Passenger Transport: December 2, 2022

First Bus is no long willing to tolerate CityRed being in the red

Southampton retreat could be a ‘watershed’

Decision by First Bus to close its loss-making operation in the city is seen as a sign that the post-Covid era is forcing operators to act differently

The announcement this week by First Bus of its intention to close its bus depot in Southampton and withdraw all of its ‘CityRed’ services is being interpreted by some as a sign of shifting attitudes within Britain’s major bus groups.

“Part of me thinks this is a watershed,” transport analyst Chris Cheek told Passenger Tranport, “the final confirmation that the instinct to ‘protect your territory’ that has existed in the industry since the 1920s has at last been killed off by Covid.”

Explaining the decision to withdraw, First South managing director Simon Goff said: “This isn’t a process that we have entered into lightly. Lower customer

numbers post-Covid, rising costs, changes in travel patterns and insufficient demand for the number of buses operating in the city’s competitive market have all added extra pressure. This has led to this difficult decision being taken and meant the business is simply no longer sustainable.”

Cheek believes that Covid has “hastened the inevitable”.

“In Southampton, First has been losing money for years, but saw

itself as the successor to the municipal tradition of network provider in the city,” he said. “There is no room for sentiment in today’s industry. You can’t say they didn’t try - investment, new branding, marketing and meanwhile it was cross-subsidised from profits generated elsewhere. Now, there are no profits from which to cross-subsidise.”

First Bus is proposing to withdraw all CityRed services in Southampton from February 19, 2023. Its local rival, Bluestar, is planning to fill the void, with its managing director Andrew Wickham reassuring bus users that “they need not be concerned”.

NEWS, VIEWS AND ANALYSIS FOR A SECTOR ON THE MOVE

“There is no room for sentiment in today’s industry”

Chris Cheek

Southampton retreat won’t be last decisiontough

I didn’t envy First Bus managing director Janette Bell when I watched an internal video of her delivering the sad news to colleagues that the group would soon close its Southampton depot and cease running buses in the city. Hopefully as many employees as possible will find new roles within First Bus or with Bluestar, the company that plans to fill the void that will be left behind when First’s CityRed fleet vanishes on February 19. I wonder how many more videos like this Bell and others like her will have to make in the months and years ahead.

Britain’s bus groups have been loath to give up “territory” but the bleak, post-Covid environment is forcing them to rethink. Look at the recent withdrawal by First Bus from the East of Scotland and transfer of its operations to McGill’s. Look at the swathe of routes cut by Stagecoach in the East of England and elsewhere, due to a lack of customers and drivers. And what about the demise of Bournemouth’s Yellow Buses last August? As transport analyst Chris Cheek told me this week: “There is no room for sentiment in today’s industry.”

“Altogether, it’s another indication that the industry’s (indeed the country’s) attitude to commercial risk has been permanently altered by Covid,” he added. “Yet more evidence too that if post-Covid funding is not maintained after April, the cuts could be devastating.”

Let’s hope the politicians can see that the bus sector is not bluffing, it needs all the support it can get to avoid a big step backwards.

IN THIS ISSUE

ORGANISATION PAGE

Alexander Dennis 15

AllOneService 4-5

Arriva 14

Bridgend County Council 17 Bus and Coach Association Cymru 10 BYD 15

Cardiff Bus 10

DVSA 12

Elizabeth Line 8 First Bus 1, 17 First Cymru 17

First West of England 12 Go-Ahead London 8 Great Western Railway 6 Island Line 7 Metroline 8

Milton Keynes Council 14 National Express 17

National Express Coventry 15 Network Rail 6

Newport Transport 15 North Somerset Council 6

Office of Rail and Road 7

RATP Dev Transit London 8

RMT Union 6

Stagecoach East 17

Stagecoach Group 15

Stagecoach London 8

Stagecoach South West 12 Ticketer 17

Translink 9

Transport Focus 10, 11

Transport for London 8 Transport for Wales 11, 17 Vivarail 7

West of England Combined Authority 6 Wrightbus 4-5, 9 Yutong 15

17

FARE CAPPING BASED ON EXACT DISTANCE

First Bus have begun an innovative trial to simplify its ‘Tap On, Tap Off’ fare capping system for passengers. It will see adult passengers’ fares calculated on the direct distance travelled for the first time in the UK bus industry first.

06 ‘COMMIT TO RE FORM TO UNLOCK PAY INCREASES’

Striking rail workers must accept workplace reforms in order to unlock pay increases, transport secretary Mark Harper has said. His intervention comes as the RMT union announced it planned to launch a wave of further strike action on the rail network.

22 T RANSPORT NEEDS LONG TERM THINKING

Much has been said about the upheaval of recent months and the consequential shuffling of ministerial posts. NickRichardson argues that these constant changes at the top do nothing to ensure long term planning.

25

R AIL REVIEW SAGA IS LIKE A CARRY O N F ILM

Our Whitehall insider imagines what’s going on inside the minds of the mandarins at Great Minster House, home of the Department for Transport. “The delay to implementation of the rail review continues to puzzle me.”

Resurgent Wrightbus aims for green market

In October 2019 the future for bus manufacturer

costs when compared to those in the Far East, it seems safe to say thatWrightbus was making little, if any money on those buses.

Editor

Wrightbus looked bleak after the business collapsed into administration despite talks with several potential buyers.

The founding Wright family claimed that global challenges stemming from the switch to electric bus technology had caused a sharp decline in demand for buses in the UK (PT218).

In a bid to resolve issues surrounding an excess of factory capacity and to secure jobs at the main Ballymena production site, assembly work on vehicles bound for Far Eastern markets had been moved there from Malaysia. With prohibitive labour and transport

At the time, senior industry figures also speculated that Wrightbus’s reliance on the New Routemaster contract, on which the business had dedicated a significant amount of resources, could also have had an impact, after the contract ended with the delivery of the 1,000th vehicle to Transport for London in 2017.

The collapse of the business brought about the end of family control that had spanned three generations.

Enter Jo Bamford

Despite speculation that bus manufacturing at Ballymena would cease with the collapse of the business, a saviour appeared in

the form of Jo Bamford, heir to the multi-billion pound JCB family fortune. After working in the City and then the family business, Bamford had become involved in a number of hydrogen business ventures, including HYCAP, a hydrogen investment fund, and hydrogen fuel supplier Ryse.

The green pioneer had begun talks with the Wright family during the summer of 2019 about a potential buyout. Despite trading blows in the media with the bus builder’s then-main shareholder Jeff Wright over the purchase of the freehold of the main production facilities, Bamford was victorious. Taking on the role of Wrightbus executive chairman, he installed Buta Atwal, a highly regarded former JCB manager with significant expertise in leading projects, sales and distribution networks, as CEO.

Focus on zero-emission

The pair managed to stabilise the business, which employed just 46 people when Bamford acquired it, chalking up a small pre-tax profit of £900,000 on sales of £71.8m for 2020. That increased to £1.6m in 2021 on revenues of £97m. Now Bamford wants to transform the business as the world’s leading zero-emission bus manufacturer.

Atwal told Passenger Transport at a special press event in Ballymena last week that one benefit of the pandemic was that Wrightbus was able to devote significant resources to designing those new

zero-emission vehicles. “We were able to continue working,” he said. “It meant we had the time and resources to look at things afresh - the Electroliner fully electric double decker bus was born in lockdown.”

The success of this zeroemission design effort has been such that in 2022 Wrightbus won a string of deals with companies, including First Bus and the Republic of Ireland’s National Transport Authority (NTA), as well as signing export deals in Australia and Germany.

Production is currently 12 vehicles per week, taking between 1,100 and 1,400 build hours per

Matthew Hill (left) the 1,000th employee of the new Wrightbus, pictured with chief executive Buta Atwal

Andrew Garnett Deputy

emission technology”

the business with regards to employing people, but also the output of the business has gone from old technology to new technology. The result of that is a very healthy order book. We will probably be doing double what we are doing this year next year.”

He highlighted that Wrightbus is largely a vertically-integrated company that produces many of its parts and sub-assemblies in-house, but having said that Atwal is sanguine about some of the supply chain issues that have had a significant impact on the wider automotive sector over the last 18 months. “We are constantly managing our supply chain,” he adds. “It is a constant battle for all manufacturers right now.”

Focus on customers

bus according to development and manufacturing director Damian McGarry, but that production rate will increase to 18 next year. Full of ambition,Wrightbus plans to manufacture 3,000 zero-emission buses in 2024.

The company’s confidence is such that it is now ramping up efforts to recruit new members of staff in order to hit production targets. In recent weeks the workforce surpassed 1,000 in strength with the employment of coachbuilder Matthew Hill.

Wrightbus plans to recruit a further 400 new staff members in the next year, after already expanding its headcount by over

40% in the last 12 months.

“When we came in here there were just a handful of employees,” said Atwal. “We’ve taken on 1,000 employees and that’s significant for two reasons.”

Firstly, he says it’s roughly what the company was employing prior to administration and secondly, it has been achieved on the basis of a significant investment in zero-emission technology. Having said that, Brexit is undoubtedly creating headwinds for the recruitment of staff in many skill areas, particularly as Northern Ireland’s economy, like the wider UK’s, is nearing full employment. There’s also stiff competition

from other manufacturers like Spirit AeroSystems and a resurgent Harland & Wolff shipyard in Belfast.

But Atwal adds there is growing customer acceptance of hydrogen and battery-electric technology. Meanwhile, Metroline’s fleet of Wrightbus Hydroliner hydrogen double deckers in London have just passed 1.5 million miles in service since early 2021.

“80% of our production next year will be zero-emission technology,” Atwal revealed. “Preadministration it would have been a fraction of that... maybe 2-5% would have been zero-emission.

“It’s just not transformed

With the production side of the business up-to-speed, attention is turning to the parts and service operations, which were recently branded as AllServiceOne, a new one-stop-shop fleet support business. Led by managing director Ian Gillott, it aims to extend the existing capabilities of the after-sales business while also avoiding some of the problems associated with the old Customcare business of Wright family days. With buses as the foundation, Gillott is now developing operations to support fleets across a range of industries, servicing all makes, all models and all technologies.

Could this focus outside the bus industry be a prelude for expansion for Wrightbus? Atwal refuses to be drawn but suggests there are some sectors where the zero-emission technology that has been developed for buses is equally applicable.

“We’ve no definite plans at the moment,” he added. “But it’s clear there’s demand for zero-emission and we have the skills.”

The Ballymena production facilities have been restructured. Pictured are vehicles for Transport for Ireland and First Bus on the line last week

“80% of our production next year will be zero-

‘Commit to reform to unlock pay increases’

Transport secretary urges rail workers to accept reforms

INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS

Striking rail workers must accept workplace reforms in order to unlock pay increases, transport secretary Mark Harper has said.

