findings of the research and toolkit launch CPT chief executive Graham Vidler said: “This research shows that councils can enjoy public and business support when it comes to giving buses priority on our roads.”

He added: “Our toolkit will help local authorities ensure widespread community support for measures they want to introduce.”

Transport minister Baroness Vere said: “As this research highlights, the [bus] sector plays a vital role in cleaning up the air in our communities, as we work to achieve net zero. I hope local authorities will take advantage of CPT’s insight and toolkit as they encourage their communities to use public transport services.”

COMMENT

Priority is key to getting more people on buses ‘We must not miss the opportunity that has been presented to begin the transformation of bus services’ A nonnegotiable of the next decade is that we need to get more Graham Vidler people travelling CPT on buses. The Committee on Climate Change, the Government’s official advisers on the issue, say that for the UK to remain on track for its net zero goals, one in ten car journeys made today needs to be made by bus by 2030.

It’s also the main success measure for the UK Government’s National Bus Strategy, the soon to be published strategy for buses in Wales and a key 08 | 25 March 2022 PT261p08-09 8

element of delivering the Scottish Government’s plans to reduce car kilometres by 20% by 2030.

Key to getting more people on the bus is making buses quicker by giving them greater priority on the road. Our research has shown overwhelmingly high levels of support for this with eight out of ten people who have a view supporting the introduction of such measures.

This is a silent majority that doesn’t normally make the headlines.

Despite high levels of support for bus priority, we know local authorities can find it challenging to introduce as they face opposition

from a vocal minority. Our toolkit is designed to help local authorities overcome this opposition by being clear about potential disruption and taking on board local views early in the process. More importantly it will help them maximise the high levels of support that already exist with recommendations to highlight the role bus travel plays in delivering local environmental goals and improving the liveability of an area.

In England, ambitions to improve bus services, via the National Bus Strategy, vastly outweigh the funds available. Therefore, it is vital that we deliver maximum value for money

for any investments made, an area in which bus priority performs well, delivering £5 of benefits for every £1 invested.

We must not miss the opportunity that has been presented to begin the transformation of bus services.

It is by showing what we can deliver now that we will make the case for further investment. I hope our toolkit will help local authorities and operators work together in partnership to improve bus services across the country and help ensure the widest possible support for measures they want and need to introduce. www.passengertransport.co.uk

23/03/2022 16:29

Is it still possible to ‘bus back better’? Page 22

Buses need ‘back on board’ campaign - CBT Charity warns that bus strategy will fail if patronage remains low NATIONAL BUS STRATEGY

On March 15, the first anniversary of the government’s National Bus Strategy for England Campaign for Better Transport warned that reduced passenger numbers could lead to big service cuts without a national government-led campaign to get people back on board. “[The National Bus Strategy] was commendably ambitious, recognising the importance of buses to improving social equality, boosting economic activity and protecting the environment, said Silviya Barrett, head of policy at Campaign for Better Transport.

“But unless passenger numbers recover, those ambitions could

end up withering on the vine.

That’s why we’re calling on the government to run a national campaign to encourage people back on board and give buses a bright future.”

Out of the £3bn promised by the strategy, the government has allocated £1.15bn for the Bus Service Improvement Plans submitted by England’s 79 local transport authorities. How the funding will be allocated is not yet known and some are likely to miss out entirely, despite all being asked to produce plans.

Campaign for Better Transport

“Every community deserves good bus services” Silviya Barrett, CBT

is warning that unless the government steps in with a campaign to attract passengers back to public transport, the £1.15bn to improve local buses could instead end up being used to prop up existing services that are no longer commercially viable.

Barrett continued: “Every community deserves good bus services. To avoid widening the gap between the haves and have-nots when it comes to bus provision, it is vital that smaller authorities, whose proposals may not be top of the pack, are not penalised. Local authorities that do not receive BSIP funding at this stage should be given additional, dedicated funding and support to overcome barriers they may face to improving their bus services to ensure no community is left behind.”

FREE BUS TRAVEL FOR UKRAINIANS ‘We’re happy to help give them a warm welcome’ UNITY WITH UKRAINE

Bus and scheduled coach operators in England have agreed a nationwide scheme with the Department for Transport to offer each Ukrainian arrival a free journey to their sponsor’s home. The offer began as people started arriving in England on March 20. Passengers simply need to show their Ukrainian passport and a boarding pass or ticket used to travel to the UK. CPT chief executive Graham Vidler said: “At this incredibly difficult time for the Ukrainian people, we’re happy to help give them a warm welcome and make their arrival as straightforward as possible.

Many bus and coach operators have already offered to provide free transport to help Ukrainians travel safely on arrival in the UK. I encourage all operators who can to participate in this scheme so we can help everyone get to safety.”

WARRINGTON BACKS UKRAINE Firm is seeking further ways to support UNITY WITH UKRAINE

Warrington’s Own Buses has unveiled a Ukraine-designed bus as a show of support to those currently suffering due to the ongoing conflict.

Managing director Ben Wakerley, said: “It may only be a simple gesture, but I hope in a small way that our Ukraine bus can help bring people’s attention to the conflict, so that they in turn can equally show their support. We are in discussions with the council and other partners to see if there are other ways that the company can help.”

WARRINGTON’S SOLAR SHOWCASE: PAGE 12-13 www.passengertransport.co.uk

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Ukraine-designed bus is a simple gesture of support

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NEWS ROUND-UP

TfW boss says Covid has not been a disaster Transport for Wales boss James Price claims that the pandemic has made little difference to most transport operators outside London MODAL SHIFT

Covid-19 has not been as disastrous for public transport outside the London commuter market as many people think, Transport for Wales chief executive James Price said last week.

He was speaking as TfW prepared to launch a multi-modal marketing campaign to encourage people to use public transport and active travel modes.

A Welsh Parliament committee asked him whether, in light of the reduced passenger volumes on public transport since the pandemic began, the targets of increasing public transport’s mode share to 7% of trips by 2030 and 13% by 2040 were achievable. The baseline is 5%.

Price replied: “Has Covid made any difference? This might shock you, what I’m about to say: I would say no, not in a real sense.

“The reason for that, particularly for Wales, is if you look at the proportion of transport that is carried out by public transport in Wales compared with somewhere like London, we are very low.

“Public transport and active travel are always in the margins, and therefore, even if 20% of travel completely disappeared as a result of Covid, by simply doubling our market share - which is very low to start with - we will more than make up for that travel which has disappeared.

“That’s very different from somewhere like London where 10 | 25 March 2022 PT261p10-11 10

Wales is due to remove its remaining Covid restrictions next week

nearly all travel is on public transport in the first place.

There’s a lot of stuff which is written in the main-stream media which is basically written about London, which is not referenceable, I don’t think, to lots of other parts of the UK.” Clarifying his remarks later, Price said: “Because of the small proportion of people who use public transport, I don’t think that Covid is anywhere near as disastrous as people think it is.

It just provides a bit more capacity for us to get people out of their car.”

In evidence for the same committee, the Welsh Government estimates that its policy of having 30% of the workforce permanently working from home or near to home could reduce regular commuter trips on public transport by 25%.

It also says: “There has been a greater percentage reduction in

public transport trips compared to car trips, as people deciding to work from home are more likely to be those who were previously travelling regularly into urban centres by train or bus.”

TfW’s marketing campaign was due to launch on March 28, coinciding with the planned lifting of the rule that masks must be worn on all forms of Welsh public transport. The campaign will initially focus on encouraging people to rediscover familiar places, reconnect with people they have not seen properly since before the pandemic, and to return to work places, albeit in a more balanced way than previously.

The 18-month recovery campaign has been tested on more than 3,600 people. It will include a one-minute television advert, a year’s sponsorship of ITV Wales, social media posts and media relations activity.

‘BRT HAS A BAD REPUTATION IN UK’ TfW probes options for Bus Rapid Transit in Wales BUS RAPID TRANSIT

Bus Rapid Transit features in some of Wales’ plans to achieve modal shift, although Transport for Wales chief executive James Price believes that it has a poor image in the UK. He said gold-standard BRT, with fully segregated rights of way, can move people just as quickly as urban rail and in some instances at much better value for money.

“It’s got a bad reputation in the UK because the UK typically tries to do it on the cheap, and mix the Bus Rapid Transit with normal traffic - and then it’s just bus,” he told a Welsh Parliament committee.

“We are doing lots of work in this area - certainly in areas like the Burns Commission area and in north east Wales.” One proposal now being pursued by the Burns Delivery Unit is bus priority along the A48 dual carriageway between west Newport and east Cardiff, with an active travel route alongside.

TfW is also considering the feasibility of BRT between Talbot Green or Beddau and Cardiff, serving large housing developments in Cardiff’s north-western suburbs.

However, Price warned of local political challenges to implementing BRT. Most of the networks were not under the control of national or regional bodies. “They will be local authority roads and, as we know, it can be politically very difficult to drive through some of those things.

“I think evidence says that a welldesigned scheme two years after it’s implemented is welcomed, but it’s not welcomed in the run-up to it.”

“ The UK typically tries to do it [BRT] on the cheap” www.passengertransport.co.uk

23/03/2022 16:26

Go-Ahead expands into Sweden with Flexbuss Operator will play a key role in group’s plans for Scandinavia MERGERS & ACQUISITONS

Go-Ahead has expanded its operations in Scandinavia with the acquisition of bus operator Flexbuss Sverige AB from its family owners.

Go-Ahead already has an eightyear contract with the Norwegian Railway Directorate to operate suburban rail services to the south of Oslo, which commenced operations in 2019.

Flexbuss operates approximately 380 vehicles and employs 600 staff with a mixture of work that includes scheduled bus services, school transport, medical transfer and private hire.

It is expected that the transaction will be completed next month.