His intervention comes as the RMT union announced it planned to launch a wave of further strike action on the rail network in the run-up to Christmas.

Harper told the BBC that the only way to “free up” funding for pay increases was for staff to accept the need for reforms.

“It is the reforms that free up the savings that then unlock the ability for the companies to make an offer to the trade unions on pay,” he told the Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg show.

MILESTONE FOR DARTMOOR LINE

Quarter of a million passengers in first year

BRANCHLINES

Over a quarter of a million passengers have used the reopened Dartmoor Line between Exeter and Okehampton since services commenced on November 20 last year. Rail minister Huw Merriman visited Okehampton this week where he met with local dignitaries and unveiled a plaque to mark the official reopening of the station building.

Train operator Great Western Railway increased services to hourly in May 2022 and reports that patronage has continued to rise, with more than 500 journeys starting at Okehampton every day.

“Both of those things have to happen in parallel. I do not have a bottomless pit of taxpayers’ money to throw at this problem.”

Any money saved through reforms would have to be split “fairly between the taxpayer and the people who work in the industry”, Harper added.

The transport secretary revealed there had been quite a lot of progress in negotiations between the trades unions, train operators and Network Rail.

Meawhile, the RMT this week criticised the government for a lack of urgency in dealing with the

national rail dispute, following a meeting with Harper last week. General secretary Mick Lynch is now expected to hold another meeting with rail minister Huw Merriman and employer representatives on Friday.

However, the union has said the government’s “lack of urgency” is “astonishing,” given the strike action scheduled to start in two weeks’ time.

In an open letter to businesses, Lynch said a week will have passed between his meeting with Harper and his meeting with Merriman without any pay offer having been put on the table. “Time is running out,” he said.

GREEN LIGHT FOR PORTISHEAD

Planning approval could allow work to start in 2024

NETWORKS

Restoring rail services between Bristol and Portishead has taken another important step forward after the project secured planning permission with the approval of the Development Consent Order.

Approval follows additional funding for the scheme being agreed by the West of England Combined Authority and North Somerset Council.

“This is a project long in the making and undoubtedly there will be more bumps in the road,” said Dan Norris, mayor of the West of England. “However, this important thumbs up keeps us firmly on the right track, and means the hard work of physically bringing this rail line back to life can begin.”

Mark Harper

Lynch pointed out that the union has come to a negotiated settlement with the Scottish and Welsh devolved governments on rail pay and conditions.

The original rail route to Portishead closed almost 60 years ago. It is hoped that construction to restore services could commence in 2024 if funding can be secured.

“I do not have a bottomless pit of taxpayer’s money”

Huw Merriman met local dignitaries this week to celebrate a year of operations

Rail industry finances start to make recovery

Slight fall in government funding as passengers return

FINANCIALS

The Office of Rail and Road has determined that the rail industry’s finances are showing signs of improvement following the easing of Covid-19 restrictions.

Between April 1, 2021 and March 31, 2022, ORR data shows total rail industry income was £21.3bn. Adjusted for inflation this is a decrease of 0.9% from the previous year.

This consisted of £13.3bn from government, a 24.4% decrease on the previous year, £6.5bn from passenger operators (£5.8bn from fares and £0.7bn from other train operator income), a significant 152.1% increase, and £1.5bn from other sources. The overall decrease in funding by government in the latest year is closely related to the increase in passenger operator income.

Of the £13.3bn of government funding, Network Rail received £6.5bn of support. This was a 5.7% decrease on the previous year. Franchised train operators received £6.7bn, a 36.7% decrease, while the Core Valley Lines in South Wales received £0.04bn in funding support, a 21.9% increase.

Total expenditure was £22.8bn. Adjusted for inflation this is a 4.0% increase, largely caused by increased finance costs. This consisted of £10.9bn of franchised train operator expenditure,

£10.7bn of Network Rail expenditure and £1.2bn by other parts of the rail industry.

With the easing of pandemic restrictions, a total of 990 million passenger journeys were made in the year. This is more than double the 388 million journeys made in 2020/21 when much of the country was in and out of lockdown. However, patronage remains lower than before Covid.

The average passenger fare per journey in the latest year was £5.89 for all operators. This represents a 19.3% increase from the previous year. Nevertheless, the average fare remains 6.1% lower than the £6.27 from two years ago.

The average journey length increased by 22.6% to 39.5 kilometres, while the average fare per kilometre travelled was 15pno change from the previous year.

END OF THE LINE FOR VIVARAIL?

Company could be about to appoint administrators

ROLLING STOCK

Vivarail, which was created to convert retired London Underground District line rolling stock into new rolling stock for the national rail network, has filed a Notice of Intention to appoint administrators.

Average passenger fare per journey was £5.89

London Waterloo is top of the stops

London terminus regains its title of busiest UK station

London Waterloo has regained its crown as Britain’s busiest railway station after the impact of the pandemic saw it knocked off the top spot by Stratford station in east London last year. New data from the Office of Rail and Road has revealed that between April 2021 and March 2022, 41.4 million passengers passed through the station.

However, that total is some way short of the estimate of 86.9 million from two years ago.

London Victoria retained its position as the second most used station with 36.8 million passengers, while London Bridge stayed in third spot with 33.3 million. Stratford (London) dropped down to fifth with 28.2 million, although that is more

On average, government funding was 32.1p per passenger kilometre in England, 57.3p in Scotland and 59.3p in Wales.

than double last year’s estimate.

There are eight stations that serve the capital in the top 10. They are joined by Birmingham New Street which remained in eighth place (22.7 million) and Manchester Piccadilly, which moved up from last year’s 18th to this year’s 10th (19.6 million).

In Scotland, Glasgow Central remained the most used station with 15.3 million passengers (2020/21: 5.3 million). In Wales, Cardiff Central was the busiest station with 7.5 million passengers (2020/21: 2.0 million).

The company was established in 2013 by former Chiltern Railways chairman Adrian Shooter and it has converted some of the redundant sub-surface stock to battery and hybrid power. Vivarail has also supplied a small number of refurbished trains for South Western Railway’s Island Line operation on the Isle of Wight and exported two battery-powered examples for trials in the United States. The company has also developed a patented fast charging system for battery trains.

Vivarail

managing

director Steve McBride said the company had worked hard to secure new investment in recent months.

“Although we have been encouraged by the level of interest, time is now against us to allow potential investors to step in,” he added. “Combined with slow market conditions and delays in reaching certain key commercial arrangements we have had no choice but to file a Notice of Intention to appoint administrators with the courts.”

Vivarail supplied rolling stock for Island Line

TfL rows back from major London bus cuts

Sadiq

Khan releases extra funding to save central London routes

BUS CUTS

Transport for London has published revised proposals for its Central London Bus Review that will see the vast majority of changes proposed earlier this year now not going ahead.

The move follows a significant response to TfL’s planned changes which drew more than 21,000 responses from members of the public. The planned shake-up of the capital’s bus network in central and inner London would have affected more than 70 bus routes with the complete withdrawal of 16 routes also mooted (PT266).

However, London mayor Sadiq Khan has approved additional

70 MILLION

ELIZABETH TRIPS

PATRONAGE

Six months on from the opening of the Elizabeth Line, business groups and small businesses in and around the new stations are hailing its transformative effect.

The latest ridership data shows that the Elizabeth Line has been used nearly 70 million times since opening, with around 600,000 journeys made on the line each day.

The most popular journeys all involve Tottenham Court Road station, with Stratford, Paddington and Canary Wharf the most popular destinations for people leaving the West End.

funding averaging around £25m per year in order to reduce the planned cuts. This is in addition to a £500m City Hall financing facility, which is still required for TfL to maintain a balanced budget.

However, TfL has said it will still go ahead with 22% of the service changes consulted on, which are all in areas which it says have numerous alternative public transport options and where there will be enough capacity on the remaining buses to meet demand.

“Passengers will still be able to make the same journeys, with additional interchanges in some instances, in which case they will benefit from the Mayor’s Hopper Fare,” it added. “By going ahead with the remaining proposals, TfL is able to improve the reliability of buses in central London, while

allowing for investment in bus provision in outer London.”

The planned changes will now impact 18 routes. Route 507 from Waterloo to Victoria will be extended towards Fulham, and will be renumbered Route 11. Route 521 between Waterloo and London Bridge via the City will be withdrawn, with the night service N11 restructured.

Route 16 from Cricklewood to Victoria will run on Route 332 between Brent Park and Paddington. The night route N16 will be renumbered N32.

The proposed changes to routes 3, 6, 11, 23, 26, 59, 77, 133, 211, C10 and N26 will still go ahead to minimise the impact of withdrawn routes. Other changes and route withdrawals planned will now no longer take place.

“This new funding, alongside

As a result of that popularity, use of Tottenham Court Road has increased by more than 80% since the Elizabeth Line launched. Use of Bond Street station has increased by more than 25% since the Elizabeth Line station opened in October.

‘In just six short months we’ve seen more than 60 million journeys along the Elizabeth Line, driving growth not only within London but across the wider region,” said transport secretary Mark Harper. “This incredible project, which government invested over £9bn into, has already created over 55,000 jobs and is expected to generate £42bn for the entire UK economy.”

Planned closures over Christmas will facilitate upgrades to allow a full 24 trains per hour service from May 2023.

GAINS IN LATEST TfL CONTRACTS

CONTRACTS

The latest Transport for London bus tender results see a reshuffle of operators amongst a handful of London bus routes.

Metroline retains Route 107 (New Barnet Station - Edgware) with a peak vehicle requirement (PVR) of 11 existing hybrid double deckers and gains Route 223 (HarrowWembley) from RATP Dev Transit London with a PVR of six existing diesel single deckers.

Meanwhile, Go-Ahead London has retained Route 152 (New MaldenPollards Hill) with a PVR of 11 new electric single deckers; Route 376

our detailed analysis of the extensive consultation feedback and emerging travel patterns, has allowed us to significantly reduce the scope of the changes,” said Geoff Hobbs, TfL’s director of public transport service planning.

“The proposals that we will be taking forward are those that have a minimal impact on Londoners, as they are areas with much higher provision of buses than there is demand.”

TfL has said while patronage on some bus routes in central and inner London has fallen due to improved active travel facilities and opening of the Elizabeth Line, it is clear that there are further opportunities to reduce car dependency in outer London.

TfL said it will now focus its planning resources on supporting bus growth in outer London, including new housing developments and areas of potential economic development, in addition to greater provision for groups hardest hit by the cost of living crisis.

(Beckton - East Ham) with a PVR of 10 electric single deckers; and Route 430 (Danebury AvenueSouth Kensington) with a PVR of 11 existing hybrid double deckers. It also gains Route D3 (Leamouth - London Chest Hospital) from Stagecoach London with a PVR of nine new electric single deckers.

Going the other way is Route 276 (Stoke Newington - Newham General Hospital) which Stagecoach London has won with a PVR of 17 new electric single deckers. In a separate tranche of tenders, Stagecoach London has also retained Route 86/N86 (Romford - Stratford) with a PVR of 30 new electric double deckers.

While the latter contract will commence in July 2023, the other contracts all have start dates in September to December next year.

West End benefits from Elizabeth Line connections

Go-Ahead, Metroline and Stagecoach win work

Wrightbus directors face disqualification

Jeff Wright amongst 13 individuals facing possible director ban

MANUFACTURERS

While Wrightbus last week heralded a turnaround under the ownership of green entrepreneur Jo Bamford (see pages 04-05), Northern Ireland’s Insolvency Service has announced it is to begin legal proceedings to disqualify 14 people connected with the collapse of the business in 2019 as company directors.

It is understood to be the largest number of former directors the Insolvency Service, which is part of Northern Ireland’s Department for Business, has ever attempted to ban.

The company directors are Jeff Wright, the son of Wrightbus founder Sir William Wright; Jeff Wright’s sisters Amanda Knowles and Lorraine Rock; Rock’s daughter Lauren Christie who had been commercial director;

BELFAST GLIDER PLANS REVEALED

BUS RAPID TRANSIT

Northern Ireland’s Department for Infrastructure (DfI) has announced plans to extend the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) Glider service with a new route to the north and south of Belfast. Subject to suitable funding being identified, it is currently estimated that the new G3 Glider service could become operational in autumn 2027.

The first phase of the £90m Glider service was launched in 2018. Operated by state-owned public

former Wrightbus chairman and chief executive Mark Nodder; former UK sales director Sam McLaren; former group financial director Mark Johnston; former group managing director Steven Francey; former group technology director Brian Maybin; Professor Roy Douglas, who had worked closely with Sir William Wright on automotive developments; and solicitor and advisor Alan Barr.

Legal case will be heard on December 8

A further three appear to be linked to the current business. They are group finance director Kirsty McBride; manufacturing director Damien McGarry; and director of sales and business development John McLeister. Conduct that could result in a ban includes continuing to trade to the detriment of creditors at a time when the company was in bankruptcy; failure to keep proper

accounting records; failure to prepare and file accounts or make declarations to the Companies Register; failure to file tax returns or pay taxes or other monies due to the Crown; and failure to cooperate with the receiver/ insolvency practitioner.

In early November it was reported Jeff Wright was facing disqualification amid accusations of him acting as a ‘shadow director’ of the business. He had publicly stepped down from day-to-day involvement in Wrightbus in 2014.

“I am disappointed that the Department has decided to start this process,” said Wright. “I’ve worked with the administrators and department in the administration of the Wrights group of companies.

“I hope to have an opportunity to tell my side of the story, but given the process, I am unable to comment further at this time.”

The case will be referred to the Bankruptcy Court for administrative review on December 8 .The current business has said it has no comment to make as the events pre-date Bamford’s acquisition.

transport operator Translink with 18-metre long Van Hool ‘trambuses’, the DfI said the initial Glider network “has been a huge success and has helped transform and modernise public transport services in the east and west of the city”.

“It has increased the numbers of people using sustainable public transport on these corridors by 70%,” it added.

Now plans for Phase Two have been confirmed. They would see a new G3 route introduced that would utilise the existing city centre infrastructure of the initial two Glider routes before branching off to the north along the Antrim Road

to Glengormley. In south Belfast the new cross-city route would terminate at Carryduff via the Ormeau Road.

Meanwhile, the expansion plans also include extending the existing G2 service into south west Belfast

in order to connect with Queen’s University and the City Hospital. A consultation into the proposals was held over the summer of 2021 which saw significant public support for the plans.

This has led infrastructure minister John O’Dowd to approve the plans.

“My officials will now commence the detailed design of the proposed G3 route,” he said. “It is important that we are ambitious in terms of our public transport provision.

Glider uses fleet of ‘trambus’ vehicles

“My officials will continue to engage with residents, businesses and other stakeholders along the selected route as the detailed design is progressed.”

New cross-city route to link north and south Belfast

“I hope to have an opportunity to tell my side of the story”Jeff Wright

‘Bus priority can offset impact of 20mph limit’

Deputy climate change minister says 20mph will become the default limit in Wales next September, despite fears for buses. Rhodri Clark reports

POLICY

More investment in bus priority is the best way to address any slowing of bus journey times after 20mph becomes the default speed limit in urban areas of Wales, according to the Welsh Government.

The Senedd voted in July to change the default to 20mph where it is currently 30mph. Local authorities are now deciding which roads should be exceptions to the default limit, with 30mph reminder signs on lamp posts. New government guidance for local authorities on setting exceptions says: “The fact that a section of road is on a bus route is not in itself a justification for making an exception.”

Some bus operators are concerned that driving at 20mph where 30mph is now normal will add minutes to journey times, potentially requiring additional resources or a reduction in service frequency.

Bus operators are concerned by the potential impact of the 20mph default limit

Addressing a Transport Focus board meeting in Cardiff last week, deputy climate change minister Lee Waters said 20mph would become the default limit in September. “I know some bus companies have been unhappy with the impact that has on some journey times. We’re working with them to try to understand that.

“I think if there are issues with journey times we need to be looking at road space reallocation, not the speed limits. We need to make it easier to catch the bus than it currently is and we need to make the bus a more effective alternative to the car than it currently is.

“I think road space reallocation is a key part of that. We put funding on the table this year

for local authorities to work regionally to come up with a pipeline of schemes addressing pinch points and to come up with bus priority measures.”

Natasha Asghar MS, the Welsh Conservatives’ shadow transport minister, had brought up the subject on the previous day in the Senedd. She said Cardiff Bus had raised “legitimate concerns” about the impact of the 20mph limit but in a television interview Waters had described this as “a remarkably narrow-sighted view”. She said it was Waters who was narrow sighted in pushing ahead with the 20mph plan.

Waters responded that congestion was a major problem for buses. “The evidence we have

so far is that a 20mph speed limit will produce smoother traffic flows. Most of the delays are at junctions, and people speeding up and slowing down to get to the next set of traffic lights as quickly as they can is a considerable cause of local air pollution, as well as using fuel and, of course, being a danger on the roads.

“So, if we’re able to smooth the traffic flows, that should help bus companies. We’re also not entirely clear how accurate most bus companies’ timetables are. They’re saying we’re causing delays to their timetables. Well, in many cases, they’re not sticking to their timetables at the moment, and that’s largely because of congestion. So, there’s a circular argument here.”

He also said: “The creation of bus lanes and bus priority measures is a different way of achieving efficiencies for the buses without, as she suggests, having a speed limit that we know increases the chance of being killed if you are hit by a car.”

Bev Fowles, vice chair of the Bus and Coach Association Cymru, told Passenger Transport that the government did not have enough money to implement bus priority widely. On many roads through suburbs, housing estates and ribbon development along valleys, congestion was not a significant problem and bus priority measures would not counter the impact of the speed limit reduction.

He also said councils were now starting to work out the cost implications of the 20mph default limit. The Welsh Government has budgeted over £32m to cover the implementation costs to local authorities and others, but Fowles said that home to school buses - a statutory duty for local authorities - could be affected by slower journey times and additional resources could be required.

“I think if there are issues with journey times we need to be looking at road space reallocation, not the speed limits”

Lee Waters, deputy climate change minister

Funding for Welsh bus franchising is uncertain

Costings and funding plan not complete as rail soaks up budget

FRANCHISING

The Welsh Government does not yet know how it will fund the move to universal bus franchising, deputy climate change minister Lee Waters admitted at a meeting of the Transport Focus board last week.

After board member Arthur Leathley asked whether franchising would result in higher fares, Waters expressed uncertainty over whether the government would be able to go ahead with its plans.

The Labour government in Wales has spoken for years about the need to replace bus deregulation with a system which gives it and local authorities more control. However, it did not legislate for this when England and Scotland legislated before the Covid-19 pandemic. Its latest White Paper on bus reforms, published this year, envisages franchising being implemented in every part of Wales. The government regards bus partnerships as too slow and

SOUTHAMPTON

RETREAT

ineffective.

The Welsh Government has set the target of 45% of journeys in Wales being made using sustainable modes of transport by 2040, which is 13 percentage points higher than currently. It also aims to reduce car miles by 10% by 2030, but Waters acknowledged that bus had “the pivotal role to play” if Wales was going to meet its targets on climate change. He said buses had been neglected for far too long in policy circles.

Responding to Leathley, he said: “I’m feeling a bit gloomy given the public spending projections we’ve got to absorb. We’re looking at a £3bn cut to our budget so I don’t know if we are going to be able to do it. I would very much like to, and we’re trying to.”

Leathley said that unless money was provided, it couldn’t happen and “it’s no more than a dream: it’s not even a vision, is it?”

Waters said the government’s current spending on buses could be better used, but he also acknowledged: “Unless we put more money in, then we’re not going to achieve the modal shift that we’ve committed to.”

He said that shifting in-year funding to bus was “extremely testing” when the government was facing cost increases on the South Wales Metro, for example, which the government had to fund. The enhancement of the Core Valley Lines north of Cardiff, including electrification, was budgeted at £750m. Explaining the government’s progress to date on bus franchising, Waters said: “We’ve got some figures on the costs of reducing bus fares and the impact that would have on modal shift, but - officials can tell me otherwise - I’m not aware that we have a fully worked out ‘Here’s what it will cost to do the whole

system and here’s where we’re going to fund it’. I think that’s one of the challenges we face.”

He said one reason the government had commissioned an independent review of all road schemes was to see how resources could be shifted from building roads, in order to make public transport more attractive and cheaper. The cost of using public transport needed to be as low as possible and that required a shift of resources, he said. “This is not something that can be borne simply by the passenger. The true cost of car use is not borne by the passenger now - it’s absorbed by society and it’s paid for by general taxation.”

He added: “We’ve got quite sophisticated modelling we’ve done looking at various different price points, the impact it has on capacity … and its affordability. We’re working through what can be done.”

The government had a range of scenarios which had not been published yet. It was working with TfW, some bus operators and the Welsh Local Government Association on the details.

Waters pointed to countries where public transport use was much higher than in Wales. “We’re not suggesting revolution here. This is commonplace in other countries that have chosen to make it so.”

more than 100 new staff, and implemented a raft of new services in-and-around Bournemouth and Poole,” said Wickham.

Bluestar’s Go-Ahead Group sister company, Morebus, was quick to step in when Bournemouth-based Yellow Buses ceased operations on August 4 (PT271). “With little more then 48 hours’ notice, our team ... recruited

“On this occasion, we have a little more time, and are already planning the new routes and timetables. We will announce these as soon as they are complete.”