BUS LANE GAINS IN NORWICH Priority improvements lead to better trip times BUS PRIORITY

Norfolk County Council has highlighted some of the journey time savings bus users are now experiencing as a result of infrastructure improvements delivered using funding awarded as part of the Transforming Cities Fund.

The DfT awarded £32m from the fund to deliver a range of schemes across the Norwich area as part of the Transport for Norwich programme. They aim to improve access to jobs, training and retail by supporting improvements to sustainable modes of transport, while also responding to issues www.passengertransport.co.uk

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Go-Ahead has not revealed how much it has paid to acquire the business.

Flexbuss will be integrated into Go-Ahead’s London and International bus division, which operates franchised buses in London, Singapore and Dublin.

Go-Ahead chief executive Christian Schreyer said the acquisition of Flexbuss marked expansion into new territory. “It

Flexbuss Sverige has 380 vehicles and 600 staff

around air quality.

A new bus and cycle contraflow lane in Norwich has resulted in passenger journeys through the area being an average of one-and-a-half minutes faster across the day and more than two-and-a-half minutes faster during the morning peak period. This means a journey into the city centre from the suburb of Dussindale is now over 10% faster.

To the north of the city centre, the recent addition of bus lanes has also saved those travelling into the city at the busiest time of the morning over two-and-a-half minutes, while the removal of signals at one roundabout has meant a two-minute saving in the morning and much higher savings in the afternoon peaks, as well as improved general traffic flow.

“We are very happy with the

will play to Go-Ahead’s strengths in operating bus contracts on behalf of local authorities, partners and third parties,” he added.

Magnus Hedin, chief executive of Go-Ahead Nordic said the group was keen to develop its position in Scandinavia, a region where it sees great potential.

“In Flexbuss, we have found a partner that gives us the opportunity to continue to develop our position as a public transport operator in Sweden,” he said. “Together, we have good opportunities to develop in both quality and sustainability and, thus, grow into existing and new businesses.”

Flexbuss chairman Krister Engdahl said his family felt it was important to find the right buyer.

“We feel that we have done that with Go-Ahead Nordic.”

progress that has been made so far, with many bus priority schemes already in place,” said Paul Martin, First Eastern Counties commercial manager. “We are already seeing the benefits they bring, with journey times in some cases being reduced further than we originally anticipated.”

Jeremy Cooper, managing director of Go-Ahead-owned Konectbus, added: “We have seen more passengers using park and ride again since the introduction of the bus lanes as we are able to provide a faster and more punctual journey for those who choose to share their journey into the city, helping to reduce pollution and congestion.”

Norwich County Council says further improvements are planned as part of the programme.

IN BRIEF £10M LOAN FOR SPRINT The UK Infrastructure Bank has confirmed it will loan the West Midlands Combined Authority £10m, as part of its local lending function, to complete the first phase of the new Sprint bus rapid transit route along the A45 corridor between Birmingham city centre, Birmingham Airport and Solihull. The funding is in line with the bank’s objectives of boosting regional growth and supporting UK ambitions to achieve net zero.

FIRST BUS TRAINING SCHEME First Bus has partnered with training provider Realise to launch a new bus driver recruitment and training programme that aims to target hard-to-reach groups. Funded by West Yorkshire Combined Authority, the new training programme has been designed to teach learners the skills and behaviours required to succeed in the bus industry.

The 10-day course will be delivered through online and classroom teaching, with learners undertaking training in customer service and bus driving theory before getting behind the wheel.

YUTONGS FOR TRAWSCYMRU Carmarthenshire County Council has ordered eight Yutong E12s for use on the TrawsCymru route T1 between Aberystwyth and Carmarthen. Work on installing charging infrastructure is already in progress, and the vehicles will be the first electric buses in the UK capable of charging at 240kWs per hour, allowing rapid recharging.

The high specification vehicles will enter service in the second half of this year. Carmarthenshire is working with the Welsh Goverment and Transport for Wales on what it says is a “vanguard project”.

25 March 2022 | 11

23/03/2022 16:26

ENVIRONMENT SOLAR POWER

Warrington’s buses to become solar showcase

Warrington’s Own Buses will move into a purpose built all-electric bus depot by the end of the year, with a new fleet of 120 vehicles arriving in 2023

Is this the most exciting green bus project in the UK? A new depot and a new fleet of 120 electric vehicles powered by a renewable source of energy Warrington will soon become a showcase for green transport in the UK and beyond. The Cheshire town, which is home to around 210,000 people, is getting a fleet of 120 brand new electric buses - and the plan is for them to run exclusively on solar power.

Warrington Borough Council is perhaps in the unique position of owning its own bus company, Warrington’s Own Buses, and two solar farms, near York and Hull (with a third under construction near Cirencester).

The plan is for these assets to combine so that the town’s local bus network uses 100% renewable energy. This will help the council to achieve its target of becoming carbon neutral by 2030.

In October 2021, the Department for Transport announced that Warrington Borough Council would receive a £21.4m ‘fastrack’ grant from the government’s Zero Emission Bus Regional Areas (ZEBRA) scheme.

This will enable Warrington’s Own Buses to replace its entire fleet with 120 electric buses.

The investment does not end there. Warrington’s Own Buses was already getting a brand new bus depot thanks to funding from the government’s Getting Building Fund and the Towns Deal. The impetus behind this initiative was to free up the company’s existing depot at Wilderspool Causeway for a new housing development.

However, the company and other stakeholders saw the opportunity to create a purpose-built, 12 | 25 March 2022 PT261p12-13 12

all-electric bus depot - believed to be only the second one in the country after Go-Ahead’s Henley Road garage in North Woolwich, east London.

Warrington’s Own Buses expects to move into its new home before the end of the year. Delivered by Warrington & Co, the council’s development and investment agency as part of its town centre regeneration plans, the facility has a 6 MVA grid connection that will enable all 120 electric buses to be charged overnight.

Ben Wakerley, who has served as managing director of Warrington’s Own Buses for almost five years, says that it’s a huge project for an SME. “We are really punching above our weight here,” he told Passenger Transport this week.

It’s a project that he is excited to be involved with. “It feels like we are at the front of doing

“The buses will really speak for themselves” Ben Wakerley

something that pretty much everyone else is going to have to do at some point, and not just for buses but everything,” he explains.

“It’s exciting to be that close to the front of a project like that.”

The tender for the new vehicles and chargers will go live very soon and delivery is expected during the second half of 2023.

“I think it’s going to get a very warm reception,” says Wakerley. He points out that Warrington’s municipal operator has traditionally purchased used vehicles, with the notable exception of 13 Alexander Dennis Enviro200s acquired for its Cheshire Cat network in 2018.

“They were the first new buses that have been brought in in about five years, and that was extremely popular. So doing the whole fleet will be particularly good.”

Wakerley sees this massive new fleet investment as an opportunity to innovate. “What we want to do is try and embrace the technology that can go along with it at the same time,” he explains. “So we are quite interested in some of the things you can do with destination boards now. You can basically have full colour, full LCD screens ...

You can use that for marketing or route branding it’s like a step on from where we are now.”

The branding of these vehicles will be a case of evolution rather than revolution. “We have been trying to rebrand the company for the past few years,” Wakerley explains. “So it’s building on that rather than doing

something completely different.

It’s building on that and saying to people ‘now it’s electric’. That’s the way we are approaching it.

The buses will really speak for themselves.”

Wakerley says that the impact of these new buses could be greatly enhanced if the council’s Bus Service Improvement Plan can secure funding. A key focus of Warrington’s BSIP was reducing fares (a Warrington’s Own Buses day ticket is £4.95 on the app and £5.95 on board).

“The biggest thing in Warrington is fares,” he says.

“That is the biggest feedback we get, that people want the fare to be cheaper. And so if we can get the Bus Service Improvement Plan in and give people a cheaper fare with a better product across the board that’s well marketed, well branded and clean, then we think that they’ll come back on board.” www.passengertransport.co.uk

23/03/2022 17:30

BUS FIRMS REACH SOLAR MILESTONE 1 gigawatt of energy generated by panels SOLAR PANELS

“It would be good to do it because it’s the right thing to do, isn’t it, to buy green energy” Wakerley says that this revival is important because Warrington suffered the biggest drop in bus passenger numbers in England over the 10 years to 2016. After 2016 it flattened out and there was a slight upturn before Covid.

“Once people choose to go in a car instead it’s hard to get them back,” he says. “And that’s why I think you need the Bus Service Improvement Plan to do it.”

Does Wakerley believe that the network’s enhanced green credentials will encourage more people to use buses? “It counts to people more widely,” he responds.

“I think the public generally do get behind it, like with the David Attenborough documentaries and www.passengertransport.co.uk

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things like that. I think people believe we should be doing it. I believe we should be doing it ... I gave up red meat after watching Attenborough, it really affected me. So doing this kind of thing certainly resonates with me.”

He continues: “Do you change your name to show that it’s an electric vehicle? Does a customer care if you put on the cantrail ‘this is an electric bus’? I actually think in most cases they possibly don’t, but I think the public more widely do - or should do - and I think it is the right thing to do.”

What makes this investment in electric buses so interesting is not just the ‘big bang’ nature of the fleet renewal, it’s the source

of the energy. Wakerley believes that this was important in helping to persuade the DfT to back Warrington’s ZEBRA bid.

Subject to agreeing on the price, the plan is for Warrington’s Own Buses to do a deal with its council owners to purchase solar energy. They will sleeve the energy so that it comes from 100% green sources. There will be no emissions in the power generation and no emissions at the point of use. “We are struggling to think of another example of a bus network of this size anywhere in the world where you could say that principle applies,” says Wakerley.

“It does still come down to a commercial negotiation. We would like to buy from them but obviously we are independent so it still comes down to that. But it would be good to do it because it’s the right thing to do, isn’t it, to buy green energy.”

Oxford Bus Company and Thames Travel have now produced one million kilowatt hours of green electricity from solar panel arrays at their depots.

The Go-Ahead Group subsidiaries reached the sustainability milestone last month. The solar installations surpassed 1,000,000 kwh - or 1 gigawatt - of electricity generated since they were installed in 2013. The green energy generated is enough to power around 345 homes for a year, or to boil 11 million kettles.

Oxford Bus Company and Thames Travel have a long-standing partnership with the Oxfordshire Social Enterprise Low Carbon Hub. In 2013 Oxford Bus Company became the first local business to partner with them to install solar panels onto the depot site in Cowley. In 2019 the partnership was extended further, with solar panels installed on Thames Travel’s depot in Didcot.

The solar panels help power the two depots but have also generated wider benefit for the local community, as the surpluses generated are used by the Low Carbon Hub to fund community energy projects.

Luke Marion, finance and commercial director at Oxford Bus Company and Thames Travel said: “We’re really proud of this significant sustainability milestone in our group of companies’ continued journey to become as low carbon as possible.

“We are constantly striving to embrace market leading environmental best practices, not just via our bus fleets which has one of the best environmental records in the UK, but also via our buildings.

This holistic approach is enabling us to return increased carbon savings across our business.”

25 March 2022 | 13

23/03/2022 17:30

INNOVATION & TECHNOLOGY

‘Inclusivity should be factored in from start’ ITS (UK) Forum hears examples of ‘digital exclusion’ challenges INCLUSION

The Intelligent Transport Systems industry is being reminded to be completely inclusive and remember less able members of society when developing public-facing transport technology.

At its latest Inclusive Mobility Forum meeting, ITS (UK) heard a series of examples of the challenges facing disabled people.

Gordon McCullough, CEO of the Research Institute for Disabled Consumers, explained how disabled people take 38% fewer trips than non-disabled people, and this accessibility gap has not changed in a decade.

TRIAL SHOWS WAY TO ACCESSIBLE FUTURE - ARRIVA Waymap experiment helped visually impaired INCLUSION

The results of a recent trial by Arriva Rail London and Waymap, an audio navigation app designed to empower people with visual impairments to travel independently, indicate a positive future for accessible travel in London and beyond.

The trial involved 10 blind volunteers from across the country, who used Waymap to travel between Shepherd’s Bush and Willesden Junction stations on the London Overground. While Waymap has previously been tested in individual transport hubs in the UK and the US, 14 | 25 March 2022 PT261p14-15 14

He outlined how “digital exclusion” is a major issue that transport service providers need to consider. In a recent poll of disabled people, a quarter are unable to use smartphone and tablet apps, nearly a third of people struggled to evaluate the credibility of online information, one in eight find obstacles with shopping around for products and services on the internet and one in ten are not confident to search for information.

“The technology can be difficult or hard to overcome, unless you

involve and include disabled and older people right at the very beginning of thinking about a service or designing anything,” McCullough explained.

“It should be the most fundamental thing that you think about at the very beginning, and the way to do that is to put a process in that allows you to listen to and understand disabled people’s needs and expectations.”

The meeting also heard from Patrick McDougall of longstanding ITS (UK) member Nexus Alpha. He described the

“Delivering inclusive mobility isn’t just the right thing to do, it makes economic sense”

Kris Beuret, chair of Inclusive Mobility Forum including Birmingham International railway station, stations in Los Angeles and stations in Washington DC, the Arriva Rail London trial marked the first time it was used to navigate the entirety of a journey between two locations. The trial participants used Waymap to enter Shepherd’s Bush station, make their way to the platform, board and disembark the train, and then exit Willesden Junction station.

Key findings included: All participants said they would be somewhat or much more likely to use public transport if Waymap was available; All said they would recommend Waymap to other visually impaired people; 90% said they would be very confident or quite confident finding their way around a public place they

were not familiar with using Waymap; 80% said they would be somewhat or a lot more inclined to travel on their own if Waymap was available.

Currently, only one of the 10 uses public transport alone.

The trial was funded by Arriva Rail London, which operates the London Overground on behalf of Transport for London, through its innovation fund. Unlike other

Visually impaired trialist Michael Gowen

company’s disabled-friendly audio and visual solutions, and how they had overcome challenges such as reliable text-to-speech for passenger information, particularly around place names.

“Delivering inclusive mobility isn’t just the right thing to do, it makes economic sense,” commented Inclusive Mobility Forum chair Kris Beuret.

“We heard in the meeting how the annual economic benefit of closing the accessibility gap is more than £70bn. Therefore, there is no reason whatsoever not to properly consider all sections of society when planning a transport product.

“It is clear that, if you do not consider inclusivity from the very beginning of product development, and whether you mean to or not, you will end up excluding people. That is why ITS (UK) is setting up a research project to understand more about why digital exclusion is not being addressed.”

navigation solutions, Waymap works both indoors and outdoors, and does not rely on external signals such as GPS, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth or mobile data.

Instead, it uses the internal sensors already on smartphones combined with map data to deliver accurate and reliable audio navigation instructions to the user.

Charlotte Whitfield, customer experience director at Arriva Rail London, said: “It was important to us to support this unique trial and show there are cost-effective solutions available to make travelling on public transport more accessible.

“Waymap’s technology needs to be rolled out across entire transport networks and in public spaces to provide a seamless experience for users, so we are hopeful the results of our trial will help them secure more support for their rollout.” www.passengertransport.co.uk

23/03/2022 17:56

New channels for c2c info Passengers can now access range of information on WhatsApp and Messenger channels INCLUSION

c2c passengers can now access customised travel information for each door-to-door journey through the new c2c Rail Updates service. The service provides passengers with personalised journey updates, including details of real-time disruption, alternative travel routes and business alerts, delivered via the Messenger and WhatsApp channels. Passengers can access the service by using the ‘Check your journey’ section of the c2c website.

The service is powered by complex data prediction technology developed by Zipabout who have pioneered the use of personalised information services for public transport users across the UK. It will offer c2c “unrivalled insight into passenger demand across its services, enabling smarter network planning”.

Passengers travelling across the c2c network will be able to access the following information on both WhatsApp and Messenger: Real-time messaging: disruption alerts, alternative routes, platform changes, and delay repay messaging; Journey planning and routing around disruption and predicted issues in real-time; Journey watch: the option to

“Our customers will benefit from this technology” Clare McCaffrey, c2c

www.passengertransport.co.uk

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select regular journeys and sign up for ‘push only’ updates, meaning they’ll be informed of anything that might affect their journey.

Customers using the service on Messenger will also be able to access extra information, including: Business alerts, based on unique forecast demand data proven to be scientifically accurate by the University of Birmingham; Last mile support: welcome message before arriving at their destination offering onward journey support via all transport modes (bus, e-scooters, taxi, walking, and cycling) available; Customer service support: quick access to c2c’s customer service team and station facilities information. c2c Rail Updates will complement other smart technology on offer to c2c customers, such as the c2c Smartcard. The c2c Smartcard allows customers to load certain tickets onto the card, and when used in conjunction with the app, means customers no longer have to queue to purchase tickets. c2c commercial director Clare McCaffrey said: “We know from listening to our customers that digital channels are crucial for ensuring our customers have access to the latest travel and journey planning information and customer support. I am confident that our customers will benefit from this technology and will help make journey planning even easier.”

ROUND-UP

HOVE LAUNCH

ANDROID ARRIVES

Keolis subsidiary will develop digital products

Pay As You Go Metro travel now on smartphones

SOLUTIONS

TICKETING

Keolis has launched a new entity, Hove, a wholly owned subsidiary dedicated to the design and deployment of digital tools to boost shared mobility.

Created out of the merger between Kisio Digital and the Kisio Services & Consulting data team, this entity brings together 110 mobility data experts of the Keolis Group. Its goal is to support public transport authorities and passengers with innovative digital products.

Tyne & Wear Metro customers can now get Pay As You Go travel on Android smartphones, thanks to a collaboration between Google Pay and Nexus, the public body which operates the system. People are now able to load a Pop card into Google Pay on their smartphone, and then use it to touch in and out of the Metro system, in the same way that they use a Pop card.

Metro customer services director at Nexus, Huw Lewis, said: “Two-thirds of Metro customers tell us they are keen to move to smartphones as a way to pay for their journeys.”

BERLIN TRIALS ‘INOUT’ TICKETING 1,000 will test innovative mobile ticketing system TICKETING

From this month, BVG, the Berlin Transport Authority, is offering 1,000 users the chance to test an innovative mobile ticketing system that automatically works out the best fare for their journey. The ‘InOut’ pilot, which will run until the end of the year, uses the FTQ Lab app and will be operational in the city’s AB fare zones.

The smart technology developed by the Swiss mobility start-up FAIRTIQ automatically makes the decision for them. All users have to do is download the app, register, and slide the Start button on their screen to begin their journey in the app. When they reach their destination, they simply swipe again and the app stops recording their journey. The system is able to identify the type of journey.

PASSENGER’S VISIBILITY BOOST New third party ticketing capability launched TICKETING

UK public transport app and website provider Passenger is helping operators reach more customers with the launch of a new tool allowing third party applications to host ticket purchase links beyond operators’ existing platforms.

The new feature, which can be incorporated into any website or app, has welcomed its first implementation onto independent bus information website BusTimes.org. People searching for bus service details on BusTimes.org will now see a dedicated ‘Tickets’ tab on profiles of operators who are signed up to Passenger’s myTrip app and website platform.

25 March 2022 | 15

23/03/2022 17:56

COMMENT BUSES

JONATHAN BRAY

Bus safety shouldn’t be an afterthought

England’s National Bus Strategy dragged poor practice into the spotlight but left the bus safety regime to stagnate in the margins The National Bus Strategy for England has an opinion about everything; from bus shelters to bus numbers - it knows best. However, there’s one topic where it is curiously quiet.