Commenting on First’s withdrawal, James Freeman, who headed First’s bus operation in the

West of England between 2014 and 2021, told Passenger Transport: “The only wonder, really, is that it hasn’t happened already ... A large almost brand-new depot and a PVR of less than 50 (I believe) must have made the financial numbers very bleak. The damage, in my perception, was done long, long ago as First in Southampton was in a poor way 20 odd years ago.”

He added: “For Go-Ahead, this must be sweet success, following on from the recent happenings along the coast in Bournemouth - and likely to have a positive impact on their bottom line into the bargain!”

Cheek sees an opportunity for Go-Ahead Group to now “do a Brighton” in both Southampton and Bournemouth and create successful, unified networks.

“Unless we put more money in, then we’re not going to achieve the modal shift that we’ve committed to”

Lee Waters, Deputy Climate Change Minister

Stagecoach avoids penalty with free buses

£190k penalty results from staff shortages and reliability issues

COMPLIANCE

West of England traffic commissioner Kevin Rooney has ordered Stagecoach South West to provide free travel in Exeter for two weekends before Christmas at a cost of £120,000 and make provision for staff to assist and maintain information displays at the city’s bus station at a cost of £70,000 per year for two years.

The move follows a public inquiry that was held over two days in June and October where it was revealed a DVSA investigation found that around 21% of services were not operating, a noncompliance rate that was accepted by Stagecoach South West which said it was battling a severe shortage of staff.

In his written decision following the inquiry, Rooney noted that this was not so much a case of buses running outside the so-called ‘window of tolerance’ of more than one minute early or

five minutes late, but one of buses not running at all.

“Reasonable excuse in relation to punctuality would usually be a discussion in relation to roadworks or the lack of bus priority measures,” wrote Rooney. “This is a very different case and the reasonable excuse requires that I balance macro-economic and largely external events with the response to them.”

He said it was clear that the pandemic had had a significant impact on the bus industry with falling patronage and income amid a background of cost pressures.

He continued: “In addition, access to drivers from central Europe has been impacted by Covid and some bus drivers have transferred to freight where the driver shortages were first in prominence, pay is higher and there isn’t the need to interact with passengers.”

Highlighting the recent collapse of Yellow Buses and HCT Group, Rooney noted: “It is a difficult time to be a bus operator.” However, he

First West of England cuts for reliability

Operator removes 1,450 trips from network each week

First West of England has announced major cuts to its network that will see 1,450 journeys each week removed from its network as the operator battles with a severe shortage of driving staff.

The operator says the move

is a temporary measures that will remain in place until April. Some corridors are more affected than others with the worst being from the north east of Bristol into the city centre.

Routes 48, 48A and 49, which link Emersons Green, UWE and

concluded the operator had not acted quick enough to tackle its driver shortage. Although mileage had been removed from the network, he noted the operator had supplied 60 drivers to to the Commonwealth Games for a three-week period this summer.

He suggested that operators lacking staff should deregister services to the level that they can support a reliable service with the resources they have. “Many of those who have complained to the operator, to the council or to me would not like the latter course of action but it is a proper course to take if there is not sufficient resource,” Rooney added.

The traffic commissioner welcomed Stagecoach’s offer of free services and staffing of Exeter’s bus station as he did not favour straight financial penalties as “they did nothing to help those directly affected”.

“Taken together, the two measures would exceed the level of financial penalty I find to be appropriate,” Rooney concluded.

QUESTIONS OVER BODS DATA

OPEN DATA

In his verdict into severe bus reliability issues at Stagecoach South West, West of England traffic commissioner Kevin Rooney questioned the usefulness of the Department for Transport’s Bus Open Data Service (BODS).

Analysis by a DVSA officer of BODS data suggested that around 40% of Stagecoach South West’s services were not operating.

“Neither the investigating DVSA officer nor the operator considered that figure to be anything like correct,” said Rooney.

The traffic commissioner revealed several potential causes of the discrepancy had been identified. They included some timetable changes that had not been uploaded to the BODS platform and this may have arisen from a ‘discontinuity’ within the wider Stagecoach Group.

Rooney continued: “BODS means that operators now have to provide the information to three separate organisations. I was told that the information was now better but still not right. I do not understand how the BODS data can differ from the operator’s own real-time information which both derive from the same source.

Lyde Green, are losing a total of 174 journeys, while Route 75 and 76 services from Hengrove through Hartcliffe and Bedminster to Cribbs Causeway see 99 journeys axed each week.

A spokesperson for First West of England said the move would allow its operations teams to focus on delivering a more reliable service to passengers, rather than making on the day cuts to services.

“If an operator with the resources and motivation of this business cannot resolve the inconsistency, it would seem that BODS is some way off being able to be relied upon as a means of monitoring bus service reliability.”

The second hearing of the Stagecoach South West public inquiry was attended by senior Department for Transport officials. Rooney said he was confident they would get to the bottom of the BODS data inconsistency.

Discrepancies in flagship bus data sharing system

Arriva quits Milton Keynes ZEBRA project

Group cites ‘several challenges and complexities in its structure’ behind the decision to pull out of £32m 56-vehicle Milton Keynes electric bus scheme

PROJECTS

Arriva has announced it has pulled out of plans for a large fleet of fully-electric buses in Milton Keynes that were fast-tracked as part of the Zero Emission Bus Regional Areas (ZEBRA) project.

The £32m Milton Keynes scheme was one of five local authority areas that won ZEBRA funding last year.

While other ZEBRA projects in Cambridgeshire, Kent, Leicester and Warrington appear to be progressing, the scheme in Milton Keynes now appears to be at risk as no other operators formed part of the project.

It has been anticipated that government funding for the Milton Keynes scheme would be released this month with plans to

order 56 battery-electric buses, which would be leased to Arriva via a third-party company, and commence installing charging infrastructure in January. It was expected the first vehicles would have arrived in April 2023 with services commencing in June.

The project aimed to bring forward “a new approach to delivering, at pace, a city scale zero carbon bus operation”, said the council at the time.

“Using an innovative commercial approach, backed by advanced battery technology, a solution has been tailored for the challenging operating condition found in Milton Keynes,” it added.

However, in early November Milton Keynes councillors heard there were still a number of commercial issues to be resolved before the grant could be awarded and the new electric buses ordered.

After announcing its departure from the project, Arriva said it had continued to work in collaboration with the council and had spent a significant amount of time over the last year attempting to find a viable way to introduce an electric bus fleet.

“We remained open and

transparent with the council throughout this time that the bid had several challenges and complexities in its structure, and whilst we have worked tirelessly to find a sustainable solution this regrettably has not been possible,” added a spokesperson.

“We share Milton Keynes Council’s disappointment, but with the current economic uncertainties and escalating operational costs, it would be irresponsible for us to continue with the bid at this time.

“We remain committed to Milton Keynes and working in partnership with the council.

We also remain committed to the decarbonisation agenda which is evidenced by fleet transitions we have been able to successfully implement through a range of sustainable models in other regions.”

Local councillors have blasted Arriva’s decision. Jenny WilsonMarklew, Milton Keynes Council’s cabinet member for climate action and sustainability branded the decision “incredibly short-sighted”.

“Sadly, this means that there has been a major waste of council and government time and resources,” she said. “It feels like a kick in the teeth as a lot of work went into preparing the bid and rolling out electric buses would have taken us closer to reaching our climate ambitions as a city.”

She added: “It’s incredibly disappointing that we won’t be able to bring electric buses to Milton Keynes as quickly as we intended. As a council, we’ve always championed sustainable transport and improving air quality, with electric buses due to be at the heart of this. We must now go back to the drawing board to find a new partner to deliver green and sustainable transport in our city.”

Arriva previously participated in a trial of eight wirelessly charged electric buses in Milton Keynes

“It feels like a kick in the teeth as a lot of work went into preparing the bid”

Jenny Wilson-Marklew

Stagecoach plans 86% increase in e-bus fleet

Report details ‘year of progress’ on journey to net zero

STRATEGY

Stagecoach this week confirmed that it is planning to increase its electric bus fleet by over 80% in the next 12 months as it continues its journey towards being a net zero business.

The country’s biggest bus and coach operator has published a new report outlining progress in 2021-2022 against the strategy it launched in 2021, Driving Net Zero: Better Places to Live and Work

The report details a programme of improvements delivered in 2021-2022 against its Planet, People, Prosperity and Governance targets (see panel on right for the highlights relating to ‘Protecting the planet’). It

includes a package of capital investment in new cleaner buses, measures to improve energy efficiency as well as improvements and investment for Stagecoach employees and local communities.

Stagecoach is continuing with its plans to become a zero emission UK bus fleet by 2035, and has introduced new electric buses across many parts of the country, including one of Europe’s biggest investment in e-buses in Manchester. As part of these plans, Stagecoach will be increasing its

GB-wide electric bus fleet from 184 buses to 343 in the next year, representing an increase of 86%. It will also be launching all-electric city bus networks in the UK in Inverness and Perth in 2023.

Greg Ritt, head of sustainability for Stagecoach, said: “We know there is still a lot of work to be done, but we’re pleased to have had a really good year of progress against our sustainability strategy.

“Despite the challenging macro-economic environment, and the specific pressures that are being faced in the public transport sector, as the country’s biggest bus and coach operator, Stagecoach is continuing to play a leading role in decarbonising the sector and we are working hard towards our target to become a net zero business by 2050.”

NEWPORT ‘SHOWS WHAT’S POSSIBLE’

ZERO EMISSION VEHICLES

Newport Transport has announced plans to make Newport the first city in the UK with a fully electric bus and coach fleet by the end of 2023.

The company will soon start running Wales’ first electric coaches. The fleet will include four fully electric Yutong TCE12 coaches, entering service in March.

The delivery of a further 12 Yutong E10 & E12 electric buses in the same period will take the EV bus fleet to 44 electric buses.

The expansion will make up 44% of Newport Transport’s overall bus fleet, the largest ratio of electric to diesel

PROTECTING THE PLANET

Introduction of 75 new zero emission buses in regions across the UK, with 79 new e-buses in London during 2021-22. A further 159 new electric buses are planned to be introduced in 2023.

Stagecoach will start running 10 new hydrogen buses in Liverpool in 2023, the first of their kind for the region, operated through a partnership.

Introduced 100% renewable electricity across the business, with new energy saving lighting in place in some locations.

Delivered an overall 32% reduction in scope 1 & 2 CO2e emissions per passenger journey. Recycling mobile devices, which has helped to fund the planting of over 3,000 trees.

Opening of a sustainable new £7m depot in Cwmbran in South Wales, which features a water recycling system, electric charging bays, intelligent heating, solar panels and a grass roof for rainwater harvesting.

buses in a fleet outside of London.