And that’s bus safety. Or perhaps I should say dangerously quiet, given the yawning gulf that now exists between the approach taken in London and Northern Ireland on bus safety and the approach taken elsewhere in the UK. Or indeed, more widely, the approach taken to rail, maritime and aviation safety in the UK compared with bus in Great Britain outside London. In these places, and for these modes, there is a clear across the board structure for safety leadership and a transparent data driven approach to analysis, action and targets for reducing risk and accidents.

For some time we’ve made the case to the Department for Transport for reform to bring the safety regime for buses up to scratch and that the starting point should be a review of current arrangements to benchmark them against best practice. We got nowhere on this so we’ve sought to fill a gap (that it shouldn’t be up to us to fill) by commissioning such a review ourselves - from Loughborough University’s Transport Safety Research Centre (bit.ly/3qnlSsk).

The report makes for concerning reading but it boils down to the fact at a national level, we don’t have the data and analysis to drive safety policy on bus, and even if we did there’s no single body to act on the analysis in a coherent and proactive way at the national 16 | 25 March 2022 PT261p16-17 16

level. As one of those interviewed for the report said: “It just doesn’t feel joined up.”

All of this adds up to a safety regime which is fragmented and reactive rather than coherent and proactive. That’s not to say there isn’t good practice and sharing on bus safety in England, but the under-resourced sum is less than the parts. In my professional lifetime the DfT has done not much more than tinker with the bus safety regime leaving it to do the best it can with minimal resources.

In effect Transport for London has been left to fill the vacuum on leadership and standard setting on bus safety with its Vision Zero target of no one to be killed or seriously injured on or by a London bus by 2030 and its comprehensive and transparent approach to analysis of risks followed up by programmes to tackle them, from its ground breaking bus vehicle safety standards to its data-led approach to reducing passenger injuries due to slips, trips and falls. And from advanced emergency braking to its in-depth work on the sounds that electric buses can make, it’s TfL that has become both the defacto national research and development centre and leader

“In effect Transport for London has been left to fill the vacuum on leadership on bus safety”

on bus safety.

Meanwhile, it seems that if there is to be any significant change in the safety regime for buses in GB outside London then it will be a by-product of other forces at play. The government’s enthusiasm for creating a framework by which autonomous vehicles can operate (alongside the stalling in road casualty reductions more widely) has led to a consultation on establishing a road collision accident investigation body to bring roads more into line with the body that exists for rail.

This is welcome. But for the investigation branch to work we also need something similar to the other safety bodies that rail has - so while the Rail Accident Investigation Branch investigates crashes, the Office of Rail and Road is the health and safety regulator and enforcement authority for the railway.

Meanwhile the Rail Safety and Standards Board enables and informs safety leadership.

Part of its job is to gather data to understand better how the industry is performing and enable it to identify emerging issues as early as possible, so action can be taken. The work of the RSSB allows the rail industry to work together as a single system to reduce risk as much as possible, and enables better safety decisions to be made, and means that safety investment can be targeted to where it is needed most. It’s the proactive, looking ahead function that RSSB provides for the rail industry that is missing for bus in particular.

If there were to be an overarching safety body covering bus then there are pros and cons around whether this could be wrapped up within a national transport safety body, or whether there could be a roads or bus specific body. But the Loughborough report found support for such a body in principle. If such a body had the capacity to receive a much wider range of accident, risk and incident data than the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency currently does - and was able to analyse it and act on it - the safety regime for bus would start to look more like good practice.

The National Bus Strategy has dragged many elements of poor practice, and areas of bus provision which need to improve, into the spotlight but left the bus safety regime to stagnate in the margins. But shouldn’t any responsible strategy for any industry have improving safety as a core objective rather than barely an afterthought? www.passengertransport.co.uk

23/03/2022 16:52

“Get the basics right and you have a urban bus network that people will respond to” Buses are coming home Wales (population 3.2 million) wants all its buses franchised. Greater Manchester (2.8 million) and Liverpool City Region (1.5 million) are well down the road. West Yorkshire (2.3 million) and South Yorkshire (1.4 million) have triggered the process. London (8.9 million) and Northern Ireland’s (1.9 million) buses are already under public control. That’s nearly 22 million people in areas of the UK where bus services are under public control or somewhere on the road to it. Meanwhile, Stagecoach has thrown in the towel on trying to block bus franchising in Greater Manchester and the secretary of state for transport, Grant Shapps, has said how delighted he is that franchising in Greater Manchester is going ahead and that it’s the way forward.

After facing years of disdain for vigorously making the case that this key public service should be run in the public interest I look forward to the next stage with everyone saying they were never really against it in the first place. Though reading the Stagecoach (of ‘we would rather drink poison’ fame) press release on their failed legal challenge it looks like this phase has started already. As they say - everything comes to he who waits.

I’m an Edinburgh man myself Having spent a few days in Edinburgh I’m an even bigger fan of Lothian buses than I was before. Every single bus feels like it’s brand new. I’ve never ever been on a grubby one.

I love the municipal dignity of the fleet both the interiors and the exteriors. Maroon for urban, green for rural. And now you can tap and go that’s the last remaining layer of hassle removed. It’s the only city I can think of, other than London, where the bus feels like a mass transit system (especially with those tri-axle double decker giants) used by all sections of society. Get the basics consistently right and you have an urban bus network that people will respond to.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Jonathan Bray is the director of the Urban Transport Group. Throughout his career in policy and lobbying roles he has been at the frontline in bringing about more effective, sustainable and equitable transport policies.

www.passengertransport.co.uk

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Edinburgh is the only city I can think of, other than London, where the bus feels like a mass transit system used by all

25 March 2022 | 17

23/03/2022 16:53

COMMENT EMPLOYEE RELATIONS

ALEX WARNER

What can we learn from P&O’s shame?

Sacked by Zoom. To those who think that the public transport sector would not have behaved in the same way, I beg to differ It was always going to take something big to overtake the appalling situation in Ukraine as the lead news story - and that’s what happened briefly last week with the decision by P&O ferries to make its 800 crew redundant on a Zoom call. Bad enough the path that the company had taken, but the way they did it caused national opprobrium and derision.

Well done those crew who locked themselves on their ferries and refused to leave. I would have done exactly the same!

Although public transport, in the form of buses and trains, hasn’t behaved in such a way as P&O, it was certainly newsworthy for all of us, not least because of the similarities with our sector and the way in which it was handled. How we winced at seeing Stephen Nee, head of employee relations, apologising for not following his usual off-script style and instead, in the most monotone, administrative of voices, then revealing that everyone would be made redundant, “from today”.

Let’s start with Nee because we’ve all, for sure, seen the like of him in transport, and that’s not just those old-timers who may have worked with him at British Rail where he spent the first few years of his career. For those who feel sympathy for Stephen in that he might have been just taking orders, it’s quite possible the CEO of P&O would have relied on his advice in crafting the process as well as delivering the news. Nee has a strong track record in employee relations - 44 years, including at British Airways, Mitie, DHL 18 | 25 March 2022 PT261p18-19 18

and Rolls Royce, among others, so you might surmise he wasn’t just playing the role of ‘yes man’. If that was the case, you’d think he wouldn’t have been so unwise as to have posted on LinkedIn a few weeks ago that “it’s not just a job, it’s a career, it’s family” as he simultaneously tried to recruit new employees.

If Nee was just the messenger, then the Board of P&O should hang their heads even further in shame at letting him carry the can.

The top dogs would have probably said that they couldn’t front up the news as it would cup-tie them from being involved in any appeals process and jeopardise the company at a possible industrial tribunal (that’s normally the feeble excuse given by those who haven’t the guts to be the bearer of bad tidings).

Stephen Nee, P&O’s head of employee relations, sacked 800 employees on a Zoom call

Whatever the case, it’s hard to comprehend how they thought it was acceptable to break the news on a Zoom call instead of mobilising management to conduct face-to-face briefings as crew booked on or off.

When I watched the video of Nee it was a salutary reminder of my longstanding principle never to get too pally with HR professionals.

I have come across a few excellent ones but also many who are like smiling assassins.

They are all ears, they’ll want to get to know you and be helpful, but ultimately, like success in sport, a relationship between employee and employer is cyclical and that same person will be clinically preparing and delivering your compromise agreement when it suits.

Never get too emotionally wedded, even at the best of times, to the corporate culture and message. It will always end in tears. They’ll ruthlessly cut you adrift when it suits, without any hint of compassion. Being an employee is purely a commercial agreement for you to trade your services at a price. Don’t kid yourselves that it’s anything more than that. They won’t.

In an alternative world - one which was created with a blank sheet of paper - there would not be senior HR folk because the knowledge and autonomy to make decisions affecting people would sit ‘in the line’. The problem is that over the years, accountability and indeed ability of those in management roles has been stripped away, such that folk have become incapable of dealing with issues, of delivering bad news and instead revert to HR. Cynics would say, though, that HR folk have deliberately held back on training programmes because if they equip managers properly, they would have no need of HR’s services.

To those who think that the public transport sector would not have behaved in the same way as P&O, I beg to differ. We’ve all got tales to tell, mine are not hugely significant, but a couple stick in my mind.

At one owning group, I was bequeathed a personal mentor who was also the group HR director. All was going well, even if I was embarrassed to pour my heart out to her at a difficult time for me personally and professionally. Then, my mentor went absent - no responses to calls or emails, zilch, because she was leading a major re-organisation and one which I was unlikely to be a beneficiary.

Another was an occasion when all of us in our team were at risk of redundancy - I knew I www.passengertransport.co.uk

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“What has happened at P&O is an opportunity for us to look in the mirror” wasn’t going to be made redundant because I was actually covering several roles at the time.

The redundancy meeting was hugely formal and even when it was clear I was staying, my email to the HR director thanking them for keeping me on and the pride I felt to work for the organisation was just left unanswered. A colleague complained about the process and was seen as a dissident and made redundant, even though we were all reliant on his work and experience. I later discovered he was booted out because he had the temerity to complain.

I have also come across many instances of managing directors in transport being dismissed by human resources directors without even the courtesy of a conversation with their own line manager in advance - in some cases completely out of the blue.

The better HR directors are those who immerse themselves in the business and the sector - they aren’t just reliable advisors on trade union issues and employment law but they contribute meaningfully to all matters around the executive table and have a grip on customer service issues. The worst ones are those that don’t make any effort to understand the industry and just denigrate those with a passion for buses and trains as eccentric weirdos, rather than realising the value they bring. And these errant folk communicate in patronising, scripted jargon whilst giving 360 degree feedback to beleaguered managers and expecting them to do better without understanding their working environment.

Enough about human resources - it’s had too much airtime already. What P&O has chosen to do in terms of replacing its own employees wholesale with agency personnel is something that the RMT and other unions in public transport have resisted since day zero and will continue to do so. That’s not to say that agency staff aren’t as skilled or equipped or don’t have a place, but from my experience in transport they tend to be less experienced and less able to deal with some of the more complex issues than longstanding employees.

Part of the problem is the inability of bus and rail operators to properly integrate them into their teams or brief them.

For P&O to expect that they can literally strip out all their frontline employees on the Thursday and seamlessly transition to agency folk the very next day is nothing short of an insult and belittling of the task that their www.passengertransport.co.uk

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current people undertake. Only a couple of weeks ago, we were reminded in the media of the tragedy of the Zeebrugge disaster - it being the 35-year anniversary - and the sheer importance of the role of on-board employees and what can go wrong when a whole sequence of events, including training and performance management, are neglected. That the crew member who fell asleep on the job and forgot to close the bow door was an employee rather than agency member isn’t the point at stake, it’s a reminder of how much we rely on properly trained and managed people and that a ferry going from A to B is fraught with safety pitfalls.

It’s not just safety, of course. Travelling on a ferry isn’t cheap, particularly a luxury cruise.

Imagine having looked forward to a trip only to now discover that the staff on board are not those who have built up years of experience and pride in their job, but have instead never set foot on a ferry, don’t understand customer needs and have no memory banks to draw on when dealing with unforeseen issues?

The situation is prescient for public transport currently. The two biggest issues on the agenda now relate to recruiting frontline staff and then, in rail - ‘workplace reform’. With the Treasury not unreasonably obsessing about the cost structure of the industry in the postCovid world, they will be demanding dramatic, legacy-lasting reformation and that will quite likely lead to a summer of industrial relations issues on a level not seen for generations.

Clearly there are aspects of the current employment model that need modernising, but in making changes, the sector would be wise to not naively think that radical change is easy to enact without significant disruption.

The rail industry, in particular, has a track record of consequential setbacks through underestimating the value of experience and disrespecting its workforce. The postHatfield ‘gauge corner’ cracking meltdown that paralysed railway operations for several weeks, causing Railtrack’s downfall, was caused by senior leaders denigrating railway and engineering experience (even though it was arguably the largest engineering company in the UK) and not seeing it as being valuable in terms of the make-up of its Board and management. Connex failed largely because they placed a low premium on the value of experience in managing one of the most complex parts of the UK rail network. The

botched timetables of 2018 were seen as due to a lack of experienced professionals presiding over them, whilst franchises have come and gone with maybe only two or three ever leaving an impression on frontline employees because leadership has failed dismally to include them or make them feel part of the journey.

The effects of the current rail industry-wide voluntary severance programme will cause a dearth of experience. It’s not as if the sector can speak with pride or confidence around its ability to provide training and development for those younger frontline employees that they are relying on to do a great job without experienced colleagues to provide support and tutelage. For sure, there will be re-organisations and job-culls over the coming months across all parts of the industry and there will also be that fool’s paradise temptation to over-rely on agency staff as a more flexible, cost-effective panacea whilst not investing in training and recruitment. How the P&O shambles plays out will be instructive. On the one hand we need the transport sector to reform its employment practices; after all, societal change has made us less relevant than before and our cost model is unsustainable. However, the solution is not as simple as just shedding roles, leaving gaps in the staffing of key customer touchpoints or relying on outsourcing. For this reason, it may be better in the longer term for us to watch customers walk away from P&O and the company to become an industry pariah.

Furthermore, what has happened at P&O is an opportunity for us to look in the mirror.

Had public transport not had such a robust trade union grip and were senior management given a freer rein, we could have seen the sector try and do a P&O. Sadly, I’ve seen enough Stephen Nee types to make me believe we’d have administered it in a similar way too.

Making 800 folk redundant with immediate effect on a Zoom call was career suicide for him and those that Nee delivered the news to are far more employable than he is going forward. Some small crumb of comfort for them during their darkest hour perhaps.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Alex Warner has over 28 years’ experience in the transport sector, having held senior roles on a multi-modal basis across the sector

25 March 2022 | 19

23/03/2022 16:53

COMMENT COVID RECOVERY

Waterloo Station concourse at 4pm on March 15, 2022

Passenger transport after the pandemic Matthew Niblett and Sarah Kendall of the Independent Transport Commission consider the prospects for our sector

It is now two years since the worst global pandemic in living memory reached Britain’s shores. The measures to reduce transmission of the SARS-CoV-2 virus had an immensely disruptive impact on travel and transport over that period, but today, with improved treatments and vaccines available, public health measures are being withdrawn. The virus remains with us, and further epidemic waves are likely as it mutates, but policy makers are now trying to plan for the future.

To explore the impacts of the pandemic on transport and land use policy, the Independent Transport Commission think-tank commissioned a report using available evidence.

The initial report was published in September 2021, with an update due late in 2022. We explore here some of the key findings relevant to domestic passenger transport (especially buses and trains) and for policy making.

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Impacts upon demand The impacts of the pandemic on transport demand have been profound, but not all modes have been affected equally. To understand this we must take account of the wider behavioural changes that the pandemic has wrought. Restrictions on mobility early in the pandemic forced a much higher use of digital technologies for work and leisure purposes, as well as massively increasing the use of the internet for shopping and services.

The advice to work from home across much

“The acceleration in the digitisation of our lives has adjusted the reasons why and how people travel”

of the past two years has changed working patterns in many service and knowledgebased industries, and encouraged much more commercial and government activity to take place online. Many of the factors driving these trends, such as more flexible working patterns and higher levels of online shopping, were already underway before 2020 but have been greatly accelerated by the pandemic. Although there has been some reversal since public health measures were removed, the length of the pandemic means that many behavioural changes now have a permanent footprint.

The consequences of these behavioural changes have had different effects across transport modes. The initial substantial public health measures to reduce transmission of the virus caused substantial and immediate falls in travel demand across all modes during the course of Spring 2020 and again in early 2021, through which passenger transport suffered particularly severely. In part, this was due to concerns about viral transmission through enclosed spaces shared with strangers such as rail and metro carriages and buses. As time has passed, however, demand has begun to recover.

Rail travel recently reached almost 75% of pre-pandemic levels, close to the level of demand seen in 2008, while bus travel both within and outside London has experienced a similar degree of recovery. London Underground has had a slower recovery, but in February 2022 had reached about 65% of pre-pandemic levels during weekdays, and over 85% of those levels at the weekend. By contrast, private car travel had recovered to pre-pandemic levels by summer 2021, although this has since fallen back slightly.

Note that these aggregate figures mask important shifts in when and why people are travelling: for instance, leisure travel across all modes has recovered much more strongly than commuting, such that in February 2022 rail leisure demand is about 90% of pre-pandemic levels compared with only 40% for commuting.

Weekend travel by bus and rail is now much closer to pre-pandemic levels than on weekdays.

Mapping the future It is clear that travel behaviour and demand has undergone significant shifts since the start of the pandemic. The acceleration in the digitisation of our lives has adjusted the reasons why and how people travel. A key www.passengertransport.co.uk

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For further information about the Independent Transport Commission visit www.theitc.org.uk

question is how lasting these behavioural changes will be in terms of affecting future trends. Particularly important will be the permanence of changes to working patterns and what this means for commuting and business travel. It is apparent that cities are not dead, as some had predicted at the start of the pandemic, nor do many people wish to work entirely from home. However, surveys repeatedly show that the preference of most employees is for a hybrid or flexible working schedule, and this has been reinforced by announcements from many major UK employers, including Lloyds, Natwest, Centrica and John Lewis. As a result, we believe it likely that commuting and business travel will have been permanently inhibited compared to the pre-pandemic situation.

This is particularly significant for rail travel, given that more than half of rail journeys on the eve of the pandemic were made for commuting and business purposes (by comparison, less than 20% of bus journeys outside of London were made for these purposes). Moreover, ITC research has shown that rail commuters tend to be disproportionately likely to work in the knowledge economy where remote working is most feasible. This is likely to suppress weekday peak-hour rail demand for some time to come, although a key question is whether this reduced commuting will be spread evenly across the entire week, or if it simply compresses demand into a Tuesday to Thursday ‘midweek’ commuting peak. On the other hand, ITC research released before the pandemic showed that longer-term changes in residential locations, with more housing developments built in proximity to rail stations, was positive for rail demand, and a continuance of this feature in planning policy should help to provide some support for rail use.

For bus travel, shopping has traditionally been the largest single purpose for making journeys, so increasing trends towards online retail are likely to be negative for bus usage.

However, across all passenger transport modes there is some indication that leisure and holiday travel has recovered strongly. This has, in part, been helped by the rise in domestic tourism in Britain during the pandemic, when international travel has either been restricted or more complex and expensive. As pandemic restrictions have eased, we have also seen a resurgence in visiting friends and relatives, www.passengertransport.co.uk

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perhaps as priorities for travel have changed.