Scott Pearson, managing director at Newport Transport, said: “I am passionate about quality public transport, but I am even more passionate about the environment. We must make these kinds of changes now, for our planet, and keep moving things forward despite funding being tight. At Newport Transport, we’re showing what’s possible, despite being a smaller municipal operator.”

Newport Transport will meanwhile become the first UK customer to commit to the forthcoming Yutong electric double-decker, now known as the U11DD. Two of these vehicles will be delivered in mid-2023.

Zenobe is working with Newport Transport to build the new charging infrastructure required for the transition to electric vehicles.

Welsh municipal fully electric by end of 2023

“We’re pleased to have had a really good year of progress”

Greg Ritt, Stagecoach

ON THE ROAD The £150m project to create the UK’s first “all-electric bus city” by 2025 has taken a major step forward with 50 new greener buses on the streets of Coventry. Supplied by Alexander Dennis and BYD, the 50 new double-deckers for National Express Coventry are the first of up to 300 new vehicles due to arrive over the next three years.

Fare capping based on exact distance trialled

First Bus and Ticketer to launch innovative pilot scheme in Wales

TICKETING

First Bus has embarked on an innovative new pilot in partnership with Ticketer to simplify its existing ‘Tap On, Tap Off’ fare capping system for passengers. It will see adult customers fares calculated according to the direct distance travelled (as the crow flies) to make a journey in a UK bus industry first.

Developed by First Bus central commercial teams and ticketing retail partner Ticketer, the pilot is taking place in the First Cymru operating area of Bridgend, with the help of Transport for Wales and Bridgend County Council.

A journey can consist of a passenger boarding multiple buses, within a 30-minutes transfer time. The passenger’s fare will then be calculated to the exact distance (nearest metre) between their first boarding and

MIRRORLESS COACHES

National Express trials safety innovation

SAFETY

National Express’s new Caetano Levante IIIA is the first in the company’s white fleet to use Orlaco’s ‘Mirroreye’ system, a camera monitoring system which replaces the use of conventional wing mirrors. Developed in partnership with the Portuguese manufacturer, the system will help improve visibility around the coach and reduce the risk of minor collisions.

final alighting bus stop.

When a passenger ‘taps on’ they’re charged a minimum fare of £1.60, which covers the first 2km of their journey. If they travel further, they are charged based on the distance they travel up to a maximum of £5. That day cap is lowered the more often the passenger travels across the same week, ensuring that the maximum a passenger can pay for a week’s bus travel is £21 - no matter the distance they travel or the number of journeys they make.

The scheme is designed to offer passengers a more flexible and ‘fairer fares’ system and has the potential not only to save them money in the short term, but to offer great value for money in

the long-term. Calculating fares to the exact metre offers a much fairer way of calculating fares for passengers, especially those who may face higher fares because of their geographical location between fare stages.

Simon Pearson, chief commercial officer, First Bus UK said: “This pilot has the potential to change the game in the fare capping and pricing space and is part of our nationwide rollout of Tap On, Tap Off across the UK operations. We are excited to see the results of the pilot and more importantly how it goes down with our customers. This pilot will run for an initial three months but has the potential to be extended and could be rolled out in other areas in the future if successful.

“As we go through the current cost of living crisis, it important to us to continue to innovate to find ways to save our customers money and bus remains great value as a travel option of choice for everyone.”

EX-STAGECOACH USERS OFFERED MYTRIP OPTION

TICKETING

Former Stagecoach customers in the East of England can now use the myTrip app to purchase tickets to travel on services abandoned by the group.

On September 20, Stagecoach East announced it was withdrawing 18 bus services completely and reducing a further five routes.

Cambridge & Peterborough

Combined Authority acted quickly to find operators to continue as many of those services as possible, finalising the details for replacement services from October 30.

A range of different operators have stepped in. Stephensons of Essex has taken on four of the former Stagecoach services serving Ely, March and Newmarket. Vectare has taken two, and A2B Travel has taken one, as have FACT and Centrebus. Whippet has taken on three routes, whilst Dews Coaches has eight. Stagecoach East remains the operator of three of the affected routes following the tendering process led by the Combined Authority.

Five of the new operators - A2B Travel, Dews Coaches, Stephensons, Vectare and Whippet - are on technology firm Passenger’s myTrip mobile app, making the transition easier for customers affected by the Stagecoach decision. Bus users who previously used Stagecoach’s mobile ticketing app to buy their tickets are now able to do so for these operators on the myTrip app - as well as track their buses on the routes.

Helen Connolly, director of customer success at Passenger said: “It’s really important, now more than ever, that customers aren’t negatively affected by changes like this.”

The new Caetano Levante IIIA

“This pilot has the potential to change the game in fare capping”

App can be used on replacement services

NORMAN BAKER

A challenging in-tray for Mark Harper

who will have fashioned his written words.

He observed that while plenty of people find reasons to object to new schemes, very few if any object when they are finished, and the objectors use them just as much as those who supported the scheme do.

He is undoubtedly right to suggest this. I recall when HS1 was first proposed to go through the Kent countryside, all sorts of lurid arguments against the idea appeared. Ashford was going to be ruined. The noise would be horrendous and make life unliveable for people even several miles away. And so on. They were all wrong and I doubt if there is now anybody who thinks it was a mistake to build HS1.

Mark Harper’s return to ministerial office after six years in the wilderness, punctuated only by an embarrassingly unsuccessful attempt to gain the Tory party leadership in 2019, was probably as much of a surprise to him as it was to the rest of us.

His last role had been as chief whip for Theresa May, the political equivalent of holding a hand grenade with the pin slowly edging out. His rehabilitation shows perhaps that some rationality has returned to the appointment of ministers, after the Crazy World of Liz Truss. As I wrote in my last column (PT276), I found Mark to be honest, straight-talking and competent when we were ministers together in the Home Office.

Yet we cannot assume positive personal characteristics will be enough. Events tend to make the weather rather than ministerial initiatives.

Ministers generally arrive at their department following appointment with some specific objectives they want to achieve. For me, these included everything from the creation of the Local Sustainable Transport Fund thorough to the banning of private sector wheel clamping (which I slipped through when Philip Hammond, who was against the ban, went on holiday).

It is not clear what policy objectives, if any, Mark will have brought to his new role, for transport has never seemed to be one of his priorities as an MP. One has emerged subsequently, namely his commitment to

infrastructure investment.

It was interesting for me to note that at the event to celebrate the completion of the Elizabeth Line, where both he and I were present, he used his first public outing as secretary of state to go off his prepared script to talk about new schemes. This was his voice, rather than that of the careful civil servants

Mark Harper was clearly referring in his unscripted aside not just to the Elizabeth Line but probably also to HS2, which he is on record as supporting, and probably the Northern Powerhouse and East-West rail too. Unfortunately, in my judgement, it might also suggest his commitment to large-scale, pollution-creating, traffic- inducing road schemes.

But back to those external events. Even if he has arrived in office with a list of policies and projects he wants to pursue, he may find that his agenda is largely set for him, and often by matters outside his control.

He will have arrived at the Department for Transport to find a bulging in-tray, at the top of which will have been the lamentably poor service for passengers on the railway, as a result of either ongoing strike action by the unions or the shockingly bad performance of certain train operating companies. Even on the days when there are no strikes, cancellations are at an all-time high and services sporadic.

The new secretary of state has made an encouraging start here, talking calmly and avoiding unnecessary antagonistic comments. It was sensible of him to meet RMT boss Mick Lynch and certainly helped improve relations and so bring a settlement potentially closer.

It is perhaps reckless of me to make predictions in print that might turn out to be hopelessly wrong, but as I write this on the evening of Monday 28th, my reading of the situation is that a deal is much closer with perhaps only the reluctance of the Treasury to give the green light the last stumbling block.

If a deal can be signed off, and signed off in time to enable the planned December strikes to be pulled, that will be seen as a big tick for

So,

“He used his first public outing as secretary of state to go off his prepared script to talk about new schemes”

Mark Harper: honest, straighttalking and competent

the new transport secretary. It will also mean, for these must be the terms of any agreement, a decent pay rise for rail workers, and a sweeping away of what used to be called Spanish practices (a term that goes back hundreds of years and which doubtless and understandably Spanish people regard as somewhat pejorative). Both these outcomes would be very welcome.

Also near the top of his in-tray will be a paper on Great British Railways. Is its creation still government policy, is it still seen as the guiding mind of the future, or is the new transport secretary going to pull the emergency communication cord?

A decision on this really cannot be allowed to drag on very much longer. Whether or not the concept established by his predecessor, Grant Shapps, is entirely to his liking, I suspect Mark Harper will take a pragmatic view, both that GBR is already too far down the track to be derailed, and that the last thing the industry needs is more uncertainty. And in any case, there is no obvious Plan B.

These matters should be largely within the control of the transport secretary, but any departmental secretary of state soon finds that their room for manoeuvre on a wide range of issues is limited by the idiosyncrasies of No. 10 and the behemoth that is No. 11.

And on top of that, the Leader of the House, Penny Mordaunt, will hugely influence what legislation is found time for in parliament. The DfT desperately needs a slot for a major transport Bill, primarily to create GBR but also to deal with a whole range of other issues that have been hanging around, including putting in place a licensing regime for e-scooters and pedicabs, and regulating driverless cars. Mark Harper needs to use his influence and elbows to win this slot.

We have not yet had the announcement on rail fares for next year. We used to learn of the increase in August to take effect the following January, but last year the increase slipped into the spring.

This is another flashpoint. Some in government will argue that fares should be held, both to help tackle cost of living increases and in recognition that service on the tracks has been pretty poor. You can see that a big increase, anywhere near inflation, will cause outrage, and I am sure both ministers and officials in the DfT would rather not have to defend this.

The Treasury, however, is more likely to take the view that rail has been heavily supported through Covid and it is time to claw back some of that money. It is the Treasury, not Mark Harper and certainly not Huw Merriman, the new rail minister, who will make that call.

If I were still a DfT minister, I would be pointing out to the Treasury that pushing up fares may actually drive people off the railways and so reduce income to them. By contrast, on the East Coast Main Line, cheap fares from open access newcomer Lumo, which LNER has felt obliged to mirror to a degree, has pushed up passenger numbers way above pre-Covid levels, no mean feat, and so increased income.

It is an argument based on Treasury income that is much more likely to be won rather than anything about the cost of living, and certainly not one pointing out the environmental advantages of rail, which are of little interest to the Treasury.

Equally, the DfT will have its work cut out persuading the chancellor and his officials that all the promised rail improvements should still go ahead, and it will be a test of Mark Harper’s clout to what extent he can stave off the calls for cuts to the rail capital programme.

The Treasury will also hold the cards when it comes to bus funding. The large, indeed unprecedented sum earmarked for the National Bus Strategy for England, announced just before the pandemic, has been whittled

down, initially by a big commitment to cycling, then by the use of funds to provide short-term prop-up support to the industry through the pandemic.