This is evident in the data which shows that weekend travel, which is predominantly leisure trips, has recovered more strongly than on weekdays. This trend is significant for passenger transport operations, and suggests that in the future more attention will need to go towards providing improved services at the weekend. Network maintenance might also need to become less focused on bank holidays and weekends in order to avoid overcrowding and poor service provision.

A key concern for passengers during the pandemic was related to overcrowding and viral transmission. To encourage people back onto bus and rail it has been important to improve confidence in the safety of travel. We now know that, given the airborne spread of the virus, good ventilation and air filtration can significantly reduce viral loads in crowded spaces. Introducing these systems on buses and rail/underground carriages can help to prevent virus transmission in the absence of widespread mask wearing. Many clinically vulnerable people rely on passenger transport for their mobility and it is important that their physical needs and requirement for reassurance are not ignored by operators and policy makers.

Changing investment needs Passenger transport will have an essential role to play in supporting wider policy objectives over the coming decades. Investment in transport and urban renewal will be crucial for stimulating new jobs, economic expansion and paying off the costs of the pandemic.

The objective of reducing the UK’s carbon emissions to net zero will also only be met through increasing the provision and use of low-carbon collective passenger transport.

And in terms of the government’s ‘levelling up’ agenda, improving mobility between and across our cities will be an important aspect of reducing regional disparities. How can policymakers support passenger transport in view of the post-pandemic trends identified above?

A key issue will be changing the Treasury’s attitude towards transport financing. Although transport and infrastructure operating costs remained high throughout the pandemic, revenue has been severely reduced. A range of support measures for public transport was put in place by the government but these are now being removed or revised. The shift in

passenger demand away from commuting towards more flexible leisure travel is now creating problems for operators who are seeing a loss of revenue from premium peak-hour tickets. As a result, it seems likely that pushing more of the cost of public transport onto the passenger is no longer sustainable, and increased taxpayer support will be necessary to sustain the quality and level of services that the public enjoyed before the pandemic.

Financing ongoing transport operations and longer-term investment is challenging and brings further pressure to reduce costs.

However, ongoing government funding to support measures with wider public benefits could now be more popular than was the case in recent decades. For example, the response to the government’s Integrated Rail Plan in November 2021 showed a strong public appetite for higher investment in better transport infrastructure and services.

One way to justify this investment is to revise our methods of appraisal of transport projects to ensure that the right objectives and benefits are correctly identified. For example, journey time savings may now be less relevant than environmental and social/community benefits.

Local interventions, such as improved services or more bus lanes, may be quick wins, while major transport infrastructure projects could be accelerated as a means of encouraging economic growth. Furthermore, in order to avoid a permanent modal shift away from passenger transport towards the private car, the case is strengthened for new road user charging mechanisms to raise revenue and better shape sustainable travel demand.

Opportunities also have appeared to reshape how travellers experience passenger transport. With greater public control and funding, there is scope for a revised fares system, providing more flexibility for bus and rail users and recognising that season ticket pricing based on a five-day working week is no longer suitable. If the new demand trends reduce peak-hour pressures, there is also an opportunity to rethink timetabling and resourcing to make best use of capacity, and to reduce overcrowding: now an even greater concern than before the pandemic. If these opportunities are taken, coupled with improved long-term support from central and local government, the future for passenger transport still looks encouraging.

25 March 2022 | 21

23/03/2022 16:54

COMMENT BUS POLICY

Is it still possible to ‘bus back better’?

Matt Gamble and Neil Davies of Atkins consider how England can deliver BSIPs, Enhanced Partnerships and ZEBRAs Since the original commitments and ambitions outlined in the Department for Transport’s Bus Back Better strategy, published in March 2021, there have been well-publicised reports of reductions in the availability of funding. The £3bn promised to help level up bus services in England to London standards has shrunk to just £1.2bn to improve bus services over the next three years.

Analysis on submitted Bus Service Improvement Plans by the Confederation of Passenger Transport published in November 2021 estimated that some £7.2bn would be required to fund BSIP proposals. This estimate follows an evaluation of 40 areas that account for 70% of England’s bus journeys outside London. They also estimate that the £7.2bn rises to approximately £9bn across all local transport authorities.

According to CPT estimates, the £1.2bn available is around 13% of the £9bn that local transport authorities and their consultants estimate is required to ‘bus back better’. And we understand that around 50% of local transport authorities may receive no funding at all.

So, what can beleaguered local transport authorities and bus operators do to mitigate the impact of these reports?

Re-group, re-imagine and re-prioritise Three areas will exercise the minds of local transport authority officers in England over the coming weeks and months - the implications of the long-awaited clarity on the Bus Recovery Grant; the recent communication from DfT on concessionary travel reimbursement; and finally, implementing those Enhanced Partnerships with or without funding from Bus Back Better.

The welcome announcement of an extension of the BRG buys some much-needed breathing space. However, the hard stop at the end of September 2022 focuses attention on the juxtaposition between funding for new 22 | 25 March 2022 PT261p22-23 22

initiatives and the need for the sector to wean itself off this source of funding. Faced with what looks like a ‘new normal’ of significantly fewer passengers to ride on buses, fewer staff to drive and maintain those buses (and inflationary pressures on costs), there is an urgent need to re-group and plan reduced bus services to fit. The six months’ grace that the BRG extension buys is, in reality, two months if new service tenders need to be designed.

Now, more than ever, intense local knowledge needs to be applied if the changes are to avoid a further decline in patronage.

Allied to this, LTAs should look to re-imagine their concessionary travel schemes in the light of the diminishing taper of reimbursement against pre-Covid levels announced by DfT in November 2021, with reimbursements due to fall to 65% of pre-Covid values by February 2023. The recent clarification by DfT does little to help LTA officers navigate the pressure to reduce spending in this area. There is also a risk that making the savings will lead to further cuts, particularly in those rural and small-town bus services disproportionately reliant on concessionary passengers. It will be difficult to justify to a section 151 officer why 100% of pre-Covid reimbursements should continue to be paid, considering this taper, and authorities should engage with operators on the implications of these reductions.

At the very least, LTAs need to recognise that the rigid application of the taper could leave bus operators ‘worse off’, and they must consider whether they should allow the reimbursement to rise above the taper value in line with out-turn patronage.

On BSIPs, whilst frustrating to many, the DfT’s announcement of the relaxation of the deadline for completing Enhanced Partnerships does provide some opportunities.

LTAs could re-prioritise activities, develop their governance approach, consider their and their partners’ delivery priorities, and how

The welcome announcement of an extension of the Bus Recovery Grant buys some much-needed breathing space for buses

they could leverage other funding pots before the EP process starts in earnest.

Another area where LTAs could exert effort in the interim concerns defining monitoring against targets specified in their BSIPs. Many have committed to collating data on patronage, journey times, reliability, and customer satisfaction. Where they do not already hold data, collection for the baseline is becoming increasingly important.

However, many authorities will have limited access to data or existing resource to support any analysis. So, they could use the delays to develop a cost-effective means of measuring outcomes against these targets. For instance, by considering using Bus Open Data Service in the fullness of time, using operators’ existing returns to DfT, recognising the need to establish confidentiality agreements where required, where they are not already in place.

Faced with the withdrawal of BRG and other www.passengertransport.co.uk

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pressures on the operating industry, authorities may want to consider how they explain any reductions rather than the hoped-for rise in patronage, should service cuts be necessary.

In the light of all the above it’s hard to remain positive, but many LTAs were enthusiastic about the provision of bus priority in their BSIPs. Many have a desire to extract funding from outside the National Bus Strategy.

We all know that designing, consulting on, and getting political approval for priority schemes is challenging. Notwithstanding a few exceptions, most authorities will have developed their BSIP schemes from a standing start. So, it seems prudent - if authorities can identify funding - to start the design and consultation processes so that they can face bidding opportunities with more confidence and certainty as and when they arise.

Finally, in relation to Zero Emission Bus Regional Areas, the delay provides a window www.passengertransport.co.uk

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“Faced with what looks like a ‘new normal’ of significantly fewer passengers ... there is an urgent need to re-group and plan reduced bus services to fit” for LTAs to continue discussions with operators on potential bidding opportunities and explore whether zero-emission buses might unlock other opportunities that support the delivery of BSIP objectives like making improvements to city centre access.

Creating a level playing field Besides the Bus Back Better strategy, we must remain cognisant of the Levelling Up White Paper. One of the 12 missions stated was the ambition to ensure that public transport is brought up to London standards. The white paper included the potential devolution of the Bus Service Operators Grant to combined

authorities and LTAs. To do this successfully, we must take local nuances into account.

For many rural communities, the car remains the only currently reliable mode of transport.

We must ensure that bus routes and timetables cater to the needs of these communities, in addition to the needs of those living in more urban settings.

To support this, we will need to ensure that investments are inclusive of all communities and work across all settings.

Only through doing so can we ensure we level up successfully, do not exacerbate inequality in society and support the delivery of our Net Zero ambition.

25 March 2022 | 23

23/03/2022 16:54

COMMENT

NICK RICHARDSON

Journey times, speed and ambition

Train services offer generally acceptable journey times but is there scope for further improvements to woo new passengers?

Quicker journey times have always been the ambition of service providers, and experience over many years has shown that faster services attract more users. For example, the 1960s electrification of the West Coast Main Line brought dramatic improvements with new trains and improved infrastructure which lasted until the more recent reconstruction suitable for tilting trains. Upgrades elsewhere, often involving electrification, have enabled more trains to operate at higher speeds.

A lot of weight is placed on journey time savings which is a core component of the scheme appraisal process. Having evolved from a methodology to support new roads, it has yet to relinquish its grasp on the concept that multiple small savings for road users are worthwhile but that time savings for anyone else is somewhat secondary. This has yet to fully absorb that there is also a need to balance journey time improvements against environmental objectives including climate change and Net Zero more fully. It shouldn’t be faster journeys at any cost but faster journeys only if there is no detriment for society such as environmental degradation and worsening journeys for others.

remain, generally because there are no easy answers and on a crowded island it is likely to stay that way. Inevitably, the biggest gains would be achieved by removing the most difficult constraints but it isn’t always possible.

One example of what can be achieved was the Thameslink upgrade to overcome the chronic unreliability of pathing at London Bridge and other locations. The new trains using this route don’t go fast crossing central London and remain tied by the curvature and gradients of a long-established urban railway. The upgrading of Merseyrail’s services makes an interesting comparison with faster rolling stock and new stations combining to create a service that isn’t much faster than it was one hundred years ago. However, the big difference is that there are now more stations, journey options and

more frequent trains so the overall offer is very different from anything achieved previously.

Grade separation is an option in some places but it involves some heavy infrastructure. The result to the west of Reading is that there are fewer constraints for trains crossing in front of each other. The Ordsall Chord in Manchester solves part of a capacity problem but not all of it because of other constraints in the area.

A possible outcome for such schemes is that new infrastructure enables more trains to operate so the problem doesn’t go away at all. Ironically, the long-standing but unused viaduct across the West Coast Main Line at Bletchley, part of East-West Rail, has required substantial rebuilding despite not carrying trains for most of its existence.

At one time back in the days of British Rail, it seemed that Britain had more trains travelling at over 100mph than anywhere else in the world. InterCity even managed to make some money despite the then government’s gloomy outlook and limited funding. There have been various marketing initiatives around InterCity 125mph trains but perhaps this lost momentum when 225 became the target, noting that this was kilometres per hour; the vision for 140mph trains faded rather rapidly.

Defining priorities Another constraint is created by new stations on some routes. They are usually a good idea to generate demand where there was none before including park and ride options but route capacity may be compromised, particularly where freight trains weave between the passenger service. A parallel can be found with motorways which were designed for One example of what can be achieved was the Thameslink upgrade.

It expanded capacity at London Bridge

Weeding out problems Many of the old problems remain, certainly with a largely Victorian railway that winds itself around obstacles, with track layouts that are not conducive to faster trains and have limited capacity signalling. The bottlenecks 24 | 25 March 2022 PT261p24-25 24

www.passengertransport.co.uk

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speed but now have to be managed carefully to accommodate the growth in demand that resulted. It’s all a long way from the early railway objectors positing that travel at speeds of 30mph would result in suffocation.

Is speed the objective though? We have High Speed 2 which, as the name suggests, is all about faster journeys – but is it? It seems to have morphed into a solution to capacity constraints but surely a new railway offers both speed and capacity? The other issue is for whom it provides faster journeys. No doubt HS2 fares will be higher than the remaining services on the conventional railway so it is somewhat exclusive from the outset. The classic example of this was the creation of Concorde with massive funding from British and French governments (i.e. taxpayers) to subsidise supersonic flight for the wealthy.

The 1960s electrification of the West Coast Main Line brought dramatic improvements

Valuing time There are of course some great improvements in rail journeys but the value that passengers attribute to journey time is always a matter of debate. It’s often a trade-off between fares and journey time, something the scheduled coach sector exploits. On some trains the journey times are unimpressive yet the fares continue to leap upwards. This particularly afflicts any trains cross-country such as Birmingham to Norwich (nearly four hours). On the main lines there are new ambitions such as ‘Norwich in ninety’ to London and improvements on many slower routes certainly help. Many areas suffer from too many station stops, understandably to some extent, with the result that some journeys compare unfavourably with car use, even taking the dreaded M25 into account. South of London, the network is so congested that even ‘semi-fasts’ aren’t what they might be. There is also the question of punctuality for which many users would prefer a train that takes a bit longer to a train that runs late or not at all.

The Great Western Railway timetable of 1902 gives us some idea of progress. Apart from an encyclopaedic set of timetables for other companies including some really obscure ones and information about how to book a horse box onto a train, it provides a London Paddington to Penzance time with the Penzance Corridor Express departing the capital at 10.40am via Bristol to arrive at the end of the line at 7.10pm; National Rail www.passengertransport.co.uk

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“The challenge is to attract people to trains rather than cars” provides a comparison with today’s service – 5 hours direct. Many of the former railway companies recognised the value of fast trains and did what they could to accelerate them with bigger locomotives and fewer coaches.

Marketing was strong and celebrated speed.

West of England, London to Birmingham and the rivalry between West Coast and East Coast Main Lines all retain hints of improved speeds to this day. For example, London Euston to Birmingham New Street with Avanti (typically 1½ hours) is quicker than London Marylebone to Birmingham Moor Street with Chiltern (typically just over 1¾ hours) but the latter is generally less expensive.

Note that pricing is key and various offers tempt users one way or the other. However, the main competitor is the car.

Time against cost In 1902, a Paddington to Penzance single cost 50s/6d (£2.53 in decimal money) for a First Class single, 31s/6d (£1.58) Second and 25s/3d (£1.26) Third Class. In 2022, it’s difficult to find a fixed price but it ranges from £117.20 First Class to £73.60 upwards for Standard. While

the fares now look high, one online calculator suggests that a First Class single should now cost £217 if in 1902 prices and Second/Standard would be £135. Perhaps we could be convinced that the current fare is a bargain with much accelerated times and arguably more comfortable surroundings, although travellers in 1902 would expect thicker cushions on the seats, even in Second Class.

While some competitive journey times remain, there are many areas where there is little or no competition because of the territorial nature of many train operators. This means that pricing does not necessarily reflect the market rate, especially where there are large numbers of commuters travelling at peak times.

The post-pandemic impacts on revenue are considerable now that traditional commuting is not what it was. With some journey times improving, the challenge is to attract people to trains rather than cars either as a straight alternative or using station parking.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Nick Richardson is Technical Principal at transport consultancy Mott MacDonald, chair of CILT’s Bus and Coach Policy Group and a former chair of the Transport Planning Society. In addition, he has held a PCV licence for over 30 years.

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“The commission talks of a need for ‘urgent and fundamental reforms’”

COMMENT

GREAT MINSTER GRUMBLES

‘Three out of ten; please see me’

Our Whitehall insider imagines what’s going on inside the minds of the mandarins at Great Minster House, home of the DfT

Last week the National Infrastructure Commission published its Infrastructure Progress Review 2022, assessing the progress the government has made in delivering its commitments to invest in new infrastructure.

Naturally, transport features large in this review.

It’s a kind of headmaster’s end of term report on each government department’s homework!

When I read what the commission had to say about this department’s performance it felt like we had been marked “six out of ten” overall.

But when it came to our performance on urban transport specifically, if felt more like a “three out of ten; please see me”!

Against four measures of performance on delivering urban transport infrastructure we have been assessed to have completely failed to deliver on a commitment to develop a long-term perspective of the infrastructure needs of major urban centres. The commission talks of a need for “urgent and fundamental reforms” to “achieve tangible improvements to local infrastructure by 2030”. Feels like we are failing badly here. And on the three other measures - setting clear goals and concrete plans, giving firm funding commitments, and having a genuine commitment to change - we have been marked as only “partly” delivering. Indeed, the commission accuses this department of “a failure to recognise the inadequacy of urban transport in congested cities outside London and the scale of the investment needed to overcome this”. Harsh words indeed. Feels like a number of colleagues www.passengertransport.co.uk

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need some serious detentions if we are to up our game! “See me” indeed!

But when it comes to our performance on interurban infrastructure we get a resounding “yes” on whether we have delivered against our commitments. However, let’s be clear. This is really only because we have published our Integrated Rail Plan - setting out ambitious long-term investment amounting to a whopping £96bn. Whether we actually stick to this plan and deliver it remains to be seen.

I’m deeply sceptical, not least because 30-year plans never end up being delivered in the way originally set out. So while my colleagues responsible for interurban transport seem for now to get a resounding “ten out of ten; go to the top of the class” it’s surely only a temporary

success story. But what puzzles me here is that the commission’s assessment of our interurban performance focuses solely on rail. Not a word is said about our performance on delivering our strategic road investment programme, which I find curious. Perhaps that’s because this programme falls to the Highways Agency to deliver, not this department, so it may be out of scope from this assessment.

The good news is that it looks as if Crossrail will soon be entering passenger service. It may be almost four years late and wildly over budget, but doubtless all will be forgiven in the end when passengers finally use the service.

Journalists seem awestruck by the quality of design, the sheer scale of the stations, the modern state-of-the-art trains, and all the rest.

They seem more enthusiastic about the quality of the infrastructure and architecture, almost as if that is an end in itself, rather than whether the service to be provided is something that London really needs. I can hear the howls of derision even as I type those words! But it’s worth remembering that Crossrail adds just 10% to London’s rail capacity. That’s not much for almost £20bn. Yet upgrading existing underground lines with modern digital signalling adds some 30% to a line’s capacity for a fraction of the cost. Or so I’m told.

The history books on Crossrail tell us that a review of the Crossrail business case by Sir Adrian Montague back in 2004 raised a whole host of questions about the deliverability of the project and concluded that “the review cannot be satisfied that the business case fully meets the tests in the terms of reference”.

It’s worth remembering too that the original Private Bill for Crossrail, which at the time was promoted by London Transport in the early 1990s, was rejected by the parliamentary committee scrutinising petitions lodged against the Bill because London Transport could not prove the case for the project. A hugely controversial decision which caused outrage! And London Transport at the time did not even support Crossrail, preferring instead the alternative Chelsea-Hackney proposal.

I have little doubt that in the years ahead we will all wonder how we could travel around London without Crossrail, and doubtless we will all marvel at the stunning architecture and cavernous station environments. But as a taxpayer, I remain sceptical that our money has been well spent.