We have an extension to the support package, and a £2 bus fare from January, both rushed out in the dying days, no hours, of Grant Shapps and No. 10 transport advisor Andrew Gilligan, which will take us through to the end of March.

It would clearly not be sensible to then have a cliff edge, for that would mean a whole swathe of bus services being withdrawn, which in turn would to a degree render pointless the support that was provided during Covid to keep them operating. Yet is the Treasury, back in mindset terms to cutting spending and balancing the books, prepared to listen to pleas from the transport secretary and his DfT colleagues to keep some sort of safety net in place?

Mark Harper may have some good ideas - we will see - but the test for him, as it always is for transport secretaries, is how far he can get others to ease his passage rather than block his way.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Norman Baker served as transport minister from May 2010 until October 2013. He was Lib Dem MP for Lewes between 1997 and 2015.

“He may find that his agenda is largely set for him, and often by matters outside his control”

At the event to celebrate the completion of the Elizabeth Line (pictured), Mark Harper observed that few if any object to new schemes when they are finished

ALEX WARNER

Rail is reeling, but where are the buses?

Rail strikes recently required me to search for a bus and coach alternative, but I was surprised by the paucity of available options

I’d never been before and had been looking forward to attending for over three years, with the pandemic having scuppered my previous chances. Yes, you guessed it right, the Warley Model Railway Exhibition last weekend at the NEC in Birmingham, the largest display of its kind in the UK. I’d even booked a hotel the night before in Derby and had my itinerary mapped out. Then the rail strike decimated my plans and I stayed at home!

I feel pretty bitter about my big trip out being kyboshed by striking rail workers, if I’m honest. But my annoyance was nothing compared to the gaunt, crestfallen faces of the senior rail industry professionals dealing with the fall-out of the strike who were at a meeting I chaired on Wednesday. I almost felt guilty for grumbling about missing out on the big model railway show as I walked into the meeting room and saw the despair and fatigue on the faces of those railway bigwigs. Like all of us, they all assumed that when the strikes were curtailed and peace talks broke out, there would be a resolution - there generally is in such circumstances. But then, industrial action was back on, with relentless frequency, intensity and so close to Christmas, that it was likely to wreck any chance of these tired industry leaders having a break after the travails of this year and Covid before that. Several in the room, expressed genuine worry that some individuals in their team, the few shining lights that they always rely on in adversity, were so ground down that they

might not get through this period.

For all of the above, I remain incredulous that there is an unprecedented level of public support for striking rail workers. Various polls since the strikes began show fluctuations of support between 37% and as high as 58%, a far cry from previous eras when those taking part in industrial action were vilified and seen as luddites and dinosaurs. It’s difficult to comprehend the change in outlook. I suspect that there is such contempt, bordering on disgust, towards the government over the way it has conducted itself in the past 12-18 months, that in any debate or conflict, the public’s instincts are not to come down on the side of ‘officialdom’. I’m less convinced, though, that there is sympathy necessarily towards the cost

of living impact faced by railway workers - their plight is no worse and indeed probably better than experienced in most households across the UK. I believe that opprobrium is lessened towards them by the public, though, because of the diminished influence of mainstream media and in particular the Tory newspapers, which traditionally fuelled the narrative around strikers being evil, lazy leeches. Folk get their media kicks from other outlets these days and alternative, previously unconventional viewpoints are seen to be more available and fashionable.

Another key reason for public support is, as I’ve mentioned regularly in recent times, we are less dependent on the railway than previous generations. Its own relevance has diminished, alongside newspapers. That might change when Christmas beckons and visits to relatives are postponed (albeit I suspect some, who dread such events, might see it as a Godsend, just as many are relieved when strikes ensue because there’s a legitimate reason to work at home). Certainly, in the Warner household, my wife very enthusiastically reminds me there’s a rail strike due and it will shatter my plans of travelling around the country and staying away for days on end.

Surprisingly, though, Mrs Warner was actually disappointed for me that my long awaited model railway exhibition trip wasn’t to happen - indeed, initially when I broke the news she casually said: “Oh you’ll be able to work round it, get the coach and I’ll pick you up from wherever it drops you on Saturday night.” She had a point, or so I thought, until I had spent probably around eight hours plotting alternatives (and remember, I don’t drive so the car isn’t an option). If only it were so easy…

You would have thought the Derby to Birmingham leg would have been a doddle. I’d chosen to stay the Friday night in Derby because I know a cheap and convenient hotel and I was going to meet an industry guru there for the evening. But, the only coaches that run direct from Derby to Birmingham take three hours 52 minutes and the first one wasn’t until mid-afternoon on Saturday, which was ridiculous. I could have shaved an hour off my journey by getting a Kinchbus to Leicester and changing there, but then the journey disappeared off the Traveline system, for reasons that escape me.

I wasn’t, at this stage, to be deterred and

I’ve had nothing but positive experiences on long distance coach services

I worked out that I could get an Arriva or Trentbarton bus from Derby to Burton-onTrent, Midland Classic to Lichfield, National Express West Midlands to Birmingham City Centre and then changing, but with the same operator, to Birmingham Airport. All this would, with a departure time of 08:00 get me to the exhibition around 11:15. Quite a trek for only 44 miles!

Returning home to Shepperton from the NEC looked, by comparison to the short trip from Derby to Birmingham relatively straightforward. There was one coach just after 16:00 which took a little under three hours to cover 103 miles to Heathrow Airport (the earlier coach took four hours 20 minutes!). Then it would be an hour on the bus home or the missus would pick me up - but not from the airport as you have to pay a £5 pick-up and drop-off charge now, so I’d get the Tube to Hatton Cross and wait for her there.

My cancelled trip to the model railway exhibition was instructive to me on several counts. Firstly, I genuinely hadn’t realised the paucity of inter-city coach services in the UK and also ‘inter-urban’ buses that connect cities or even small towns. Naively I assumed there would be an hourly National Express coach from Derby to Birmingham city centre and maybe even Birmingham International Airport. I even assumed that a coach would run between the two airports, East Midlands and Birmingham. Not for one second did I then think that National Express wouldn’t be running a very frequent and quick (e.g. under two hours) service between Birmingham and Heathrow airports, or if that wasn’t available there would be a regular and rapid alternative into central London (the journey time instead was an eye-wateringly four and a half and five hours, including one change!).

As soon as I realised that the National Express service wasn’t quite what I’d expected, I thought I would have Megabus or Flixbus up my sleeve, but, alas, I’d over-estimated the scale of their networks. Then, as a final alternative, I genuinely thought that local bus would come to my rescue on the Derby to Birmingham leg. After all, there are so many decent operators in and around that region - Arriva, Trentbarton, Diamond, Midland Classic, CentreBus, National Express West Midlands, to name but a few.

This part of the world isn’t alone. Indeed,

take a look at all regions across the UK and bus networks consist predominantly of lots of individual clusters, rather than connectivity between these. Obviously, there’s a key reason for this in that, rail provides the bridge between cities and towns and it’s been difficult for bus and coach companies to compete with them, but perhaps the time has now come for the sector to realise it must have a credible alternative plan to the railway.

I don’t believe this plan is just one as a ‘contingency’ for strike days on rail, but I genuinely see it as a viable, day-in, dayout alternative. With rail fares becoming increasingly unaffordable and the whole customer experience having become pruned back so greatly in the past decade and beyond, the tipping point is near for customers. Although, I’ve suggested a plan shouldn’t be just for continuity purposes in the event of strike action, the extent to which the current industry is so unsustainable from a cost perspective means that, frankly, government backing down on some of the principles of the current dispute, are genuinely unlikely because the railway cannot continue in its financially broken way and with a workplace model that is cost prohibitive. These strikes could go on for months, if not years potentially, and whilst public support for them remains, the unions will be emboldened to drag them out further.

Back to my trip that never was. A few eyebrow-raising moments emerged when I tried to plot my bus alternative. Firstly, there are so many of these ‘A to B’ type websites that now exist but none of them feel credible. You could pull to pieces all of them with their listing of various travel modes, many create options that genuinely don’t seem the quickest or most viable and they just list ridiculous journey times, whereby with a bit of creativity, bus sector nous and a distrust of technology, alternatives do, just about, exist. However, in the absence of a pan-operator, nationwide or even regional map (covering a wide area, such as the whole of the Midlands, for instance), it’s impossible to look at the art of the possible! You have to go onto each operator’s website and some of them won’t have a network map or they will just have maps for individual locations and with no indication as to how you connect between them. Or, they will think they are being clever by not having a map but just giving you the opportunity to tap in a route number (as if you know what it is)

or the place you wish to travel from and to. All very good of course, if journeys were as simple as that, but it’s not just nerds like me that want to plan a more ambitious itinerary for a day-out based on travelling either exclusively by bus or wanting a combination of other modes, such as rail or coach!

All this brings me onto Traveline and an article for a future date. It is further off being an equivalent of National Rail Enquiries in terms of consumer awareness, depth, range and simplicity than Crystal Palace Football Club winning a trophy in my lifetime. Send BSIP (Bus Service Improvement Plan) funding in Traveline’s direction so it can be revamped and marketed properly. Oh and change the name too as it doesn’t resonate with the youngsters of today.

It’s incredible that the coach sector received no emergency government support during the pandemic. Now, though, is the time for its role in keeping the nation moving to be properly recognised and prioritised. Both the government, the operators and the public should not view it as a ‘distress purchase’ for the most price sensitive or for folk to seek to use only when there is industrial action across the rail network. I’d like there to be a time when I instinctively think of getting a coach for a trip such as that which I’d planned last weekend, rather than merely as a back up to rail. I’ve had nothing but positive experiences on long distance coach services in the UK, so technically there should be parity between coach and rail in my decision-making process.

I’d also like to see the bus industry work holistically, including with the Department for Transport and local authorities, to take a more nationwide lens towards planning services - potentially creating a UK inter-urban bus network that joins the dots across all major towns and cities in an integrated way, but not as a ‘back-up’ to rail but as a genuinely competitive force. The bus and coach operators must be bolder in their approach and prouder of their products. They need to take on rail, rather than just see themselves in its shadow.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Alex Warner has over 29 years’ experience in the transport sector, having held senior roles on a multi-modal basis across the sector

“Bus and coach operators must be bolder in their approach and prouder of their products”

NICK RICHARDSON

Transport needs long term thinking

Much has been said about the upheaval of recent months and the consequential shuffling of ministerial posts. It’s worth considering what the key issues for the transport portfolio should be, given that the incoming decisionmakers have a limited track record in this field. The individuals concerned may not be too worried given the lack of longevity by previous holders of their roles, but hoping all the problems will go away is not a sign of good government. The civil servants must be tearing out their hair over the constant initiation for incoming ministers but they are also likely to be worried about their jobs given the intention to save costs by eradicating large chunks of the civil service.