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EVENTS

IT-TRANS is the best place to see the future This May, the world of public transport will gather for the eighth edition of the biggest event of its kind dedicated to IT and digitalisation in our sector IT-TRANS is all about the future.

And the next steps for the world of urban mobility will be what defines our cities moving forward.

This May, the world of public transport will gather for the eighth edition of the biggest event of its kind dedicated to IT and digitalisation in our sector.

Held from May 10-12 in Karlsruhe, Germany, IT-TRANS will host three days full of interesting and innovate output, across its conference programme and exhibition.

Beginning in 2008, the collaboration between UITP and Messe Karlsruhe has brought many exciting developments over the past 14 years, and after a fullydigital edition in 2020, this year’s gathering promises to be full of necessary discussions, at a crucial time for public transport.

The role of technology and digitalisation will be vital to the progress made in public transport in the months and years to come, and the sector has a close eye on the future.

With more than 270 exhibitors from 35 countries expected to showcase their latest innovations, alongside an impressive conference programme with more than 180 speakers in over 45 sessions, the 2022 programme is built around parallel sessions, market updates, plenary sessions, poster sessions, workshops, and technical visits.

The 10 main topics will be Mobility-as-a-Service, Contactless Ticketing, Cyber Security, 5G and Telecommunication, Digital 28 | 25 March 2022 PT261p28-29 28

Transformation, Autonomous Mobility, Big Data and Data Governance, On-Demand and Flexible Transport, AI and IoT (Internet of things) and Smart Cities and Integrated Network Management. Within those 10 topics, the programme offers almost 60 individual topics.

The digital revolution moves quickly, and under its key themes and topics for this year’s edition, IT-TRANS can help drive the direction. Woven throughout those important discussions will be the impact the past two years has had on the public transport sector.

The world has lived through

great change during the coronavirus pandemic, with lockdowns, restrictions, and alterations to the ways in which we move and interact.

During these times public transport has always been there, keeping our cities moving. It has also faced major upheaval, and now IT-TRANS will consider what life beyond the pandemic can look like - most importantly how to build back better to a new future. Throughout these times, technology has continued to accelerate, and the times to come will be driven by technology.

By embracing digitalisation,

“Technology will play an important role to bring back lost ridership and offer better customer experience” IT-TRANS: bigger than ever in 2022

operations can be more efficient and create the very best mobility options possible with the same aim in mind: a better experience for all passengers.

Public transport must be customer-oriented and moving forward cities will become home to more people than ever before as urbanisation grows. This raises many opportunities to become more accessible and sustainable.

The world of 2022 is not the world of 2018 when IT-TRANS last gathered in Karlsruhe.

The challenges facing cities are now different, and there are opportunities for the sector to re-evaluate what will come next.

Technology will play an important role for public transport to bring back lost ridership and offer better customer experience.

The future will be technologically driven and digital options, and digital tools, are what people will be looking for.

Every new development within IT brings us closer to the people who benefit from these changes: every trip taken, every app used, every swipe of the travel card moves our sector forward.

From on-demand mobility and Mobility-as-a-Service to autonomous vehicles and big data, technology moves fast and at the world-leading IT-TRANS Conference and Exhibition, the public transport sector will gather to exchange, discuss, and invent IT solutions and innovations that matter to the future of mobility.

As a fixture in the calendar of those working within urban mobility, IT-TRANS is the place to see what the future can, and should, look like. The eighth edition this May will help to determine those next steps.

For further details about the IT-TRANS show visit www.it-trans.org www.passengertransport.co.uk

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CAREERS

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Atwal acts on diversity

APPOINTMENTS

Wrightbus boss joins leading chief executives in bid to create a more inclusive workforce The chief executive of Ballymena-based bus manufacturer Wrightbus has joined CEOs from some of the UK’s leading businesses to help create a more inclusive workforce across the country.

Buta Atwal has joined the chief executives of Marks & Spencer, the Co-op Group, Unilever, Superdrug and others to sign the ‘CEO Activist & Moving the Dial on Diversity Pledge’, which aims to drive action to better engage and support all underrepresented groups within business.

“Diversity is essential for a successful business,” said Atwal.

“A diverse workforce offers differing perspectives, which is vital to developing business strategies. It also means increased creativity, bringing fresh ideas.

“We pride ourselves on creating a welcoming environment for all employees, but we know there is more we can do. By

signing this pledge, Wrightbus is strengthening its commitment to diversity and fairness.”

Founding members Steve Murrells, group CEO of the Co-operative Group; Steve Rowe, CEO of Marks & Spencer; and Steve Ingham, CEO of PageGroup, hope to use their influence, experience and public platforms to encourage more than 100 other UK CEOs to sign the pledge before December 2022.

Murrells said: “This is an important step towards creating diverse and inclusive workplaces for all our colleagues where they feel a true sense of belonging.

“Collectively, as CEOs and leadership teams, we know that more must be done; and each of us has a responsibility to be role models and agents of change to drive true inclusion throughout our organisations, our products and services and the communities we serve.”

Atwal: ‘Diversity is essential for a successful business’

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GO-AHEAD GROUP Go-Ahead Group has announced the appointment of Sarah Mussenden as group chief financial officer.

Mussenden (pictured) will take on the role from May 9, 2022.

Gordon Boyd, who has held the role on an interim basis since the sudden departure of Elodie Brian in December 2021, will remain in the role until the end of March 2022. Mark Ferriday, group financial controller, will report to group chief executive Christian Schreyer between Boyd stepping down and Mussenden starting her new role.

Mussenden has extensive experience across multiple sectors, including her present role as interim chief financial officer at Royal Mail UK. Previous roles include chief financial officer at Centrica Consumer Services, Barts and The London NHS Trust and financial director at British Airways. She is also a non-executive director at the Premier Miton Group plc.

GOVIA THAMESLINK RAILWAY Govia Thameslink Railway has appointed previous interim head of safety and health, Samantha Facey as health, safety and security director.

Facey (pictured) started in the new role in late February, reporting to Patrick Verwer, GTR’s chief executive. She took on the position after serving as head of zero harm strategy since 2019. In this role she has led GTR’s development and delivery of a programme to reduce all staff and passenger incidents to zero.

LNER Train operator LNER has announced the appointment of Claire Ansley to the new role of people and customer experience director.

Ansley (pictured) has been LNER’s customer experience director for four years and in her new postion her role will expand to additionally oversee the people team while continuing to ensure passengers receive the highquality service.

“Claire continues to be an inspiring leader dedicated to ensuring teams deliver our legendary LNER customer service,” said LNER managing director David Horne. “She brings huge experience, passion and energy to her role and I am delighted she will be leading our people and customer experience teams.”

NETWORK RAIL Network Rail has announced the appointment of Robin Dobson as group property director, replacing Stuart Kirkwood who is leaving the organisation after 11 years’ service, the last two of which were spent leading Network Rail’s property division.

Dobson (pictured) joins Network Rail from property development and investment compant Hammerson. The infrastructure controller says he brings extensive experience in all property asset classes across UK and Europe.

Dobson joined Network Rail this week where he and Kirkwood will begin a handover process to ensure a smooth transition before Kirkwood leaves on March 31.

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DIVERSIONS

Walsall takes the axe to ‘silly’ bus gate Council takes the axe to bus priority scheme I think we’re all agreed that bus priority measures are a good thing.

They speed up journeys, make buses competitive with cars and help operators reduce their costs - it’s a win-win!

However, in Walsall the local council is set to remove a controversial experimental bus gate that has been dubbed a “trap” by furious motorists, 30,000 of whom have been fined since it was launched in July last year.

Despite the council tinkering

Very helpful

A LONG WAY FROM KINGS LYNN

Despite a few vexations surrounding the availability of printed timetables, information provision for transport users has come on leaps and bounds in the

with the signage to highlight the prescence of the bus gate, the decision has now been taken to axe it, with Walsall Council claiming it will help promote the “on-going Clear as mud?

last couple of decades thanks to the internet and real time information displays at stations and stops.

No more do people have to wonder where their bus or train is - quite often the information is there before them - either on a display or on their phone. Of course, that’s in theory at least...

Dropping into our inbox last week was an email from a reader who spotted a rather uninformative display at one particular bus stop.

“Welcome to Kings Lynn

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regeneration of the town centre”.

“The valuable insight that the experimental order has provided will be used to inform how Walsall Council meets the growing demand for sustainable and active travel choices in the years to come,” added the council in its anodyne statement.

Aftab Nawaz, leader of the opposition Labour group in Walsall, said he was delighted the restriction was being removed: “The bus gate was impacting on Walsall people on different levels such as businesses and taxi drivers, who are vital in bringing people in and out of the town centre.”

So that’s all right then!

Bus Stn,” said the real time display. “Please refer to printed timetables.”

Now firstly, it’s just not cricket is it? In our minds if there is a real time information display at a station or bus stop, it should do just that - display real time information. Fingers crossed there are printed timetables available too!

But far worse was the fact the bus stop wasn’t actually located at Kings Lynn Bus Station... our reader informs us it was actually in York!

We actually recycled the press release

BRIGHTON HAS A LOAD OF RUBBISH Govia Thameslink Railway has revealed it is now recycling around 90% of the rubbish at Brighton station since a special segregation unit was installed six months ago.

Staff segregate, wash, compact, bale, weigh and electronically tag all waste and now GTR are aiming to deliver the highest recycling rate of any station on the rail network.

The data from the facility is mind boggling - 39 tonnes of cardboard and paper and 10.7 tonnes of glass have been recycled with 21.4 tonnes of food waste composted. Staff expect to process 320 tonnes throughout 2022 - what a load of rubbish!

SEEN SOMETHING QUIRKY? Why not drop us a line at editorial@passengertransport.co.uk

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