Instability

What is peculiar is that each successive regime of the past few months has been behaving as if they have been elected with a landslide vote that was nothing to do with their colleagues (and in many cases themselves) so a fresh start is needed. Strangely, the electorate had nothing to do with any of it. Judging by parliamentary debates, government seemed to think that the opposition benches were in control. Even more disturbing was my own constituency MP thinking that she should be prime minister despite a lacklustre parliamentary career so far. Inevitably, funding is commanding everything currently. Trying to eradicate all memories of the failed Truss tenure won’t work, not least because it caused an estimated £30bn of

damage and totally undermined the credibility of government and the individuals concerned; this will take years to rebuild. Despite dire warnings about our economic prospects, reducing government spending tends to be selective and has knock-on effects for the wider business community. Controlling central government spending is a strange beast when huge sums are unassailable, such as building nuclear power stations, aircraft carriers, healthcare and HS2; every other sector suffers as a result. Restricting local government spending has lots of effects especially after years of austerity measures imposed by government of the same flavour. This has got to the point where many local authorities will simply cease to function because the cuts demanded will undermine their statutory duties, so either residents suffer or the councils fail.

On top of this, public spending cuts affect the private sector, something which successive administrations have failed to understand. Many private sector organisations are closely linked with public sector activities so that if there are fewer contracts to be secured, then businesses need to downsize. Claiming that we are a nation of entrepreneurs and that enterprise and private investment will see us through is economically and politically naïve.

Transport contraction

For transport, spending cuts can be disastrous. Firstly, transport affects many government interests beyond the DfT including health,

education, rural affairs, Levelling Up … the list goes on. Hence policy needs to be integrated, not something that traditionally occurs in government, even within the same department. Spending in one area has implications for others, notably transport. A problem of each administration pretending to be different from the previous one is that continuity is sacrificed in favour of headline-making. Incoming ministers often want to make their mark so any semblance of taking forward previous policies is cast aside. Transport is particularly susceptible to this, partly because it isn’t a priority and partly because actually achieving anything in transport takes a long time, usually longer than a parliamentary term. An extra complication lately has been the compression of the legislative programme which then fails to promote new Bills that affect transport. Bickering and stagnation is as bad as proroguing Parliament, the latter being an unlawful violation of democratic process and the former being the result of a political tempest. There are lessons to be learned from the UK devolved administrations which highlight some really progressive policies that contrast with the situation in England. Confusion abounds with the UK Government having control in some situations but not others, sometimes acting for England alone but at other times affecting the UK as a whole.

Latest priorities

Working within the system, we can consider what should be on the top of the list for the latest ministerial team at DfT. Some issues simply won’t go away and some decisions are pressing. Essentially, government needs to decide if it can work towards a progressive and integrated transport strategy or if it will just muddle on instead. Here is the great dichotomy between supporting roads and road use on the one hand and sustainable transport on the other. It appears that COP26 achieved virtually nothing for transport and COP27 has made limited progress. If action aligns with rhetoric, then transport needs have much firmer direction starting now. This should involve redirected spending (not cuts) towards solutions that enable us to get anywhere near the climate response projections espoused by other parts of government. Much more is needed and we are already way behind where

we should be in response to a potential global catastrophe.

Related to that are a number of policy areas that need to progress. One is road user charging - just do it! The mechanisms exist, the projections have been made and the current arrangements don’t work, all adding up to an imperative to be bold. On the railways, the Bill to get Great British Railways up and running has been pushed aside so GBR may fade away. Again, the structural model for a major transport sector has failed and while there is an agreed way forward, it needs the proposals to be put into effect which is a huge and complicated business. Now that decision has been made, government needs to stick with it and avoid the endless rounds of reviews that cripple progress. The successive u-turns on Northern Powerhouse Rail just show how messy it can be. If everyone needs certainty, then the DfT isn’t the place to look at the moment.

Taking hard decisions

Bus services are vitally important for communities across the country. The various national approaches recognise this and the

tone of the strategy for England illustrated how this should be done. Unfortunately it included shades of the then-PM’s track record in London, setting unrealistic deadlines then everyone having to work day and night (literally in some cases) so he could cut the ribbon at the appointed time. An incoming DfT administration could helpfully look at how the prescribed measures to improve bus services are delivered at the moment and assess the scope for making it much easier and quicker. Bus and coach services are facing an uphill struggle due to cost increases and a host of other problems so government needs to understand their significance and what will happen if they fail.

We have seen large scale investment in cycling in recent years and even an acknowledgement that walking is a good idea. However, other areas are brushed aside, notably aviation as a polluter on a grand

scale. Flying people from all over the world to Egypt to discuss reducing emissions is more than ironic. Demand management, another topic that government is reluctant to discuss, is highly appropriate for the aviation sector. Similarly, the maritime sector has a long way to go in reducing fossil fuel consumption and hiding behind international dictats is hardly a positive interventionalist role.

All in all there is lots to do for whatever direction is adopted for DfT and other government departments that influence transport. Thinking longer term would be a good start but pre-election is never a good time to put collective heads above the parapet. The trouble is that it never seems to be a good time - and that must change.

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.

“Inevitably funding is commanding everything currently”

Work underway at the future Birmingham terminus of HS2 last summer. Other sectors suffer as funding is diverted into big projects like HS2

ENERGY MARKET REPORT

PORTLAND FUEL ANALYTICS - DECEMBER 2022

Qatar - a global gas superpower

Dedicated readers of this report will know that we like to cover international sporting events and relate them to the energy picture of the hosting country. This month we will continue the theme with a report on Qatar - a country that simultaneously finds itself at the epicentre of the current global energy crisis, whilst also hosting the controversial winter World Cup. This is an event made possible by alleged bribery of FIFA officials and then further facilitated by the deaths of hundreds (possibly thousands) of migrant workers. As a result, many football fans have found it difficult to get passionate about the competition, although that doesn’t change the fact that when it comes to the Energy World Cup, Qatar goes well beyond the group stages…

Like most of its Middle Eastern neighbours, Qatar’s oil and gas industry is operated and controlled by a state-owned entity - in this case, QatarEnergy. As of 2022, QatarEnergy was the fifth largest oil and gas company in the world with revenues of circa $25bn and the third largest gas reserves in the world at 25 trillion (yep!) cubic metres. This places Qatar behind Iran (34 trillion m3) and Russia (48 trillion m3) in the gas hit-parade, although do remember that Russia has a population of 140 million and Iran, 85 million. By comparison, the tiny peninsular of Qatar has a population just shy of three million and a land mass that makes it

smaller than Northern Ireland! No wonder that whilst oil dominates the agenda in most Middle Eastern countries, in Qatar, gas is King.

In the 1970’s the Kingdom of Qatar discovered huge offshore reserves of gas in one single gargantuan field in the Persian Gulf. Straddling the maritime border of Iran, this new gas discovery was named the ‘North Dome Field’ and remains to this day the single largest ‘stand-alone’ gas field on the planet. Production levels are 77 million tonnes a year and even at current run rates, the North Dome still has an incredible 130 years of reserves under the ground.

Such huge gas capacity compares starkly against the kingdom’s oil activity. Despite joining OPEC in 1961 as its sixth member, actually Qatar only produces 600,000 barrels per day of oil, which is less than 2% of total OPEC production. Then in 2019, a diplomatic row broke out between Saudi and Qatar (dubbed the ‘New Arab Cold War’), ostensibly around regional influence, but also touching on diplomatic relationships with Iran, democratic freedoms and of course energy hegemony.

With little ‘skin in the game’ when it came to oil, the diplomatic row was the cue for Qatar to smite Saudi Arabia and resign its OPEC

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membership, declaring it was no longer in its strategic interest to remain a member. In doing so, Qatar became the first ever Arab and Middle Eastern country to stand down from OPEC and the clear message was that the country was now an independent energy player. The further subtext was that Qatar had its eyes firmly focussed on gas. After all, why be a minnow in a sector facing long-term decline (oil), when you can be gas super-power, looking ahead to significant growth potential?

What also differentiates Qatari gas from its neighbours is its access to global markets. When the North Dome field was discovered in 1971, there were initial efforts to connect the field to other Middle Eastern countries. This was done in due course via the Dolphin Pipeline (which carries Qatari gas to the UAE and Oman), but realising that these markets would always be limited in size, Qatar’s masterstroke was to develop their capacity to liquefy gas and load it onto ocean going tankers. Over time, QatarGas has developed into the planet’s largest LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas) company, producing almost 80 million tonnes annually and transporting it globally via the largest (69 vessels) LNG maritime fleet in the world. This gives it approximately 30% of the total global trade in LNG and makes the kingdom the world’s biggest LNG exporter. Such capacity has meant that Europe has been spared a cold and powerless winter in 2022-23 and is also of particular interest to the UK, where even before the Ukraine crisis, 90% of our LNG imports were coming from Qatar. This equated to over a quarter of Britain’s total gas supply. With gas prices at record levels for most of 2022, the hosting of this year’s World Cup is a matter of small change for this Arabian peninsular. And the reality is that for all the talk of FIFA backhanders and shocking local HSE standards, in a world of true bad guys, Qatar’s failings hardly put them in the Premiership. As long as we need gas, muted outrage will be as far as any criticism goes. Not that Qatar will care too much either way. When the World Cup is over, they will go back to the day job of increasing their energy supply to the world. 2023 will see a further $30bn invested in the North Dome, which will increase production to 110 million tonnes per annum and by 2030, the field is expected to be producing 130 million tonnes. Only another 100 or so years of reserves to go after that…

When

James Spencer Portland

“The North Dome has an incredible 130 years of reserves under the ground”

Rail review saga is like a Carry On film

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

Well, the autumn statement turned out to be as grim as expected! My prediction that the roads programme would see heavy cuts imposed was a bit wide of the mark, but only in the sense that no specific cuts to individual programmes were announced. Cuts are coming because there will be no real terms increase in capital spending budgets from 2025/26 onwards, so the effects of inflation will materially erode our capital programme budgets.

And my suggestion that the future of HS2 Phase 2 was “hanging by a thread” proved wide of the mark too, with the chancellor confirming that the route from the West Midlands to Manchester will proceed. Mind you, nothing was said about the easterly leg from the West Midlands to East Midlands Parkway, which probably had many speculating that this was for the chop. But on checking with colleagues it seems we are still waiting for advice from Network Rail and HS2 before development work on this leg can proceed in earnest, and it seems nothing much will happen here until next year. Still, given the pressures on capital budgets it wouldn’t surprise me one little bit if the easterly leg was allowed to wither on the vine, much like Crossrail 2. We’ve also yet to see the High Level Output Specification (HLOS) and Statement of Funds Available (SoFA) for the railway’s next Control Period for 2024/25 through to 2028/29, and this will be published on December 2 - the day this edition of Passenger Transport appears, so more on that in my next column. The HLOS

and SoFA will make interesting reading as with so much uncertainty still hanging over the rail review and, indeed, over the longer-term finances of the railways, it’s not clear to me how they can be anything other than guesswork.

The delay to implementation of the rail review continues to puzzle me. As one person in the industry pointed out to me the other day, John Major’s government managed to get rail privatisation designed, legislated on, and the first trains running under a franchise regime all in the space of four years. The rail review kicked off in November 2018. Four years later we’ve had four prime ministers and four transport secretaries and the rail review is not remotely close to being on the statute book with a Bill not now expected until the

next parliamentary session. Something has clearly gone badly wrong with the whole thing. I can’t explain it, but every time I think about the rail review the theme tune to The Benny Hill Show pops into my head (apologies to the younger readers who may not be familiar with this old BBC comedy series which, in today’s more enlightened environment, would never see the light of day). Or, as my industry friend suggested, it would make the Carry On films look like a serious production!

I don’t normally stray into the world of politics but the last two months have been strange to say the least. In the space of two months the same Conservative Party has delivered two budgets which could not be more different in approach. Indeed, they’re polar opposites. Some who served in Liz Truss’s cabinet and supported Kwasi Kwarteng’s mini budget are just as happy to sit in Rishi Sunak’s cabinet and support Jeremy Hunt’s autumn statement. Tom Tugendhat praised Kwarteng’s mini budget as “a plan for the economy founded on true Conservative principles of low tax, a lean state and bold supply side reform.” Yet the same Tom Tugendhat sits in Rishi Sunak’s cabinet that has endorsed the highest level of taxation since the Second World War. James Cleverly, the foreign secretary in Liz Truss’s Cabinet, described Kwarteng’s mini budget as “incredibly well thought through.” The same James Cleverly remains as foreign secretary and therefore must endorse the autumn statement which didn’t just rip up Kwarteng’s “well thought through” mini budget but repudiated almost every element of his statement that presented it.

And while the medicine dished out by Jeremy Hunt may have been necessary, some of what he said in his autumn statement struck me as contradictory. He told us that “Conservatives know that high tax economies damage enterprise and erode freedom” - and then promptly announced a series of tax measures that takes the tax burden to the highest level since the Second World War, something that surely could “damage enterprise and erode freedom”. He talked of the need for “sound money” and then promptly increased the NHS budget without any proposals to make it more efficient. Departmental revenue budgets increase by 1% a year in real terms with no talk of Whitehall reform. No wonder I don’t understand politics!

“The

continues to puzzle me” GREAT

Roberts to remain as CPT president in 2023

McGill’s Bus Group boss will oversee creation of VP role

The Confederation of Passenger Transport has announced that Ralph Roberts, chief executive of McGill’s Bus Group, will continue as its president until the end of January 2024, with a one-year extension to his current term.

Roberts has over 40 years’ knowledge of the transport sector. He has spent the past 13 years as CEO of McGill’s Bus Group where he has overseen significant expansion and the introduction of one of Scotland’s largest zero-emission bus fleets. He leads a workforce of over 2,500 employees.

CPT chief executive Graham Vidler said: “Ralph’s leadership as president has been invaluable to CPT members who have worked to agree the strategic priorities of the organisation.”

“I’m delighted he will be continuing in his role, having

FORMER FRENCH PM IS RATP BOSS

French president Emmanuel Macron has announced the appointment of former French prime minister Jean Castex as chairman and chief executive of RATP Group. The move follows the resignation of Catherine Guillouard in September after she informed RATP that she wished to step down for personal reasons. Castex was confirmed on November 9 after a vote by the 28 members of the Commission for

twice previously been Chair of CPT Scotland. His extensive experience in the transport industry is a huge asset to CPT.”

In his role as president, 2023 will see Roberts oversee the creation of the new vicepresident role, with the new VP set to support the president in ambassadorial activities and specific areas of policy, providing value to CPT and continuity for the future.

“I’m really pleased to be

continuing as CPT president and will continue to help members get the very best out of their membership, as well as oversee the new vice-president role,” Roberts said. “It has been extremely rewarding to see the support offered by CPT to its members as we emerged from the pandemic, with CPT delivering quick and easy specialist advice to members when they needed it most.

“I look forward to continuing this work throughout next year.”

PEOPLE

WLLGLADE

Wellglade, the parent company of bus operator Trentbarton, has announced the appointment of John Bickerton as the new group engineering director.

Bickerton (pictured) will take on the newly created role in January. The graduate engineer comes from Arriva UK Bus, where he was head of zero-emission strategy. In his new role he will oversee the maintenance of the combined fleet’s of 400-plus buses and coaches, which are based at six depots. He will lead a team of engineering managers and around 100 engineers and trainees.

The group engineering role was created as part of a recently announced management reorganisation at Wellglade and Trentbarton (PT274).

HEATHROW EXPRESS

Heathrow Express has announced that Daniel Edwards has been appointed as business lead and director.

Territorial Planning and Sustainable Development. The RATP board has subsequently ratified the appointment.

“It is a great honor to join RATP,”said Castex. “I am fully aware of the challenges ahead for this public company which has risen in recent years to become the third largest urban public transport operator in the world.

“My priority will be to meet those who bring it to life on a daily basis and their representatives. Because the RATP is at the heart of the life of Ile-de-France residents, in the coming weeks I will also meet our

key partners, starting with the president of Ile-de-France Mobilités and the associations of travellers. I will discuss with them the offer and the quality of service that we must provide to travellers.”

The French media has reported that Castex’s appointment follows criticisms levelled at Macron for his perceived lack of interest in the public transport sector. There have also been claims that the president’s office had “short-circuited” a process whereby recruitment consultants Jouve & Associés had been tasked with submitting a shortlist of likely candidates to take on the role.

Edwards (pictured) rejoins Heathrow Express from Heathrow Airport, where he led the Heathrow VIP commercial team before becoming head of retail categories, managing key relationships with retail business partners.

He previously worked at Heathrow Express between 2018 and 2019 as the train operator’s commercial customer service manager. Edwards began his career in aviation before making the move to the railway industry with Northern - firstly as the hub station delivery manager and then as head of customer experience.

Ralph Roberts

Jean Castex takes on the top job at French group

Women in Transport Welsh hub aims high

Transport for Wales and Women in Transport have launched a new hub that aims to tackle under-representation of women in the sector

Transport for Wales (TfW) has partnered with Women in Transport to launch a new Welsh Hub that will empower women in the industry to maximise their potential.

Recent figures reveal that the transport sector is subjected to a significant gender gap with women making only 20% of the workforce of the transport and communications industry in Wales.

The new Welsh Hub will look at how it can further support the current female workforce and encourage more women to the

industry through helping remove any social barriers.

As part of the launch, the Welsh Government has funded research that was carried out by gender equality charity Chwarae Teg to map out where women are working in the transport sector in Wales and to understand their experiences.

The research shows that women are notably under-represented in the occupational groups traditionally associated with men, particularly among engineers, vehicle maintenance and drivers.

The new partnership will now use this data to inform their work and implement positive change in the transport industry across Wales.

“There is a high demand for people to work in the transport and logistics sector,” said Welsh minister for climate change Julie James. “On average around 4,500 job vacancies in transport and logistics are posted online each month in Wales. It is therefore remarkable that women only make up 20% of the workforce. That is why I am pleased we have been able to sponsor this piece of

work which looks at the barriers and challenges facing women entering the workforce and how they can be overcome.”

Jo Foxall, customer engagement director at Transport for Wales and Wales lead for Women in Transport, said she welcomed the launch of the new Welsh Hub.

“It’s been great to launch the Wales Hub,” she said. “At Transport for Wales, we’re building an inclusive and diverse workforce and we recognise that our public transport network needs to cater for the diverse public and be inclusive for all.

“I’ve worked in the transport sector for 18 years and I’m extremely passionate about encouraging more women to take up roles within the transport sector in both traditionally male front line roles as well as more leadership and decision-making positions.”

Which station is bottom of the stops?

Nottinghamshire halt is named least used station

The Office of Rail and Road last week revealed London Waterloo had regained its crown as Britain’s busiest railway station, but what about the other end of the list?

While Waterloo chalked up 41,426,042 entries and exits by rail passengers, this dwarfs plucky little Elton and Orston in Nottinghamshire. The ORR officially named it the least used station for 2021/22 with just 40 entries and exits by passengers.

And having delved deeper, we can understand why. It seems the station is served by just two services on Mondays to Saturdays. They are the 06:27 to Nottingham and the 17:10 to Skegness. There’s also few in the way

of facilities too.

Elton and Orston pipped perennial least used station favourite Teesside Airport over the last year as it recorded a substantial.... er... 42 entries and exits. This was ahead of Stanlow and Thornton in Cheshire (44 entries and exits), Denton in Greater Manchester (50 entries and exits), Kirton Lindsey in North Lincolnshire (68 entries and exits), and Sugar Loaf (Yum! Ed) in Powys (76 entries and exits).

However, the ORR is at pains to point out that the, ahem, weekly service from Kirton Lindsey was suspended between April 1 to May 22, 2021 and again from January 1 2022 to March 31, 2022!

YOU MUST LIKE CHOCOLATE

BUSES PLAY A PART FOR 60-YEAR PALS

Stagecoach Manchester passengers Anne and Lesley recently celebrated their sixdecade long friendship by taking a trip down memory lane on the bus.

The pair, who met in their twenties working at the now demolished Avro aircraft factory in Woodford, have remained best friends ever since, with trips on the bus playing a huge role in their later years.

Anne commented on the pair receiving their first concessionary bus pass: “We wanted to get to London! We used to go into Stockport together and get on the first bus we saw. We’d just get off wherever we fancied and have some great adventures.”

The duo visited the site in

Woodford where their friendship began before stopping off at a bakery where Lesley worked many years ago, as well as some restaurants and pubs along the way that the pair would visit with their husbands in tow.

Lesley, who now resides in a care home in Stockport, can’t get out and about on the bus as much as she once could, and commented that whilst she was “shattered” after the day out it had been a lovely day with Anne.

“It was lovely... an utter surprise,” she added.

Caledonian Sleeper has teamed up with ice creamto-crisps-to-chocolate manufacturer Mackie’s to offer one lucky competition winner an unforgettable railway experience. Mackie’s supplies free chocolate bars to Sleeper guests in premium cabins and now the two sides have launched a competiton to offer a free sleeper trip to one lucky winner as well as a Mackie’s goody bag that includes an ice cream scoop, tea towel and, er, a whopping 52 bars of chocolate!

As Mackie’s notes: “If you have an interest in trains, travelling or chocolate then this is the competition for you!”

SEEN SOMETHING QUIRKY?

‘Is there anybody there...?’

Anne and Lesley’s big day out